Emergency Rations (EP)
| Emergency Rations | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| EP by Mr. Lif | ||||
| Released | June 25, 2002 | |||
| Recorded | February 28, 2002; Bandulero Sound, Berlin; Boston Butta Beats, Boston; The Pool Room, New York City | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 28:18 | |||
| Label | Definitive Jux | |||
| Producer | Mr. Lif, Edan, DJ Hype, DJ Fakts One, El-P | |||
| Mr. Lif chronology | ||||
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Emergency Rations is the second EP by American rapper Mr. Lif, released on June 25, 2002, by Definitive Jux. It was recorded on February 28, 2002, at Bandulero Sound in Berlin, Boston Butta Beats in Boston, and The Pool Room in New York City.[1]
Music and lyrics
Emergency Rations is a concept album whose premise centers around Mr. Lif's fictional kidnapping presumably by government agents. It showcases his defiant perspective on themes such as civil rights, censorship, and U.S. foreign policy.[2] He also raps about societal ills such as gender socialization, the vapid state of pop culture, and the dehumanizing effects of capitalism.[3] Lif's thoughtful, confrontational lyrics are backed by Akrobatik and El-P's dissonant production, which evokes feelings of paranoia and alienation.[2]
Critical reception
Emergency Rations received positive reviews from critics. In The A.V. Club, Nathan Rabin highlighted the EP's "solid blast of social consciousness" and wrote that it possessed "a raw, unfinished quality that more than lives up to the urgency of its title".[3] AllMusic's Martin Woodside called Lif "a thoughtful, often incendiary lyricist", while giving Emergency Rations four out of five stars and calling it "a provocative, well-crafted album that proves hard to ignore."[2] Robert Christgau from The Village Voice found Mr. Lif "funny" and an "angry guy" while giving Emergency Rations an "A–". According to him, Lif used the EP as both a set up for his subsequent concept album, I Phantom (2002), and as "an excuse to drop random science about the place of hip hop in the military-industrial complex."[4]
Track listing
- "Intro (Missing Person's File)" – 2:22
- Featuring Akrobatik and Brotha PC
- "Jugular Vein" – 3:19
- Produced by Mr. Lif
- Scratches by Doc Fu
- "Heavy Artillery" – 3:41
- Produced by Edan
- Scratches by Edan
- "Home of the Brave" – 3:46
- Produced by Mr. Lif
- Scratches by DJ Hype
- "Pull Out Your Cut" – 3:30
- Produced by DJ Hype
- Scratches by DJ Hype
- "Get Wise '91" – 3:21
- Featuring Edan
- Produced by Edan
- Scratches by Edan
- "The Unorthodox" – 4:00
- Produced by DJ Fakts One
- Scratches by DJ Fakts One
- "Phantom" – 4:18
- Featuring El-P
- Produced by El-P
Personnel
Credits adapted from liner notes.[5]
- Akrobatik – vocals
- Keith Atkins – engineer
- DJ Hype – cut, producer
- Edan – producer
- EI P – producer, vocals
- Fakts One – cut, producer, vocals
- Ray Boy Fernandes – engineer, mixing
- Marc Johnson – engineer
- Dan Ezra Lang – art direction, design, illustrations
- Mr. Lif – primary artist, producer
- Nasa – engineer, mixing
- Ghazi Shami – development
References
- ↑ "Mr Lif - Emergency Rations CD Album". CD Universe. Muze. Archived from the original on March 12, 2013. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
- 1 2 3 Woodside, Martin. "Emergency Rations - Mr. Lif". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
- 1 2 Rabin, Nathan (October 18, 2002). "Mr. Lif: Emergency Rations EP". The A.V. Club. Chicago. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
- ↑ Christgau, Robert (February 11, 2003). "Consumer Guide: The Prelude". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved March 5, 2013.
- ↑ Emergency Rations (CD liner notes). Mr. Lif. Definitive Jux. 2002. DJX030-2.
External links
- Official website
- Emergency Rations at Discogs (list of releases)