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PUBLIC ENEMY

Public Enemy

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back - 35th Anniversary Edition

    'It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back' is the second studio album by Public Enemy, released on June 28, 1988, by Def Jam Recordings. NME and Rolling Stone dubbed it “the greatest hip-hop album ever,” and who are we to argue. An absolutely groundbreaking album, featuring: 'Rebel Without a Pause', 'Bring The Noise' and 'Don’t Believe The Hype'.

    TRACK LISTING

    1. Countdown To Armageddon
    2. Bring The Noise
    3. Don't Believe The Hype
    4. Cold Lampin With Flavor
    5. Terminator X To The Edge Of Panic
    6. Mind Terrorist
    7. Louder Than A Bomb
    8. Caught, Can We Get A Witness?
    9. Show 'Em Whatcha Got
    10. She Watch Channel Zero?!
    11. Night Of The Living Baseheads
    12. Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos
    13. Security Of The First World
    14. Rebel Without A Pause
    15. Prophets Of Rage
    16. Party For Your Right To Fight

    Public Enemy

    Yo! Bum Rush The Show - 2023 Reissue

      With 1987's 'Yo! Bum Rush the Show', Public Enemy introduced a new kind of bravado that wasn't just directed at other players and sucker MCs but was an out-and-out middle-finger challenge to the whole world. PE, helped by Def Jam head Rick Rubin, crowd these tracks with disparate sounds that move your hips while they buzz from every channel. Despite Chuck and Flavor's serious posturing, you'll be grateful for the sloppy bass line in "Timebomb" and Terminator X's brilliant tone experiment (doffing its hat to Fred Wesley's 'Blow Your Head'), "Public Enemy No. 1."

      Public Enemy

      What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down

        Public Enemy rewrote the rules of hip-hop, becoming the most influential and controversial rap group of the late '80s and, for many, the definitive rap group of all time. Building from Run-D.M.C.'s street-oriented beats and Boogie Down Productions' proto-gangsta rhyming, Public Enemy pioneered a variation of hardcore rap that was musically and politically revolutionary. With his powerful, authoritative baritone, lead rapper Chuck D rhymed about all kinds of social problems, particularly those plaguing the black community, often condoning revolutionary tactics and social activism. In the process, he directed hip-hop toward an explicitly self-aware, pro-black consciousness that became the culture's signature throughout the next decade. While Public Enemy's early Def Jam albums, produced with the Bomb Squad, earned them a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, they continued to release relevant material up to and beyond their 2013 induction. Now, Public Enemy is back, and is ready to tell the world to once again FIGHT THE POWER!

        Public Enemy

        It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back - Back To Black Edition

          'Yo! Bum Rush The Show' was an invigorating record, but it looks like child's play compared to its monumental sequel, 'It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back', a record that rewrote the rules of what hip-hop could do. That's not to say the album is without precedent, since what's particularly ingenious about the album is how it reconfigures things that came before into a startling, fresh, modern sound. Public Enemy used the template Run DMC created of a rap crew as a rock band, then brought in elements of free jazz, hard funk, even musique concrète, via their producing team, the Bomb Squad, creating a dense, ferocious sound unlike anything that came before. This coincided with a breakthrough in Chuck D's writing, both in his themes and lyrics. It's not that Chuck D was smarter or more ambitious than his contemporaries - certainly, KRS-One tackled many similar sociopolitical tracts, while Rakim had a greater flow - but he marshaled considerable revolutionary force, clear vision, and a boundless vocabulary to create galvanizing, logical arguments that were undeniable in their strength. They only gained strength from Flavor Flav's frenzied jokes, which provided a needed contrast. What's amazing is how the words and music become intertwined, gaining strength from each other. Though this music is certainly a representation of its time, it hasn't dated at all. It set a standard that few could touch then, and even fewer have attempted to meet since.


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