Sunset Blvd. Yancey Boys Artist

Taking the name of his debut album and turning it into a project, {|Illa J|} joins with {|Frank Nitt|} for the {|Yancey Boys|} and their debut release, {|Sunset Blvd.|}. Comprised of beats from {|Illa J|}'s older brother {|J Dilla|}, the album doesn't necessarily celebrate the game-changing, Detroit hip-hop producer's life (he passed away in 2006 at the age of 32 from a lupus-like disease), but it does celebrate the vibe his records offered, as {|Illa|} and {|Frank|} join a smart, street-level series of MCs who swagger and stun over these soulful backing tracks. On the great Fisherman, reverence is one thing (Tell 'em like {|Dilla|} told em), but fly kicks are another (When I feel the beat with all my soul, fill the streets with my songs/Feel my feet on the road, call me {|Beatles|} {|Rubber Soul|}) as {|J-Rocc|}, {|Vice|}, and {|Detroit Serious|} join the {|Yancey|} duo for a vibrant hang session. Then there's the all-star posse of {|Talib Kweli|}, {|Niko Gray|}, and {|Rhettmatic|}, who turn {|Dilla|}'s beat into what it demands, a seductive bedroom number called Flowers. Clubs will instantly get cooler once the {|J-Rocc|} and {|Guilty Simpson|} electro-wonder called Go and Ask the DJ hits the speakers, while grown folks who don't get out as much get some serious headphone listening from veteran MCs like {|De La Soul|}'s {|Posdanous|} (Beautiful) and {|Common|} (Quicksand). Surprises come when the broken jazz of {|Dilla|}'s beat meets the {|Yancey Boys|} at full steam on the proud and amazing Without Wings, while the lesser-known {|J Pinder|} jumps on the A-list with some supreme macking during Honk Ya Horn (To the Apollonian chick, with the Swisha and a tray/Twistin' the hay, good green like Michigan State). Fans thinking these rare beats should be handled with more respect are missing the point -- and can seek out the instrumentals, which are available as a bonus or separately -- but those who approach this as fond memories on Friday night will find themselves smiling until the sun comes up on Monday. Good times, great rhymes, and excellent beats. ~ David Jeffries