DJ Cam ‎– Mad Blunted Jazz

A flawlessly executed combination of jazz and hip-hop beats. I first became interested in this album after discovering the song "Mad Blunted Jazz" and liking what I heard - a nice downtempo piece with a repeating two-note bassline, a short looped female vocal, and a mid-song dropout to the bridge featuring a piano solo. Being long out of print, the album was somewhat hard to come across, but it was worth the price in every way - I was pleased to find that I actually liked "Mad Blunted Jazz" the least out of all the songs on the album. From the opening intro and the vibes & sitar of "Gangsta Shit" to the dark, sluggish beat of "Underground Vibes" and the more uptempo "Dieu Reconnaitra Les Siens", there just wasn't a bad track to be found. The live disc is great too - although "Meera" and "Lost Kingdom" both feature some female vocals that can be a little grating, overall the live performance is nearly as good as the studio disc, which is definitely saying something. An impressive US debut by DJ Cam and a must-own for fans of downtempo or instrumental hip-hop.

Mad Blunted Jazz is DJ Cam’s first US release, a 2-cd set consisting of his import album Underground Vibes and a live album, and it stands among the best downtempo ever. The beats are solid, hip-hop all the way, and the melodies are wonderfully dreamy with jazzy chords liberally applied. Even on harshly named tracks like “Suckers Never Play That,” there’s a delicacy and thoughtfulness to these tracks. “Sang-Lien” veers towards the darker side of the street; “Underground Vibes” stays there and languishes in the beautiful, murky gloom (the vocal sample is wonderfully apt). “Dieu Reconnaitra Les Siens” brings things back to a more upbeat feel, featuring a sample from Deee-Lite. On the live disc, obviously the production value isn’t as high as on the regular disc, but the tracks flow into one another, creating a smoky, “live club” atmosphere. But there are some surprises: the sitar hip-hop of “Gangsta Shit” and “London 1995,” which is essentially a drum ‘n’ bass remix of “Underground Vibes.” This is an essential release.

I'm still trying to find something similar to the sound of "Mad Blunted Jazz" Lush, beautiful piano chords, with nice hip-hop beats over it, Cam doesn't get any better than this release... One of my all time fav's. Get it!