Another New York indy label, I know what you’re thinking…don’t bother. Not just because you don’t know the half, but because you don’t know “You Don’t Know the Half.” In the words of the legendary, you must learn. Unfortunately, this review will only give you a percentage of your educational requirements on Halftooth Records; you’re gonna need to pick up the album and become a scholar. Nevertheless, here is lesson 1: Halftooth Records was founded in 2001 by David Schrager and Zach Gordon as a way for them to share their love of hip hop with others.

Lesson 2: Time to meet the professors, J-Live, Talib Kweli, Phonte & Big Pooh of Little Brother, Asheru, Kev Brown and Grap Luva. Can’t forget the dean and his associates, official Halftooth artists’ Wordsworth, Oddisee and Kenn Starr. Lesson 3: Curriculum. This is where things get exciting. Compilations are often collections of artists’ ‘c’ material and album leftovers save a couple standouts; that theory does not apply here. This is 100% quality, dope, true school hip hop at its finest; wonderfully constructed beats that would make Primo, Pete Rock and Extra P proud, and jewel-encrusted rhymes filled with honesty and sincerity that would gain the Teacher’s approval. Wanna graduate at the top of your class? “Who Do You Call”? J-Live, of course. If you can listen to this song and honestly say J isn’t top ten in this field, you fail. “I let a rhyme find my mind like a premonition/rippin’ through rhythm I give’em a purpose and a mission/the mission is to attract ears and make’em listen/the purpose is to hit you with the hard shit that your missin'” J-Live puts on another clinic alongside Oddisee and Kenn Starr on the album’s opener “Quest To Find.” Oddisee and Kenn Starr also set the tone for their respective solo gems “Yes Y’all,” “Brother” and “What Up,” “Walk The Walk.” They also team up over Oddisee’s smacking drums to tell us “This Is Hip Hop.”

With Oddisee laying down the supplementary soundscapes at nearly every lesson, the ‘a’ material is a lock. Phonte and Big Pooh sound just as comfortable over his soulful offering as they do over a 9th beat on “Long Time Comin’.” He also laces Wordsworth with an ill beat that Words in turn, rips apart (“Here We Go Again”). Can we get an LP fellas? Shit, even the man’s interludes are bangin, can we get an instrumental LP? Back to the lesson at hand, a couple seminal posse cuts help to round out the syllabus; “If” featuring Talib Kweli, Asheru, and Kenn Starr, and “You Don’t Know The Half” featuring Quartermaine, Kenn Starr, Dash, Oddisee and Wordsworth. Lesson over, for more info on how to enroll check out www.halftooth.com.