Back in the mid to late 90’s when the independent scene was profitable for more than a few, Rasco was among those at the forefront. The Bay Area emcee with the commanding voice and cool demeanor hit with an underground classic in “Time Waits For No Man” and expanded his fan base even more when he teamed up with Fresno’s Planet Asia to form the Cali Agents. In between that time Rasco released a great little under-the-radar compilation (“20,000 Leagues Under The Street”), on his own Pockets Linted label.
“The Minority Report” is a showcase of both known and up-and-coming talent down with the Soul Father Rasco. So of course you’ve got a Cali Agents cut (“Let’s Get It On), which is their usual banger. The solo tracks from Rasco and Planet Asia are also expected, and those expectations are met quite nicely. Rasco gets autobiographical and laces “From The Ground Up” in a way only he can. The beat Asia rocks over could be better, but you can’t front on his battle rhymes on “Fuck Wit Me.” Jean Grae is the show stealer as she just kills 9th Wonder’s sultry offering “It’s A Wrap.” Other standouts come from Phil The Agony and the soulful “Everything” and “Old English” from Thirstin Howl III and Trunks. But damn, Phil just kills his track. Boston’s own Reks, another cat who is no rookie, represents well on the energetic “Untitled.”
So with the veterans doing their part, it is up to the relatively unknown cats to keep the ball rolling. Ebay Jamil has no problem stepping up with his hot title track. The same can be said for Chuck Taylor and Mikial who both sound so hungry on their respective songs “Done Deal” and “Just Like That.” Another Pockets Linted artist Aarophat shows some promise on “O.H.I.O. Streets.”
With Rasco’s name attached to this along with some of the artists involved, I was expecting a pretty good album. What I got is really good one and one of the years best compilations. 14 songs, less than 50 minutes and no fast forward material at all. What is even better is that despite being compilation is actually has a very unified sounds throughout. Music like this should be reported to the majority.
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7.5/10
