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No Country for Old (Rap) Men: The Return of D.I.T.C.

Over 15 years since their debut, Robbie reviews Diggin' In The Crates' newly released sophomore album

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It’s pretty amazing that the Diggin’ In The Crates crew have just released their second proper album, a mere 25 years since Showbiz & AG invited Lord Finesse and Diamond D to join them on the song of the same name on their debut EP. For many fans, the crew peaked in terms of output and influence by the mid ’90s, having delivered a stellar stream of timeless classics as soloists, but when they released their first official group single in 1997 (the sublime ‘Day One’) rap fanatics were fiending for a full project.

Tragically, the murder of rising star Big L during the recording resulted in the album being delayed until 2000, and subsequently released in two vastly different iterations as a result of internal conflicts and record label politics. When I interviewed Show in 2007, he explained that: ‘None of us was really eye-to-eye on that. I think the D.I.T.C. album coulda been a lot better, but we wasn’t seeing eye-to-eye, cos when everybody is used to being solo artists, you really have your own creative control.’ It seems that the opening of D.I.T.C. Studios has given the crew cause to reassess the situation, and the results are better than expected.

There are several elements to the project that were a little surprising on first listen, such as the fact that production duties have been opened up to beatmakers outside of the original line-up and the dominance of O.C. and A.G. in the booth. It turns out that the new blood do a good job injecting some, er, fresh blood into the beats, while I can only assume that Omar and the Giant feature so heavily since they’re the most prolific writers and the two full-time rappers of the group. Makes sense but it would have been nice to hear more than one verse from the Funkyman.


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01. 'Not 4 Nothing' feat. O.C., A.G., & Tay Bell

Obligatory Big L intro, a forgettable beat and some singing. Not a particularly inspiring start to proceedings.


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02. 'Rock Shyt' feat. Fat Joe Lord Finesse & Diamond D

This is more like it! Over an electric blues guitar that recalls Diamond’s Ultimate Force sure shot known as ‘I’m Not Playin’,’ the trio of Joe, Finesse and D Squared all get busy and remind me of how the Bronx gets down when it’s time to show and prove. More of this please.  


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03. 'Night Rider' feat. O.C. & Pharoahe Monch

Don’t get too excited, once again Monch is doing the good ol’ ‘just here for the hook’ fake-out that he’s so fond of.


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04. 'New Wave' feat. Fat Joe, A.G. & O.C.

I don’t really fux with this song on any level.


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05. 'Make ‘Em So Proud' feat. A.G., Fat Joe & Diamond D

This is dope – a fresh loop, autobiographical lyrics, and three MCs. Salute to Motif Alumni for the beat.


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06. 'Diggin Numbers' feat. A.G., O.C. & Diamond D

A great concept and an ill Finesse beat makes for a good combination.


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07. 'Connect 3' feat. Diamond D, A.G. & O.C.

Premier brings the beat change like a champ.


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08. 'It’s Cold Outside' feat. Fat Joe, A.G. & O.C.

Get out your tinfoil hat as the lads combine some good points about police brutality with wide-eyed conspiracy theories about John Lennon’s murder being a hit. Not a patch on ‘The Enemy.’


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09. 'Brolic' feat. A.G., O.C. & Diamond D

This reminds me of something from the first D.I.T.C. LP, and not in a good way.


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010. 'We Started Everything' feat. A.G. & A Bless

A song about how the world rides New York’s nuts, backed by a great Buckwild track.


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011. 'Gotta Be Classic' feat. A.G., O.C. & David Bars

I’m all for nurturing new talent, but David Bars is a pretty terrible name for a rapper.


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012. 'Caviar Dreams' feat. O.C.

One of those ‘punk smoove shit’ jams that O.C. likes to indulge in on a fairly regular basis. Not really my wheelhouse but it does what it sets out to do.


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013. 'Worldwide' feat. A.G.

The Giant over a string-driven Showbiz beat.


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014. 'Read The Book' feat. A.G. & O.C.

A rolling ‘Ness track that could have used a killer ‘Ness rap to ‘add on, just like arithmetic.’


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015. 'Wake Up' feat. A.G. & O.C.

Did Diamond and Joe go home halfway through the recording session? This is the sixth song without either of them. What is this, Oasis 2?


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016. 'Diggin Numbers' (Bonus Version) feat. A.G., O.C. & Fat Joe

A completely unnecessary remix by J Clyde, considering how good the Finesse version is.


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017. The verdict:

Four of these songs are amazing—and several others are decent—which makes this album far better then we could have hoped for in this day and age. I’m sure many old fans will complain that it doesn’t sound like Runaway Slave but it’s ridiculous to expect the crew to be stuck in a time warp. Let’s just appreciate the fact that these veterans are still making good music for a rap world that for the most part stopped caring a long time ago.