Pete Rock
NY's Finest
Release Date: Feb 26, 2008
Genre(s): Rap
Record label: Caroline
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Album Review: NY's Finest by Pete Rock
Very Good, Based on 3 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
Pete Rock :: NY's FinestNature SoundsAuthor: Patrick TaylorI like Pete Rock. I like his layered, jazzy beats, his knack for finding the perfect samples and working them into perfect beats, his ability to realize hip hop's potential to reference and build off of other African-American art forms, and his wicked drum beats. I like him because he is a producer's producer, intent on making good music rather than on riding the latest wave.
Based on rating 7/10
Pete Rock has been a dependable, though not always spectacular or surprising, force in hip-hop since his first records with C.L. Smooth came out in the early '90s. His solo records -- on which he usually acts as producer and MC -- have not always been consistent affairs, but he's been able to release a lot of solid material and establish a particular sound and feel to his kind of beat-making.
Based on rating 6.5/10
East Coast hip-hop fans haven't had a whole lot to be excited about since the new millennium rolled over. Ringtone rap and clap-hop still dominate the Rap Citys and Hot97s of the world, and most New York hip-hop fans seem to be currently focused on what Fat Joe and Papoose did in a hotel room. Needless to say, a new Pete Rock record is a welcome thing to boom-bap enthusiasts.