Ever be chilling in your car or at home, smoking some good herb and having trouble finding some good music to listen to?
I’m all about the tunes. My wife calls me a “walking Ipod” because I know almost too much music, if that even makes sense. My Ipod literally has about 10k songs on it. This isn’t including the massive amounts of CD’s and other digital files I own. With that being said, here’s 5 good albums to spark up to! Some of you may already know while others you might not have a clue. Take note, these are my suggestions and I tried to be as diverse as possible.
Snoop Lion – Reincarnated
If you haven’t noticed, Snoop Dogg decided to take a trip to Jamaica and study in the Nyabinghi branch of the Rastafarian movement. He spent some time there not just smoking the good stuff, but writing and recording, meeting all kinds of people and ultimately, a complete internal journey which he came out of with amazing music. This is his step away from hip-hop and into reggae music. This is one awesome album. From the first track “Rebel Way” it starts off with him speaking, basically ending with the words “The only way to get love, is to give love”. He wants to love everyone and be loved while he is here…This album which was heavily produced by Diplo, from the group Major Lazer, nearly changed my life. The song “Lighters Up” is an instant stoner classic. “Here Comes The King” is almost like his informal entrance into reggae, although it has a twist of electronic sounds. The goofy rhythms of “Fruit Juice” will transform any bad day into a good one and the song “Ashtrays and Heartbreaks” finishes off what you should find to be a well around solid debut for a rapper turned rasta. Snoop has dipped back into hip-hop recently with his recent album “Kool-aid” and he also stepped intot he funk/disco sounds with his album “Bush” also released recently. If you wanna sit back, smoke some herb and be lit, this album is for you!
Dr. Dre – 2001
This was a huge album for me when I was a kid. Although, I didn’t exactly check it out until recently. By that, I mean sit down, chill and listen to the whole thing. The album has a pot leaf on the front, fitting right? The songs are dope, Dre never disappoints. “Lolo” the intro kicks it off then leads into the song “The Watcher”. “Still Dre” is my favorite song on the album, featuring Snoop Dogg. Xzibit, Eminem, Hitman, Snoop and a few others are featured along this album, which is loaded with good beats and hard lyrics. This may be his best record to date, maybe besides his recent release “Compton” which is also great. If you don’t like hip-hop, I have something more laid back and relaxing, which takes me to my next album…
Radiohead – In Rainbows
If you don’t know who Radiohead is, then God help you. No really…They are probably one of the biggest bands to ever come from England. Let’s put The Beatles aside here and take things for what they are….GREAT. The song “Creep” is what brought them into stardom, however they eventually grew to hate that song, much like how Nirvana hated “Smells like teen spirit”. In Rainbows is my favorite album by them and it’s a good one to light up to. It brings soothing, melodramatic sounds and odd rhythms together while maintaining a solid foundation. Thom Yorke’s voice is astounding in every way possible as he brought forth lyrics that are intriguing, dark, abstract and soulful. The thing I enjoy about this band is that their music makes you think, well the lyrics anyways. The instruments behind the vocals are amazing in this album, as usual, and some of it is rather catchy. “15 step” kicks things off with a spunky beat, and catchy vocals, after a few rock oriented songs, they slow it down with “Nude” and “All I need” which have captured my soul completely. They pick things up again with some upbeat songs, though they may seem darker in certain ways, they totally take your brain to a different place. Finally the album ends with “Videotape” which is a rather abstract song. Radiohead throws in their usual strange electronic like sounds and odd ways of creating music but this time around, they created a complete, well rounded work of art. Then again, isn’t all their music like that?
Shpongle – The Ineffable Mysteries From Shpongleland
This album is as weird as you can get. It’s electronically produced, world inspired music in which, the group does use real instruments and people to create this neat art. The first time I smoked to this album, it blew my mind away. The song “Electroplasm” is perfect for a starter, “Nothing is something worth doing” is adequately beautiful, “I am you” is a clusterfuck of euphoria and “Walking backwards through the cosmic mirror” is a perfect ending. I can’t describe what you will hear and it’s a lot but it is one hell of a cool record. It may be too weird for some of you but if you can have an open mind, you should be able to at least appreciate its value and beauty. Want an album that will suck you up into an adventure? This is for you.
Lamb Of God – Ashes Of The Wake
I love myself some metal. I wouldn’t consider myself a metalhead however, I’ve been into metal since I was a kid, so maybe I am one. “Laid to rest” is one of their most popular tunes and it starts off this album. The guitar riffs are dirty, catchy and heavy. Both lead and rhythm guitarists collided perfectly in this solid rock of an album, providing your ears with melodies that could stick in your head for days. The lead singer throws around some controversial lyrics as usual and every song on here is good. It seems that each song tells a story or a point, and they correlate with one another. If Satan were real, he might be proud of this album. I’m being silly, but seriously, the album title track “Ashes of the wake” is a powerful instrumental piece, dedicated to our soldiers, and the unique sounds of “Remorse is for the dead” will wrap things up. I like every song on it and that’s always a good sign. If you want something heavy to go with the herb, check out this album.
One last album which is technically an extra but I have to include it, is “Legend” by Bob Marley. Everyone who smokes loves some Bob and if you don’t I feel sorry for you. If you haven’t heard much of his music, please check it out. You can’t be about the ganja and not know his music or at least appreciate it. He did a lot for reggae music, he basically put it on the map. It’s a must have.
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