It is not unheard of to have a compilation of artists and tracks hashed together with no sense of direction. High Times, the cannabis magazine, is just the opposite with The Hip Hop Collection (THC)‘. The album’s theme to put it bluntly, no pun intended, is summarized by Afu-Ra when he states “If I had my own country I’d name it Amarijuanica.”
What’s great about THC is the line-up of rap’s unsung heroes like Black Moon, The High & Mighty, the Likwit Crew … and on. Each of them contributes good vibes that are more on the mellow side. Black Moon and select members of the Boot Camp show their chemistry of old on the laid back “High Times.” B-real, Son Doobie and other members of the Serial Rhyme Killers flow over a hard, rock like beat in “Something About Mary.” This track, along with “Roll Up” by Shabaam Sahdeeq and Steele balance things out with their picked-up pace.
The track listing for THC reads like an all-star cast, but even all-stars have a bad day. The Rza slows things down too much on “So High,” and The Pharcyde miss on an experiment with “Sticky Green.” Fortunately, all songs have some assets that makes most enjoyable and the rest listenable.
