Note:
I should probably be finishing up with my Wu-Tang guide, but I suddenly realized that I have a higher calling right now. In light of this I'll be writing a series on MF Grimm.
Preface: The purpose of this is to help people familiarize themselves with MF Grimm, who is my second favourite living emcee (second only to Ghostface Killah, and MF, if you're reading this, know that it's a VERY close second). MF Grimm is one of the most important emcees in underground hip hop, and his legacy is an integral part of hip hop history, even if it is oft ignored in favour of Puffy (or whatever the fuck he's calling himself now).
Background information: As usual I won't go into much biographical detail, there's Wikipedia, and even though I know more about Grimm's background than that (thanks to his book) it's not entirely necessary for this. I will provide some background to help though. MF Grimm's career has had him using multiple stage names. Here are his various pseudonym's (to the best of my knowledge):
- Percy Carey - Grimm's legal name which he uses for his online activities and other things.
- MF Grimm - Grimm's usual stage name. Most of his releases have appeared under this name.
- GM Grimm - GM stands for "Grand Master" because of Grimm's status in the hip hop community. This title was given to him by Chuck D from Public Enemy.
- Jet Jaguar - MF Grimm is/was (are they still around?) part of the rap collective Monsta Island Czars. The whole group uses names based around Godzilla films (y'know, Monster Island?).
- Grimm Reaper - No album releases under this name, but Grimm sometimes refers to himself this way, and he put out some early singles under this moniker
The Guide (Part I): Now for the important part- the releases. I won't cover any singles that were released over the years (although they're important too!!!!). I also won't include any guest appearances, nor will I include any executive producer credits (although some of those are also quite important). Collaborative efforts will be included, however (also please excuse the shit quality of some of the images provided. I hate using anything other than 500x500 for these posts, and for some things I had to sacrifice quality).
Album
: MF EP
Artist: MF DOOM & MF Grimm
Release Date: November 28, 2000
This first MF Grimm release is a collaborative EP with MF DOOM. The idea of it as an EP is a bit strange to me (as are most hip hop "EPs") in that it does not conform at all to the standard of what an EP is. I should also clarify the term "collaborative" here. The first three tracks are MF DOOM solo tracks (although one features Grimm as well as the terrific Rodan) and the following four tracks are MF Grimm solo tracks. Some of them are remixes of previously released tracks. The following seven tracks are the instrumental versions of the first seven, in order. For those who like to freestyle, or just like to listen to instrumental tracks, I suppose (the beats are great, so either way it's a treat).
Album:
The Downfall of Ibliys: a ghetto opera
Artist: MF Grimm
Release Date: January 12, 2002
This album (THIS ALBUM) is Grimm's first solo release. Those of you who have read his Wikipedia bio are at this point asking- "wait, what? 2002? How can that be?" You would be asking this because Grimm was sentenced 4 years to life in prison in 2000. Well, Grimm somehow paid a 100,000$ 24-hour bail in 2001 to get out of prison long enough to record this album. Yes, he recorded this album in 24 hours. The whole album conveys this sense of urgency that only a person facing life imprisonment can possibly feel- the whole record is filled with brilliant imagery, metaphors and allusions. Grimm is on point with everything, and the production on the album is just as tight, start to finish (largely produced by MF DOOM with some other contributors). This album is one of the best records I have ever had the privilege of listening to. I remember the first time I put it on. I was blown away by it, and am impressed by it to this day. Thankfully it was reissued in 2010, so it's one of his easiest works to acquire. That is not the case for most of his releases, unfortunately.
Album:
Best of MF
Artist: MF DOOM & MF Grimm
Release Date: 2003
I actually have no information about this album other than that it was released in 2003, the year Grimm got out of prison. Whether it came out before or after his release I don't know. Was it a celebration of his release? Don't ask me. What I do know is that it's a compilation of DOOM and Grimm tracks up until that point. If you have heard their releases up until this point you've probably heard most or all of these tracks. Sorry, that's all I got. This is the only 2003 Grimm release I'm putting here because he didn't end up recording on his collective Monsta Island Czars' debut album (and thus far only official release)
Escape from Monsta Island! because he was still in jail.
Album:
Digital Tears: E-mail from Purgatory
Artist: Jet Jaguar
Release Date: March 1, 2004
Holy fuck. This album is the darkest thing that Grimm has ever done. It is violent, it is dark, it is depressing. It is also damn good, but maybe not suitable for those faint of heart, or easy listening sessions. I heard that the lyrics of this album were mostly or entirely written while he was in prison. I don't know if that's true, but I don't doubt it. This is the only album that Grimm released under the Jet Jaguar moniker (although he has lots of guest appearances on other M.I.C. releases under this name), and the only one that refers to him as "GM Grimm." While I feel that he definitely deserves that title, I like the ring of "MF Grimm" a bit better, so I'm glad that's what he usually uses. If I ever meet him I'll call him GM though. This might be when he started using lots of cool interpolations from other artists, which is one of the most unique things about his albums (although not all of them have it).
Album:
Special Herbs + Spices
Artist: MF DOOM & MF Grimm
Release Date: May 11, 2004
This album is another joint release between the two most prominent MFs (I understand that there are others but I don't know too much about them besides their names and that they are/were affiliated with M.I.C.). Unlike the last two joint releases between the two however, this album features MF Grimm rapping over a series of MF DOOM beats all taken from his
Special Herbs series, hence the name of the album and the names of the songs. "Dragons Blood + Cayenne = 1000 Degrees" may be the hardest song ever recorded, just look up the lyrics and listen to the track if you need proof. I have also heard that most or all of these tracks were written as freestyles right before recording. Again, I don't know if this is true or not, but they definitely sound like freestyles. It's great, of course, because Grimm is a veteran battle rapper and freestyler, it just means that the tracks here don't have conventional song structure most of the time.
Album:
Scars & Memories
Artist: MF Grimm
Release Date: April 25, 2005
This is a compilation album that Grimm released. It's not a best-of though, and the fact that it's a compilation isn't advertised anywhere on the product. Or so I hear, because it's out of print and new copies on Amazon.com are going for hundreds of dollars (
$928.96 New). Upsetting as FUCK!!!! That's because this is probably my second favourite Grimm release. The tracks on here were recorded anytime between 1990 and 2004, and due to theft, some of them were re-recorded (don't know which ones, so don't ask- well, I suspect that "Do it for the Kids" was). The tracks included here are rare tracks and singles. Nothing on this album can you find on another album release (a remix of "The Original" can be found on the
MF EP). Even though this is technically a compilation it flows as well as an original release, which is a very impressive feat.
Album:
American Hunger
Artist: MF Grimm
Release Date: July 25, 2006
Think back to all of the hip hop double albums you know of. I know you're thinking about the obvious ones-
All Eyez on Me,
Life After Death,
Wu-Tang Forever,
The Blueprint 2: the Gift and the Curse, etc. Now that you have that all in your head, eliminate all the good ones. Now you're stuck with a bunch of overly indulgent double disc sets that are only as long as they are because they have enough filler to barely push their album over the 80-minute mark. Hell, even Nas' very excellent
Street's Disciple barely hits the mark by clocking in at 92-minutes.
American Hunger isn't a double album. It doesn't have filler. No, it's a triple album. There's no filler. The shortest of the three discs is 62 minutes long. The other one is just under 70 minutes, and the third disc is 72 minutes. That's right. MF Grimm didn't just do a triple album (the first in hip hop), he crafted an album of societal and personal critique with tight production and equally tight song writing that works. It WORKS. It FILLS the three discs. Keep in mind that this is MF Grimm's fifth album, too. There are a lot of hip hop artists that don't even have five 45 minute albums of material in them (50 Cent, Diddy, Master P, probably Macklemore- fuck that guy too). This shouldn't be your first MF Grimm album, but if you've been going through his material, rest assured that this sits with the best.
Album:
The Order of the Baker Gingerbread Man Mixtape
Artist: MF Grimm
Release Date: September 18, 2007
This is a mixtape, as the title suggests. It's presented by Stricknine and MF Grimm and was released as a promo for his following album. There are some tracks where he raps from the perspective of the Gingerbread Man (Gingy) and then some mixes of some old classics. I don't have too much to say for this one. I know that it's not an album release, but I thought it deserved a slot for its significance in his discog. I think that there's a certain amount of irony in that even though this is a mixtape released to promote an upcoming album it's actually a lot easier to get online in CD format than albums like
Scars & Memories or
Digital Tears. I wish that all of Grimm's releases were readily available.
Album:
The Hunt for the Gingerbread Man
Artist: MF Grimm
Release Date: September 25, 2007
As you probably guessed from the vague description of it that I gave in the mixtape summary, this is indeed a concept album. While the story of the Gingerbread Man isn't something that one would typically imagine a hip hop concept album would be about, I have to say that it works. Really well. REALLY well. Grimm doesn't drop character once, and everything (EVERYTHING) has been transposed to candy terms. This is a fantastic concept album, and ranks up there with Ghostface's work on
Twelve Reasons to Die. After the 3.5 hour marathon of
American Hunger, this serves as a more light-hearted treat (although sex and violence is here in spades). Gingy's adventures escaping from the Fox and the police are riveting and entertaining. Grimm's releases keep innovating.
Album:
Story
Artist: MF Grimm
Release Date: August 24, 2009
This is another release that isn't a proper album (nor is it an EP I don't think). I'm not really sure what to call it, but I think we can safely go with "teaser." This is a release that Grimm put out in 2009 for free on his website for a limited time. Since I came to the MF Grimm game a little bit late I totally missed the boat on this one. The link is still active on the Day By Day Entertainment website, but the album is listed as "unavailable." This release is set up like a very short film, which is kinda neat- out of the 9 tracks 4 are skits of some kind. If you've ever watched any North American films you'll probably recognize the opening two tracks. While this release is very light on content (it was free, no complaining), it does contain two of my favourite Grimm tracks in "One Love" and "Everyday." I wish that Grimm would release this on iTunes for 2.99$ or something so that people could cop it that way. For those who are completists (or just want to hear some more Grimm- good for you!) you can find it online fairly easily. If you have trouble I can provide a link.
Album:
You Only Live Twice: the Audio Graphic Novel
Artist: MF Grimm
Release Date: June 8, 2010
MF Grimm continues to evolve as an emcee and as an artist all around. After completing his first graphic novel in 2007,
Sentences: the Life of MF Grimm, Grimm has returned to comics with this release. Each track is accompanied by work by Jim Mahfood (sort of like Aphex Twin's
Selected Ambient Works Volume II). This album was also completely produced by Twiz the Beat Pro. What does this all mean, you may ask? This is one of Grimm's most solid and consistent works. The album has a singular sound that goes across all the tracks. That doesn't mean that they sound all the same! The album features some of Grimm's most tongue-twistingly terrific lyrical work, and with the beats to match this is a truly impressive project. Keeping with the constant evolution of his artistic abilities and vision this album features much more rhyming about how dope he is, and other battle topics (including a hard and terrific Diddy diss). While some longtime fans may be a bit put-off by themes that don't include the usual soul-baring this is actually one of my favourite Grimm albums.
Album:
Preemptive Strike
Artist: MF Grimm & Drasar Monumental
Release Date: November 7, 2012
This is the first of three (so far) releases by MF Grimm in his new partnership with Drasar Monumental on the latter's Vinyl Vendetta label. This release is a mixtape that was released on Soundcloud at a name your price rate. Instead of the typical mixtape this is actually just two tracks, one 16 minutes, one 14 minutes. This is to give the impression of a vinyl release, something that is a norm with the pair's releases. I'm a person that prefers listening to an album start to finish instead of on shuffle or just picking random songs but it'd still be nice to have separate tracks. There are also a lot of tracks that fans of Grimm will know all the words too, but they're interpolated and laced with some interviews, freestyles, and Drasar's very excellent scratching (at least, I'm assuming that it's Drasar?). Anyways, this is a completely inessential release, but is a lot of fun for anyone who's a fan of Grimm, and if you haven't checked out the Good Morning Vietnam releases yet then this is a great little tease, as it includes some Drasar beats.
Album:
Good Morning Vietnam EP
Artist: MF Grimm & Drasar Monumental
Release Date: December 16, 2012
After releasing the excellent
You Only Live Twice in 2010, Grimm laid low for a couple years. This EP is a collaborative effort between himself and Drasar Monumental (who I had never heard of prior to this). The album is a proper EP this time around! That makes me happy. What does not make me happy is that it was such a limited release that it's virtually impossible to find physical copies by now. It's also worth noting that the CD release does not include the instrumentals, despite advertising that it does, and that it plays as one single track instead of multiple. This is the first of two (so far) collaborative efforts between Drasar Monumental and Grimm. Since I'm so unfamiliar with Drasar Monumental I can't make too many comments about his work in relation to his other work. As for Grimm... it's Grimm, you know what to expect- nothing but the best. "If life gives you lemons barter for tangerines."
Album:
Good Morning Vietnam 2: Golden Triangle
Artist: MF Grimm & Drasar Monumental
Release Date: November 26, 2013
This is the album sequel to 2012's collabo EP,
Good Morning Vietnam. Both releases were a limited release of 500 (more?) copies, which once again makes it hard for fans opposed to using iTunes (seriously, you just have an extended lease, and how can you show your friends and family the release, artwork and all? Nothing is better than having a proper CD in hand). Either way, this continues where the EP left off, so it's the obvious next step for fans of that release. Since this album was released not too long ago it's likely that it'll be the only Grimm release for the next little while. I'm taking that opportunity to promote the SHIT out of his present releases. "Oh, he's too underground, I need my songs to be radio, radio!" you say? FUCK YOU! Grimm is one of the best, and you need to recognize.
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So this is where I'm leaving off for the next little while. When any new Grimm projects come out I'll update this post (and probably promote any upcoming releases that I catch wind of). Grimm is one of the most varied and diverse emcees on the mic. While so many artists try to build up their street cred with bold-faced lies about their drug emporiums (Jay-Z, and I even like that guy's music) Grimm has the experience but chooses to speak out about that lifestyle. He wrote tracks for
The Chronic, as well as other hit releases he is apparently contractually obligated to not tell us about. There's much more to talk about than I covered in the above. In fact, I'd have to do a post for each of his releases to do his style justice. If I haven't convinced you yet it's not because Grimm is lacking, rather that I don't have the words to adequately describe him. 'Tis a labour of love.
