Five years on from the last instalment of the series comes Down 2 Earth Vol. 3 from Ras G. Not that it feels that long, as the sonic explorer that is Ras has dropped ten or so full length albums during that time.
There was the 5 Chuckles collaborations with Koreatown Oddity, a cassette for his favourite vegan restaurant in LA, concept albums based on specific sections of Wrecka Stow and his offering to the Baker’s Dozen series to name some of our favourites. Earlier this year we even saw him releasing his own form of Chicago house with Dance Of The Cosmos.
And unsurprisingly the Ras G catalogue is always heat. As a founder of the beats scene Ras is one of the producers who laid the blueprint for not just SP404 or for LA but for instrumental hip-hop globally. There’s been almost a generation of bedroom producers learning from and imitating his style. But it doesn’t matter how many beat tapes I buy off Bandcamp, there is still only one Ras.
If the Raw Fruit series represents Ras G’s take microwave beats and lo-fi then the three Down 2 Earth records – released on Poo-Bah, Leaving and Ghetto-Sci Fi respectively – are the studio sessions exploring deeper sound plains…or elevated space journeys depending how you choose to look at it.
Down 2 Earth Vol. 3 represents instrumental boom-bap in it’s finest form. The collection of tunes are heady, melodic and mellow keeping a constant vibe throughout the entire album. Even Duckworth providing the only vocals midway through the 13 track LP doesn’t sound as out of place.
Ras’ concept albums have pushed him in new directions and he’s never been shy of stretching his abilities or experimenting. Every few years he takes the best of those learnings and translates them in to an LP of loop-based beats. Somewhat spiritual and meditative but also strictly head nod and drenched in sirens and his “Oh Ras” calling card. In my opinion it’s the best hip-hop going around.
We need to take a second here to shout-out the “Ras_G Polo Bear by El ChuLauren” also known as the Ras Bears by designer El Chu aka Benny Chu. The design is dope not just for the tees. The sweatshirts, tees and hoodies are all worth checking out if you’ve not done so already.