Hello, and welcome to The Rinse. Before we get started, I’m going to need everyone to grab the following items:

If you are asking why you need all of these things, it is because we are going back to the late 1990s and early 2000s here at The Rinse this week. As with many things, this return to the past started with my listening habits.

Earlier this week, I had the deep urge to listen to Dr. Octagonecologyst, the debut album for one of Kool Keith’s musical personas. I’ll talk about this album further below, but it got me thinking. This album is 30 years old as of this year. How do other major albums from this time hold up now? So, with this as my prompt, I listened to six well-reviewed albums from that period. The question to be answered with regard to them is this: Is this a good album or a historical document? If it is a good album, you can still find a lot to take away from it now and also not find it wildly embarrassing to listen to. If it is a historical document, it’s an album that is actively showing its age, with outmoded ideas, styles, and/or production. So, with that said, let’s get started.

As I noted above, this was the album that started the idea for this week’s dispatch. If you are not familiar with Kool Keith, he is one of the true oddballs of hip-hop. After leaving Bellevue (the hospital; he had been committed), Keith Thornton teamed up with Ced Gee and Moe Love to found Ultramagnetic MC’s, one of the nicest rap crews from the 1980s. After that project disintegrated, Kool Keith started making solo albums, creating a dense, immensely confusing discography full of absurdist, abstract lyrics over the course of four decades (he still releases albums now).

Dr. Octagon is a extraterrestrial half sharkalligator/half man who is a gynecologist and surgeon. This concept holds across the album, but you don’t really need to worry about it. While there is only one name on the album, this project is a collaboration between Kool Keith, Dan The Automator (who I will discuss again later), and DJ QBert. In 1996, we are dealing with three people operating at high levels. Kool Keith was dialed in with his style. Automator, a relative unknown at the time of this album, brought a fresh production technique to the session, and QBert was, hands down, one of the best scratch DJ’s on the planet.

All of this talent comes together in a phenomenal album. Automator’s psychdelic, trippy production is superb, providing a fitting accompaniment to the absurd wordplay and oddball comedy of Kool Keith. QBert provides nice scratches while never completely overtaking a track. When it dropped, it was a corrective to all of the violent hardcore rap coming from Los Angeles and New York at the time, and it helped to bring a lot of attention to the underground.

It was—and still is—an important album for understanding the underground rap scene. It showed a way to be creative and true to the culture without resorting to violence. But, here is the important question for 2026: Is it still a good album or just a historical document? The answer is it is a good album. Is it perfect? No. For one, it’s a little too long. As well, some of the guest lyricists on the album are weak; the gap between them and Keith is vast and you can easily hear it. (I point you to Sir Menelik on “No Awareness” as an example.) In addition, this album came out during Kool Keith’s “pornocore” phase, so it’s very horny at times, which can make some tracks a little sweaty (even if they are extremely well done).

Even with these demerits, there is still a lot to take away from this album that make it worthwhile to listen to now.

Released in 1999, this album is a compendium of some of the finest beatmakers, turntablists, and rappers working around California and, more generally, the underground at the time. Many of the rappers are signed to Peanut Butter Wolf’s label, Stones Throw. PB Wolf was the primary beatmaker on this album, and he takes a traditionalist approach to the task: cutting samples from obscure tracks and pairing them with hard-hitting boom-bap beats.

The list of rappers combined here is a who’s who of the underground at the time: Planet Asia, Rasco, El-P, and Lootpack, among others. All of them are in good form on this album. One of the standout tracks here is “Tale of Five Cities,” a 9-minute instrumental track featuring some of the best turntablists at the time, including DJ QBert, Cut Chemist, Kid Koala, and Z-Trip.

Now, let’s get back to the question at the heart of this dispatch: Good album or historical document? This one is a historical document. It is a good listen, but it sounds dated. The production style shows its age, and the rapping is not good enough overall. It’s better than many of the rage rappers, but then again, if you wake up and make a complete sentence, you’re doing better than most of them. Planet Asia and Pablo are standouts among the emcees, while Rasco’s style now sounds stiff and static. The other rappers wouldn’t even be noticed nowadays except by washed hip-hop heads who praise “real hip-hop,” whatever that term might mean. In total, it serves as a great capsule to return to when you want to revisit the hip-hop underground in California around the turn of the millennium, but don’t expect any young people in your life to be impressed by it. They will probably just call you a washed unc, and go back to listening to Nettspend.

Celebrating its 25th anniversary, Cannibal Ox’s The Cold Vein is one of the seminal albums to be released on Definitive Jux, the home of some of the most challenging, abstract hip-hop of the underground. Over the course of this album, Vast Aire and Vordul Mega use their dense, knotty lyrical styles to spit dark, psychedelic tales of life in New York over some of absolutely stellar El-P beats.

I was inclined to consider this album because my friend, Joe, has been praising this album for as long as I have known him (18 years), and I hadn’t listened to it in full ever. So, I had to do right by him. This is a great album, both on a personal level and with regard to the question driving this dispatch. As with almost every album from this period of time, it is too long, but with this level of quality, I’m inclined to be less upset about it than I otherwise would be. The reason that this album is great is because it sounds as innovative now as it would have in 2001. You can hear their influence on the current stream of abstract rappers.

For example, if you listen to artists like billy woods and Elucid, you are listening to two artists who were directly influenced by Cannibal Ox. As I learned from doing research, billy woods is friends with Vordul Mega, and knew him while Vordul was getting signed to Def Jux and working with El-P to create this album. woods proceeded to buy this album after it dropped, and it has been a foundational album for him. So, the connection is plain. If you have been enjoying any of the abstract rap that I talk about in this newsletter, I can confidently say that you will enjoy this album.

Furthermore, this is one of the best sets of beats in El-P’s discography. If you listen to the Run The Jewels albums or are already familiar with the Def Jux archive, you know what he can do behind the boards. This is him working at a top level, creating inventive beats that fit perfectly with what the emcees themselves are doing. It all works together perfectly.

This concept album brings together Del the Funkee Homosapien, staple of the West Coast underground; Dan the Automator; and DJ Kid Koala. On this album, Del is Deltron-Zero, a soldier and computer prodigy rebelling against the 31st century New World Order. Del, a dextrous, creative rapper, leads the listener through this journey, mixing the desolation and darkness of the 31st century with ample amounts of humor as well as some social commentary. Automator colors the dystopia with dense, eerie beats.

When I started this one, I was not sure how this would go. I listened to this a lot in high school, but I haven’t really listened to it since then. With regard to the question of great album or historical document, I am torn but I’m going to go with great album. There are few rap concept albums, and most of them make absolutely no fucking sense. While this one is not as clear as A Prince Among Thieves, the Prince Paul concept album, Del can flip between making a clear social point, a weird geek reference, and a withering insult within the same verse.

As well, this is an album that reminds you why he’s an all-time great. I have seen him twice, about 10 years apart. Loved the first concert, but I was 18 and still backpacking hard. When I saw him the second time, I was not excited. I had put my backpack away and was listening to Gucci Mane and nonsense trap rap. I was there for a review, and I was expecting it to be a chore. Within a song and a half, I was reminded why he’s one of the best rappers of all-time. He can flip cadences and engage in phenomenal wordplay. As well, he’s funny as shit and has excellent energy. This album is a good reminder of how talented he truly is.

In addition, Dan the Automator and Kid Koala make a phenomenal team. Automator’s beats provide the necessary atmosphere for this rather odd concept, providing a tricky, dark palette for the tracks. Furthermore, Koala’s scratching is delicate and full of finesse. With the Dr. Octagon album, Automator’s got two perfect displays of his production skills. The whole thing works together excellently, and does not show its age because the people involved in this project are too smart to be on trend.

Company Flow was a groundbreaking hip-hop crew from New York. Featuring Bigg Jus, El-P, and Mr. Len, the crew paved the way for experimental hip-hop and brought attention to the underground, particularly the artists circulating around the Rawkus Records label (Mos Def, Pharoahe Monch, Talib Kweli, etc.). Compiled from tracks made over three years, Funcrusher Plus is the only album from the crew. After breaking from internal pressures, all of the artists went in different directions.

This album is a clear historical document. Everyone here is extremely talented. Bigg Jus is a strong emcee, as is El-P. El-P is an excellent producer, and Mr. Len is a great DJ. That said, every piece of this album is tainted by the misogynistic, homophobic nature of 90s battle-style rap that was present on the underground at the time. I can talk about the difficult cadences of Jus and El, but it doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things as any enjoyment of the album is tainted by the aforementioned problems. Furthermore, I know that El-P can do better than this on a production level. I point to The Cold Vein, which I talked about above, and the Run The Jewels albums as examples of how he moved past this point.

If you are curious about this specific point in hip-hop history, you should absolutely listen to this album. It is a great encapsulation of everything that is great and awful about this era. And it is the genesis of one of the greatest hip-hop talents in El-P. If you just want to do some casual listening, don’t bother.

People Under The Stairs (PUTS) was a hip-hop duo out of Los Angeles. I chose this album because it holds a special place in my imaginary. When I was a bright-eyed freshman at Oberlin, they came through campus. Since I already had my job at the Student Union, I had free tickets to shows. So, I strolled right in, and set up close to the front of the stage. I have gone to hundreds of shows since this show, and it is still, hands down, the most fun rap show I’ve ever gone to—and maybe one of the top concerts I’ve gone to period.

That said, I wanted to see if the album could come to the same level as that concert. On the album, Thes One and Double K produce all of the tracks, building the beats out of mountains of samples, and do all of the rapping together. Over the course of 76 minutes, the duo drop smooth, laid-back rhymes over fun, funky production. So, the question becomes is this a great album or a historical document? The answer is that it is a great album because it can’t be a historical document.

I listened to a majority of this album while laying on my back with a cat sitting on me. (If you are in the Duluth area and have space for a sassy older lady cat, please get in touch with me about her. Her name is Skelly, and she is great.)

While listening to the album in this prone position, I could only think about how neatly the beats are constructed and how good the rhymes are. Even though this album is from 2002, it doesn’t really sound like it’s from 2002. It sounds like it could be from right now. It could have also been from 1988. It exists out of time. The thing that it does best is have fun and get funky, and that’s a great album in my book any day of the week.

Thank you for reading The Rinse. As always, if you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read here, tell a friend to subscribe. Take care of yourselves and each other. Pet a cat or dog if they’ll allow for it. Also, I was not kidding about Skelly. She’s our longest resident, and she’s a great cat. She’s a bit sassy, but honestly, it’s easily manageable. In addition, she’ll cuddle you for as long as you can stand. I listened to most of a 76-minute album with her on me. Consider that if you will.

Next week is The Spins. Until that time, I’m out. Go enjoy some rap and remember to tie your Tims before you do anything. You’ll roll an ankle when you’re running from the cops if you don’t.