Bleep

Conceived in a Queens, NYC basement and toured all over the USA, Midnight Marauders is the evidence of A Tribe Called Quest's rise to stardom. At their early 20s in 1993, Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, and Jarobi White still had the whole world to explore, yet they'd bagged an unparalleled three album run in just a few years. Now on its 30th anniversary, Midnight Marauders shows Quest as scintillating figures among the hip hop legends on its front cover.

Name drops and clever references populate the album's swishing boom bap rhythms. These are expertly crafted tracks that never get tired, with details of vibrant jazz sampleage and effortless verses carrying us through the beat loops. A choppy digital assistant introduces us to the album's tour of golden 90s hip hop, adding her humourous deadpan epilogues to several tracks backed by smooth jazz scratches. Followed by smooth, smooth rhymes, ‘Steve Biko (Stir It Up)’ sees Quest “revolutionize over the kick and snare” with pitched brass loops forming an irresistible groove.

Phife and Q-Tip trade expert bars across the album, from the classic hip hop romanticism and sensuality of ‘Electric Relaxation’ paired with syrupy, dreamy guitar strums, to the cool nonchalant storytelling of ‘8 Million Stories’, where chords descend emphatically as Phife says “Jesus Christ, I'm havin’ problems.” The album's bouncing energy is also a testament to the group's production prowess: winds and crashes are scratched to the beat on ‘We Can Get Down’, while Q-Tip flips a sample of Minnie Ripperton's whistle note into a song-long epic drone on ‘Lyrics To Go’.

Rap braggadocio has never been so provably correct, as A Tribe Called Quest's verses and rhythms on Midnight Marauders are lauded as some of the best to have ever been put to wax.