On their collaborative album,
The Night Took Us in Like Family
, busy beatmaker
L'Orange
and left-field rapper
Jeremiah Jae
deliver a darkly humorous tale of crime and criminals. Combining
's witty crime movie dialogue samples, sped-up and slowed-down vocals heisted from old soul albums, and sticky beats with
Jae
's slippery flow and devious rhymes, the album comes off like a sequel to
Madvillain
, or something close to what the dream pairing of
Q-Tip
and
Madlib
might sound like.
has a similar voice and style as
, though he's not quite as distinctive, and
's samples tell stories much the same as
's do, though not as uniquely. It's probably not fair to either
or
to compare them unfavorably to
, since almost anyone would be in that same boat. Simply say that they create the same kind of brainy, funny, and dense mood and feel, then sit back and enjoy the music as it bobs and weaves around you. Also on board to help out with a few verses are
Homeboy Sandman
Gift of Gab
from
Blackalicious
. Whether it's a one-off or the start of a beautiful relationship,
sound made for each other and this collaboration is first-rate hip-hop storytelling. ~ Tim Sendra