Legendary emcee and producer, Agallah Don Bishop. Is one of the best and most legendary figures in Hip-Hop history. You unfortunately probably never heard of before. Working with everyone from E.P.M.D. to The Diplomats. As well as legends that are no longer with us, like, Sean Price.
Agallah with his rhymes and production. Has built a very soulful New York boom-bap sound. That’s very reminiscent of the Brooklyn Brownsville neighborhood he grew up in. Which you can hear from the very beginning of Agallah’s most recent solo album, Agstalgia. Starting with the title and opening track. That sees him over the dark and cinematic self-produced backdrop. Rapping about the struggles God put him through in his lifetime. That ranges from alcohol addiction to indefinitely with women. Among several struggles that God gives not only most rappers and entertainers, but even his most righteous followers to test their faith. To get to where they want to be in life. That then goes into the very cinematic and motivationally soulful loops production on the very motivating, New York Aint the Same. Which sees Agallah rapping about how different New York is now from when he grew up in it in. The passing of legends like Black Rob, DMX and Sean Price. As he raps, also playing a part in how different things are.
When the album gets to the soulful drums and horns of the production on, Streets Dont Love You, Pt. 3. The third part in Agallah’s popular, Streets Dont Love You, series. It finds like he has throughout that series once again rhyming about how different the streets are and why they, “don’t love you.” Before it perfectly closes out with a guitar solo. That perfectly segueing into previously released single, Fly Dedications. Which sees the Don Bishop over the piano-laden backdrop, spitting fly verses. That’s mostly dedicated to those lost and no longer with us. Agallah switching things up a little again on the production with the percussion from the likely xylophone. The perfect backdrop for him to rap about how he sees things for what they’re in both music and life. On the appropriately titled, See It For What It Is.
As we get close to the midway point of the album. We get easily one of the best tracks on the album. That you can even put up a very good argument for being the best track on the album, in the Eto featured, Propain Crack Era. A soulfully sampled boom-bap record. That perfectly marries both Hispanic emcees to show why they’re among the best doing it right now. With Eto’s verse of, “You don’t know sh*t, if they ask or not. I’m on the stoop, way past the block. Stabbed and shot. If you ain’t wet up the block. We was painting it.” Showing why Eto is among the best emcees in all of Hip-Hop right now. That then perfectly segueing into the more cinematic boom-bap production we are used to from Agallah on, Relax. That sees him so effortlessly rhyming about letting others know to just, “relax, and let the gods do their thing.” On the mic.
Getting to the beginning of the second half of the album. The very soulful hook from, Blue Raspberry. Of fame from her work with fellow N.Y. legends, Wu-Tang Clan. On the soulfully thumping, The lost Village. Provides the perfect compliment to Agallah’s rhymes on the track about how lost technology has made society as a whole. With Westcoast emcee, Planet Asia, also providing the perfect guest verse on the track. That then perfectly segueing into the piano-driven rock-influenced, Rock Life. Before going right into the very motivational rich horns of, Bar Factor. That see’s Agallah so effortlessly rhyming and showing off his very rich bar work.
Going into the final three tracks on the album, Get To It, Blessed and We Wish You The Best. Get To It, sees Agallah showing off more of that simple straight to the point rap. About how he’s, “getting to it. While, Blessed, is a very soulful boom-bap type record. That sees Agallah rapping about the different ways on why he’s. “Blessed to be alive.” Before the album closes out with the very soulfully eerie and cinematic, We Wish You The Best. That sees Agallah rapping about how dark the streets of Brownsville BK made him. To live up to the dark and sinister part of one of his many aliases, Ag-al-ghul. Before, Spliff Hemingway, comes in to deliver his dark and amazing guest verse. The album then closing out with the soulful eerie sample of the singer playing out the album. For a somewhat strange way to close out, what though not a classic. Is still a very dope and amazing album, that falls just barely short of being one. Agstalgia, not only one of the top Hip-Hop albums, but one of the best albums across all of music released so far this year. As well as one of the best among Agallah’s already great and very large discography.