Grayskul - "Deadlivers"(Rhymesayers Entertainment, 2005)

What would you get if Eminem eliminated his albums' fluff, or if D12 managed to record an album free of outright bullshit tracks? I'd have to say Grayskul has come as close as an album has in recent years to combining the best of both worlds. This album, released on Rhymesayers back in February 2005 is chock-full of exquisitely developed beats, and Rob Castro, Onry Ozzborn and JFK combine to add impressive wordplay to the mix. This is a complex album that plays out like an underground mixtape, and while there's nothing on here truly fit for radio (though "Behold" comes pretty damned close) Deadlivers is a worthy album for the collection of any music fan who claims to care about deftly produced hip-hop with an intelligent edge. And unlike many albums by more commercially successful acts, it plays like an album, not as a collection of singles where namedropping's more important than substance. This is an impresive debut to say the least.