Beastie Boys

Super deluxe 180g double LP pressing of "Check Your Head." Best Beastie's album ever? I guess you can debate it, but there's no arguing that this one is definitely up there. I can go on about it, but better yet read what we said about it when we got an import pressing a couple years back: "Out of print for a while now, we jumped at this UK repress of my favorite Beasties album. That's right, fuck Paul's Boutique and Wesleyan College. The Beasties live the American dream here, picking up instruments and playing skater thrash band, badass black funk-rock band, and crafty city rappers, all at the same time. I'm not quite sure there's anything else quite like it. Even though I've gotten tired of the aging cult of Beastie, I still put this on when I want to get hyped up for heated recreational sports sessions (that's right chall!). Every track is standout, but if I have to assign those pesky blue numbers, it would go something like this:  "Jimmy James, Gratitude, Somethin's Got To Give, Stand Together," and "Groove Holmes." Double vinyl. Recommended." Worrd.

• music label: Capitol / 2009

reviewed by the mgmnt 04/2009

Now available on remastered, 180g vinyl! Nice and loud double LP pressing of Ill Communication complete with perfectly reproduced artwork. This album caught the Beasties in top creative form - experimenting with the music, but still keeping the quality high and their feet grounded, no matter what style they attempted. It not only contains some of their hypest crossover tracks ever like "Sabotage" and "Sure Shot," but also the super funky Q-Tip collabo "Get It Together" and the hard Biz Mark collab "Do It." Jazzy breakbeat groovers like "Root Down" and "The Scoop" are also present as well as some of their early instrumental jazz-funk-fusion noodlings ("Ricky's Theme" and "Sabrosa") and tracks that hark back to their punk rocker days ("Heart Attack Man"). 20 tracks total, worth every penny.

• music label: Capitol / 2009

reviewed by Snackmaster 07/2009

Take it back to '87 with this awesome Beastie Boys Licensed To Ill Tour shirt. These official shirts feature totally legit designs actually used back in the 80's. Printed standard fit Gildan tees, 100% cotton.

• 100% cotton
• standard fit

Probably my favorite single off the first Beastie album, I always loved the combo of the shout-along powerhouse "No Sleep" with the semi-cutesy "She's Crafty." Now, I've been a reactionary Beasties hater for years now (those fans, and those last couple albums, woah), but stuff off Licensed To Ill is like worldwide property. It's so far removed from what they're doing now and so ingrained in the "very fiber" of any late 20-something (or old man 30 something like me) that you really can't pass judgment on it. This shit exists in an indestructible bubble.

• Music Label: Def Jam 1986

reviewed by the mgmnt 10/2006

Every couple years, a new wave of Beastie Boys reissues comes out- some legit, some imported and reconfigured, some that die with their boots on- presenting the collector / dj with an ever expanding universe of Beastie possibilities. Need "Cookie Puss" and the instrumental for "Pass The Mic" on one twelve inch? It's probably out there somewhere. Even the trail of official Def Jam singles is maddeningly robust (there's at least 3 configurations for every single off the first album- check Discogs), but at the end of the day, the reason why there's so much Beastie's stuff is cause these things never get old. The shit from the first album can be whatever you want it to (so flexible): floor filler, remix fodder, jock jams, white people funk, karaoke fire starter, etc. This one sticks to the original configuration, with "Paul Revere" on one side, "It's The New Style" on the other, with instrumentals for both. Side 1 is mislabeled.

• Music Label: Def Jam 1986

reviewed by the mgmnt 10/2006

You probably already own the original AND 20th Anniversary Edition of Paul's Boutique (and whatever came in between), but here is something is really, really, really special. Really. Limited to a thousand copies only, this 7" boxset concentrates on the rarer takes of "High Plains Drifter," "Shake Your Rump," "Hey Ladies," "Shadrach" and other killer cuts from Paul's Boutique. Live, demo, and instrumental versions make up the 8 COLORED 7-inches, and if you're a real Beastie Boys head, act quick because this will go FAST. Features a cice illustrated version of the original album work, highly recommended.

• music label: Paragon

reviewed by nakinboots 12/2011

The cover art from the Beastie Boys 1995 Root Down EP gets immortalized on this crispy fresh tee. The title track on it featured a sample lifted from the Jimmy Smith record of the same name, so the art had a fitting jazz aesthetic to it. Printed on standard fit Gildan type shirts, 100% cotton.

• 100% cotton
• standard fit

Official Capitol 12" for the Beastie Boys' lead single off Hot Sauce Committee Pt. 2. A sharp Nas adds some steel to the Beasties midfield. Features instrumental and acapella.

• music label: Capitol 2009

reviewed by the mgmnt 07/2009