According to Chris Rock, Raising Hell is "rap's first masterpiece," and he's absolutely right (Chuck D also agrees). Run DMC dropped the landmark work (first hip-hop album to go multiplatinum) in 1986, with the bombastic beats, furious bars traded between Rev Run and DMC, and Jam Master Jay's sharp, faster-than-Jack-B-Nimble cuts carrying the album, and by extension, rap, straight to the mainstream. A heavy dose of rock 'n' roll as well as a bevy of ill jazz-funk samples (s/o Rick Rubin) ensure a party on the dancefloor, and the compelling rhymes that detail everything from the streets to shell toes complete this blockbuster of an album. Yes, Run DMC has been on rap-rock since its debut, but "Walk This Way" with Aerosmith took things to a completely new level (once again, s/o Rick Rubin), and tracks like "Peter Piper" (greatest opening track ever?), "It's Tricky," "You Be Illin'," and "My Adidas" remain exceptional cultural moments that thrusted hip-hop forward into the next, grander phase.

• black vinyl pressing
• original release year: 1986
• music label: Get On Down 2017

reviewed by nakaveli 08/2017