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El-P is an abbreviation of El-Producto, both pseudonyms of New York City, NY, USA, underground hip-hop producer / rapper Jaime Meline (b. 2 Mar 1975).
As a member of Company Flow, he honed his production skills alongside DJ Mr. Len and Bigg Jus. His unique style helped Company Flow gain critical, then popular success, culminating in 1997 with Funcrusher Plus. Eventual differences between the group & label Rawkus, lead to El-P & Len leaving the label in 2000. Read more on Last.fm
I’d reserve 2012 hip-hop’s superlatives for Killer Mike (or KRIT – time will tell), but I know for certain that nothing out this year will sound like Cancer 4 Cure. “Request Denied” alone goes as hard as anything I’ve heard in quite some time. For any true fan of hip-hop or of having his boundaries pushed, this record is a must-listen.
I really wasn’t sure if El-P could push any harder on the proggy hip-hop idea that made “I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead” so fresh, but everything about this record makes me glad he tried. It’s got the hardest 808’s around, the most interesting production, and El’s unique take on vocals—I literally cannot imagine a better record in the genre coming out this year.
Excellent follow up to “I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead”. I have to admit I was somewhat saddened to see that El-P left the Def Jux family for this album but I’m glad to hear that it hasn’t had any negative impact on his work. Obviously the production on this album is top notch and I do wish he had stuck with the Def Jux artists for the tracks but Killer Mike and Despot, among others, add a lot to this album and strengthen the tracks up equally well.