Enter the 37th Chamber

Many of you now know of the Dap-Kings for their production on Amy Winehouse’s album, or maybe you’ve even heard Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. And if any of you have dug even a little deeper to discover Truth & Soul Records, then you’ve no doubt unearthed several overlapping bands (no venn diagrams, sorry), whose music takes us back to the late sixties and early seventies in such an authentic fashion that many have been struck by disbelief in these recordings being produced post-millenium.

One of these groups is El Michel’s Affair. Though they recorded their first 12″ in 2002, and their debut album, Sounding Out The City, came out a couple years ago, nothing will pluck at the heart strings of true-school hip-hop heads like their most recent project, Enter the 37th Chamber. It is an instrumental rendering of the Wu’s most classic joints, and while some might presumptously claim “gimmick!” (and sure, maybe it is a little), it is also an awesome project. I think Can It All Be So Simple is my favorite track and will definitely be on repeat this summer, but I’m also loving the unexpected voices (and only vocals for the whole project) on Shimmy Shimmy Ya.

I highly recommend checking out more of El Michels Affairs music, though, and hearing what these dudes have to offer.

El Michels Affair –       Can It All Be So Simple
El Michels Affair –       Shimmy Shimmy Ya
Enter the 37th Chamber on Fatbeats (2009)