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To reign at the top of your game, its not enough to have just lyrical expertise tucked in your back pack of skills. You have to be able to man the boards, direct musical content and deliver verses that will appeal to the underground while whetting the appetites of the mainstream. For more than seven years, the Beatnuts have fulfilled these necessary requirements displaying their ability to relentlessly issue the illest instrumentals paired with blistering hot lyrics. The Corona, Queens duo Psycho Les and Junkyard Juju, also known as Les and Juju, linked up back at the rise of hip-hop in the early 80's initially on a mission to create beats. The duo would soon master tracks for the likes of "Fat Joe" and Wu-Tang Clan's "Ghostface Killah" amidst many others. By 1993 Les and Juju would blast off on their own with the release of their debut album "Intoxicated Demons," which was soon to be followed by their self-titled sophomore album; both efforts encompassing the witty wordiness of the two coupled with contagious choruses and impressive production. Just a few years later, hip-hop music was undoubtedly turned on its side when the Beatnuts stepped on the scene with the single "Off The Books," featured on their "Stone Crazy" LP. The Beatnuts introduced avid music listeners to a new sound and ushered in the lyrical skills of a legendary, the late Big Punisher and his fellow Terror Squad crony Cuban Link. Opening up the Beatnuts to a wider fan base, "Stone Crazy" was followed by their EP "The Spot" and 1999's "Musical Massacre." "We've just been able to stay together in the game because we believe in ourselves and the fans and that keeps us just doing our shit," Les expresses earnestly further confirming the fact that good groups can continue to make great music. Obviously ahead of their time, the world famous Juju and Les commandeered a sound so sophisticated in its production, only the chosen were hip to the gems they dropped. Latin sensations before the pop explosion, Beatnuts left a water crest on hip-hop with their unforgettable instrumentals and impacting verses. But that was then, and since the days of going stone crazy on the mic, the Beatnuts have musically matured offering their latest "Take It Or Squeeze It." "This album is showing people that there is more to hip-hop than just a platinum chain and a Bentley car," Les offers in a matter-a-fact tone, "we are trying to show the fans that the music is what is important." Always maintaining their signature nutty anecdotes, cosmic interpolation of outside elements, and traditional hip-hop bass lines, the Beatnuts integrate a soul-filled instrumental in songs like "It's Da Nuts," which appropriately serves as the album's intro track. "No Escaping This," the radio friendly first single, speaks directly to its title with its infectious elementary song-sounding chorus and bass pounding vocals. As the beat is looped, the Beatnuts flip lyrics in and out of the circular instrumental, invoking both a shoulder shuffling glide as well as a low-key chill vibe. "This whole album is a strong album, and unlike our last album, we have more radio joints, where before there was only one or two, we now got twelve hits ready for rotation," Les declares showing the versatility of the duo. As well, the Spanish-influenced tracks like "Prendelo" which features the lyrical talent of Tony Touch and "Se Acabo" remix with Method Man contribute that extra additive to fulfill any fans' musical cravings. Even "Yo, Yo, Yo," featuring pioneering emcee Greg Nice of Nice N' Smooth, with its piano riff supply any listener with that added nuance of call and response. Throughout the years, the Beatnuts have managed to secure their position in hip-hop as the talented and diligent emcees who through hell or high water will continue to make music that is just as stone crazy as it is off the books. So either take it or... well you know the album title. Beatnuts MediaVote for "NO ESCAPIN THIS" on BET's 106 and Park and MTV's TotalRequest Live BET's 106 and Park
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