The Roots - Things Fall Apart

Another amazing hip-hop album focused on live instrumentation over loops. Hearing this album back to back with Black On Both Sodes reminds me of the state of most art in 2025, a time when the battle between human and non-human created art is hotter than ever. There was kind of an electronic music advent going on in the late 90’s, and the Roots’ focus on actual honest-to-goodness instruments, of all things, feels more like an act of rebellion rather than a simple return to music’s, well, roots.

From the roundup (Some of) The Greatest Albums of 1999.