El Michels Affair - Enter The 37th Chamber (LP) - 15th Anniversary Edition

Tracklist:

A1: Duel Of The Iron Mics
A2: C.R.E.A.M.
A3: Mystery Of Chessboxin'
A4: Can It All Be So Simple
A5: Uzi (Pinky Ring)
A6: Interlude
A7: Glaciers Of Ice

B1: Cherchez La Ghost
B2: Criminology
B3: Heaven & Hell
B4: Bring Da Ruckus
B5: Protect Ya Neck
B6: Incarcerated Scarfaces
B7: Shimmy Shimmy Ya
B8: Outro

Label: Fat Beats
Catalog: FB5127-15YR

Yellow & Black Vinyl

Originally released on Fat Beats Records in 2009, El Michels Affair’s landmark album “Enter the 37th Chamber” is celebrating its 15th Anniversary in 2024. Featuring reinterpretations of hip hop anthems from the Wu-Tang Clan, the album took stripped-down, raw hip hop bangers and flipped them into richly-arranged instrumentals. Cover versions of tracks such as “C.R.E.A.M.” and “Can It All Be So Simple” instantly sounded as vintage as the records that RZA had sampled to create the originals, with the familiar melodies and driving rhythms elevated by expertly arranged horns and strings.

The gritty and bottom-heavy style of these analog recordings—dubbed “Cinematic Soul”—has been both widely celebrated and often imitated. El Michels Affair namesake Leon Michels has since gone on to produce for and collaborate with artists as diverse as Adele, Black Thought, Lana Del Rey, and The Carters (Beyonce & Jay-Z). Now 15 years from its initial release, “Enter the 37th Chamber” has proven to be one of the true classic instrumental albums of its era, every bit as enduring as the music it was meant to pay homage to.