
Chong-Nee: Just Getting By on Love
By Simon Sweetman
This album has been a long time coming for fans impressed with Chong-Nee's production and beat-making talents. The wait has most certainly been worth it, 'Just Getting By On Love' is the sharpest sounding local hip-hop/R'n'B release I've ever heard; production-wise this album just sounds beautiful. Scribe's debut was lauded for P-Money's involvement but sounded more like it was recorded in a shed, whereas this album rivals anything released by Dr Dre or Kanye West for the sheer science behind the sound. The songs are great too - Chong-Nee's love of old soul and R'n'B sees the beats steeped in the flow of grooves that reference the work of Al Green and Sam Cooke. Guest appearances from Dei Hamo, Jigsaw and USOuljah all provide highlights - and even the skits manage to be funny (a hip-hop rarity!) This debut full-lengther is to NZ hip-hop what Don McGlashan's recent album was to the pop-rock community, or the still-amazing first blast of Dimmer was to fans of slow-seep electronica - that is to say, a pioneering album within its genre. This is one hip hop hero Aotearoa can most definitely count on.
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