Titled
SomeOthaShip but not issued on husband-wife duo
Georgia Anne Muldrow and
Dudley “Declaime” Perkins' label of the same name, this disc was issued only two weeks after
Muldrow’s Kings Ballad. Unlike Kings Ballad, Umsindo, and
Perkins'
Holy Smokes, which were either mostly or entirely produced by
Muldrow and contained no guests in a featured-vocal capacity,
SomeOthaShip involves a wealth of collaborations.
Muldrow produced seven of the 11 principal tracks (tracks 12 through 14 are remixes) with
Black Milk,
Oddisee, and
Flying Lotus providing the remainder, and the same number involves guest MCs and vocalists, led by legend
Kool G Rap and
Big Pooh of
Little Brother. While it would be understandable for the average
Muldrow/
Perkins follower to approach this guest-heavy set with some apprehension, having been spoiled and overwhelmed by the duo’s rapid rate of high-quality output across late 2009 and early 2010,
SomeOthaShip is no leftover affair made of substandard beats and scrap-worthy rhymes. Both
Muldrow and
Perkins deliver some of their most halting, brain-stimulating rhymes -- on “Heaven or Hell” especially -- and they make an ideal match for
Flying Lotus' knocking, mystical “Mages Sages” beat, previously an instrumental. Another standout is a lighter moment, a loose shout-out to
Zapp, their honorary West Coast heroes. ~ Andy Kellman