So why is Inspectah Deck’s Uncontrolled Substance on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
Uncontrolled Substance is a relatively obscure yet nonetheless shining gem of a rap album produced by a member of the Wu-Tang Clan collective. And it’s also my favorite Inspectah Deck solo record.
It’s a remarkably consistent and exciting album, thanks to producing credits that include the RZA, Mathematics, Pete Rock, and Deck himself. It’s relatively light on Wu-Universe guest appearances, though the likes of U-God and Masta Killa show up here and there, along with appearances by Streetlife, La the Darkman, and others.
The production is exquisite and precise. Tracks like “Elevation” offer such a specific and pleasing sound, almost like vintage soul music that’s been meticulously restored and overlaid with super on point rap flow from Deck.
“Movas & Shakers” is my favorite number on the album at the moment, an upbeat horn driven old school soul groove getting you into the mood to get with the moving and the shaking. The repetition of the chorus gets better and better throughout.
Keep on, ya don’t stop, if ya don’t stop maybe ya won’t stop
If ya won’t stop then ya can’t stop
“Lovin’ You,” featuring La the Darkman, has an incredible hip hop groove, and the two rap artists are both great on this track.
The title track, “Uncontrolled Substance,” could easily slot into a Wu-Tang Clan album (note: this is the highest of compliments) thanks to RZA and Mathematics tag teaming the production, while Deck and Shady handle the mic.
As a native New Yorker, I’m also a sucker for local references. Example:
Cold like Chicago winds, taps on my convo
El Diablo cross the Verrazano
Fun fact: The Verrazano Bridge connects Staten Island, the homeland of much of the Wu-Tang Clan, to Brooklyn.
Some stats & info about Inspectah Deck – Uncontrolled Substance
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Hip Hop, Rap, Underground Hip Hop, East Coast Rap, Hardcore Rap
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 4.5 out of 5 stars
- When was Uncontrolled Substance released? 1999
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #274 out of 1,000
Inspectah Deck’s Uncontrolled Substance on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from Inspectah Deck’s Uncontrolled Substance that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
My poems were found next to dinosaur bones, perform by the elders before the kings thrown.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.