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MH-225 The Opus - Breathing Lessons  After locking themselves in their Chicago studio with a mountain of dusty vinyl and two lifetimes worth of musical inspiration, the Opus have finally emerged to deliver Breathing Lessons a mesmerizing collection of reflective, instrumental hip-hop. Using their signature palette of chopped percussion and intricate drum programming as base materials, they expand their compositions, adding layers of strings, detuned piano, analog synths, floor rumbling bass, and reverb to haunting effect. Although the all-too-brief vocal appearance of Lord 360 reminds listeners of their productions for MCs on Rubberoom’s Architechnology and their own 2002 debut First Contact, this release is clearly intent on establishing the Opus as a production duo capable of creating music that stands on its own. |
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| Reviews Summary |
| One of the underground's finest beatmaking tandems - Urb / A fine example of instrumental hip-hop. - Exclaim! / Call it good mood music for bad moods. - Entertainment Weekly / Quality stuff for the introspective heads, and recommended. - Undercover / Nocturnally restful and hauntingly evocative. - Igloo |
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| The Opus's debut, 2002's First Contact hinted at the underground hip-hop duo's weird approach, but it still seemed indebted to DJs Premier and Shadow. On Breathing Lessons, Chicago's Mr. Echoes and the Isle of Weight instantly submerge you in their mysterious, subterranean world with a down-pitched, seesawing sitar loop, trippy Moog emissions and martial-funk beats. Next level duly achieved, the Opus continues to flaunt their genius for bizarre samples, elevating hip-hop into a dystopian sci-fi future that sounds oddly thrilling. Supernaturally dark, warped and peculiarly funky. Breathing Lessons furthers hip-hop's ongoing and welcome psychedelic renovation. - XLR8R |
2XLP/Out Of Print