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Dula-Mite The Certified King Of Las Vegas, Vol. 1 [review]

I gotta say, first and foremost, that cover is hilarious. Nothing says quality like Omarion and Bow Wow looking like drag queens. I also wished that Dula-Mite went at these two a bit more, but I can't front - he does well just doing him. The thing was, coming into this mixtape, I had no idea that Las Vegas was doing Hip-Hop like this, and I was impressed by what I heard. I'm not gonna say this is the best shit you heard in your life, or the best shit you heard this year, but if you are looking to get amped on the way to a club, or if you are lounging with your crew doing whatever it is you do, this is the disc you should throw on.

I'm guessing Las Vegas is more of a melting pot in terms of sounds, or maybe that's just Dula. One would think that, due to their proximity to California, they'd wear that on their sleeve. Not so; rhymes wise, these cats sound a lot more East Coast, and the beats range from club-ready Southern jawns to a bit of the sampling/looping that you'd hear coming from the Northeast, which is refreshing. What wasn't as fresh, however, were some of the guest appearances. Guys like P.L. and Oun-P don't really add much to the themes Dula establishes on tracks. It's almost as if Dula was like "OK, y'all, we're gonna rhyme about pimpin'", and they stick to the topic, while not infusing something of themselves into the tracks. I almost prefer hearing Dula by himself, b/c he has that mixture of confidence, braggadociousness, but he can also flip the script and take things a bit deeper.

Take a track like "Sex Addict". You hear many MCs dropping cuts about how many chicks they sleep with, how many freaks are on their tip, and all of the regular dicktalk that's so prevelant. Not too often do MCs get their Eric Benet on, and truly break down and admit that "yeah, I cheated, and it's aggravating me". It's almost as if we're deep inside the mind of a guy who got caught on Cheaters at the moment the camera flashes on - that instant guilt, nagging and digging deep. That's the nerve this one touches. Dula and Ques (who drops the best guest verses on this mixtape) do the same on "Want It Back (The Revolution)", which boasts a nice loop of Marvin Gaye's "I Want You". You get the social commentary, but its not too overbearing, keeping the feel light but deep, with poignant Malcolm X samples to boot.

I am torn on this mixtape, though. I loved "Raindrops", which revisits Eddie Kane (Five Heartbeats, anyone?), and has the most direct disses at the Face Off boys (we're also treated to interludes featuring hilarious samples from Coming To America, Eddie Murphy's "Ice Cream Man" piece, and others); "In The Kitchen" isn't bad, either, but seems to borrow too heavily from the "trap" rappers out of the A (that beat knocks, though). "Clap Ya Hands" benefits from Dula's smooth flow and a dope guitar lick. I hate kicking a dead horse, but Dula shines best alone. I don't want to diss his crew or the cats he asked to spit on the disc, but he obviously outshines them; I got more into the disc towards the end, where Dula goes for broke over a punched-up version of Rich Boy's "Get To Poppin'", or him digging out the instrumental for De La Soul's "Much More" for "Amazing" - which is the best example of Dula hitting that freestyle, battle rap flavor. This mixtape is deep, like 27 tracks (excluding the preview), but for the most part, each track is a fully-fleshed out song, so hearing Dula just spit was refreshing.

The only other fault of this mixtape is more personal: I didn't like the "DJ" who flipped this. The "rewinds" on a few cuts (especially on "Booty-Doo") aren't synched up right - I believe it's the third pull on "Booty-Doo" where there's a bit of silence. It's minor, but it cuts from the "live" feel you build up. The sequencing is otherwise fine, although thematically, there is a bit of repetion, but it feels like that might also have to do with the unimaginative filler some of these MCs put into their bars.

In terms of the scene today, there's so many mixtapes, leaked tracks, and albums that it's hard to decipher the dope from the "ehhh". Dula-Mite definitely shows that he has what it takes to keep his regional fame buzzing, and with the right push, build that into a more national thing. I'd personally like to hear him trim the fat, keep going deeper into familiar territory, and stay true to himself. I don't see him out there ready to murk the whole Fight Klub circuit, but dude obviously has talent and I could see any one of the stellar tracks on this, with the right backing, blowing up like anything else on the charts currently.

rock the dub gives The Certified King of Las Vegas, Vol. 1 a 3.25 out of 5. There are a load of dope ideas on here, and Dula-Mite is a solid talent. The tightness of some of the featured rhymers is questionable, but Dula is the main attraction, and holds his own with the best of them.

Burn Deez: "Clap Ya Hands", "Sex Addict", "Amazing"

You can stream AND download this mixtape via datpiff.com.

related links:
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I APPRECIATE THE REVIEW MY DUDE, RAPMULLET.COM DIDNT SHOW ME OR MY CITY ANY LOVE, SO I APPRECIATE HOW YOU THOROUGHLY LISTENED TO IT! GOD BLESS

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Hip Hop from Las Vegas I found a nice band from there on myspace, "Somobe". Actually they sound much more like Slum Village or Little Brother than anything else.

http://www.myspace.com/somobe