DJ Babu

It began as a mixtape but evolved into the final instalment of DJ Babu’s Duck Season trilogy. It is what separates a DJ/producer mixtape from a compilation album. Yes, you do have to put up with the DJ’s patented choice of sound FX (in this case, quacking ducks) but the selected rappers here are not on board to spit a freestyle or remix an oldie. Yes, some of the 16 bars appear rehashed and culled from unreleased material but mostly it feels like a real collaboration between producer and artist, tailored and touched in the booth, with Babu turning scratches into full-on choruses. Yes, there are many newcomers here, most notably Babu’s ten-year-old son Niko on "Ahead of My Time,” but Babu also gives the mic to those we all know can hold it down — his homies from Dilated Peoples, MOP, Little Brother, Bishop Lamont and even Canada's golden boy, Kardinal Offishall. Yes, this winter is definitely Duck Season.