Exile

Emanon beat conductor Exile follows partner-in-rhyme Aloe Blacc into the soloist fray with his own marquee release of grade-A artistry in Dirty Science, a sonic showcase that’ll have a lot of people wondering just where this man’s been hiding. Exile’s masterful creations pair snapping, anxious beat work with richly detailed and expertly layered, organic instrumentation laced with cleverly cut-up vocal samples and varied audio nuances. It’s a soundtrack that almost forces the many invited lyrical guests to show and prove, and very few disappoint. Slum Village remind once again just how far they’ve come lyrically on show opener "Time Has Come,” while Blu and Aloe Blacc let a lady know on the breezy "Tell You.” Exile diversifies the predominantly hip-hop-focused set with the quasi-doo wop shuffle of "Summertime in L.A.,” before spreading some love north of the border on the Kardinal-commanded "Smoke & Mirrors,” with the MC assuming some of hip-hop’s most cartoonish big Willie fantasies in a tongue-in-check verbal assault. The producer slows things down with the slightly jazzy bossa groove of "Silver Moon” to complete a record that should see a lot more work going his way in the near future.