Mr. Len

It was disappointing when underground champions Company Flow disbanded after just two incredible records (one being all instrumental) but with the mighty El-P tackling the majority of production and rhymes all was forgotten when Producto dropped his solo effort. Still, there was a certain vibe that was lost when the trio parted ways and the crew’s DJ Mr. Len apparently wants to continue to burn his Co Flow flame a little longer and offer us some rarities, remixes and unreleased joints. Cashing in? Maybe, but the important thing is that this compilation helps expose the uneducated heads out there, even though this is by no means the strongest proof of just how mighty Company Flow were back in the day. So the nuggets you get with Class X are pretty great; "Juvenile Techniques,” which is the very first track the group released, as well as some banging unreleased joints such as the mega diss song "Linda Tripp,” which further explores El-P’s ability to flip Shelley Duvall’s ballad from Popeye. We also get the twelve-inch version of "Infokill,” which is actually hotter than the one on Funcrusher Plus because of its stripped-down feel that allows the rhymes to come across more clear and, more importantly, allows for us to hear that ill strings sample take centre stage. A handful of these tracks have found homes on other sources such as Soundbombing 2, Urban Renewal Program and the first Def Jux compilation, so if you’ve really been following the Company Flow tip then there’s not really much point in copping this record. But if your knowledge ends at Funcrusher Plus then Class X is a good place to start.