The last time we checked in on the Brooklyn-based rap group, X-Clan, was in 1990 with their debut album, To The East, Blackwards. The album may not have been commercially successful, but it was a critical darling with beats that hit harder than Ike Turner and the conscious messaging from Brother J and Professor X was blacker than Whoopi Goldberg’s lips, the back of Forest Whitaker’s neck, and Wesley Snipes, combined. Many regard the album as one of the best hip-hop albums of the nineties, and The Source Magazine would even include it on their 1998 list of 100 Best Albums of all time. After a two-year hiatus, X-Clan would return on the scene with their sophomore effort, Xodus.

Like their first go-round, X-Clan would keep all the production in-house with no featured guests and stick with an eleven-song track count. Adding to the similarities with To The East, Xodus would peak at number eleven on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Charts, but it would rise higher than the former on the Billboard Top 200, peaking at 31.

Xodus is another album that I didn’t buy when it originally came out, although I do remember a couple of the album’s singles. Nevertheless, I bought a used CD copy a few months ago and now I get to unpack with you all.

Rest in peace to Professor X and Sugar Shaft.

Foreplay – The album begins with a dense bass line, hollow drums, and a few of X-Clan’s naysayers whining, I mean, complaining about the issues they have with the group, while a sample of a crying baby in the background pokes fun at their haters. The first part of this intro ends with a snippet of a speech from what sounds like Professor X, crediting Minister Louis Farrakhan as “The leader of the real X-Clan.” The second half features Professor X sharing a poetic lecture on Black consciousness over the same dense bassline used on part one, but with softer drums, and the crying baby loop is replaced with a laughing one.

Cosmic Ark – After thunder strikes and rain falls, an ominous horn loop meets Brother J’s authoritative voice and his opening remarks. Then a simple but effective drumbeat drops, and Brother J gives us his first dosage of militant pro-Black parables: “And as we dig down deep for ark feel/and none try to steal, when they know they can’t deal/my rhythmist vibe is more effective/potency vibes for all the pro-Black selective.” The Overseer also gets off a quick verse, and of course, he closes the song with his signature Pan-African colors stamp of approval.

A.D.A.M. – This was the third single released from Xodus. The team loops up Grover Washington Jr.’s “Mr. Magic” (making this the third consecutive post that I’ve mentioned his name) for this smooth laidback musical canvas, as Professor X and Brother J, once again, do their respective things, effectively.

Xodus – X-Clan builds this instrumental around a couple of very familiar samples (the Ohio Players’ “Funky Worm” and a funky sample from The Turtles’ record that D-Nice previously used and made hip-hop famous with “Call Me D-Nice”). Brother J stand firmly on his soapbox and spits another well-articulated Black pride sermon with cosigns from the Professor. J also continues his feud with KRS-One over his humanist stance (“Or would you ask me if I’m a humanist?”) and takes what appears to be a subtle jab at MC Breed (“I hear some niggas talking ’bout they’ll paint the White House black/I’ll blow the sucka up and pressure on the attack,” referencing a line from Breed’s 1991 hit, “Ain’t No Future In Yo’ Frontin’,” which also sampled “Funky Worm”). All in all, another solid record.

F.T.P. – If you’re not sure what the acronym in the song title means, it’ll quickly click once the first hook rolls in. X and J use a funky little rhythm (built around a Ripple loop that most of you will recognize from Special Ed’s classic, “I Got It Made”) to discuss the turbulent relationship between the police and the Black Community. The message (which remains as relevant today as it was thirty years ago) is the same as N.W.A.’s infamous record, but naturally, X-Clan delivers theirs with more sophistication. The smooth En Vogue “Hold On” break placed in between the verses was a nice added touch.

Fire & Earth (100% Natural) – This was the lead single from Xodus. The record opens with a sample of a choir singing an old negro spiritual with snippets from Jimmy Castor’s “Troglodyte” woven in and calling the white man a few different colorful names (no pun intended). Then the sick instrumental drops and X and J commence to share with the listener what kind of “niggas” they are. Oh, and if you didn’t catch it during “Xodus,” X-Clan hates humanists, which means The Blastmaster catches a few more shots (including being called Captain Human, leader of the Rainbow Crew, and Professor X sends him a smug dis at the end of the record, in riddle form, of course). I was today years old when I looked at the liner notes and found out the instrumental was built around a loop from B.B. King’s “The Thrill Is Gone.” The sample is so amazingly chopped, sliced, and diced that I didn’t recognize, even after listening to B.B.’s record, again.

Holy Rum Swig – Brother J’s dexterity is put to the test on this one, as the beat changes up no less than six times trying to stifle are host’s flow; but he never misses um, a beat. This was fire, and another great song title.

Ooh Baby – The Overseer and Grand Verbalizer use this one to discuss Black women, sex with Black women, and the power of the vagina. Brother J’s rhymes are deeply coded on this one, while Professor X’s riddles are a lot more straight forward: “Behold, the land of P, has something to do with the V,” and later he closes the record with: “If you haven’t discovered yet, we’ve come out of a hole, brother, to spend the rest of our lives to get back in…ask your mother.” Years before No ID would use the harmonic loop from Stevie Wonder’s “Love’s In Need Of Love Today” for Jay-Z’s “Smile,” X-Clan would tap the sample for this record. Unfortunately, the loop is only brought in during the hook and the rest of the instrumental doesn’t sound that interesting.

Rhythem Of God – A loop from George Kranz’s “Din Daa Daa” meets frantic-paced mega-intense drums to back Brother J’s pro-Black doused verbal darts. Random thought: “Din Daa Daa” always reminds me of Yello’s “Oh Yeah,” which immediately makes me think about the closing scene of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off when a depleted and defeated Principal Rooney gets on the school bus after an unsuccessful attempt to catch Ferris playing hooky. Easily my favorite song on Xodus.

Verbal Papp – Our hosts slow things down to a soothing pace, placing the drums from Lee Dorsey’s “Get Out My Life, Woman” under a very familiar and melodic Barry White loop (it’s been sampled a million times, but always sounds amazing). Brother J honors his father and ancestors and continues to verbalize his strong Black pride. Even if you don’t catch all of J’s rhymes, he and Professor X’s mellifluous voices will leave you hypnotized, along with the beautifully airy music.

Funk Liberation – X-Clan ends the album “Fired up and can’t take no more,” as they refuse to conform to societal norms and hip-hop cultural trends: “I’m bout sick of that conform shit to my stomach, it’s time to liberate or funk it.” Per usual, Brother J offers up some meaty verses that’ll give you something to think about even if you don’t completely agree with his perspective. I think we all can agree that this bassy, hard drum-driven instrumental is dope.

Xodus finds X-Clan carrying on the mission they began on To The East, Blackwards. Professor X graciously blesses each track with spoken word riddles, delivered in his signature snobbish tone, while Brother J rhymes with Shakespearean bravado, living up to his Grand Verbalizer title as he spills oodles of “funkin’ lessons” filled with Black pride messages and Pro-Black overtones. And of course, every message gets stamped and approved by the red, the black, and the green. X and J’s cryptic orations will require some brain power to comprehend, and with each listen, you’ll unlock a new rhyme. If you’re a numskull or just a person who prefers superficial or easy-to-understand rhymes in your hip-hop music, lyrically, the Clan might not be your cup of tea, but their blend of soul, funk, and pop loops over hefty drumbeats should keep your head bobbin’, and Brother J and Professor X’s instrument-like melodic voices will also keep you engaged. X-Clan didn’t dig too deep in the crates for their samples, as most of the breaks sound recognizable and recycled, but the familiarity almost gives the album a mixtape feel, that I personally enjoyed.

The book of Exodus documents Moses’ journey of self-awareness, as he discovers his true identity and God, which eventually leads to him leading his enslaved Jewish people out of bondage from Egypt to the land God promised them. Similarly, on Xodus, X-Clan is out to awaken and free the Black man, women, and child of North America from their mental bondage through music. Thirty-one years have passed, and I still don’t know if we can say their mission was successful. But it took the children of Israel forty years to enter the promised land, so let’s reassess the situation in another nine years.

-Deedub

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