So it seems that a trend in hip-hop over the last few years is to focus on specific regions putting out hip-hop. I guess its no conincidence that in 2007, an eleventh commandment will be unveiled that reads "Thou shalt not sleep on Detroit." Sure, everyone knows Eminem is from the D, Dilla finally got his moment in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, and Slum Village were "those dudes that did a song with Kanye", but Detroit sets itself apart from the rest of the hip hop world because of its willingness to embrace electronic genres such as house and techno. Cats like Black Milk, who have consistently been dropping heat out of Detroit for the last few years, cites Kraftwerk, Stereolab, and Daft Punk as musical influences. You might best know Black Milk from the last two Slum Village albums or the Dirty District mixtapes, but this year he has branched out and worked with artists such as Pharoahe Monch and Lloyd Banks.

This track off the Broken Wax EP, "Pressure", bleeds Detroit in every way. Grimy synths, Dusty Drums, and what sounds like a hint of Kraftwerk. And the man can spit a little as well. Dilla's influence undoubtedly comes through (not like that's a bad thing), utilizing many of the rhythms and chop patterns Dilla used to put Detroit on the map. Black Milk shows himself to be worthy of consideration as part of the new breed of super-producers who can make beats for anyone and drop a rhyme or two for good measure.

Stream the whole ep here, and check for a Prefix review in the future.

Black Milk "Pressure"