albums of the decade - 79. The Foreign Exchange - Connected

79. The Foreign Exchange - Connected (2004)

This is blissed-out, sun-kissed, deep-down, back-to basics, sophisticated and sincere hip-hop that gently pats the gangster schmuck on the back and tells him to be on his way. The concept here is similar to that of The Postal Service in that American rapper Phonte Coleman (of Little Brother fame) and Dutch producer Nicolay had never met prior to The Foreign Exchange and so they sent the stuff to each other back and forth. The apparent ease at which they create together is there to hear in the pure tranquility of the operation. Soul music is a big deal for these chaps, as the delicious 'Sincere' will testify. I just want to lie down now and listen to some, but I'm going to go and read some Mark Twain instead I think, it's hard to do both at once.