This is crazy. Very happy this appears to be a sanctioned limited pressing of rare (thought lost) recordings of the Cenobites (Bobbito, Godfather Don, Kool Keith and friends). At $80 beans a pop this is probably not for the casual fan. But there are only 200 copies being pressed up and who knows if there will ever be more. Much props to One Leg Up Records. Link (peace to Zaid for the heads up!)
[audio:CenobitesDementedEP_snippets_96kbps.mp3]
Download snippets of all 6 tracks on the EP
PRE-ORDERS available NOW
After the much praised and well received OLU-001 limited Herb McGruff & Godfather Don EP release, One Leg Up Records continues its tradition of delivering raw hip hop recordings on wax from a true school era. One Leg Up returns with the much anticipated 2nd installment of our groundbreaking and newly titled “Heavy Pieces” limited series… and here is OLU-002! This time around we introduce you to yet another collaboration project with the legendary Brooklyn bomb dropper, Godfather Don, as he brings you the unreleased 2nd part of the classic Cenobites recording sessions. These vintage recordings were created as part of a charismatic vibe surrounding Bobbito, Kool Keith and Godfather Don. Most of these particular joints were, for the most part, made only to be played on Stretch & Bobbito’s WKCR 89tec9 show in the early to mid 90’s. In 1995, Bobbito Garcia had released about half of the Cenobites recordings on his own Fondle Em Records imprint in the form of an EP called “The Cenubites” (which was incorrectly titled due to a typo by the manufacturer). Longtime fans and local NYC listeners of the Stretch Armstrong & Bobbito radio show during the Cenobites era would recall that there were many other joints that got exclusive airplay that never came out on any release, including the Fondle Em re-issue with extra tracks. Heads have been asking about some of these missing recordings for literally 15 years. In true One Leg Up fashion, we have been able to finally obtain these unreleased gems direct from Godfather Don himself, as we bring you The Cenobites “Demented Thoughts EP”!
For years after the first Cenobites EP came out in ’95, Don had always believed that these recordings had been lost for good. While they received a few straight-off-cassette spins on Stretch & Bob’s show, it was believed that these songs had somehow been mistakenly misplaced shortly after receiving play on the show in the 90’s. Many years later, through a twist of fate, Bobbito had managed to find the original recordings he had of The Cenobites sessions. He quickly gave Don a phone call to let him know the joints he had thought were lost forever were now in his hands and that he wanted to bless Don with his newly revived masters. All of the sessions were recorded at Stretch & Bobbito’s shared apartment, where many creative Cenobites experiments took place involving not only Don, Keith and Bob, but guests Percee-P and Cage of Mudbones. The “Demented Thoughts EP” (OLU-002) serves as part 2 of the original classic Cenobites recording sessions made from 1993 until 1996. Entirely produced by Godfather Don, this EP delivers 6 full length songs showcasing insane musical creations from the original mind of Don and Keith, with a center focus on Godfather Don’s lyrical wizardry as Kool Keith actually only appears on one of the joints (yet with a marathon classic verse). These hip hop experiments are meshed amongst additional contributions from Bobbito and a teenage Cage (no rhyme intended). What’s even more interesting about this 200 copy limited release is that it includes a lost song called “Hawaii” that features Bobbito kicking a verse that would later be immortalized in the hook for The Beatnuts’ “Fried Chicken” song from their classic 1994 LP. For many years, fans have recognized Bobbito’s voice being looped on the Beatnuts track saying “I keep flowing to the beat of the sure shot, my favorite jam of all time is The Body Rock”… but never being able to pinpoint where this was lifted from. Many assumed it was just a sample of Bobbito taped from his radio show freestyling and bugging out as he usually did at the time and did not realize it was an actual Cenobites recording with Godfather Don dropping a verse right after Bob. For the first time ever, that song and 5 other rare recordings have now found their home on proper vinyl.
I am now accepting orders on a first come, first serve basis for the “Demented Thoughts EP”. This record is limited to only 200 pieces, as all OLU releases will continue to honor. This vinyl EP will never be repressed or re-issued at a later time, which holds true for all One Leg Up releases. The tracks on this Cenobites project were provided to us in their original form and they have been mastered/optimized for the best sound quality possible, in addition to representing the 89tec9 gritty NYC basement sound they were created under. I expect this wax to move out of here a lot faster than the Herb McGruff project, so please do not delay in reserving your copy by getting your pre-order in immediately. This is definitely a highly collectable piece on many levels and showcases the carefree creativity and magical-like soundscapes of 1990’s hip hop music.
Remember, as part of OLU’s “Heavy Pieces” series, this is the 2nd release out of 5 total limited releases we are putting out. At the end of the series, upon release of the 5th and final title, we will be announcing and giving away a FREE bonus record (OLU-LTD1). This extremely rare and exclusive bonus record will ONLY be available to purchasers of all five of our releases in this series. It will be of the same caliber and quality as any regular OLU release. This is my way of showing love back to those of you who spend hard earned money to support projects such as these that would otherwise be impossible to release. In order to qualify for the free bonus wax, it does include the requirement of having purchased OLU-001 (Herb McGruff EP), which I do have a small handful of copies still remaining. If you have not yet purchased OLU-001 and want to get in on the “Heavy Pieces” giveaway, please contact me ASAP about purchasing one of the remaining copies of that title to go along with your order for OLU-002 to ensure that you reserve a spot to receive OLU-LTD1 (which will be here faster than you think)! I can be reached directly at: OneLegUpRecords@gmail.com for any questions or requests you may have. Rock-rock on, y’all and enjoy these releases!
