Big Quarters: From The Home of Brown Babies and White Mothers (Album Review)

On the chorus to “Good Look,” brothers Medium Zach and Brandon Allday of Big Quarters rap: “Independents made ground/ Industry breaks down/ What else are you coming with?/ It’s not grinding if it don’t feel like punishment.” Minneapolis’ Mexican-American hip-hop duo is a quintessential example of the new wave of creativity in indie hip-hop marketing. The group has gained notice by continually grinding, self-promoting themselves through an innovative ‘BQ Direct’ system — giving their fans five new tracks monthly. Now, they return with their sophomore full-length album, From the Home of Brown Babies and White Mothers.

The album’s strength rests in its production. Medium Zach crafted most of the beats on Brown Babies, and can transition effortlessly across several styles. From the heavily syncopated opener, “Newborn,” to the sample-heavy “Prom Mrs.,” to the festive, horn-dominated “Free Shipping,” Zach has clearly been honing his abilities since the last album, Cost of Living. However, the absolute gem of the album in terms of production is the subdued “All Day Long.” On typical occasions, it is a listening nightmare to try to navigate as many samples and instrumental overdubs as Medium Zach included in that beat (vocal samples, piano, multiple synths, guitar, and more) but in this instance every layer blends together beautifully.

Though the production is the highlight of the album, this is not to say that the rapping is pedestrian. Brandon Allday’s often slow rhyming can grow tedious at times (see his verse on “Barter System”), but while he doesn’t deliver many jaw-dropping verses on the album, he almost always comes through with clever one-liners (“In the office like Ricky Gervais,” or “My Northern slang overhang like a Yooper”) or heartfelt confessions (“I’ll stop burning flags when you cops quit harassing me, don’t know when that’ll be”). In the end, both members of Big Quarters succeed lyrically with honest, personal, levelheaded lyricism. You won’t hear much boasting on Brown Babies; Big Quarters let the music speak for itself.

There are also a handful of guest appearances on Brown Babies, all from Minneapolis artists. Crescent Moon kicked one of the album’s best verses in his guest spot for “Wipe The Dust.” P.O.S. dropped some surprisingly disappointing non sequitur on “One On The Lip,” which was a letdown mainly because of the consistently superb quality of his work as of late. Alissa Paris and Atmosphere backup singer Mankwe Ndosi both contribute pleasant choruses. Lastly, M.anifest sung backup vocals for “Ladies Know,” although it would have been nicer to hear him rap over the Mux Mool produced beat that sounded tailor-made for the smooth Ghanaian emcee.

As a whole, Brown Babies is one of the most consistent efforts of the year. Through both the lyrics and the production, the album maintains continuity throughout, all with an uncompromising theme of grassroots work ethic. Medium Zach and Brandon Allday may have punished themselves through nonstop grinding, but their final product was one of the best local releases of 2009 thus far.

Bonus: “Barter System” Music Video