The Unseen (album)

The Unseen is the debut studio album by Quasimoto, a hip-hop duo composed of Madlib and his animated alter ego Lord Quas. It was released under Stones Throw Records on June 13, 2000. It was re-released in 2005 as a deluxe edition with a bonus CD containing the instrumental version of the album.

This article is about the 2000 Madlib album. For the 2011 The Haunted album, see Unseen (album).
The Unseen
Studio album by
Quasimoto
ReleasedJune 13, 2000 (2000-06-13)
GenreAlternative hip hop, jazz rap, psychedelic hip hop
Length63:13
LabelStones Throw Records
ProducerMadlib
Quasimoto chronology
The Unseen
(2000)		 The Further Adventures of Lord Quas
(2005)
Singles from The Unseen
  1. "Microphone Mathematics"
    Released: 1999
  2. "Come on Feet"
    Released: 2000
  3. "Basic Instinct"
    Released: 2000

Madlib took mushrooms for a month while creating the album.[1] It was co-mixed by Kut Masta Kurt and Peanut Butter Wolf.[2] The cover was designed by Jeff Jank.[3] The song "Low Class Conspiracy" was on the soundtrack for the video game Tony Hawk's Underground.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[4]
Mojo[5]
NME8/10[6]
Pitchfork8.5/10[7]
RapReviews9/10[8]
Spin7/10[9]

Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club said, "The Unseen represents a dramatic leap forward for Madlib as a producer, as he integrates left-field, found-sound samples with dexterity and wit that brings to mind Prince Paul's consistently surprising production work."[10] Meanwhile, Michaelangelo Matos of City Pages said, "The Unseen bursts with so much found material it's tempting to think Madlib changed his name to escape litigation, pilfering everything from Augustus Pablo to Melvin Van Peebles to enough jazz artists to fill a West Village loft".[2]

Steve Huey of AllMusic called it "one of the most imaginative albums of the new West Coast underground, a puzzling, psychedelic jazz-rap gem riddled with warped humor and fractured musical genius."[4]

The Unseen ranked at number 17 on Spin's "20 Best Albums of 2000" list.[11] Rhapsody ranked it at number 7 on its "Hip-Hop's Best Albums of the Decade" list.[12] In 2015, it ranked at number 29 on Fact's "100 Best Indie Hip-Hop Records of All Time" list.[13] In that year, it was also listed by HipHopDX as one of the "30 Best Underground Hip Hop Albums Since 2000".[14]

Track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Welcome to Violence"0:49
2."Bad Character"1:56
3."Microphone Mathematics"3:14
4."Basic Instinct"2:10
5."Goodmorning Sunshine"2:57
6."Discipline 99, Pt. 0" (featuring Mr. Herb)2:32
7."Low Class Conspiracy"2:26
8."Return of the Loop Digga"3:46
9."Real Eyes"3:22
10."Come on Feet"3:35
11."Bluffin"2:47
12."Boom Music"2:47
13."MHBs"2:02
14."Put a Curse on You"1:46
15."Astro Black"3:17
16."Green Power"2:59
17."Jazz Cats, Pt. 1"2:43
18."24-7" (featuring Medaphoar)2:48
19."The Unseen"2:53
20."Phony Game"1:56
21."Astro Travellin"2:58
22."Blitz"1:16
23."Axe Puzzles"2:34
24."Discipline 99, Pt. 1" (featuring Wildchild)3:36

References
  1. Montesinos-Donaghy, Daniel (April 1, 2014). "Our Vinyl Weighs A Ton: We went to a Q&A with Stones Throw Founder Peanut Butter Wolf". Vice. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  2. Matos, Michaelangelo (September 27, 2000). "Quasimoto: The Unseen". City Pages. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  3. Hines, James (October 13, 2015). "Under The Covers: Stones Throw". Red Bull. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  4. Huey, Steve. "The Unseen – Quasimoto". AllMusic. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  5. "Quasimoto: The Unseen". Mojo: 112. Madlib has dreamt-up a hip hop anti-hero who will endure.
  6. "Quasimoto: The Unseen". NME: 35. September 4, 2000.
  7. Macia, Peter (August 31, 2005). "Quasimoto: The Unseen". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  8. Tomer, Matt (November 28, 2006). "Quasimoto :: The Unseen :: Stones Throw Records". RapReviews. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  9. Drumming, Neil (October 2000). "Quasimoto: The Unseen". Spin. 16 (10): 175–76. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  10. Rabin, Nathan (March 29, 2002). "Quasimoto: The Unseen". The A.V. Club. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  11. "Quasimoto, The Unseen (Stones Throw)". Spin. November 16, 2014. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  12. "Hip-Hop's Best Albums of the Decade". Rhapsody. October 31, 2009. Archived from the original on December 8, 2009. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  13. "29. Quasimoto – The Unseen (Stones Throw, 2000)". Fact. February 25, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
  14. "The 30 Best Underground Hip Hop Albums Since 2000". HipHopDX. August 26, 2015. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
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