On the subject of catching up with rap acts, back in 2002 I spent Memorial Day in Arkansas with my family. We were visiting my brother and we went to Circuit City as they had a massive sale for CDs on that particular weekend. Snagged some cool offers, especially on soundtracks like Queen of the Damned, Resident Evil, and Blade II.

Blade II was an interesting soundtrack. In the tradition of Judgment Night and Spawn, two bands from different genres collaborated for each track. Judgment Night had metal and rap. Spawn had alternative and electronica. Blade II had electronica and rap, and let me tell you, there are some fantastic tracks there.

Yasiin Bey’s collaboration with Massive Attack is easily the highlight of the album. The trip hop arrangement melts so great with Bey’s vocals, who slides into the spotlight with ease. Jump a couple of years forward and we have him as Ford Prefect in the unjustly maligned film adaptation of The Hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy. He was also good in the also underrated Be Kind Rewind.

I ran into Quiet Dog Bite Hard as it was featured on a station in Saints Row 3. Again, the music choices on these games are incredible and I would often wait for the track to come up.

The Ecstatic was Yasiin’s fourth album, a comeback of sorts, but also a goodbye note, as no solo releases from him have come after that. Quiet Dog Bite Hard kicks off with a Fela Kuti quote and blast off with a speaker-testing bass with a hypnotic rhythm that leaves you so euphoric you truly need to simmer down when Yassiin slowly eases you down. It’s a short, one but easily one of the best songs of the last 20 years. The live version on Letterman with Yasiin on timpani is perfection.

-Sam J. Valdés López