Recommended music: 'Kool Herc: Fertile Crescent' by Homeboy Sandman

Eight tracks of unashamedly old-school hip-hop from the intellectual MC from Queens. Named after, and with the blessing of, one of hip-hop's originators, this is a back-to basics homage to Sandman's inspirations.

Opener 'My Brothers' is one of the strongest cuts here, with its killer vocal sample and racial tolerance lyrics flow. 'Lonely People' recasts Eleanor Rigby as a fame-hungry wannabe with no real friends, while 'Moon' tells tales of lost love and failed relationships.

On 'Men Are Mortal' the sample stakes are raised with possibly the best Shirley Bassey sample ever committed to vinyl - Kanye would've been proud of this one. As Shirley warbles that "men are mere mortals" Sandman spits out fast-paced lyrics comparing himself to Orson Welles, a burning bush and a citadel. The quality level stays high for the closing two tracks - 'Peace and Love' has got a great guitar line and a (possibly Greek?) euro-chorus, and 'I' shuts things down with some Tijuana brass vibes.

This is another track that came to me via the Stones Throw drip.fm subscription - I've been on this for about a year now and I don't ink there's been a duff release, so check it out here and join in.

You can listen to a bonus cut from the album below.