No other rapper in recent history has impressed me as much as Roc Marciano has.
In the late '90s, the Long Island native made his debut as a member of Busta Rhymes' Flipmode Squad crew. He then left in 2001 to form a group called The U.N., releasing one album, UN or U Out, in 2004, before going their separate ways soon after.
Marciano's self-produced debut album, 2010's Marcberg, became an instant underground sensation, with many bloggers comparing it to the golden age of "boom bap" rap of the mid-'90s.
Since then, Marciano has released Reloaded (2012) and Marci Beaucoup (2013), two more critically acclaimed studio albums with a sound that harks back to the time when the sounds of loop-based producers like Large Professor and Diamond D were being blasted through every boombox in the inner-city boroughs of NYC.
"Poltergeist," a 2012 one-off track produced by the Los Angeles-based duo, Arch Druids, encapsulates Marciano's sound perfectly. It's a track that manages to be haunting, ominous and atmospheric all at the same time.
Lyrically, Marciano has a stream of consciousness type of delivery that paints visuals as cinematic as the tracks he chooses to rap on top of. "Poltergeist" is no different.
"Carbine out the window / process the info / my chest is an igloo, your flesh is a menu / cold nigga / icicle," raps Marciano at the top of the song, setting off the menacing tone like only he can.
If it were still 1995, Roc Marciano would be signed to Loud Records and have a 5-mic album review from The Source under his belt already.
