Hip-hop is far from my favorite genre. I still check out a few rap albums every year but for the most part I wind up unimpressed - I listen to something once and think "it's fine but I really don't see myself listening to this again".
This album is a completely different story. I would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone, even people who generally don't like the genre. This is not your typical hip-hop album; in fact, I can't even think of an album that sounds anything like this one.
The beats are out of this world. In fact they almost have an "outer space" feel to them and it makes the album really atmospheric. Most hip-hop albums I've heard are basically a few singles with a bunch of filler around them but this is an album that you must listen to front to back in one sitting. Every track flows beautifully to the next and the album feels like one long single.
The rappers hold their own too. Their voices really complement the beats well and these are some of the deepest lyrics I've ever heard from a hip-hop album. After hearing the album I went to look up some interpretations of the lyrics online - usually I do that because I don't understand some slang but in this case I did it because of how deep the lyrics are.
For example, "Hard As They Come" has three verses with each rapper's verse being a metaphor for something "evil". One of the verses talks about alcohol, then drugs, and the final verse is talking about AIDS. I can't help but applaud how brilliant the lyrics are in songs like that one.
This is the first release I've heard from this group and I am really looking forward to getting some of their other releases. I can't recommend "Oneirology" enough.
What's great about it: The beats are very unique and atmospheric. The rappers mesh really well with the beats and the result is incredible.
What's not so great: The rest of my music library is being neglected.