The Thousands

Gotta be honest: I picked this up solely because it had Ice Cube on the cover. Ice Cube of the amazing nose. Ice Cube of still the best song to end a day on. ‘Doughboy‘! And he was looking his best too – all twenty and tough, not cuddly and silly like some later appearances we’d all prefer to gloss over.

Turns out I stumbled on a gem though. Wax Poetics is excellent. It’s a bi-monthly, hailing from Brooklyn, dedicated to educating people about the origins of the music they love. This issue celebrates the period of intense growth, exploration and creativity that hip hop experienced in the early 90s. Think Souls of Mischief, KRS-One, EPMD, and a bunch of people you may never have heard of but you’ll be glad you did. It doesn’t just lament the ‘good old days’ though, it puts things in context, tells the stories behind the stories and hopes to inspire the "young bucks" out there making empty bullshit today.

This is clearly a magazine put together by crate diggers, but it’s not alienating for those with a more casual interest (or mild infatuation with Ice Cube). It looks impressive too – coming in around the size of a National Geographic and filled with amazing photos. If you get your hands on a copy, flip to page 68 – you won’t regret it. ‘Nuff said.