White Mic & Z-Man Present: The Vegetable and the Ferret

Fixtures in the Northern Cali underground hip-hop scene, White Mic has been working with local heroes Bored Stiff for many years while Z-Man is a standout player in the Gurp City movement, known for his unpredictable and always bugged-out steez. Though they're both pretty obscure outside of the Bay (and Fresno), they've both put out a ton of quality material and continue to impress on The Vegetable & the Ferret, originally self-released in 2011. Top-shelf lyricism and spectacularly funky sample-heavy production is the name of the game here, especially evident on joints like "Slippen Away" (a spot-on examination of the lack of support for independent artists that comes off without a hint of complaining) and the keep-it-real anthem "Bring It Back." For serious heads of a certain age who've just about given up on current rap music, this is Exhibit A that there's still dope new stuff coming out. Highly recommended.