Hey Young World,

This is the September 2022 edition of 1520’s Record Report, our series of monthly articles in which we recommend things we’re currently into.

We’ve picked the name Record Report in honor of Hip Hop magazine The Source, which’s album review section went under that name and, when we were growing up, told us what was worth copping and what wasn’t. In our own small way, we hope to do the same.

Phife Dawg - Forever (Album)

This album is pure joy. The production is soulful and old school in a good way, Phife sounds great and you can really tell he (and the guests) were having fun. Also, although Phife’s sickness and death are addressed throughout the album, it - in true Hip Hop fashion - feels like celebration rather than a funeral. It's just a really warm, good, sentimental listen that deserves to be heard. R.I.P. Phife Dawg. We will miss you. Forever.

Heinrich Böll - The Lost Honour of Katharina Blum (Book)

We highly recommend this classic novel (or maybe novella) from 1974 by Heinrich Böll, a German Nobel laureate. The story deals with the sensationalism of tabloid news and the political climate of panic over Red Army Faction terrorism in the 1970s in West Germany. It’s very sharp and oddly universal. We’ve read the original German version, but we’re sure the translation is good too.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3 (Video Game)

Although we might still love Xenoblade Chronicles 2 a little bit more, the newest entry in Nintendo’s JRPG series is nevertheless a mesmerising, life consuming and thematically surprisingly deep and resonant video game that any fan of the genre should check out.

One Love,

Marius | 1520