Emergency Rations (EP)

Emergency Rations is the second EP by American rapper Mr. Lif, released on June 25, 2002, by Definitive Jux. It was recorded at Bandulero Sound in Berlin, Boston Butta Beats in Boston, and The Pool Room in New York City.[1]

Emergency Rations
EP by Mr. Lif
Released	June 25, 2002
Studio	Bandulero Sound, Berlin; Boston Butta Beats, Boston; The Pool Room, New York City
Genre	Hip hop
Length	28:18
Label	Definitive Jux
Producer	Mr. Lif Edan DJ Hype DJ Fakts One El-P
Mr. Lif chronology
Enters the Colossus (2000) Emergency Rations (2002) I Phantom (2002)

Music and lyrics

Emergency Rations is a concept album whose premise centers around Mr. Lif's fictional kidnapping presumably by government agents. It showcases his defiant perspective on themes such as civil rights, censorship, and U.S. foreign policy.[2] He also raps about societal ills such as gender socialization, the vapid state of pop culture, and the dehumanizing effects of capitalism.[3] Lif's thoughtful, confrontational lyrics are backed by Akrobatik and El-P's dissonant production, which evokes feelings of paranoia and alienation.[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Muzik	[4]
Pitchfork	7.3/10[5]
The Village Voice	A−[6]

Emergency Rations received positive reviews from critics. In The A.V. Club, Nathan Rabin highlighted the EP's "solid blast of social consciousness" and wrote that it possessed "a raw, unfinished quality that more than lives up to the urgency of its title".[3] AllMusic's Martin Woodside called Lif "a thoughtful, often incendiary lyricist", while calling Emergency Rations "a provocative, well-crafted album that proves hard to ignore."[2] Robert Christgau from The Village Voice found Mr. Lif "funny" and an "angry guy". According to him, Lif used the EP as both a set up for his subsequent concept album, I Phantom (2002), and as "an excuse to drop random science about the place of hip hop in the military-industrial complex."[6]

Track listing

No.	Title	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Intro (Missing Person's File)" (featuring Akrobatik and Brotha PC)		2:22
2.	"Jugular Vein"	Mr. Lif	3:19
3.	"Heavy Artillery"	Edan	3:41
4.	"Home of the Brave"	Mr. Lif	3:46
5.	"Pull Out Your Cut"	DJ Hype	3:30
6.	"Get Wise '91" (featuring Edan)	Edan	3:21
7.	"The Unorthodox"	DJ Fakts One	4:00
8.	"Phantom" (featuring El-P)	El-P	4:18

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.[1]

• Akrobatik – vocals
• Keith Atkins – engineering
• DJ Hype – cut, production
• Edan – production
• El-P – production, vocals
• Fakts One – cut, production, vocals
• Ray Boy Fernandes – engineering, mixing
• Marc Johnson – engineering
• Dan Ezra Lang – art direction, design, illustrations
• Mr. Lif – primary artist, production
• Nasa – engineering, mixing
• Ghazi Shami – development

Charts

Chart (2002)	Peak position
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[7]	38
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[8]	28

References

1. Emergency Rations (CD liner notes). Mr. Lif. Definitive Jux. 2002. DJX030-2.CS1 maint: others (link)
2. Woodside, Martin. "Emergency Rations – Mr. Lif". AllMusic. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
3. Rabin, Nathan (October 18, 2002). "Mr. Lif: Emergency Rations EP". The A.V. Club. Chicago. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
4. Ashon, Will (August 2002). "Mr. Lif: Emergency Rations (Def Jux)". Muzik. London (87): 114.
5. Chennault, Sam (June 30, 2002). "Mr. Lif: Emergency Rations EP". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
6. Christgau, Robert (February 11, 2003). "Consumer Guide: The Prelude". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved March 5, 2013.
7. "Mr Lif Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
8. "Mr Lif Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 25, 2017.

External links

• Official website
• Emergency Rations at Discogs (list of releases)