U-Neek

In an attempt to capitalize on the burgeoning success of ragga deejays like Shabba Ranks, Eek-A-Mouse reigned in his eccentricities and created a focused modern dancehall album with 1991’s U-Neek. Based on a canonical hip-hop sample (“Synthetic Substitution” by Melvin Bliss), the throbbing and catchy “You’re the Only One I Need” sets the album’s tone. While other ragga deejays of the era were overloading on machismo, Eek’s melodiously unpredictable vocal style set his music apart. Fairly straightforward tracks like “Gangster Chronicles” are made unique by the fact that Eek always embraced his weird side. While his cover of Led Zeppelin’s “D’yer Mak’er” panders a bit too hard to the Reggae Sunsplash audience, “So Fine” is a brilliant merger of traditional and modern styles. Even better, the back half of the album is stacked with digital dancehall tracks that are fearsome and skeletal, including “Border Patrol” and “Rude Boys a Foreign.”