Dirty Old Mixtape (Independent)

The oft-uttered cliché that “music is the best drug” is an outright lie, as the high you get from even the worst drug (gas-soaked rag) is more enjoyable than listening to the best song of all time (“Batdance” by Prince). But if you can’t do drugs, then music, I guess, is the next best thing.

That’s the ethos behind Burnaby-based MC Ill Tone’s latest. Recently out of rehab for an impressive six different substances and sober for the first time since he was 12 (good on you, sir), his Dirty Old Mixtape is an amusing backpack hip-hop head-nodder.

Aside from a considerable number of bootlegged comedy clips and an instrumental number built around Street Fighter 2 samples, the mixtape features six self-deprecating tracks on the subjects of smoking pot, checking into a mental institution, and staring at girls’ butts while riding the SkyTrain. Though the album is done for laughs, it thankfully doesn’t ever drift into joke-rap territory, à la Chunky A, MC Chris, or Public Enemy.

While Dirty Old Mixtape isn’t better than getting stoned, it’s miles better and cheaper than the mixtapes random dudes on the street try to sell you. You can snag it from Ill Tone’s Bandcamp page on Tuesday (May 1) for less than a ride on public transit. Stare at butts on your computer like the self-respecting pervert you are!