Album Details

• Artist: Miles Jones
• Album: The Jones Act Part Iii
• Label: Mojo Records and Publishing
• Year of Release: 2012
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: rockthusiast on 2012-09-28

Maybe it's because I'm still on a Polaris Prize kick, but one of the things that has stuck with me since the gala on September 24th was the near-plea for Canadian hip-hop to be recognized. Our country has a long and storied history of MC's who can spit rhymes with the best of them worldwide; I'm talking before even Drizzy was in a wheelchair on Degrassi.

All joking aside, the latest rapper to step up to the proverbial mic is Torontonian Miles Jones. The first thing you notice with him is his velvety smooth delivery in a laid-back, almost loungy style, without all the exaggerated oohs and aahs his R&B contemporary The Weeknd is known for. But where Jones really shines amidst rapid-fire pop culture references is how he subtly slips in mentions about his homeland like Old Dutch chips, Air Miles, Nickelback, the SkyDome (now the Rogers Centre), basketball players Vince Carter and Chris Bosh, and "rap so honest...that you can call me Ed" in tribute to Toronto discount kingpin Ed Mirvish. OK, name-dropping Boba Fett from Star Wars in "Maybe Tomorrow" is pretty badass too. And in fine hip-hop tradition, there are the requisite guest appearances, but Jones keeps these local as well. "Raw" not only features Tona, but quite possibly the most straightforward lyric I've heard in a long time when he bluntly says, "Let's have sex, girl."

Things definitely take a turn for the even more sexual on "SCORPIO" with D-Sisive and Ghettosocks, but the beat is so damn funky that I'm willing to turn a blind eye - The Jones Act Part III's appeal to me is that the majority of the other tracks steer clear of the raunchiness that has always prevailed in hip-hop. It's not like they're free of the notorious parental advisory label, but they're a breath of fresh air in comparison, which makes this an easy recommend. I find myself constantly returning to "Satisifed" in order to bust a move to "Doctor Jones, Doctor Jones please prescribe me the remedy", despite the clichéd "throw your hands in the air" at the end. I also found it interesting how Jones chose to open and close his album with deception ("All Lies" and "Sweet Lies", respectively). Fortunately, no one is cheated here in terms of a listening experience. This is legit hip-hop that only further strengthens Canada's presence in the genre. Lay some skin on him for an outstanding effort at RunawayJones.com/blog.

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