Coalmine Records digs into their storied discography to unveil their ten-year anniversary reissue of Highway Robbery, the collaborative concept album from Detroit’s heavyweight emcee Guilty Simpson and Philly beat smith Small Professor. Weighing in at 11 tracks, the project places the listener in a seemingly post-apocalyptic Detroit where the mentality is feast or famine. Highway Robbery plays as one long narrative of Guilty’s day-to-day survival in Detroit’s concrete jungle, all set to the tone of Small Professor’s foreboding, percussion heavy production. Featuring guest appearances from Detroit’s Boldy James, A.G. (of D.I.T.C.), Elucid and Castle, the album is further highlighted with the meticulous turntablism of both Statik Selektah and DJ Revolution. This reissue also boasts the Zilla Rocca remix of “Go” which features Audible Doctor on the cuts. A decade removed from its original release, Highway Robbery remains a gratifying listen and strong addition to anyone’s hiphop record collection with its high-level lyricism, avant-garde production value and overall creativity.
