Breaking Atoms
| Breaking Atoms | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by Main Source | ||||
| Released | July 23, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | 1990–1991 Homeboy Studio, Power Play Studios, Libra Digital (New York, New York) |
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| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 46:14 | |||
| Label |
Wild Pitch/EMI 0777 7 97543 2 8 E2-97543 |
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| Producer | Main Source, Pete Rock | |||
| Main Source chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Breaking Atoms | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |  |
| The Baltimore Sun | (favorable) |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+ |
| Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | (favorable) |
| PopMatters | (favorable) |
| RapReviews | (10/10) |
| Rolling Stone |  |
| The Source |  |
| Trouser Press | (favorable) |
| The Washington Post | (favorable) |
Breaking Atoms is the debut album of Canadian/American hip hop group Main Source, released July 23, 1991 on Wild Pitch Records. Production for it was handled by the group and took place during 1990 to 1991 at Homeboy Studio, Power Play Studios, and Libra Digital in New York City. Recorded during the golden age of hip hop, Breaking Atoms is distinguished stylistically by its incorporation of jazz and soul music samples. The album has been highly regarded by music writers due mostly to its production, whose heavy and original use of sampling influenced hip hop producers for a considerable portion of the 1990s.
The album has been widely regarded by writers and music critics as a significantly influential album and has been noted for debuting rapper Nas, who appears on the track "Live at the Barbeque". His contribution to the song was sampled on "Genesis", the intro track to his debut album Illmatic (1994). Breaking Atoms has been recognized as one of the most important records in hip hop history, and was out of print in the United States after the demise of Wild Pitch Records in 1997. It was reissued on April 22, 2008 through Fontana Distribution.
Breaking Atoms was produced using the E-mu SP-1200.Allmusic's Steve Huey writes that the album's acclaim lies mostly in its production, which popularized a number of now widely imitated techniques. Huey describes that the "intricately constructed tracks are filled with jazz and soul samples, layered percussion, off-kilter sampling effects, and an overall sonic richness." RapReviews also notes that the beats are the cornerstone of the record. Dan Nishimoto of PopMatters considers the album's sampling to be "neatly layered, its subject matter is modest, and its overall tone is simply well executed fun." In his book Classic Material: The Hip-Hop Album Guide, Oliver Wang writes that Large Professor as a producer "thinks in complete song structure, never focusing on one single element—a loop, a break—but always juggling them in unison."
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