I happen to think if Badley Nowell did not die, that music would be different now. I stand behind that. the bands do-it-yourself attitude and unrestrained REALISM is almost jarring, but even the rough stuff was delivered softly and with style, lol. i keep telling myself, "that doesn't make it right," but i love this band so much.
additionally, Biggy was the best rapper i've ever heard. if he were still around hip hop and rap wouldn't be as BAD as it is now. he would have told ashanti and beyonce to get a job!
as for the beasties boys. they are pioneers. not only did they CREATE their own angle, but they shamelessly included all their musical tastes, no matter how varied! a thing about them that i LIKE and at that i'm ANNOYED by at the same time: is their in-your-face social commentary, political views, and televised religious beliefs. they could get over themselves a little and HURRY UP AND RELEASE A NEW ALBUM!
yeah, i definitely understand what you're saying here -
weren't the beastie boys supporters of a cop-killer, or is my memory completely wrong?
I respect the fact that the beastie boys are hip-hop, with NO respect or airplay from the hip-hop community, yet they keep doing what they do best with style and energy. I still think the video for sabatoge is hysterical.
With regard to sublime...as long as they kept mixing punk/reggae and ska with lyrics that make me want to buy everything they released, they would have kept true to the music and what made them great. And doing some great collaborations never hurt either. And occasionally an acoustic or re-mixed song were nice too.