NEW YORK, NY - After building a name for himself behind the mixing board crafting hip-hop anthems for a virtual who's-who of hip-hop/rap including Nas, Mobb Deep, Jadakiss, Snoop Dogg and many others, The Alchemist finally takes his well-deserved place in the spotlight as the producer's ALC Records/KOCH Records debut "1st
Infantry" claims the #1 spot on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart (for the week of 9/29/04) selling 10,000 copies in its first week out!
Released on September 21st, the new album has already been deemed "A triumph"
by XXL. Vibe has been equally complimentary, giving the album 4 out of 5 discs
and heralding Al as "THE go-to producer for the East-Coast street sound."
Allhiphop.com enthuses, "Alchemist is arguably the best at what he does,
and "1st Infantry" is sufficient evidence to support this claim."
"1st Infantry" features a mix of artists who best compliment Al's
progressive sound as well a slew of others who Al has worked with over the years.
"Bangers," the first street joint leaked from the release, features
G-Unit's very own Lloyd Banks -- it's already received a lot of love on mixtapes
across the country. Other guests on the forthcoming album include Cypress Hill,
Havoc and Prodigy of Mobb Deep, T.I., Dilated Peoples, Jadakiss, Devin the Dude,
NAS, the West Coast's top prospect The Game, and many others.
"1st Infantry's" first single "Hold You Down" feat. Prodigy,
Nina Sky and Illa Ghee is making waves on New York's Hot 97, with 20 spins a
week, making it the top 25 record on the influential station.
As a much sought-after producer, The Alchemist most recently produced a track
on Jadakiss' new album, "Kiss of Death." He also produced four tracks
on Mobb Deep's just-released chart-topping album, "Amerikaz Nightmare"
including its first single "Got It Twisted." Since recently being
added to the management roster of Paul Rosenberg, founder of powerhouse firm
Goliath Artists (Eminem, Xzibit, Cypress Hill), The Alchemist looks forward
to taking his biggest and best step forward in his work in the coming year.
Al can also be heard on Coca-Cola's new Vanilla Coke radio commercial that he
produced and performed on with acclaimed actor, Chazz Palminteri ("The
Usual Suspects," "A Bronx Tale").
It was with Mobb Deep that The Alchemist started to be recognized for his more
aggressive style of beat making when he produced two highlights on the group's
platinum album gem, "Murda Muzik" ("The Realest," "Thug
Music"). While the underground crowd was already aware of Al's tendency
for hardcore tracks, artists like Fat Joe ("Bring it On"), Eminem
("Get Back") Freddy Fox ("Stock in The Game") and Capone-N-Noreaga
("Bang, Bang") soon noticed Al as a producer that could prepare the
right musical background for them to capture their aggression.
He has been sought out for projects with Jadakiss ("We Gone Make it"),
Prodigy ("Keep It Thoro"), NAS ("Book Of Rhymes"), Snoop
Dogg ("Hey Girl"), Ludacris, Ghostface Killah, Big Daddy Kane as well
as alternative acts such as Linkin Park and Morcheeba.
Despite the increasing attention from high profile acts, Al continues to cater
to his underground audience with just as much enthusiasm.
About KOCH Records
KOCH Records is a division of KOCH Entertainment, the fastest-growing music
company and the market leader among independents in North America. The KOCH
Entertainment corporate umbrella encompasses the KOCH Records label, KOCH Vision
home video, KOCH Music Publishing and KOCH Entertainment Distribution with operations
in both the U.S. and Canada. KOCH Records proudly claims the largest number
of Billboard charting albums among independents for each of the last three years
(2001-2003). For additional info on the KOCH Records label and its roster of
artists, please visit www.kochrecords.com.
