Trailblazin Ministries

Excelsius - In Conjunction

Written by LaRosa Johnson
Wednesday, February 21, 2007

When Excelsius dropped his album The Final Evolution, I was probably one of the most excited people to know that the album was dropping. I had known this brother for years (since 2000) and I know that he had been grinding for some time to release a full length project. As you can read in my review of The Final Evolution, it was a very solid project. Now, almost exactly a year later, my big brother is back with his sophomore full length release aptly titled In Conjunction. Knowing that X always brings the Word in his rhymes, I had no doubt that he'd do the same this time around; instead, the only question I had was whether this would be just as good as The Final Evolution. So, let's see what In Conjunction is all about and if it's another third coast banger.

What does In Conjunction mean? Well, Excelsius made this easy, since he put the definition in the artwork: the state of being joined together. Being joined together? How fitting, considering the name of his ministry is called Joined at the Hip Ministries (JATH for short). With that in mind, we can quickly gather that this album is going to talk about being joined together in the body of Christ and having fellowship with one another as brothers and sisters in the faith; in other words, you could say that this album is the thesis and lyrical expression of what his ministry is all about. Upon listening to the album, you soon discover that this is exactly what Excelsius does over the course of seventeen (17) heated tracks; he shows what it means to be joined at the hip, in more ways than one.

One of the first ways that Excelsius tackles the issue of being In Conjunction is by explaining exactly what it means and then showing off the attributes of one who is joined together with Christ. "JATH" is the first track up (after the "Alpha" introduction), and it is here that X goes on to explain what each letter of Joined at the Hip stands for and shows how it relates to being a sold out believer in Christ Jesus. Then there is the song "Feels So Good" that elaborates on what biblical Christianity is supposed to truly feel, talk and look like, instead of what many so-called Christians are exhibiting it to be. In other words, it "Feels So Good" to be a Christian and daily being made to look more like the Christ by walking in holiness. This track falls right in line with the song "It's Sin," where we get an exposition of what exactly sin is and how it is contrary to the life of a born again believer. Not to be forgotten is "V Club (That's Whassup!)," which is a song dedicated to all of those who are still virgins and are waiting to save it for marriage; for Christians, this should be the norm and not the exception, and this track serves as encouragement to all those that are still standing strong and holding it down. Last but not least is "Tha Headbanga" which just lets you know that it's okay to get up and have a good time in the Lord without having to sin. That's what's up for real! In all, these tracks show what it means to live a godly lifestyle that is pleasing to the Lord, which shows off that you are truly joined together with Christ.

The second way that Excelsius shows that he is joined at the hip and In Conjunction is by having a grip of collaborations on this project, showing that there is plenty of love amongst the brethren. This is perfectly shown off in the first collab track titled "Chop It Up" featuring Torch; it's here that the two emcees talk about chopping it up and having fellowship in the body of Christ. This is something that is both needed in the church amongst the body of believers and in the holy hip-hop community. Fellowship is a must. We're also shown that we should be "Kingdom Grindin'" (featuring Tha G.I.M.) together in order to bring lost souls into the body of Christ. We can even collectively call upon the name of the Lord together and worship Him together ("Call on You" featuring Damon O'). Excelsius even brings in a femcee for this project by having Shekinah on the soulful track "Language of Love," which talks about the love of the Lord and how sweet true love really is. Mixed into the album are a couple more head nodders with "Hold Up!" featuring DJ 1 God and "Up in Here" featuing JB Real, which are both sure to make you break necks.

Now that we've looked at how Excelsius shows what it means to be In Conjunction, I do want to point out a few things on this project. First and foremost, this is a very solid project, both doctrinally and lyrically. If you're looking for a project full of the Word of God and have a desire to know what it means to be a part of the body of Christ, then this project is a must have for your collection. As far as sound goes, this project does have a bit of a different sound than The Final Evolution and you can see that Excelsius was really trying to push and stretch himself as an emcee. With that being said, there were a couple tracks that I wasn't exactly feeling, specifically "JATH" and "the Real CHRISTmas Story." I wasn't exactly feeling the beat for this song, and I was kind of worried that this album wouldn't live up to my expectations, considering that this was the first track, especially when the remixes I've heard sound so much better. Nevertheless, the message in the song shines through more than the beat, so it's still gravy. In regard to "the Real CHRISTmas Story," I wasn't exactly feeling the introduction to the song (switching up the letters in Santa to equal satan) and it's kind of hard to enjoy the song year round, especially when you consider that this album released in February/March. It probably could've been better served as a free download on his site, and replacing it on the album with one of the songs from his Pre-Order CD. Another minor detail is that the print on the back panel & CD booklet/insert is a little grainy and hard to read.

Overall, this is a solid project from start to finish, minus the few issues I pointed out above. In Conjunction is the perfect album for showing the body of Christ what it means to be Joined at the Hip with both Christ and the body of believers. This project is chock full of the Word and teaching, which is great for both the new and seasoned believer. I knew that Excelsius wouldn't disappoint me with this project, and he definitely delivered another memorable project for the body to get fed. I truly feel that In Conjunction is that album that is needed for this point in time, and one that every hip-hop fan should have in their collection. This is that project. Good job X!