Sold Date: January 18, 2021
Start Date: January 8, 2021
Final Price: $79.99 (USD)
Seller Feedback: 129
Buyer Feedback: 0

THIS IS A PRE-ORDER & DUE TO BEGIN SHIPPING FROM OUR SUPPLIERS IN MID/LATE MARCH. DUE TO RECENT PAYPAL CHANGES THEY ARE NO LONGER REFUNDING SELLER FEES FOR CANCELLED TRANSACTIONS. DUE TO THIS NEW PAYPAL POLICY WE MUST APPLY A 10% FEE FOR ANY CANCELLED ORDERS. THIS MEANS, IF YOU CHOOSE TO CANCEL THE TRANSACTION AFTER PAYMENT HAS BEEN SENT WE WILL REFUND 90% OF THE PURCHASE.

AS WITH ALL PRE-ORDERS THAT BACKBURNER RECORDS PROVIDES, WE WILL HAVE YOUR ORDER PACKAGED & SHIPPED OUT VIA USPS WITHIN 24 HRS OF US RECEIVING THIS PRE-ORDER. WE ALSO WILL ENSURE THAT ANY AND ALL COMMUNICATION FROM OUR SUPPLIERS REGARDING THIS PRE-ORDER WILL BE COMMUNICATED TO YOU, OUR CUSTOMER. THIS COMMUNICATION INCLUDES BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO, DELAYS/SHIPPING UPDATES/ETA ON DELIVERY TO BACKBURNER RECORDS, ETC.

In March, we’re doing the first vinyl reissue of Eyedea & Abilities’ debut album First Born, pressed on an exclusive 2-LP Maroon and Silver Vinyl. Regarded as one of the most anticipated underground rap duos in history, the first drop from the late Michael Larsen and Gregory Keltgen struck an electrifying chord when killer instinct met killer intellect. It’s a work of pure sportsmanship for the craft, and a series of tangents deep into the unknown the way only Eyedea could commandeer. For Winistorfer, this release serves as VMP’s chance to further uplift the first chapter of a stellar legacy that changed rap forever.

“Eyedea & Abilities’ First Born is one of the best underground rap albums ever made, and it’s a title that’s often come up in discussions of rap albums that are out of print that we should feature,” says Winistorfer. “Getting to debut this 20th anniversary edition is a huge honor for us, since it honors Eyedea’s memory, and puts his album in the hands of a new generation of rap fans that might have missed it the first time around. Albums like this are the very reason VMP was started: to give light to albums that deserve the attention to be in every record collection.”

Penn remembers First Born, and Eyedea in totality, as a beacon of light in the world’s swirling darkness. “I was very late to the E&A wave, I came in at By the Throat,” Penn remembers. “So, I dove into First Born right after I heard Eyedea passed, and instantly felt like I missed so much of the picture. Then, I was pissed I never got to see him play! To hear something so dense and enriching and rewarding at the tender age of 16? Shit changed the way I envisioned the potential for what rap music could be and do for others, the same way all of Eyede’s work did for me. R.I.P. that man, and word to Abilities, true legends.”