After the critical success of Company Flow's Funcrusher Plus album, released a few months prior, Rawkus returned with a compilation that showcased their growing roster. Mixed by DJ Evil Dee of Da Beatminerz,[1] the album is sequenced like a mixtape, staying true to the label's underground roots. The album is mainly composed of 12" singles previously released by the label in 1997.[1] It is subtitled "The Ultimate Guide to Underground Hip-Hop Mixed by Evil Dee".[2]
Soundbombing received mostly positive reviews from music critics. Charles Aaron of Spin noted that "you can hear the hints of a Native Tongues-like posse feeding off of one another's smarts and enthusiasm, unworried about recreating 1988's magic or being welcomed into rap's gated fantasyland."[5] In his consumer guide for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau gave the album an A− rating and stated, "this singles-plus showcase is 'underground' hip hop's most convincing advertisement for itself", also praising the performances of Mos Def, Talib Kweli and R.A. the Rugged Man.[3]
Writing for AllMusic, Nathan Rabin believed that the album "arrived at a crucial juncture for rap music, just as the deaths of 2Pac and Notorious B.I.G. forced hip-hop to re-examine its priorities, and the commercial dominance of Bad Boy necessitated a smart, socially conscious alternative to P. Diddy's blatantly commercial brand of karaoke hip-pop."[1] Dana Scott of Ambrosia for Heads wrote that the album "was Hip-Hop seeking refuge to return to the culture's days of innocence. It worked, signaling a rebirth that spawned a new breed of MC legends—and a subsequent series that Heads could trust."[2] In the 5th edition of his Encyclopedia of Popular Music, Colin Larkin hailed it as a "scene-defining" underground hip hop album.[6]
[1]