Mos Def’s new one, The Ecstatic, is out now (available on mp3 at Amazon for $3.99 today) and, having listened to it about 10 or so times in the past week, I’m giving it my full backing.

The production roster is top-notch (Oh No, Madlib, etc.) and it seems to bring out the best in Mos – a more focused effort that is on par with his debut Black on Both Sides. No surprise that one of my favorite tracks is the leadoff song, Supermagic, on which Mos is basically rapping over Oh No’s Turkish-inspired cut Heavy from Dr. No’s Oxperiment.

Mos performed the drum-heavy Quiet Dog for Letterman on Monday night. Check it below. (Thanks to Ickmusic for posting the vid.)

I just picked up the new 33 1/3 book by Matthew Gasteier on Nas’ classic debut Illmatic. So, naturally, I’ve revisted the album and listened to it about four or five times in the past couple days – just as a reminder of its near-flawless standing.

But listening to Illmatic can be as frustrating as it is rewarding, knowing now that his propensity for greatness was undermined by his inconsistency in the albums to follow (It Was Written, I Am …, etc.). Because in the post-Illmatic years, for every Nas Is Like (a DJ Premier gem) there was a Hate Me Now (feat. Puff Daddy). How do you reconcile that?

Perhaps that’s the curse of releasing one of the most influential hip-hop albums of the ’90s (ever?). Sadly – and inevitably – nothing Nas has done or will do can live up to Illmatic’s perfection. Needless to say, I’m eager to dig into Gasteier’s account/analysis of the album.

Meantime, here’s my favorite cut from Illmatic, the Large Professor-produced It Ain’t Hard to Tell that famously samples Michael Jackson’s Human Nature.

Serial collaborator Chali 2na, late of the great Jurassic 5, is finally breaking out with his own solo album, due for release July 7 on Decon. Despite the somewhat cheesy title (Fish Outta Water … get it?), it’s good to hear one of the MCs from J5 steppin’ up.

The first single from the album is called Lock Shit Down, featuring Talib Kweli. And I guess the real question is whether Chali 2na and his baritone pipes can carry a full album or if it will only make us yearn for the J5 days.

• Chali 2na | Lock Shit Down (feat. Talib Kweli)

Also, Chali 2na lends his voice to a new adidas campaign called “Inner Workings” with two animated videos featuring NBA stars Dwight Howard and Derrick Rose.