Breaking Atoms

Breaking Atoms
Studio album by Main Source
Released	1991
Recorded	1990–1991
Studio	Homeboy Studio, Power Play Studios, Libra Digital (New York, New York)
Genre	East Coast hip hop alternative hip hop
Length	46:14
Label	Wild Pitch EMI
Producer	Main Source Pete Rock
Main Source chronology
Breaking Atoms (1991) Fuck What You Think (1994)
Singles from Breaking Atoms
"Looking at the Front Door" Released: October 25, 1990 "Watch Roger Do His Thing" Released: 1990 "Just Hangin' Out" Released: May 14, 1991 "Peace Is Not the Word to Play" Released: October 22, 1991

Breaking Atoms is the debut album by American/Canadian hip hop group Main Source, released in 1991 on Wild Pitch Records. It was produced by the group, primarily by member Large Professor, with recording sessions taking place from 1990 to 1991 at Homeboy Studio, Power Play Studios, and Libra Digital in New York City. Recorded during the golden age of hip hop, Breaking Atoms is distinguished stylistically by its incorporation of jazz and soul music samples.^[1] The album has been highly regarded by music writers due mostly to its production, whose heavy and original use of sampling influenced hip hop producers for a considerable portion of the 1990s.

The album has been widely regarded by writers and music critics as a significantly influential album and has been noted for debuting rapper Nas, who appears on the track "Live at the Barbeque".^[2][3] His contribution to the song was sampled on "The Genesis", the intro track to his debut album Illmatic (1994). Breaking Atoms has been recognized as one of the most important records in hip hop history, and was out of print in the United States after the demise of Wild Pitch Records in 1997. It was reissued on April 22, 2008, through Fontana Distribution.