It wasn’t long ago we featured this silent “K” duo of alternative hip-hop brothers in our Weekly Jukebox. The New Orleans natives employ electronic, alternative and hip-hop to create a steady flow of multiple genres of music in their 2008 release Remind Me In 3 Days. Their most famous single “Bang! Bang!” has been featured on this thing called the radio and also some show called Entourage.
But after picking up their album, I was [not] surprised to find a whole album of catchy tracks not far from the very attractive beats in their first single. Songs like “F!re (Put It in the Air)” and “Cappuccino” take hip-hop, stick it in a blender with guitars, hardcore and awesome and toss out a delicious hip-hop milkshake on the other end. Pretty appetizing? I know.
In a sea of auto-tune and a top 40 that time and time again has followed the same formula, a group like The Knux show that some artists can still hang with the big dogs. They make me believe that it is still possible to make unique beats and create a unique sound without the “help” of Kanye West. Take that Kanye West.
After the two brothers “Krispy” and “Joey” were displaced by Hurricane Katrina, they re-located to Los Angeles where they kicked off their now successful music career. They were quickly invited to pretty much every major U.S. festival including the famous Lollapalooza where they were discovered by the also famous me. And I promise, once you check The Knux out you’ll be hooked on your new favorite hip-hop artists. You can send thank you cards to me. Money is also accepted.
Check out the video for “F!re (Put It in the Air)”:
Listen to the album:
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If you like The Knux, check out k-os!
LikeI’m just gonna put this out there, and you can do with it whatever you want—k-os is the best all-around hip-hop musician you’ve never heard of.
Okay, I thought that was going to come off as this huge, bold statement, but it’s reading a little vanilla bean. I don’t mean it to. In terms of artists who legitimately care about the poetry of rap as well as the legitimacy of the music, few do it better than k-os. He seems to have a perfect grasp on how to walk the tightrope between true, gritty, hip-hop culture and catchy, marketable hip-pop. Usually, we have to choose one or the other. It’s Black Eyed Peas or Mos Def, Eminem or Talib Kweli. Why should we have to choose? Why can’t we just have hip-hop music that does everything?
Well, we can, I guess. And when I say everything, I mean everything. In his music, k-os dabbles in funk, rock, pop, reggae, and any other genre he can get his hands on. Sometimes he raps, and sometimes he sings. He plays the guitar, writes all his own music, and produces a ton of it, too. There aren’t enough musicians like him in today’s industry, sadly, which is why I’m taking the time to make sure you know who, exactly, he is.
In 2004, his “Joyful Rebellion” album really put him on the map with hits like “B-Boy Stance” and the invariably catchy “Crabbuckit.” Between that album and its 2006 follow-up, “Atlantis,” k-os sold over two million records in Canada (his home country) alone. 2009’s “Yes” wasn’t quite as successful commercially, but it’s still a hell of a record, with hot tracks like “4,3,2,1” and “I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman.”
For the hip-hop fan looking for a taste of literally everything, take a sip of k-os and tell me honestly you don’t like the flavor. He might not be somebody TMZ follows around with their Flip cameras, but his stuff is more than good enough for regular airtime on your iPod. Then, it’s quite possible he’ll become the best all-around hip-hop musician you have heard of, and I’ll tell you I told you so.
Buy the album:
“When I leave here tonight and I fall asleep and wake up, hopefully she’s got some teeth.”
So goes the poetry of rapper Obie Trice, which I always thought was an interesting stage name but recently discovered that it’s exactly what’s printed on his birth certificate. It’s a hilarious song, the first off of Trice’s debut album “Cheers,” that just so happens to have the bonus of being really, really catchy.
When this record came out back in 2003, Obie was one of the poster boys of Eminem’s Shady Records, which meant that his first album got the star treatment in terms of production and guest stars. Dr. Dre, Timbaland, Eminem, and a slew of other big-name producers added beats for the album, meaning the final result is something both lyrically experimental and commercially acceptable. This guy can rap, and he’s got the sort of energetic voice that absolutely demands your attention. He’s not slurring through phrases and trying too hard to be cool and gangster; he almost sings at you with the oomph in his voice. The dude projects.
As a Timbaland junkie, I can say that his track on the album, “Bad Bitch,” is far and away the most interesting and catchy track on the list (outside of “Teeth,” obviously), but “The Set Up” featuring Nate Dogg is a lot simpler yet equally effective. The record is, as they say in the rougher parts of my neighborhood, “dope.”
Since 2003, Trice has been shot in the head (and survived, obviously), seen his label-mate Proof shot (and not survived), and left Eminem’s record label. In December of last year he put out his first LP under his own label, Black Market Entertainment, as a pad for his unreleased album, “Bottom’s Up,” which he recorded while with Shady Records and is just now coming out of the yellow tape to make a reality. The 2009 album, “Special Reserve,” is much less commercial but the lyrics are still all Obie Trice (real name, no gimmicks).
Even if you don’t care about what Obie has done since ’03, you should still at least pick up “Cheers” because it’s a solid rap album all the way through. You can take your girlfriend with you. And when you leave the record store and fall asleep and wake up, hopefully she’s got some teeth.
Buy the album
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Izza Kizza – “They’re Everywhere”
It seems like everything that Timbaland touches turns to awesome. This creatively quirky track mixes beats crafted by Mr. Mosley and vocals by Izza Kizza. The song is my sound track choice the next time my buddies and I organize a Zombie Flash Mob. And to answer your question, yes, Zombie Flash Mobs are super cool.
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lala Music
Green River Ordinance – “On Your Own”
I am loving me some Green River Ordinance right now. Their music is powerful and just makes me feel good. Sort of like the effect a frozen margarita has on me. My low alchol tollerance aside, “On Your Own” is an uplifting track from a band that will no doubt see a lot of airplay in 2010.
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Orianthi – “According To You”
Orianthi shreds on the electric guitar. She is an expert at shredding. In fact, the next time I need to get rid of my old finanical statments I am inviting her over. Because she shreds. The Aussie shredder has backed up heavy weights like Michael Jackson, Carlos Santana, and Carrie Underwood. She now steps into the spotlight showcasing her shredding abilities and power pop vocals. Oh, and by the way, she shreds.
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There are only a handful of hip-hop artists that I listen to on a regular basis. Not because I don’t fully appreciate hip-hop. That would be like saying I don’t appreciate beautiful women because none of them want to date me. No, I keep my hip-hoppery at an exclusive level because there are only so many albums that strike me on a personal level. Don’t get me wrong, I like booty scrumping as much as the next person, and if the song that happens to be on is “Poker Face”, then who am I to judge what makes my booty shake.
But good hip-hop is more than just a catchy beat and an over-produced pop icon. It’s an entire culture and an art-form. The best hip-hop albums provide complete harmony between lyrics, beats and delivery while providing the listener with something so unique it feels like moving poetry. Nowadays it’s hard to even find anything sans auto-tune. That’s why I feel obliged to bring up one of my favorite hip-hop groups of all time Jurassic 5.
The group first formed in the ripe year of 1993 amidst other 90’s hits including (but not limited to) Pearl Jam’s “Daughter”, Beck’s “Loser”, STP’s “Plush” and even Soul Asylum’s “Runaway Train”. The group was formed as a sort of hip-hop super group (although I guess more in the sense of a “Mr. Big” supergroup instead of a “Them Crooked Vultures” supergroup being as none of the members were actually popular at the time.)
Their first major label release Quality Control continued to grow their already growing fan-base and solidified them as true artists of the alternative hip-hop movement of the 90’s. I like to think that I was a part of the movement too since I listened to music in the 90’s and made numerous attempts at break-dancing. I guess you could say I was a pioneer of sorts as well.
Quality Control really started making the rounds in my CD player in early 2002 (since I was not affluent enough at the time to own the [then] brand-new technology of the iPod.) But regardless, with the album on repeat and my track skip protection engaged, I started a new personal era in hip-hop. Tracks like “The Game” and the title track “Quality Control” exhibit their unique blend of multiple rapping styles all within the arena of one track. Check out the video for “The Influence”:
Overall, the entire album is unique, not just one synthesized drum beat after another. Jurassic 5 made a name for themselves as artists true to the form of hip-hop. So I guess you could say it’s the opposite of pretty much any album by Lil’ Wayne or T-Pain. It’s just too bad they had to break up. I’ve literally been crying since 2007.
Check out and buy the album below:
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iTunes
Lala
If you like Jurassic 5, make sure you check out Camp Lo!
