Busdriver - Jhelli Beam (2009)
This entry will focus on Busdriver's latest release "Jhelli Beam". If you have been following Busdriver, this album was his next logical step as it continues to mesh his hip hop style with more dance/pop oriented beats all the while keeping things abstract and exciting as usual. If you have not heard of him until now, or like myself, only up to four years ago, then it's best to go back and see how he has developed his style over time.
"RoadkillOvercoat" played with a lot of pop elements, where as "Temporary Forever" and prior releases were more or less straight forward hip hop with the occasional hook making its way into songs on a vocal level. As the albums go on he begins to find the middle ground by incorporating the pop elements wisely while still keeping things creative and fresh.
Rhetoric just pours out of this man's mouth like a waterfall, his flow, or rather his rhythm, coupled with layered production, is what ties all of his fast paced bantering into a cohesive form. This man is not afraid to stray from the beat, and in the end the patterns make their way back to the core beat. The final product is always ear grabbing. His fine ability to compose lyrically is further complimented by his delivery.
Like progressive rock band Rush, Watchtower, King Crimson, and countless others that carry that 'progressive' label, I also consider Busdriver to fall under the progressive category as a rapper. He has an expansive vocabulary which in itself is a defining and unique quality in the hip hop world that very few possess. When he releases an album it's usually on repeat for a few weeks straight for me. Also important to note is that he tends to not take himself too seriously. Hip hop that takes itself too seriously usually results in too much subjective content. I can talk about myself all day too, but who the hell wants to hear that?
Comity - The Deus Ex-Machina as a Forgotten Genius (Andy Warhol Sucks) (2006)
Gotta love the end of that title.
When I was doing CD reviews for a couple of different websites I received a lot of crap as you can imagine. Every once in awhile I would receive a release by a band I really enjoyed which was always rewarding, a free album by a band you like. What was even more rewarding was getting an album by a band I didn't know and to my surprise, having it be a really kick ass release. %95 of the time it went the other way. That day, the other %5 came through and Comity arrived. Released on United Edge in 2006, this French act had released a very obscure album before this full length and they would go on to make one more after the one mentioned here called "And Everything Is A Tragedy" which never ended up getting distributed in the U.S.
The band soon broke up following the release of "And Everything Is A Tragedy" until about 3 or 4 months back when they announced they were getting together for a new EP. Imagine my excitement, an excitement I celebrated alone as no one I know has heard this band due to the fact that it really wasn't pushed by a label that didn't have the capacity to push it. Well now you know.
This band will quickly remind a well versed hardcore or early day screamo kid of a band most of us are familiar with called Botch. Comity is similar to Botch in that they aren't afraid to get noisy, they do so with focused aggression and musical prowess to boot. The difference is that Comity carry more of a grind influence throughout their very long tracks (The shortest song on this album is just about seven and a half minutes long). Why the long tracks? The band seems to take on the lengthy songs with well thought out force in a way that does not leave you exhausted. Boredom has no place here, each track is a piece of the monument. The band does well to mix things up by using fast and slow progressions to keep you involved.
Basically, this album provides what most heavy release fail to, a listen that demands engagement and pulls you in while at the same time delivering brutal tunes. Every track, as long as it may be, asks 'what will happen next?' The answer delivers my friends.
No comments:
Post a Comment