Monday, November 30, 1998
Sound Bites
Pete Rock, "Soul Survivor"
It’s hard to believe that at one time Peter Philips (a.k.a. Pete
Rock) competed with DJ Premier for the title of hip-hop’s best
producer. It was the early ’90s, and he was known for having a
distinctive style which usually included jazzy loops and horns –
always the horns. After breaking up with longtime partner in rhyme
CL Smooth, Pete Rock essentially faded into obscurity. But now,
with a new label and an army of guest appearances from some of the
biggest names in hip-hop, the Soul Brother No. 1 returns to the
game.
Although billed as a Pete Rock album, in actuality "Soul
Survivor" is more of a compilation produced by Pete Rock. Like Da
Muggs of Cypress Hill, Pete Rock brings in everybody from the
Wu-Tang Clan, Big Punisher, MC Eight, Black Thought and even his
old partner, CL Smooth. The final product is a collage of songs
that displays Pete Rock’s diversity as a producer.
"Truly Yours 98" features the Large Professor and Kool G. Rap,
two veterans from the glory days of hip-hop. The song works well as
the emcees shine nicely on a bouncy track that moves along at a
smooth pace. Pete Rock even comes off nice on the mic (he’s a
producer, not an emcee) with the line "This I dedicate/ to the
mix-tapes I hate/ Exclusive shit, it really holds no weight/ Put
your skills on a plate/ back spin to eighty-eight."
The first single, "True Master," features Inspectah Deck and
Kurupt rhyming over a so-so instrumental. Though the song is far
from wack, it’s nothing spectacular – a shame when considering what
could have transpired through this collaboration. What was Pete
Rock thinking? He’s got two of rap’s hardest hitters on one song
and the beat is a monotonous, medium-paced experiment in
mediocrity. If anyone is ever privileged to have Deck and Kurupt on
one track, for God’s sake, throw on the hardest hitting beat you
can create and let them at it!
The album’s best song comes when Raekwon and Ghostface Killah of
the Wu-Tang Clan team up with Mobb Deep’s Prodigy. Pete Rock
blesses the trio with a beautiful track laced with a violin that
complements Prodigy’s smooth flow as well as Raekwon’s rugged
vocals. Prodigy laces the apocalyptic track with a complementary
verse: "So what’s ya intentions, you want to glow for the moment?/
Throw in ya two pennies then you boltin’/ I rock for the few chosen
who get their third eyes open/ write a page that will engage war
and incite fights/ be on look for the bright lights and North
Winds/ The trumpets be the mics ya size malevolent."
Other tracks that showcase Pete Rock’s production skills are
"Respect Mine," featuring OC, "Half Man Half Amazing," with Method
Man and "Strange Fruit," featuring Tragedy and Cappadonna. There
are three tracks that feature R&B singing and only one of them
works, as the other two serve to bore the listener and will have
you fast-forwarding to the end of the album.
Pete Rock put together a good compilation; the beats, as usual,
are on point and more than enough emcees contribute decent
performances. This album shows that Pete Rock has diversity as a
producer and never lost his touch. However, that very same
diversity is what keeps this from becoming anything close to
spectacular. He used to have his own style, but now he’s just
turning out quality material that shows he can keep up with the
rest of the producers out there. A solid album, (wouldn’t expect
any less with PR producing) "Soul Survivor" serves as a quick fix
that will get plenty of play for a few months, though it will not
attain the longevity his other albums have enjoyed.
Tenoch Flores
The Cardigans, "Gran Turismo"
All hail Sweden! Home of Ricola, scrumptious chocolate, the
Alps, Lucerne. Oh sorry, that’s Switzerland. Well let’s see, Sweden
has Ingmar Bergman and, uh, the Cardigans!
The most well-known band to come out of the recent Swede-pop
music scene, which includes Komeda, the Wannadies and Salt, the
Cardigans’ third album (fourth, if you count "Emmerdale," which
never received U.S. distribution) comes off the heels of the
successful "First Band on the Moon."
Longtime fans expecting the same light-hearted, lazy, bubble-gum
pop that the band has made famous over the years will definitely be
surprised by the new direction it has taken. Gone are the days when
the Cardigans fit snugly into Milan Kundera’s definition of kitsch.
Gone are the days of humming to songs like "Carnival" and "Rise and
Shine" on sunny Saturday afternoons. Gone are the days of
"Lovefool," annoying the pants off of everyone. The Cardigans have
gone techno.
Quoi? The Cardigans have gone techno?
Don’t expect the Cardigans to play at an all-night electronica
music-fest anytime soon, however. Though not entirely ditching
their trademark sugary pop, the decision to infuse a few beats here
and there reeks of overproduction, thus providing mixed
results.
Receiving radio airplay right now is "My Favourite Game," fast
and upbeat by Cardigan standards, but lacking in memorable hooks.
What the new Cardigans have also spawned are atrocious songs such
as "Erase/Rewind," with so much pseudo-spirituality in its music
that it could only be enjoyed at a Deepak Chopra guru seminar.
"Gran Turismo" is at its best when Nina Persson and company
slows things down with songs like "Explode" and the uplifting
"Higher" ("Oh take us higher/ Come take us high above our time/
We’ll make it out of here").
After producing so much musical joy with "Life" and "First Band
on the Moon," "Gran Turismo" is a major disappointment. While
change and experimentation in a band are admirable, bad songs are
not.
Tristan Thai
SCOTT4, "Recorded in State"
This record is, besides a rather unsavory sedative, a fairly
poor attempt at post-modern folk regression, the type of thing Beck
is making millions off of and pissants like SCOTT4 are rather
meekly rephrasing. The band’s problem can be attributed to the
utterly unendearing frontman Scott Blixen (assuming he’s the
frontman – all the songs are attributed to him). He holds the band
back. Either that or they’re all working together to hold each
other back, in which case, hey, its working.
The intro has us listening, for a while. The guitars are lazy,
rootsy, dirty – and a drummer churns out equally dirty breakbeats.
Gradually the funky backwoods acoustics dissolve into an
out-of-date drum machine interpretation and analogue synth effects.
One may think, OK, possibly the pseudo-modernization of the
bluegrass sensibility. The folk guitars ride the range of Blixen’s
emotions, from subdued, almost reluctantly nihilist depression, to
alcoholic serenity, to some type of contrived roadhouse vigor that
no one will really get.
Blixen grinds, but not in a congenial, Tom Waits way. He gets on
the nerves. The drummer is static but solid, slanting the music
with hip-hop and rock beats where they’re needed, as little
post-Beck electro-embellishments wink on and off in the
background.
So why buy this album? Maybe you like Smashmouth’s cheesy
stream-of-consciousness, modern incompatibility lyricism and want
to get back to the roots, but wouldn’t know a good blues record if
Albert King forced it through your ear. This crap would be just
right for lonely airport cocktail bars, but not much more.
Wes MedinaPete Rock
Soul Survivor
Comments, feedback, problems?
© 1998 ASUCLA Communications Board[Home]