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Buck 65, "Man Overboard"
Released on the Anticon label, whose motto 'Music for the advancementof hip-hop', sets out their aim to put into the marketplace analternative to money and ass-obsessed pop-hop. Inspired equally byindie rock, electronica and old-skool hip-hop, their output isexperimental, eclectic and among the freshest, newest sounds out there.
Indeed, for a hip-hop label, you could argue that it's barely hip-hopmusic at all. Jazz, rock, drone, blues and beats fuse withidiosyncratic mcs and crazy rhymes.
On this evidence Buck 65 fits right in. He's a one-man team ofproducer/rapper, responsible for every sound on the record. Hisopen-minded approach to hip-hop allows him to work outside that genre'sever-narrowing set of rules. Dope, guns and fucking are not foremost inhis mind, as he claims he's "shy around girls and the only thing in mywallet is a baseball card." His voice is laid-back, a little like Mau,formerly of trip-hoppers Earthling. He doesn't diss other MCs, ratherhe laments the state of the music he loves. Buck "can't wait till theday I ride around in rocket cars, wear short sleeved shirts and all Ieat is chocolate bars." Dropping lyrical gems like this — in his flowover fantastically inventive backdrops utilising strings, spanishguitars, horns, beats, electronic tones and more — Buck grabs ourattention and doesn't release for 70 minutes.
I find it rare, as most rap albums are far too long, full of humourlessskits and shitty collaborations. The 14 tracks here (all untitled, somesplit into 2 or more movements) leave you wanting more, searching outhis back catalogue on other labels.
Indeed, for a hip-hop label, you could argue that it's barely hip-hopmusic at all. Jazz, rock, drone, blues and beats fuse withidiosyncratic mcs and crazy rhymes.On this evidence Buck 65 fits right in. He's a one-man team ofproducer/rapper, responsible for every sound on the record. Hisopen-minded approach to hip-hop allows him to work outside that genre'sever-narrowing set of rules. Dope, guns and fucking are not foremost inhis mind, as he claims he's "shy around girls and the only thing in mywallet is a baseball card." His voice is laid-back, a little like Mau,formerly of trip-hoppers Earthling. He doesn't diss other MCs, ratherhe laments the state of the music he loves. Buck "can't wait till theday I ride around in rocket cars, wear short sleeved shirts and all Ieat is chocolate bars." Dropping lyrical gems like this — in his flowover fantastically inventive backdrops utilising strings, spanishguitars, horns, beats, electronic tones and more — Buck grabs ourattention and doesn't release for 70 minutes.
I find it rare, as most rap albums are far too long, full of humourlessskits and shitty collaborations. The 14 tracks here (all untitled, somesplit into 2 or more movements) leave you wanting more, searching outhis back catalogue on other labels.
