Album: Debaser – Crown Control
Submitted by Hazard on Fri, 2006-12-08 04:38. Keywords:
Album Reviewed by Hazard
| Portland, Oregon may not be a blip on the hip hop landscape, however several artists are out to prove that Portland is just as ripe with talent as their counterparts. Debaser are among those artists on the front line. Consisting of emcee/producer Sapient and emcee Ethic, who are also part of the Sandpeople collective, the duo combine their talents to bring their own unique blend of hip hop to the public. Australian listeners will be familiar with Ethic through his work with Melbourne’s own Obese Records and his guest spots on several local releases. |
From the onset it is obvious that Debaser are not making music to cater for the MTV audience and aren’t out to win awards. However, the production skills, the majority of which are handled by Sapient, are of the highest quality and could lend themselves to some outside exposure (possibly with the Alternative Rock crowd). Ethic and Sapient are no slouches on the mic either, as their battle-tested skills shine through. Up and coming Sandpeople associate, Illmaculate, appears and steals the show with his witty and cocky rhymes on the tense sounds of Longlive. Souls of Mischief member Opio joins the party on How It’s Made to similar show stealing effect.
Debaser’s hyperactive personality is not just contained within their music, as they describe their lack of motivation during their school days until they found solace in hip hop music over the whimsical string-driven Less Human. A similar picture is painted on the poignant tail-end of No Luck where Sapient takes on the character of a troubled adolescent who takes out his frustrations by shooting up his school (obviously based on the Columbine massacre). There is a very sarcastic and tongue-in-cheek approach adopted throughout the album, as if the artists don’t even take themselves seriously. One such moment is when Sapient proclaims Ethic to be “your typical run-of-the-mil genius”.
Debaser live up to the album title as they are obviously out to take control of the crown on the independent hip hop scene. Judging by this release the likes of MF Doom and Atmosphere may soon have some company as there are some new contenders on the block. The overall feel and sound may not be to everyone’s liking, but at the same time it wasn’t meant to be, but if you don’t mind your hip hop being unorthodox and enjoy style over substance in your music then you will find something you enjoy on this release.
Available Through Sandpeople Music/Obese Records
| By Hazard |
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