Fake For Real

Contrary to what his experimentalist posture suggests, Thavius Beck's music has sometimes been too easy. The ex producer of Global Phlowtations, one of its few members who met some kind of critical recognition in the 2000's, thanks to his releases with Mush Records, Plug Research and Big Dada, sometimes spoiled his music with too many effects and pyrotechnics, and with some big, threatening electronic sounds, sounding like an exaggeratedly gothic version of hip-hop. Many times, though, the individual proved that he was really gifted and talented.

Making one's best so that hip-hop looks like a live experience, strengthening raps with the sounds of "real" instruments, has not always been a successful approach. The most famous group which tried to go this way, The Roots, has sometimes failed at it, coming dangerously close to boredom. And when a rapper proves to be good at this, it is more often in concerts than on records. Toolshed, though, a group from London, Ontario, used this formula fantastically on their second album, a record blended with bouncing guitar, drums, bass and saxophone sounds, reinforced with facetious and dynamic raps, and full of rhythm and scratches.

Nowadays, Alley Boy has a proper contract with Atlantic Records, but he still cares about his mixtapes. According to what he said about his very latest, War Cry, he considers them like normal albums. He approaches them with the same level of care and professionalism as regular records, selecting the best materials from his prolific production. To be honest, it is a bit hard to believe, judging by the 22 tracks of his gargantuan latest release, a perfect complement to both editions of Definition of Fuck Shit, and to Purgatory, Nigganati, and The Gift of Discernment, the free projects which, over the last three years, helped building his reputation.

Released by the Lewis Recordings, a UK label, in 2002 – the Brits may have been the only ones willing to take risks with such a record – Primitive Plus is the enriched version of Primitive, an EP which generated an underground buzz by 1999. Edan, its author, belonged then to an emerging kind of indie rappers: the hip-hop handymen. Indeed, this graduate of Boston's Berklee College of Music took everything in charge: he provided the raps, the beats, the scratches, the cover art… And as usual in such circumstances, the output looked like a demo recorded in a scullery.