The Very Good Agency

Atmosphere’s new album – Definitely not a lemon

There are few artists who gain my highest honour; the ‘buy before try’ scenario. Minneapolis based duo Atmosphere is one such example and their latest offering ‘When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold,’ easily returns my faith.

Since ‘You Can’t Imagine How Much Fun We’re Having,’ Slug and Ant have been consistently drip-feeding fans with a string of 5-song EP’s and the awesome ‘Strictly Leakage.’ Such releases have been hit and miss for me and it is great to have another full-length album that feels cohesive and obviously benefits from greater time spent on writing and production. If you are expecting the jump around beats of classics such as ‘Get Fly’ and ‘Pour Me Another’ beware, ‘Lemons’ moves into darker territory both lyrically and sonically. Ant’s flawless production has moved away from hooky grooves to a more acoustic sound with live instruments; flutes, piano and guitar, these compliment Slug’s sometimes preachy, but always poetic flow. That’s not to say the album doesn’t retain that top-down, cadillac-country feel, especially on tracks such as ‘You’ and ‘Can’t Break.’

It never fails to amaze me that Slug can deliver a poignant and I think, ultimately optimistic message (just look at the title), using such grimy subject matter as pimps, cigarettes and dry heaves, all layered above Ants swelling, hand-clapping beats. Sure he shows moments of despair, for example ‘The Skinny,’ about the hold cigarettes can have over someones life, but this is off-set by glimpses of hope such as my favourite track ‘Wild, Wild Horses,’ ‘go ahead and chase your dreams and your freedom, run run wild wild horses, you can’t tame these horses.’ Apparently god loves a trier. It is his realistic never afraid to call a dick a dick, attitude that tears Slug and his brand of introspective hip hop away from the diamond encrusted wannabes of mainstream hip hop, so much so they barely deserve to be categorised in the same genre. “All of us cut from the same damn cloth, some of us never cut the price tags off.”

Atmosphere
Trying to find a balance

If you were in any doubt that Slug is a bonafide wordsmith, the deluxe edition comes with a 40 page childrens story written and illustrated by the pair, a nice touch for big kid fans like myself. Ultimately, this album is a step-up from previous releases and I’ll definitely part with my cash with the same reckless abandon next time around. Surprise, surprise, another lady loves Slug (and Ant.)
Alesha

You can check out more from Atmosphere at:
www.rhymesayers.com
www.myspace.com/atmosphere

Tags: hip hop, Music video

Here come the Dino 5!

Fresh new all-star hip hop release, for kids!!

Prince Paul, the super-producer behind classic De La Soul albums 3 Feet High and Rising and De La Soul is Dead, has formed a new supergroup to release Baby Loves Hip Hop, a hip hop album for kids. Named The Dino 5, the group consists of Prince Paul, Chali 2na from Jurassic 5, Scratch from The Roots, Wordsworth from EMC, and Lady Bug Mecca from Digable Planets. Their album is a concept hip hop album for children, and in typical Prince Paul fashion, the album tells a story. A group of Dino kids (Rahzel as Teo Pterodactyl, Wordsworth as Billy Brontosaurus, Lady Bug Mecca as Tracey Triceratops, and Prince Paul as DJ Stegosaurus) encounter a very scary T-rex (Chali 2na as MC T-Rex) on the playground. Naturally they are terrified, and treat him poorly because of this. However, MC T-rex turns out to actually be a misunderstood giant, who only wants to play with other Dino kids. In the end, they reconcile, and get together to form the Dino 5 group to perform in the “Dino-school” talent show.

The album is full of positive messages and morals, and is a fantastic idea at a time when hip hop gets a bad name more often than it deserves. I myself am proof that the album can be enjoyed by hip hop fans young and old, with the storyline approach (narrated by grammy winning poet Ursula Rucker) and catchy songs being a huge hit with kids, and typical Prince Paul banging beats keeping the older more accomplished hip hop fans satisfied. At times the beats leave you wishing they weren’t wasted on a kids album. Although, He’s being doing it for so long now that you can be sure it won’t be the last you hear from him. The lyrics and storyline on the album are enjoyable, and 2nafish and the crew are as tight as ever on the mic. However, due to the kiddie-focus, it probably won’t rate highly on the replay scale. Unless you have kids, that is, who will want to hear it endlessly no doubt.

Check out the interactive website at www.dino5.com for more info, and keep your eyes (or your kids’ eyes) peeled for a possible cartoon series too!

You can watch the video for the group’s theme song, The Dino 5 Theme, below.