Playing with ambiences and interesting sound structures
more than with its tired old image, hip-hop artists
have been making an unexpected welcome comeback over
the last few years, with the Anticon clique leading
the way. So it is no surprise to see the members of
Meanest Man Contest, one of the latest signings from
the excellent Los Angeles-based Plug Research, associated
with the ubiquitous West Coast collective.
As it stands, Quarterbar (beats) and Eriksolo (vocals)
started working together in 1996 as part of Santa Barbara’s
mic.edu project. Having both moved to Oakland, California,
the pair re-acquainted in 1999, kicking off their activities
with a record label, Weapon-Shaped, offering a platform
for West Coast underground hip-hop artists. Finally
compiling some of their work, Meanest Man Contest released
their first 7inch, Contaminated Dance Step,
in 2001, giving the opportunity for the duo to include
more tracks in a variety of compilations, before getting
noticed by Plug Research. Now comes Merit,
first full-length from the duo. Introducing MMC’s
twisted sonic mix based on Quarterbar’s electronic
soundscapes, close to the ones perfected by Boards
Of Canada, jazz and acoustic instrumentation and
Eriksolo’s nonchalant yet inspired rhyming, Merit
is found fumbling with atmospherics somewhere between
cLOUDDEAD and Boom
Bip. If Eriksolo remains relatively discreet here,
only making noticeable appearances on Science Diet
and The Most Intrusive Places, Quarterbar,
aka guitarist Noah Blumberg, demonstrates extreme dexterity
with sound organisation, bringing varied sources together
in his clean-cut compositions, consistently developing
into new directions. While the beat remains an undeniable
focal point here, Blumberg pays great care at wrapping
his soundscapes with persistent melodies, giving them
constant substance. As he packs an impressive number
of tracks in less than forty minutes, there is very
little wasted space here, yet the mood is significantly
laidback, as each piece seems to progress at its own
pace, at times daring to come to a complete standstill
right in the middle (The Most Impressive Places),
at others just evolving into luscious jazzy breaks (Pirate
Style). If rare, Eriksolo’s often-abstract
lyrics are atmospheric and the rhymes are clever, completing
perfectly Blumberg’s eclectic constructions.
Underground hip-hop has found its newest rising stars
in the shape of Meanest Man Contest, as the pair walks
in the tracks of cLOUDDEAD,
Boom Bip and Prefuse
73, ditching the commercial inadequacy of the genre
to give it a new, more appropriate twist. Merit
is original, captivating, and utterly relevant.
4.6/5 |
