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$13.99 CD
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EL-P
Cancer 4 Cure
(Fat Possum)
 "Works Every Time"
"Tougher Colder Killer"
MC/producer Jaime "El-P" Meline is an indie hip-hop icon, known for his former group, Company Flow, the legendary label he founded, Definitive Jux (now on hiatus), and his dense and undeniably New York solo albums. Through the years, El-P has become the kind of producer you instantly can recognize, and with his work for Mr. Lif, Aesop Rock, Cannibal Ox and others he has crafted numerous tracks and albums that deserve to be called "classic." From his most recent production on Killer Mike's R.A.P. Music it's evident that he still has the skills to create some of the genre's most original soundtracks. No longer an up-n-comer, El-P is still an underdog, hip-hop's Unabomber, choosing to only release albums when he truly has something to say. With this new full-length, Cancer 4 Cure, on Fat Possum, he holds his own, and appears to be in top form. When asked, I will describe his work as "similar to riding a runaway
subway train through the dark weaving tunnels underneath New York's concrete jungle;" on C4C all his signature sounds and inflections are present, and after five years away, and in the wake of the single and mix-driven blog-hop sound, it all feels somewhat refreshing, solid, and complete.
Dedicated to and inspired by El-P's longtime friend, rapper Camu Tao, who died of lung cancer in 2008, El-P uses this loss as a springboard to channel thoughts on death, violence, relationships, and just being in and of the world. Always a vivid storyteller and observer with a rapid fire yet clear flow, he
creates tense scenes, approaching each song from various perspectives and framing. From interrogation rooms to domestic violence, his rhymes are as dense as the wall of sound rumbling underneath. He's always had a prog-like use of analog synths and big drums, and here those element are pushed into the red;
many layers of samples, live and programmed instruments and other sound effects, create a throbbing and crumbling cityscape like a sonic mash-up of Escape From New York, Apocalypse Now and The Warriors. Musical guests include Paul Banks (Interpol), Nick Diamonds (Unicorns/Islands), Danny Brown, Killer Mike, Despot, Matt Sweeney (Chavez, etc.), Jaleel Bunton (TVOTR), Isaiah
Owens (Mars Volta/Mastodon) and Mr. Motherfucking eXquire, who all are well-placed, melding into the landscape with ease and helping to heighten the tension. Much like the sound development within Kanye West's more recent productions, El-P is great at creating widescreen, dense, dark, and emotive
film-like albums. This ain't no party music, however, this is thinking man's hip-hop for sure. If hip-hop died a few years ago, the current era is the vampire-loving afterlife; El-P here resurrects himself from the ashes of late-'90s hip-hop and has come, once again, to slay the uninspired, trivial, and
banal, offering quality hip-hop from the deep underground. If you like good, thick, and edgy hip-hop, any of the above mentioned, Quakers or Death Grips, El-P is still the man -- at least one of them -- and it's good to have him back
around. Check him out, and get the Killer Mike album too, it makes a nice chaser. [DG]
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