Maybe you’ve noticed I’ve been bigging up the in-the-works solo from
Grayskul‘s JFK. Well, I’ve also been sitting on the fact
that JFK’s Ol-D Co-D, Onry Ozzborn, is also working on a new
solo record; in fact, it’s already completed, laid down in record time.
Titled No Hoax, it’s the album Ozz says will be his final solo
project. Well damn, too bad, especially because—just as in the
case with JFK—these new songs are some of, if not the, best stuff he’s laid down yet.
No Hoax‘s beats bang with slap-silly production from
Nickels and Sandpeople‘s Sapient, and Onry’s spit
game is immediate, more accessible than ever before, and sharp as
Vlad’s spikes. This more straightforward style reminds me of vintage
Ozzborn, specifically the slick electro-funk of “Venom,” the popular
single from his 2001 Alone LP. Onry’s cutting gift for droll
detailing and crushing put-downs is more potent than ever, as he slays
figurative and personal demons with a vengeance. He’s only performed
this new shit out maybe twice, and your next chance to savor it is at
Nectar on Friday, April 25, where he rocks alongside the heavy duty Def
Juxish bang of Rudy & the Rhetoric and the ponderous
Waterflow of Tulsi. Onry will also be joined by a
vocalist by the name of Mis’Fatale for his set. Don’t miss
out.
Hey, by now you’ve probably peeped the video for “Loyalty” off of
Blue Scholars‘ Bayani, and you may have even scored their
Butter & Gun$ EP off the iTunes, so why not round it out by
going to check Geologic, aka Pro Brown, at Chop Suey on
Tuesday, April 29, along with Kiwi, formerly of L.A.’s Native
Guns. Do it!
You’re so sensitive/All I said was simple
sentences…
Yep, Tom Shimura, that dude they call Lyrics Born, is back,
and not just in town (which he is, at Neumo’s on Sunday, April 27), but
backupinya with a new album. Everywhere at Once is LB’s first LP
on Anti Records, and sports a sound in line with the traveling-revue
funk stylings of his notorious live show, yet with a very contemporary
electro-pop slant. Live slap bass and bouncy West Coast electro-funk
slinks alongside selections from Zion-I‘s beat maestro Amp
Live and Seatown title-
holder Jake One. To be real, I’d
kinda burned out on the uniformly upbeat,
commercial-ready tunes
(seriously, how many songs does he have licensed out there?) of Mr.
Born years ago, but there’s some joints on this record. I dunno if I’d
bump it come fall, but right now it’s sounding right. Particularly, I’m
loving the summertime no-brainer “Cakewalk,” the super-breezy
collaboration with prep-hyphy Bay Area wunderkind Trackademicks.
Seriously, all you younger cats who dress like my older brother did 20
years ago (if he’d done a lot of acid) need to stop sleeping on
Trackademicks: He’s right up your alley and actually talented to boot.
You though? Don’t quit your day job. 