BACK TO MAIN
By Jeff Paterson - HipHopCanada.com
"It's like this: we're going double platinum and coming back to our true fans. I had this shit planned out the whole time, this is for you. Your little sisters might not get this shit, we made this shit for our fans, the people who fucking discovered us and supported us from the beginning."
So goes the final verse on the final track of Vancouver hip-hop group Swollen Members' new album, 'Heavy'. It's in reference to the wide majority of fans that rank the boys up there with Ja Rule and Britney Spears, yet who thrive on all-ages shows as the only chance to see them live.
That's an odd move, being that tweens and young white girls make up the majority of the mainstream Swollen fans. This album is heavy on the bass-lines and lyrics. The tracks are destine for the clubs and smoke-sessions, not the pop-radio friendly stuff of past. Their best production to date, the album is made up of original samples and beats, and relies only on fellow Battleaxe family member Abstract Rude for a cameo.
The album starts consists of two mediums, one is the club, ass-shaking beats of tracks like Block Party, with its fun sing-along chorus and Watch This, their hypnotizing summer-fun single. Then around track seven come the dark, funky beats and lyrics. The song titles include Therapy, Concentrate, Don't Know Why and Paranoia. The album comes full circle in the end again to end on a party beat, with tracks All Night, Heat and Ambush.
The group allows us as they have in the past to dig into their amazing lyrical bag of tricks. Madchild and Moka Only are on pace here with their tightest offerings yet, cause we know Prevail always steps up, with Madchild even getting a little cocky and rude and lewd ("listen, bitch, I'm a tough act to follow, here's a dick to suck and a nut sack to swallow"). Moka Only is present on every track, no longer like Spinderella was to Salt'n'Pepa.
The references are endless: Led Zeppelin, American Idol, Dr. Doom, Gravediggah's, CDR's, The Ring, Butterbean, Beethoven, Jack the Ripper, American Bandstand, Lego, the Dead Rabbits, Brotherhood of the Wolf and friends Sum 41.
There are tracks like Bottom Line, with nasty bass and a chorus that warns "you would never wanna take shots, cause we'd come back to haunt you". Remember the Name has a really funky beat, reminding one of a Jay Z track, announcing their impact on the scene calling themselves the "new sheriffs in town" and proclaiming they got "this song stuck in your head". Burn it Down has a reggae beat, and is destined to be their hottest and sexiest track on the disc. DJ's, get playing this ish in the clubs, and get those girls hot and sweaty and dancing.
"You're crazy, man. I like you, but you're crazy."
The Will Ferrell line from Old School after he shoots himself with a tranquilizer gun appears at the end of the song Paranoia, but I don't know who it's put in there for. Listening to some of the darker songs on the album, you appreciate the craft and tempt yourself from not asking "what the fuck?" As Moka Only says on the accompanying DVD, when you create outside of the box, you can't get criticized, only be followed. The dark tracks on the album will not cater to everyone, and those who get it will worship it.
The CD is accompanied by a DVD, the new staple of record companies desperate to lure people to buy their CD's rather than burning them. It's a pretty nice bonus, and has six Swollen music videos, including Breath, Take it Back and Fuel Injected. Even better is a 23 min behind-the scenes documentary on the group, which includes backstage footage, video shoots, and poolside conversations. They have girls making out, skateboard footage, and concert footage packed on there too, for good measure.
'Heavy' is a solid and strong effort put forth by the most recognized hip-hop group in Canada. The group is taking a gamble here, trying to regain the fans that may have strayed or bolted after the group became as mainstream as they are. Let's not forget that this is the group that went on tour this summer with Sum 41 and Gob, their mainstream equivalent on the punk scene. Swollen Members are brilliant in their production and their lyrics, and very shortly will be launching their sound onto the U.S. Market. Until then, it remains to be seen how the true, original fan, digs this new CD and the Muchmusic, pop-music loving fan digs it too.
December 4, 2003 [HipHopCanada.com]