By shelz.
Somewhere between obscurity and super stardom lies Kidz in the Hall, a new millennium emcee/producer combo whose mere presence forces some to wax nostalgic about rap duos of the past. While they do tip toe a bit through nostalgia, the backwards glance is simply to collect a few elements to force into the future. Well the future is here. Land of Make Believe is the pair’s third album and showcases their ambition and desire to evolve. If you were expecting a repeat of The In Crowd, your feelings will definitely be hurt.
The album begins with digital smears of strings and stabs of brass hovering over simple drum patterns. The production is almost devoid of samples, at least from the casual listen, a stark contrast to the duo’s previous two releases. Double O even seems to take a page out of the “When Doves Cry” book of song building and restrains the bass to minimal levels on a few cuts. There are moments when you wish he would have tempered the atmospherics with more boom bap or fleshed out some tracks that come off a bit hollow. However, there is some cleverness and personality in there and his almost all digital creations are more interesting than some of his peers in the land of total musical synthesis. The sound does grow as the album progresses though, possibly in an attempt to keep up with the effectual morph of Naledge’s subject matter.
Land of Make Believe is sequenced well. The intro gives a hint of introspection that many folks felt was missing from Naledge’s catalog, but he lets you know in the first 2 ½ minutes that 3rd person will take a back seat to 1st. After that, there are a string of songs that dive into surface concepts with Naledge chest thumping about lyrical supremacy, Purple Label, floor seats at Bulls games and models with knee pads. However, once he exhausts his claims of being fresher than Binaca and name dropping his favorite designers, the album takes a 180. Don’t get me wrong, the previous songs are fun and Naledge’s hubris bounces proudly across a few playful tracks (the spring loaded boing boing of “Flickin” providing the foundation for Naledge’s rumination about being a pimp in his own mind is especially amusing), but the second phase provides balance.
“Will II Win,” featuring Marsha Ambrosius, tackles having oodles of associates but no friends, hometown hate, never giving up, and all the issues that money and fame drag behind them. His word association relates that street you drive down in your rented weekend whip to the road to make believe. Interesting. “Simple Life” is an ode to well… exactly that. Weighing those obligations that come with fame against the uncomplicated life of anonymity is a common theme in music and as usual, Naledge says simple stuff wins. There is talk of booze addiction, drunken casual sex, and selling your soul for a possibility on “Do It All Again.” So for those of you who complained about Naledge being one dimensional in construct, know that he is thoughtfully spread all over this album and his reflections are there in spades.
Of course there are issues. The singing on “Simple Life” from Naledge and guest Amanda Diva leaves a bit to be desired. Some of the hooks are less than inspiring (even though one blah hook was inserted into the otherwise very fresh “Fresh Academy” featuring Chip tha Ripper and Donnis) and Double O is still growing as a producer so missteps are to be expected, but this is a really solid attempt at Kidz in the Hall being true to who they are and what they want to do. Tell me are you flickin’ like that?
out of 5
************BONUS*******************
Kidz in the Hall had an album listening session this week in NYC. Thanks to the good folks at Karma Loop, we bring you an inside look at the festivities and an interview with the Kidz. Enjoy
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