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One of the most influential hip-hop figures at the turn of the millennium was white producer and rapper El-P, aka El Producto, born Jaime Meline in New York.
El-P founded Company Flow with dj Lenny "Mr Len" Smythe and rapper
Justin "Bigg Jus" Ingleton.
They debuted with
Juvenile Technique (1993). Their first album,
Funcrusher Plus (Rawkus, 1997), an augmented version of a 1996 namesake EP,
featured a second rapper and already displayed the off-kilter, abrasive
production skills of the founding duo.
But it was the instrumental Little Johnny From The Hospital: Breaks and Instrumentals Vol.1 (1999) that definitely broke with the past, introducing
the most bombastic, ebullient and explosive style of the time, the apolitical
successor to Public Enemy.
El-P also crafted the schizoid soundscape of Cannibal Ox's
The Cold Vein (2001), a project risen from the ashes of Company Flow
(Vast Aire and Vordul Megilah). El-P probably achieved his artistic zenith in
tracks such as Iron Galaxy.
OXtrumentals is an instrumental version (i.e., a solo El-P album)
of the Cannibal Ox album.
His first solo album, the sci-fi concept Fantastic Damage (2002),
is a disjointed, neurotic affair.
The double-disc Fandamplus: Instrumentals is the instrumental version of El-P's solo debut.
High Water (2004) is an instrumental collaboration with Matthew Shipp's
jazz crew (and belongs more to Shipp than to El-P).
To El-P's credit, his stew of samples and beats blends seamlessly with the
improvisation of the jazzists. Get Modal is the peak of their osmosis,
with Shipp introducing a memorable theme, William Parker's drums dancing around it
and entwining the saxophone, and El-P's vocals treated to the point of being
just another form of beat.
Intrigue in the House of India boasts another irresistible melodic
pattern mauled by Shipp's piano, decaying into a liquid jam led by guitar, trumpet and electronic noise.
El-P leaves a lot of space to Shipp and his comrades, refraining from invading
the most romantic portions of the ten-minute Sunrise Over Brlyn
(with the trombone acting as the main counterpart of the piano).
Shipp's combo concocts a great adaptation of cool jazz to the age of sampling,
but it is not clear what contributions El-P made to this album that justified
his name on the cover.
Mr Len has released the solo album Pity the Fool (2001).
Relocating to Atlanta,
Justin "Bigg Jus" Ingleton released two collaborations
with rapper Orko Elohiem, The Nephlim Modulation Sessions,
and then his solo debut, Black Mamba Serums (Big Dada, 2004),
recorded in 2001.
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(Translation by/ Tradotto da Andrea)
Una delle figure piu' influenti alla fine del millenio fu il rapper e produttore bianco El-P, aka El Producto, nato a New York sotto il nome di Jaime Meline.
El-P fondo' i Company Flow con il dj Lenny "Mr Len" Smythe e il rapper Justin "Bigg Jus" Ingleton.
Debuttarono con Juvenile Technique(1993).
Il loro primo album, Funcrusher Plus(Rawkus, 1997), una versione espansa di un omonimo EP del 1996, introduce un secondo rapper e gia' esprime le obliqui ed abrasive capacita' di produttori del duo fondatore. Ma fu lo strumentale Little Johnny From The Hospital: Breaks and Instrumentals Vol.1 (1999) che ruppe definitivamente con il passato, introducendo il piu' magniloquente, esaltante ed esplosivo stile dei tempi, l'apocalittico successore dei Public Enemy.
El-P diede vita anche agli schizoidi ambienti sonori di The Cold Vein(2001), sotto la sigla Cannibal Ox, un progetto nato dalle ceneri dei Company Flow(Vast Aire e Vordul Megilah). El-P probabilmente raggiunse i suoi massimi livelli in tracce come Iron Galaxy. Oxtrumentals e' una versione strumentale(in altre parole un disco solista di El-P) dello stesso album.
Il suo primo album solista, il fantascientifico concept
Fantastic Damage(2002), e' un album sconnesso e neurotico mentre Fandamplus: Instrumentals e' la sua versione strumentale.
High Water(2004) e' un album strumentale fatto in collaborazione con il gruppo jazz di Matthew Shipp ( difatti appartiene maggiormente a Shipp che a El-P).
Nel 2001 Mr Len si ripropone come solista con il disco Pity the Fool.
Trasferitosi ad Atlanta, Justin "Bigg Jus" Ingleton realizza due collaborazioni con il rapper Orko Elohiem, The Nephlim Modulation Sessions, e successivamente il suo debutto come solista, Black Mamba Serums (Big Dada, 2004), registrato nel 2001.
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