Q: Are super-groups functional?
A: No. They are not.
Spring boarding to relative stardom after recording with Living Legends, MURS partnered with Atmosphere's Slug, who possesses the lyrical range of a third grader, to crank out a series of supposedly themed discs that maintain little coherence from volume to volume. Attributing the disconnect to a different producer being affixed to each album makes sense. But seeing as Aesop Rock gets behind the boards for this newest offering after not having released anything of note since 2001's Labor Days, Vol. 3: A Tribute to Rosie Perez doesn't really have a chance to begin with.
The third installment of the Felt saga has finally arrived after a four year wait. It's dedicated to an actress best known for her appearances in Do the Right Thing and White Men Can't Jump, but hasn't really been busy of late. Becoming the center of Felt's rap universe, even if it's for a single album, finds Perez in the hefty company of the one time Adam's Family member Christina Ricci as well as grown up Cosby kid Lisa Bonnet.
What plagues most rap acts today, in contrast to Golden Age ensembles like Boogie Down Productions or Leaders of the New School, is the fact that there's not too much being discussed. Long gone are the politically minded polemics of the late '80s and mid '90s. It's surprising to find MURS so detached from his roots as a SoCal politico, but that's what happens over time.
Comprising Vol. 3 is a parade of songs discussing various talents that MURS and Slug tell listeners they each possess in spades. Alongside those endless boasts are innumerable tracks devoted to trollops, sluts and whores of varying degrees - "Henrietta Longbottom" being a particularly egregious violation of taste.
This latest disc from Felt, though, isn't concerned with fawning over the Brooklyn born star. And surprisingly enough, none of the femme focused forays into raptastics have any relation to Perez at all. She simply functions as a faceplate in the album's marketing campaign. The sticker that accompanies Vol. 3 dons her face and in visiting the Felt MySpace page any fan can cop t-shirts or hoodies with Rosie's visage emblazoned across the front.
Marketing aside, Vol. 3 makes mention of technology a bit too frequently for the disc to remain relevant far into the future - i.e. Zack Morris' enormous cell phone from Saved By the Bell. YouTube's referenced while mocking some fictional foe on the "The Prize" and internet rappers crop up here and there only to be endlessly lampooned.
"Like You" mitigates the mess that is this Rhymesayers released album to a certain extent. A supple guitar figure rises against a relatively angry sounding drum pattern. And as the brief melodic snippet finds its natural end, a robotic proclamation of some descending keyboard-notes brings it around to a place that allows MURS to explain why he's better than you and your favorite rapper.
The disc finally peters out with a track entitled "Paul Reubens." Unfortunately, there aren't any Pee Wee jokes - it's just another battle rap masquerading as thoughtful hip hop. And finding out that listener's need to "stayed tuned" as the fourth installment of the Felt project, a tribute to Heidi Fliess, is in the works doesn't make it any better either.
BUY: Felt: Vol. 3 (A Tribute To Rosie Perez)
A: No. They are not.
Spring boarding to relative stardom after recording with Living Legends, MURS partnered with Atmosphere's Slug, who possesses the lyrical range of a third grader, to crank out a series of supposedly themed discs that maintain little coherence from volume to volume. Attributing the disconnect to a different producer being affixed to each album makes sense. But seeing as Aesop Rock gets behind the boards for this newest offering after not having released anything of note since 2001's Labor Days, Vol. 3: A Tribute to Rosie Perez doesn't really have a chance to begin with.
The third installment of the Felt saga has finally arrived after a four year wait. It's dedicated to an actress best known for her appearances in Do the Right Thing and White Men Can't Jump, but hasn't really been busy of late. Becoming the center of Felt's rap universe, even if it's for a single album, finds Perez in the hefty company of the one time Adam's Family member Christina Ricci as well as grown up Cosby kid Lisa Bonnet.
What plagues most rap acts today, in contrast to Golden Age ensembles like Boogie Down Productions or Leaders of the New School, is the fact that there's not too much being discussed. Long gone are the politically minded polemics of the late '80s and mid '90s. It's surprising to find MURS so detached from his roots as a SoCal politico, but that's what happens over time.
Comprising Vol. 3 is a parade of songs discussing various talents that MURS and Slug tell listeners they each possess in spades. Alongside those endless boasts are innumerable tracks devoted to trollops, sluts and whores of varying degrees - "Henrietta Longbottom" being a particularly egregious violation of taste.
This latest disc from Felt, though, isn't concerned with fawning over the Brooklyn born star. And surprisingly enough, none of the femme focused forays into raptastics have any relation to Perez at all. She simply functions as a faceplate in the album's marketing campaign. The sticker that accompanies Vol. 3 dons her face and in visiting the Felt MySpace page any fan can cop t-shirts or hoodies with Rosie's visage emblazoned across the front.
Marketing aside, Vol. 3 makes mention of technology a bit too frequently for the disc to remain relevant far into the future - i.e. Zack Morris' enormous cell phone from Saved By the Bell. YouTube's referenced while mocking some fictional foe on the "The Prize" and internet rappers crop up here and there only to be endlessly lampooned.
"Like You" mitigates the mess that is this Rhymesayers released album to a certain extent. A supple guitar figure rises against a relatively angry sounding drum pattern. And as the brief melodic snippet finds its natural end, a robotic proclamation of some descending keyboard-notes brings it around to a place that allows MURS to explain why he's better than you and your favorite rapper.
The disc finally peters out with a track entitled "Paul Reubens." Unfortunately, there aren't any Pee Wee jokes - it's just another battle rap masquerading as thoughtful hip hop. And finding out that listener's need to "stayed tuned" as the fourth installment of the Felt project, a tribute to Heidi Fliess, is in the works doesn't make it any better either.
BUY: Felt: Vol. 3 (A Tribute To Rosie Perez)
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1 Comment
Faubs said:
I am a die hard felt fan because of the dopeness of their last two releases, and the fact that these guys really do sound ill together... with the correct production. Aesop Rock absolutely ruined Felt's chemistry. His beats is way too angry, and, dare I say it, simply awful. I have to be honest (I totally respect your opinion and am a frequent visitor of the site) in saying I am very taken aback with the comment of Slug having the lyrical range of a third grader. Seriously?! Slug/Atmosphere are absolutely unreal with the lyrics, which is why he's one of my favourite hip-hop artists, period. There are still a few good tracks on this album (Permanent Standby, Protagonists, She Sonnet), not surprisingly because throughout this CD you can still hear the talent of Murs and Slug as rappers... it's just that they're rapping over garbage. I, for one, am still excited for Felt 4 because I know these guys can come back strong, and they pretty much have to if they want to be remembered with any respect at all. Dudes need 9th back!
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