Blackalicious brings blazing hip hop back

If you think Blackalicious sounds like some of kind of chewy candy, you’re mistaken. The two-man band includes a talented MC, Gift of Gab (Tim Parker) and a disc jockey/producer, Chief Xcel (Xavier Mosley).

The two met in a Sacramento high school in 1987 and the evolution of their music started. They soon began writing songs and developing albums.

The guys were part of the Quannum collective that also includes DJ Shadow and collaborated on Solesides Greatest Bumps, an album released in 2000.

Blackalicious also released its first feature length album, NIA, in 2000. It was a tightly-produced project with Gift of Gab showing off his verbal expertise.

The rhymes tend to be on the cerebral side with fast paced reciting and simply composed beats.

Blackalicious now finds itself in the category of surfacing underground hip hop acts, alongside Jurassic 5 and Dilated Peoples. By not over-producing their tracks, these acts keep it real and for the most part, raw.

Blackalicious’ current release Blazing Arrow is an incredibly well-produced piece. The band was able to take what worked on NIA and extrapolate on those ideas on the current release.

The group’s major-label debut includes equal parts of tight lyrics, guest stars and perfectly selected samples.

From the first track, the listener is taken on a musical journey — a trek into a world where many diverse sounds and influences converge.

The guys leave no musical genre undiscovered, relying on both live instruments, such as the horn section on the title track, and electronic devices, to weave their musical tapestry.

Blazing Arrow manages to combine a truly ’70s sound with cutting edge technology.

The album has been years in the making and it should be clear to anyone who listens that Blackalicious takes making quality music seriously.

Guest stars on the album range from Ben Harper to Rage Against The Machine’s Zach de la Rocha. Members of fellow west coast groups Jurassic 5 and Dilated Peoples also contribute their skills to the project.

Some of the best things about Blazing Arrow are what the album lacks. These include the glorification of the gangsta lifestyle, amassing large amounts of cash and rhymes about committing murder.

Blackalicious rises above most of what is considered hip hop by constructing great tracks with an intense desire to make people think.