8 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Ann Arbor rap duo climbs
hip hop's ladder of success..
ARTS
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Khepra Akanke
Daily Arts Writer
What happens when everyone wants to be
an artist and no one wants to be the audience?
Detroit natives Alfred "Griot" Austin and Kavari
"Magnif" Tatsico, the duo of Lawless Element,
know first hand that people who want to be art-
ists themselves seldom listen to other under-
ground musicians; everyone is trying to figure
out how they can get on stage themselves. Griot,
an LSA senior, noted that jealousy in combina-
tion with a small fan base that's hesitant to listen
to new and local artists creates a competitive
atmosphere where some people are reluctant to
support each other.
"The local scene is not based on people lik-
ing hip hop in general. The fans tend to follow
a particular musician instead of listening to all
types of music. We have some of best artists here
in Detroit and Michigan, however the fan base
isn't that great. The same people that you're com-
peting with is your audience ... which can breed
jealousy," Griot said.
Thankfully, Lawless Element has persevered.
These two men have been able to start their climb
to success despite the haters and fickle fans. A
full length album, entitled Sound Vision: In Ste-
reo, is set to hit stores soon, and their music was
featured in the Bronze Elegance fashion show on
March 12th.
Lawless Element has been able succeed because
they're not afraid to show some love to other art-
ists and shout out the underground producers and
artists who have helped them along the way.
"We've worked with Madlib and he's one of the
hottest producers on the underground right now,"
Magnif said. "We've also worked with Diverse
from Chi, and he's hot too."
Lawless Element also works hard to get their
name out there; they know the benefits of connect-
ing their brand to those who are more recogniz-
able. They often venture outside Ann Arbor to do
shows where they are much more well received.
"We travel out of town and get a lot of love. We
get spins on mainstream radio in California and a
little here in Detroit. But everywhere else we take
it, we're doing it a lot bigger than we're doing it
here," Magnif lamented.
No matter where they are, fans are drawn to
Lawless Element's talent. They have been making
music together since they were children. "We're
cousins, and we've been doing it together since
we were like nine. We used to use regular tape
recorders to record out voices," Griot explained.
Their years of working together have created
a chemistry that can't be duplicated and won't be
found on "Making the Band" anytime soon. By
studying a range of artists, they have been able to
Bri'tish
Courtesy of Raw Material
Our next song features Lawrence of Arabia.
come up with a style all their own.
"I'm influenced by De La Soul and a lot of stuff
Jay Dee was doing. And Pete Rock and DJ Pre-
mier influenced me on the production tip," Mag-
nif said.
Griot said he listens to Nas, Slick Rick and
Rakim, and names them as his main influences.
Recently receiving coverage in the Metro
Times, on the Okayplayer website and in this
month's issue of Elemental Magazine, these
cousins are definitely moving on to bigger things.
Their newest self-titled 12-inch vinyl was released
earlier this month and it has received a lot of
underground praise. The single "High," arranged
by critically acclaimed underground producer
Madlib, is a burning, taut three minutes of cap-
tivating, high-energy rap. Each element of their
songs compliment each other; neither the beat nor
the vocals becomes overwhelming. Both spit pro-
vocative lyrics and Magnif already shows talent
behind the boards. His beats are a mix of classic
break beats and contemporary electric loops.
"Everyone should listen to us because our beats
are hot, and we're different from the rest. We have
a wide range of music - there is something for
everyone to listen to," Magnif said.
To find out more check out rawmaterialre-
cords.com.
Doves
release
tepid L
By Mike Vukich
For the Daily
.
Doves are a bunch of soft-spoken,
reverb-loving lads from the UK,
I I
but thankfully,
they're not sim-
ply another Cold-
play derivative.
Despite its nods
to the obvious
influences, their
sound, a quirky
Doves
Some Cities
capitol
/
00-
mixture of equal parts pop and moody
atmosphere, is uniquely their own.
Crafted more by the group's collective
funky persona than, say, Radiohead's
oft-copied landmark The Bends. The
group's latest effort, Some Cities, has
this foggy sound reaching its creative
apex: the dense, headphone-filling
pop of this album is, at times, among
the best the group has written during
its five-year career. Sadly, only about
half of the album fits this description.
The rest of Some Cities is a frustrat-
ing mix of lukewarm space oddities
and amorphous rock tracks that inev-
itably hurts the outing as a whole.
The album opens with the title
track, a slow-burning, straight-
ahead rocker washed in '60s fuzz
and reminiscent of the loose con-
fidence of The Walkmen or early
U2. The listener gets a glimpse at
how Doves operate here: Like many
of Some Cities' finest, the song is
one constant crescendo guided by
vocalist Jimi Goodwin's ugly, yet
elegant, knack for melody. The band
allows this song to sputter out at its
climax, ushering in the pounding
drums of "Black and White Town,"
the album's lead single. With Good-
win again at center stage, the track's
climbing verse explodes into a mon-
strosity of a chorus, a sun-soaked
mix of jangly guitars and percussive
piano that begs to be blasted.
After breaking in the album with
two standard rock anthems, Doves
travel into a spacey midsection. High-
lighting this section is "Snowden,"
a lush glacial ballad. Its textured
construction is standard Doves: a
reverb-rich, huge soundfield filled
with bleeping electronics and glock-
enspiels, a softly strummed acoustic
guitar, Goodwin's soothing vocals
and an unearthly high-pitched, soar-
ing guitar. "Almost Forgot Myself"
is a funky concoction that blends a
little bit of quirky organ-laden soul
with liquefied guitars and delayed
vocals.
Frustratingly, between the bril-
liance of the opening four tracks
and the closing combo of the opti-
mistic "Sky Starts Falling" and the
drugged-out lullaby "Ambition,"
Some Cities doesn't offer anything
of the same caliber. Sandwiched in
the middle are a handful of mediocre
tracks that, for the most part, weaken
progressively upon further listens.
The anxious "One of These Days,"
rocks harder than anything else on
the disc but suffers due to numerous
momentum-killing passages and lack
of a definable hook. "Walk in Fire,"
while punchy, is essentially a retread
of the band's earlier hit "There Goes
the Fear." And some of the tracks are
just boring, such as the sparsely to-fi
"Shadows of Salford" and the aim-
less "Someday Soon," which sound
like unfinished B-sides with A-side
studio polish.
Despite a few lackluster spots,
Doves deserve credit for the flex-
ibility they show on Some Cities.
This album, while blending signature
ideas from the group's many influenc-
es, comes across as an original prod-
uct, not bland mimicry.:Likewise, the
group's sonic shape-shifting from
guitar rock to lunar weirdness on one
track to the next is a welcome alter-
native to stagnation, even if the band
falls on its face occasionally. But
ultimately, Some Cities is little more
than an occasionally great, anthemic
pop release with major consistency
0
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