madtheory's Full Review: The Bricks by The Outsidaz
In my opinion, the community of Hip Hop listeners can be divided into two distinct groups: rump shakers and head nodders.
The rump shakers are the ones who tend to listen primarily for the beat and are not very interested in the lyrics. You can always distinguish the rap songs aimed at this particular breed of listener by the title, i.e. Mystikal’s “Shake Ya A**” or “Back That A** Up” by Juvenile. It’s like they can’t appreciate the music unless they can shake their behinds to it.
The head nodders on the other hand, are primarily interested in the lyrics, and the beat is purely secondary. Fans who fall into this faction naturally tend to gravitate toward more “lyrical” emcees, such as Pharohe Monch and Rass Kass. To them, the rump shakers are true Hip Hop fans the same way those who listen to N’Sync and Britney Spears are considered true fans of Rock & Roll. Exactly.
I bring this up because The Bricks by the Outsidaz is one of those rap albums where the ratings will depend on which of the above groups the listener falls into. The beats on The Bricks are tight, classic underground Hip Hop beats, but they’re not glossy and “hot” enough for the rump shakers to get into. Also, since the rump shakers are not as into the lyrics, they’ll be missing the witty metaphors and ill lyrics that comprise the Outsidaz’ signature style. They’ll be giving it poor ratings while the head nodders will definitely be giving it critical acclaim.
So which group do I fall into? The head nodders actually. I appreciate innovative lyrics above all else, and the Outz definitely do not disappoint. After rocking the Hip Hop world with their 2000 EP Night Life, group members Pace Won, Yah Yah, Young Zee, DU, Azz-iz, Denzy, Nawshis, Axe, and Rah Digga (doing double duty as a member of Busta Rhymes’ Flipmode Squad), have returned to put the rap world on it’s ear with the Outsidaz’ first full-length LP. As with a great deal of rappers from Newark, NJ, the group lights up the tracks with their witty word play and off-the-wall style of rhyming, complemented by the raw, gritty beats normally associated with groups whose roots are planted deeply in Hip Hop’s underground.
Track Listing
1. Intro
2. Keep On
3. Who You Be
4. Interlude
5. I’m Leavin’
6. State To State
7. Interlude
8. Sign Of The Power
9. Hell Yeah
10. Rehab
11. We Be The O's
12. Music
13. Interlude/Yo Doe Doe
14. The Bricks
15. Money, Money, Money Remix
The CD starts out with an introduction that immediately lets the listener know that he’s in for a taste of the underground. Instead of kicking off the album with the skits or celebrity shout-outs that have become a staple in commercial rap, the Ousidaz recruit DJ Spunk, to work his magic on the wheels of steel over a spooky-sounding hook augmented with a pounding bass drum. This is without a doubt one of the first times I’ve put an introduction on repeat a few times before listening to the rest of the album.
Fellow New Jersey rapper Redman joins the Outsidaz on track 3, “Who You Be”, accompanied by his perpetual partner, Wu-Tang Clansman Method Man. DJ Twins put together a funky melody with short guitar riffs and a sparse drum machine loop for the four to rhyme over. Pace Won gets crazy with these lyrics:
“Yo Doc! I be spaced out like Star Wars /
Hardcore ni**a, don’t lock my car doors /
I rock shell toes, backspin on cardboard /
Cazalli-type frames, wave caps, and four fours /
Graffiti the place, leave my tag, Pace Won –a /
The barrel of my glock stays hot like late summer /
You freckled mother f**kers need shade to lay under /
Jake hunter, look but don’t bite, I take cover /”
Back in the earlier days of Hip Hop, rappers didn’t expect to get much radio play, so they didn’t try very hard to make radio-friendly, commercial songs. Unfortunately, nowadays even the most underground artists have to have a commercial-sounding song on their album to satisfy their A&Rs. The Outsidaz are no different. Song 5, “I’m Leavin’” is the group’s obvious attempt to put together a commercial song as they’ve recruited R&B singer Kelis to sing the hook for Pace, Zee and Rah Digga to rap over. It’s the typical glossy R&B/Rap hybrid using simple keyboard melodies and chords, with lyrics discussing failed relationships. The track itself isn’t bad, but it’s nothing special, and certainly feels out of place with the rest of the album. Rah Digga uses an old-school style to give a female’s view on the male dominated track:
“Now all my sisters in the place /
no matter what the race /
we share a common cause/
Everything be everything /
be getting treated like a queen /
‘till we give up the drawers /
Now just when I thought everything was cool, let a brother even have the key /
I said I’ll let him use the car, then he took it too far, brother out there cheating on me /”
“State to State” is one of those standard, “I’ve had sex with women all over the world” tracks, but it’s the Outz’ unique sense of humor that keeps the song from being a cliché. The group keeps it fun by singing the hook themselves (a little off-key), and never take themselves too seriously when it comes to their conquests like some other rappers. For the beat, producer Dennon Porter architects a pronounced bassline with a jazzy flute loop.
My favorite song by far on The Bricks is “Rehab”, track 10. The extremely simple melody combined with a twisted “leprechaun”-type vocal loop gives the track a very psychopathic feel. For the lyrics, Pace Won, Nawshis, Azz-iz, and DU, provide witty freestyles, loosely relating to drug abuse. The tight lyrics and ill beat will definitely keep your head nodding.
Overall, The Bricks is a great album for lovers of underground East Coast Hip Hop. The Outsidaz are masters of witty metaphors, rhythm, and meter, plus their unique personalities add a lot of flavor to each song. The majority of the beats are neither the polished R&B/Rap hybrids that are prevalent in the mainstream rap industry, or the grimy, hardcore tracks found in the thug/gangsta rap music. They’re just hard, raw beats put together by some of the most skilled producers in the industry. The Outsidaz do include a few short perfunctory skits, and make obvious attempts to appease their A&Rs with “I’m Leavin’” and the Latin-sounding “Yo Doe Doe” but even these weaker tracks are better than what you’ll hear on a large amount of the rap albums out there.
So if you love clever and sharp lyricism that you can nod your head to, make sure you pick up The Bricks by Newark’s finest, the Outsidaz. If you want some rap to shake you’re a** to, buy something else. They’re the Outz; love them or leave them alone.
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