A little while back I was riding around New Jersey at 2am and flipped on the Wake Up Show, broadcasting live from the left coast. They tend to play a lot of old school tunes, so when I heard this track called "Einstein's Takin' Off," I figured it was a track from 1991 that I had somehow missed the first time around. It was one of those classic-type tunes where the emcees just talked about how dope their DJ was. It sounded to me like a track from the relatively-unknown Cold Chillin' group 2 Deep. It turned out, though, this was a brand new track by a crew called Ugly Duckling. Well, goddamn, what do these kids sound like outside of this track?
I found out -- they happened to be in the studio that night and did a 10-minute live set of their tunes. They're definitely from the Jurassic 5 mindset of Old School Spirit, Today. As far as I'm concerned, there's plenty of room in this overcrowded industry for kids who are putting out quality tunes with the inspiration and enthusiasm we heard when hip-hop was at the brink of breaking through to the mainstream market.
Fresh Mode is the group's debut EP, eight tracks deep. If you're into the retro sounds of Jurassic 5, there's no doubt you'll want to get your hands on a copy. Quickly.
"Now Who's Laughing" uses a very simple drum beat and familiar samples (including one that I associate most with a Sway and Tech freestyle beat that Supernat freaked in '94). Strictly enjoyable hip-hop in a classic spirit: "I last for eons, and light the night like neon, / While you blow hot air, like AC with no freon."
"Do You Know What I'm Sayin'" is an ID-check for those who claim to be old school heads, but don't remember listening to static-filled radio shows to catch the latest tracks. They run through a series of old school lines that only the initiated will pick up on. It's good to hear new artists releasing music with a firm knowledge of their musical roots.
The other tracks, "Get On This," "Everybody C'mon," "Everything's Alright," and "We're Here" all are dripping with hip-hop's essence. "Rhythm is tight like Big Pun in a medium." Yes, yes, YES. Give us more of that funk. In the meantime, I'm pulling out my copy of 2 Deep's Honey, That's Show Biz.