Minneapolis' hip-hop scene is one strike away from losing its crown.
The first major embarrassment was hearing Kristoff Krane singing "Hip hop / I'm a little tadpole" at Luce a year ago, and No. 2 comes in courtesy of the Blend's new EP, "Losing the Game."
While its nine tracks aren't nearly as offensive to my sensibilities as Krane's set was -- Really, how could they be? -- there are enough sour moments sprinkled throughout them to warrant the "strike."
None of this should've come as a surprise, though. My review copy of the album actually came with a warning -- courtesy of its one-sheet (fancytalk for "press release"): "Founded by national slam poet/coffeehouse haunt Toussaint Morrison, the Blend is a five-piece concoction of working-class gentlemen who infuse hip-hop with jazz, rock with Bach and politics with pleasure. (And some punky blues thrown in to keep the devils at bay.) The result? A slow-roasted, genre-defying blend of musical influences more restive than a triple shot of espresso."
I don't let those things influence my coverage, but, I must say, for once the writing was on the wall. (In case you were wondering, the emphases were added by me. I highlighted the passages I found most troubling -- for your convenience, of course.)
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As the irritating one-sheet suggests, "Losing the Game" is a veritable melting pot of genres, styles, influences, etc. Problem is, there's too much going on.
Linden Killam's saxophone playing might be spot on, but in the context of, say, "All Things Considered" -- an otherwise decent song -- it just seems haphazardly thrown into the mix.
I blame Heiruspecs for this, I really do. They might be just a little too influential. Everyone who's heard that "10 Years Strong" St. Paul group knows how good -- transcendental even -- hip-hop with live instrumentation can sound. But the groups they inspire fail to ignite because they don't understand that the Heiruspecs formula works because it is hip-hop with live instrumentation. That's it. It's not a rapper backed by a jam band, or a rapper backed by a brass band; it's a rapper (or two) backed by a hip-hop band ... that just happens to prefer live instruments over turntables and drum machines.
This isn't to say those aforementioned combinations don't work, they do -- like when Mac Lethal one-upped the competition and proved marching bands could be cool with "Pound That Beer" -- but the majority of live hip-hop wannabes just can't seem to make it click.
That's very much the case here: "Losing the Game" starts out promisingly enough with "All Things Considered" and the guitar-heavy combo of "Modern Techniques 1001" and "SouthDakotaCure," but the album comes to a crashing halt with "Special Deluxe."
With its bombastic bass lines and unnecessary (yucky, actually) guitar squeals, the track comes across as, predictably, an obnoxious Heiruspecs rip-off. It's followed up by the equally unimpressive "Sunny Blue," a self-indulgent "odyssey" chock full of gentle keyboard strokes, jazzy guitar noodling and smarm.
This isn't the story of the streets; this is hip-hop straight outta some random coffee shop. Oh, and the death of a scene. Yadda yadda yadda.
The Blend is bringing its Special Deluxe Tour to Duluth Oct. 4. The group will perform at 8 p.m. at Beaner's Central. Cost is $5. For more, visit www.myspace.com/theblendminneapolis .
