(As published for PushToFire.com)
Fans
of early 90’s British music are in for a real treat here. New-York born
hip-hop group ‘Northern State’ discover their rock side, introducing a
grunge element to single release ‘Better Already’ not customarily heard
resonating from the female threesome’s previous releases. In fact,
close your eyes and you’d have to fight the urge of thinking that
‘Garbage’ had released a much-anticipated eighth studio album, or that
techno-rockers ‘Republica’ had reformed with a slightly less hectic
sound.
The rest of the album, ‘Can I Keep This Pen?’ is very
much a hip-hop production, offering a more urban-orientated assortment
of songs. With a vocal style similar to that of up-and-coming French
electro sensation ‘Uffie’, or indeed a female version of American rock
rap artist ‘MC Lars’, this is an arguably experimental album,
coalescing older and newer sounds to reach a blissful medium.
When
listening to the CD in sequence though, ‘Better Already’ sticks out
like a sore thumb, and so genre perfection was of paramount importance,
given the black sheep nature of the track compared to the rest of the
album. Yet, it doesn’t entirely sound out of place – same technical
balance, same lyrical style, and of course same vocal texture.
Slightly
‘Beastie Boys’ in places as well (given that production came courtesy
of regular Beasties engineer Chuck Brody), this album is definitely
also worth a listen by Crazy Town and N.E.R.D admirers alike.
Won’t necessarily stick in your head, but something a bit different if you’re in the mood!
Adam Scholey