(Illgotit Records, 2012)Elliot Fresh is one of the most affable young rappers in Oxford and his Illgotit Records label is blessed with skilled beatmakers who draw from the same soulful, jazz-inspired well as 9th Wonder, Hi-Tek, DJ Premier and the whole Native Tongues crew. This gives Now, Elliot’s three-years-in-the-making debut album, a cohesive and pleasantly golden-era feel akin to Mos Def’s Black on Both Sides.
However, your enjoyment of the album may be dependant on the balancing act between Elliot’s rudeboy-posturing and intelligent rapper personas; songs on the album varyingly focus on immature, almost scatological humour, sexual exploration, social commentary and philosophical/theoretical concepts. There are lyrical gems to be found amidst some of the album’s more vulgar tirades while some of the more awkward-sounding clangers feature in the more positive passages. ‘Respect the Architects’ is a playful, if formulaic, homage to the founding fathers of hip-hop from Kool Herc to Rakim and closing track ‘Oxford’ pays respects to the local hip-hop scene. Elsewhere ‘Born Into the Galaxy’ is a sensitive and thoughtful ode to Mother Earth while in ‘The Jazz Mag Shuffle’ Elliot aims for the Pharcyde’s self-loving sense of humour but comes across more like a dirty old man leering at the top-shelf magazines.
A game of two halves then – sometimes there’s no accounting for taste and whenever the subject matter or a forgettable guest verse threatens to ruin a track the production manages to carry our interest into the next song. Overall though, it has to be said that as a whole package Now is a strong offering from one of the better rappers in town.
[Originally published in Nightshift magazine, issue 205]
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