Oregon daily emerald., November 10, 2000, Page 9, Image 32

There was a time you could count on the
Poor Righteous Teachers to drop some funky
grooves every other year. In the early ’90s,
the group cranked out cuts like "Nobody
Move," "Shakilya" and "Rock Dis Funky
Joint." But Father Time has not been kind to
our favorite Moslem MCs—these days PRT
sounds more self-righteous than ever. Losing
My Religion was billed as a comeback, but
ends up backfiring like an old Ford truck.
On the new track, "Nuttin New," the
group takes a series of stabs at the lame
choice of subjects rappers normally speak
on, but it comes off as didactic and out of
touch. Missing from this opus are the trade
marks of other PRT efforts, like the Jamaican
chanting of lead man Wise Intelligent, who is
mysteriously restrained here.
Tracks like "Everytime" and "Dis Money"
delve even further into the shortcomings of
other contemporary rappers.
PRT has always been a spiritual lot, rap
ping out diatribes that struck serious
chords back at the time. Although the mes
sages on Losing My Religion still need to be
heard, it feels like PRT is preaching to the
choir and not to a new generation of hip
hop listeners. •
For more on this band, go to
steamtunnels.net and search for
keywords “Poor Righteous Teachers.”
The Analog Brothers
Pimp tetat
(Nu Gruv Alliance)
Kool Keith
Matthew
(Threshold)
(scorepress.com)
■Jccentricity comes with its own set of bur
■idens. Hip-hop oddball Kool Keith has
made a career of being, well, nuts. From the
alien gynecologist Dr. Octagon, to project
dwelling cannibal Dr. Dooom; Keith has
1, S. ot__
hyper produced timbres that populate much
of hip-hop—Keith has expressed disdain
for "that same old Trinity keyboard sound").
This album’s tracks bubble and squeak with
vintage Bernie Worrell-ish charm.
Elsewhere, like on "More Freaks," he
unleashes his patented free associative
prowess, referencing everything from old
school NBA skywalker David Thompson to
Marvel Comic's Ben Grimm.
On Matthew, Keith’s brand of crazy isn’t
nearly as wide-ranging or as interesting.
Matthew is at its most disappointing when
Keith overindulges his habitual disdain for
mainstream excess. On tracks like "F.U.M.F"
/
The so-named Analog Brothers (I to r): Keith Korg, Ice Oscillator, Rex Roland jX3P, Silver Synth and Mark Moog.
trotted out a dizzying array of personae,
constructing skewed visions of everything
from science fiction to hip-hop culture.
Consequently he's burdened with the cross
of expectations. Material that would, from
another artist, be considered forward think
ing and refreshingly offbeat, is considered a
disappointment from Mr. Thornton. Two
recent Keith-related releases—Pimp to Eat
and Matthew—show that Keith’s eccentrici
ty extends to the quality of his own work.
Pimp to Eat is credited to the Analog
Brothers, a crew of five that includes Ice-T
(a.k.a. Ice Oscillator). The concept is a goof
on the RZA’s Bobby Digital (Keith appeared
as "Robbie Analog" on the sleeve of the
Dooom release). It's also a subtle dig at the
© Nu Gruv Alliance
and "Mad Man Departure," he unleashes
stream-of-consciousness broadsides against
"plastic people" and "jiggy perpetrators."
The stripped down "I Don't Believe You"
("you say you mess with Lauryn Hill_I don't
believe you/you say Shaq’s your cousin...!
don't believe you"), is funny merely because
you don’t know whether Keith conceived it
with tongue-in-cheek. If he did, it’s hilarious,
but it’s even funnier if he didn't. Ail in all,
Matthew might not be Keith's best work.
But for novice heads looking for something
a little different, it is worth at least a couple
of spins. •