Riding the considerable amount of buzz they've built recently from their raucous live shows, NYC trio RATKING (young Manhattan emcees Wiki and Hak and their older Brooklyn via Virginia beatmaker Sporting Life) piece together quite the eclectic racket on their debut full-length, So It Goes. Over a kaleidoscope of soundscapes equally indebted to electronic, indie rock and the traditional rap blueprint, Wiki and Hak spit hasty bars telling the story of young men entrenched in the streets of New York City in the here and now.
A throwback rap revival this ain't. Peep "Canal," on which the two young'uns trade rhymes over the skittering high-hats and chopped vocals Sporting Life laces them with or "Snow Beach" (shout to the infamous Polo piece that kids got jacked for back in the day) in which we hear about the trials and tribulations of trying to stay fresh while constantly worrying about getting that new North Face pinched off your back. "Remove Ya" is a hectic, claustrophobic mess that samples the Dipset classic "Dipset Anthem." This is new, fresh, young rap with an edge.
It's unclear whether these kids are skate rats (good chance), but they definitely show the ambitions of young kings on this dope debut.
(Hot Charity/XL Recordings)A throwback rap revival this ain't. Peep "Canal," on which the two young'uns trade rhymes over the skittering high-hats and chopped vocals Sporting Life laces them with or "Snow Beach" (shout to the infamous Polo piece that kids got jacked for back in the day) in which we hear about the trials and tribulations of trying to stay fresh while constantly worrying about getting that new North Face pinched off your back. "Remove Ya" is a hectic, claustrophobic mess that samples the Dipset classic "Dipset Anthem." This is new, fresh, young rap with an edge.
It's unclear whether these kids are skate rats (good chance), but they definitely show the ambitions of young kings on this dope debut.