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Breaking From The Herd

By Paul Labich

Jurassic 5 has a problem. Cursed or blessed (depending how you see it) with the massive white audience left behind when the Beastie Boys got married or became monks, and A Tribe Called Quest hung up their mics and decided to take shots at each other on wax instead, the J5 crew has fought to maintain credibility and creativity while watching their audience progressively expand and pale in skin tone. 2000’s Quality Control became an instant classic with seasoned hip hop heads as well as those who only dabbled in the genre. Blending four part harmonies along with bouncing bass lines, drum patterns and vibes a plenty, the album saw the sketches of 1998’s self-titled EP perfected over a full length LP that banged from start to finish. While the album didn’t sell near Eminem numbers, Jurassic 5 saw their fan base spread exponentially as constant touring and word of mouth made them a favorite name to drop among those attempting to rep “conscious” hip hop. The culmination this year was their incendiary performance in front of over 50,000 fans at this summer’s jamband superfest, Bonnaroo.

Which brings us to Power in Numbers, the latest effort from MC’s Chali 2na, Akil, Mark 7, Dakir and DJ/Producers Cut Chemist and Numark. From the sparse guitar loops of the opener “Freedom” to the final instrumental African jungle freak out “Acetate Prophets”, Power in Numbers does not disappoint. The album finds producers Cut Chemist and Numark (splitting duties evenly between the 17 tracks) growing by leaps and bounds in the eclectic noise of their distinct blend of soundclash science. Anybody caught nodding their head to the recent Sprite “Lowriders” commercial can thank these two for the phat bass line of Power in Numbers’ first single “What’s Golden”. Featuring 16 blazing bars from “the verbal Herman Munster” Chali 2na (talk about mic presence), it stands easily as one of the strongest tracks on this virtual highlight reel of expertly matched rhymes and beats.

Power in Numbers also sees Jurassic 5 expanding to include several guest stars this time around. Big Daddy Kane spits his legendary braggidocious flow over the driving high hat symbols of the scorching “A Day at the Races”. Ju Ju of The Beatnuts also appears on “One of Them” to vent his obscenity laced flow over a hollow, battle influenced beat attacking so-called “name brand talkers” (Air Force One’s anyone?). And Nelly Furtado even appears to lace the reggae-influenced hook for “Thin Line”, a hip hop meditation of the consequences of turning a long term friendship into romance.

Power in Numbers shows Jurassic 5 embracing a new confidence brought by their worldwide legion of fans. While keeping the same old school elements that made Quality Control such a pleasure, Power in Numbers finds the J5 crew bouncing from pop sensibility to battle cipher basics and succeeding handsomely on both ends. The Chali 2na/ Mark 7 duet “Sum of Us” is as close to hip hop perfection as one can hope to find.

Coupled with the equally eclectic and entertaining Blazing Arrow from Blackalicious, the once “underground” Bay Area hip hop scene seems to be making a strong play for creative dominance in the world of Nellyville’s iced out, jiggified nonsense. For those looking for a cure from the same old hip hop clichés, look no further than Power in Numbers.