Results are in for the HIP HOP/WORLD/OTHER Category peoples! And yes, we are talking about the submissions results related to our Year End Best of NYC Poll for Emerging Artists (we wish there was a shorter way to call it…)
NYC YEAR END POLL 2011 OPEN SUBMISSIONS RESULTS FOR HIP HOP/WORLD/OTHER
Jurors: Jason Behrends (Deli Chicago), QD Tran (Deli Philly), Mike Levine (Deli NYC)
– QUALIFIED TO THE POLL’S NEXT ROUND
The artists in this list qualify for the next phase of the poll, and will be added to the bands nominated by our jury of local scenemakers.
The Sway Machinery have built an unlikely combination of Jewish Cantorial music with afrobeat grooves, and the result expresses a hidden energy common to both. Klezmer and Malian tribal music aren’t usually said in the same sentence, but this band made it their mission when recording with the legendary Timbuku songstress, Khaira Arby. This is a group that honors different traditions while bringing them together into something new.
1b. Xenia Rubinos
Offering an amalgamation of exotic sounding vocals and imaginative sonic ingredients, Xenia Rubinos could be described as the Animal Collective of Bossanova. Her tunes almost magically blend the warmth of South American music and the intellectual edge of the NYC avant-indie scene. Xenia’s debut album will be released on January 16.
One half party time hip-hop, one half back-to-church soul, Deathrow Tull brings different worlds together to play in the same room. Broke MC and Dyalekt’s back-and-forth psychedelia is perfectly balanced by Ihsan Muhammed’s elastic vocal range, taking the seven-piece’s funk up to new heights with every hook.
– ALMOST QUALIFIED TO THE POLL’S NEXT ROUND
These artists had outstanding ratings from our jurors (they all shared a final score between 7.330 and 7.66 out of 10) but won’t qualify to the next round of our year end poll.
4a. Argotec
Anyone complaining about El-P not releasing records fast enough needs to check out Argotec and quit whining. Here’s a post-apocalyptic rap duo that makes it their mission to cram as much information down your skull as the sonic spectrum will allow. Complete with glitchy laptops and punishing beats, Alex Argot and Rich Courage take technology, politics and culture and mainline it direct to your system. Dark and uncompromising, their debut LP Wherewithal showcases what’s great about NY’s hip-hop underground.
4b. Gabriel Stark
Gabriel Stark is the emcee next door. He doesn’t deck out in jewelry, he hustles his music old-school by adding his everyday lyrics to artists ranging from the Supremes to Taylor Swift. Stark’s released an enormous amount of material over the past couple years, and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Every bit as much a producer as rapper, Stark’s ambition and humour comes through in everything he touches.
6a. LiKWUiD + Gummy Bears & Champagne
Like it or not, Likwuid has written the Camel toe anthem of our generation. Nothing’s off limits for this Harlem-based femcee. From singing anthem ‘Go L’ in dollar vans, to challenging gender roles in Lyrically Andrageneous, her new record Gummy Bears & Champagne is not for the casual listener, but it won’t take you long to fall in love with her either.
6b. Max Burgundy
Emcee/producer Max Burgundy finds a place for all his emotions in his beats. A romantic at heart, the ups and downs of love are catalogued over immensely varied beats. His latest EP #Waiting marries bells and bird calls together in Hey Love!, and flanged out guitar loops to bumping glitch grooves in Max Don’t. Wearing his heart on his sleeve, Burgundy builds a wide world of sound to house his enormous emotional range.
6c. Blue Belt
After listening through to wack wednesdays, (a group of b-sides the band released every Wednesday over the past year) it’s easy to think I know Brooklyn quartet Blue Belt pretty well. Dismissing with most hip-hop convention, the group discusses everything from Brian Eno to vocoded gchat conversations in their verses, while turning loops from Asian instruments like the koto and shamisen into a backdrop as smooth as anything Tribe Called Quest has produced. A welcome surprise of showmanship and detailed composition, listening to Blue Belt is an immersive experience. Come prepared to forget what you thought you could do with a sample.
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
These artists also had really good ratings from our jurors: Try This at Home and MaG.