‘And now, for something completely different‘: Portland-based fast-rapping duo The Chicharones, aka Sleep & Josh Martinez (joined by Dj Zone, in the pig head) who are as we speak ten days into their 43 shows across the US with the Vans Warped Tour ( which is showcasing this year more indie hip-hop talents than ever before! ).
Reformed three years ago, they released on June 19th their second full-length album in five months, which as it goes, drifted away from the comedy-hop schtick they specialised in to dig deeper into the witty social commentary that underpinned their previous records. ‘Swine Flew‘ sees the surf backings virtually disappear and the themes become slightly less mundane. This time ’round, The Chicharones are back to prove themselves as the hard working, sharp rhyming act lying beneath their (brilliant!) shoulder-popping silliness, with an improved live performance and beats more fitted to the genre, courtesy of Dj Zone. Don’t you worry though, it is still popping, and still pretty damn silly. Proving my point, here’s the music video for ‘Eggshells’, second single off ‘Swine Flew’:
See? So get ready to welcome them back to Portland on August 5th, as the Warped Tour concludes at the Rose Quarter Riverfront! Tracy Mamoun