(hed)p.e. - Back 2 Base X Review
Posted by Selwyn DeSa on 07.04.2006
(hed)p.e. come out swinging with their hard hitting Sub Noize debut.
From hip-hop to punk rock, metal to reggae, while most bands struggle to master just one genre, (hed)p.e. seems to blend them all together effortlessly. Constantly reinventing themselves, constantly growing with the times, and constantly making good music has been a trademark of the band throughout the years. Scoring hit singles like “Bartender” and “Blackout” along the way, yet never garnering that mainstream success a band like they are truly deserve. Now signed to one of the most successful and influential record labels in the entire underground, M.C.U.D. and his Huntington Beach band mates are poised and ready to take us all “Back 2 Base X“.
Lyrically this is the best album since “Broke“. While M.C.U.D. has always been a dope lyricist, recently he seemed to be slipping into the stigma of writing to shock, or to say something he knows he shouldn’t be saying. Here he is still himself, but he is writing to say something he knows should be said. Touching on subjects of freedom, revolution, and the search for truth, it seems that maybe signing with Sub Noize has lit a new fire in M.C.U.D. causing him to step his game up to a whole new level.
The album, which was recorded live as a band in studio, is what music should be all about. Not computers and machines that rob music of its raw energy and passion, which this album is definitely not lacking. Beat wise, as usual they came with everything but the kitchen sink. This album will take you from mellow head nodding to violent head banging and back again, often times during the same song. Fans of music in general should appreciate the diversity of the bands efforts here.
“Listen” kicked things off with a bang, and set a high standard which the album undoubtedly lived up too. “Novous Ordos Clitorous” and “Get Ready” provided the metal elements for fans of the heavier side of (hed). While “Beware Do We Go” and “The Chosen One” had a more laid back vibe which the stoners will appreciate. Other tracks like “Sophia” fuses styles in a way that is classic (hed). “Daze Of War” and “Let’s Ride” finds M.C.U.D. at his peak as he is on point with his rhymes and delivery. Other standouts include “Lock And Load“.
While not every track may have been great, most of them were, and the ones that weren’t were still good, bottom line, there are no bad tracks on this album. While there are certain tracks you may choose to skip from time to time to get to a better one, you could just as easily sit back, light a joint, and listen to the entire thing with no regrets.
Bump -
Track 1) Listen
Track 2) Novus Ordos Clitorus:
Track 3) Lock And Load
Track 4) White Collars
Track 5) Get Ready
Track 6) Sophia
Track 7) Peer Presure
Track 8) Beware Do We Go
Track 9) Daze Or War
Track 10) Sweet Chops
Track 11) So It Be
Track 12) Let’s Ride
Track 13) The Chosen One
Skip -
None
Purchase Or Pass? - Purchase…definitely purchase.
The 411: Easily the best (hed)p.e. CD since “Broke“, old school fans of (hed)p.e. should absolutely love this album. Those who have only been around since “Only In Amerika” may think that they have gotten softer, but I think they just grew up a bit musically. Signing with Sub Noize should open new doors for the band and expose them to a whole new audience, and they deserve it. This is one of the most underrated underappreciated bands of our time, and they show you why with "Back 2 Base X".
