Search - Knux :: Remind Me in 3 Days

**** 4 STARS IN ROLLING STONE...

John Aaron Parker | NYC, NY United States | 10/28/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Two geeky hip-hop siblings who left New Orleans after Katrina and wound up in Los Angeles, the Knux draw their sound from astonishingly diverse precedents: OutKast and De La Soul, obviously, but also Fishbone, the Cars, Prince's Controversy, the Prodigy's big beats. What that hodgepodge adds up to is the year's best hip-hop debut.



The juxtapositions reveal a wit that runs decades deep. "Life in a Cage" name-drops Elvis Costello over a human-beatbox routine borrowed from the Fat Boys; "Roxxanne" defends its subject against the "misogynistic tone" of UTFO or the Police. By letting disparate elements compete for space, the Knux consistently build momentum. Incidental voices party in the background; heavy reggae bass lines underline heavy-metal guitars; electronic gurgles dance the mess around. Krispy Kream and Rah Al Millio play their own instruments, and for rappers so committed to rocking their music hard, they're remarkably adept at keeping it from ossifying into lead.



Wordy but never frantic, coolheaded but never bored, the Knux have no qualms about segueing an indelible single about guns into an even more indelible one about cappuccino. And "The True" addresses America's racial line from a vantage point Obama might relate to: "It's gotta be white, it's gotta be black, it can't be gray as a matter of fact." Life is complicated, they know. But it's also a blast.

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Rocking Out

Geeky Black Girl | 01/25/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I am not one to review hip-hop because I don't claim to be a hip-hop head or a rap genius. But I think I know good music. The hip-hop that is coming out these days is a hodgepodge of dance music and wannabe gangsta rap. The hip-hop that is generally played on the radio is about drugs, sex, cars, money and doesn't really speak to me because that is not what my life is about nor the majority of my friends' lives. The beats are tight, the lyrics although not spectacular or mind-blowing are decent and have some intelligence in them. Definitely reminds me of Outkast and strangely enough Gnarls Barkley.



I had not heard of them until today and when I went to check them out on my iTunes, I was immediately captivated. Was nodding my head to EVERY song. Not to mention, how they discuss women is on a much higher level than the newer rappers out here. A must-buy."

The best thing to happen to hip hop in its dark and dying ye

L. Souza | 03/12/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"These boy from Louisiana, are just what hip hop desperately need right now!!! Fresh new innovation with old school lyrics. For proof of this, all you must do is, listen to MORE THAN JUST THE HOOK! The hooks are simple but the verses are tight. I also have to give them "mad props" for their incorporation of the guitar. Taking Wyclef Jean idea and taking it to levels above and beyond. I hope to hear more from them soon. These guys are keeping hip hop on life support."