Black Elvis 2

Kool Keith released 1999s Black Elvis/Lost in Space on Columbia-affiliated Ruffhouse Records at the peak of his popularity. Dr. Octagon, his otherworldly collaboration with Dan the Automator and DJ Q-Bert, had become a highly influential underground phenomenon, and he made appearances (sampled and in-studio) on the Prodigys blockbuster The Fat of the Land, which topped charts worldwide. Black Elvis/Lost in Space was like a big-screen adaptation of his whacked-out sci-fi fantasies, boasting high-definition production as well as some of sharpest, strangest lyrics. Even though it presented Keith at his most accessible, the album proved to be far too weird for the mainstream. It barely scraped the Billboard charts, and he retreated to independent labels for his subsequent releases. More than two decades later, following reboots of several of his other alter egos, he revisited the concept in 2023 with Black Elvis 2. Co-produced by Keith himself as well as LOrange, Marc Live, and others, Black Elvis 2 is a little less chrome-plated than its predecessor, although the warped robot rhymes of "First Copy" wouldve fit perfectly on the original. Aside from sci-fi themes, Keiths other main lyrical fixations remain fashion, sex, and dissatisfaction with hip-hop and the music industry, all of which are abundant here. "Kindergarten Adults" pokes fun at old-school rap heads stuck in the past, and "Without My Culture" flips hip-hop commercialism on its head. "All Marvel" falls closer to Czarface territory, while the theme park psychedelia of "Space Mountain" is one of the trippiest songs Keith has made in some time. "Road Dog" is filled with classic Keith non sequiturs/insults ("Everybodys starting to look like Kermit the Frog!"), and "World Spin" continues with the intergalactic trash talk. "Cliftons Revenge" updates a Black Elvis highlight, seamlessly segueing from basketball metaphors to intense, over-exaggerated sex rhymes. Along with Serpent, an equally strong collaboration with Real Bad Man that appeared months earlier, Black Elvis 2 is some of Keiths most successful work in ages, recapturing some of the magic of his 90s peak. ~ Paul Simpson

間もなく還暦にもかかわらず制作意欲がまったく衰えぬ絶倫状態な伝説的奇才ラッパーの新作は、99年に発表した『Black Elvis / Lost In Space』の続編。シリーズ前作を踏襲してスペース・ファンタジーなムードを漂わせ、フックのリフレインで異世界に転生したと錯覚する先行曲"Space Mountain"など随所で妖しさを放ったコンセプチュアルな一枚だ。
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