Re: Re[2]: Tricky

Anthony Lamar Rucker (grandblk@grove.ufl.EDU)
Mon, 18 Nov 1996 15:08:20 -0500 (EST)


> Am I the only one who finds very little appeal in Tricky?

I hate Tricky. The only decent stuff I've heard from his is his work with
Massive Attack on _Blue Lines_. He's definitely overrated. Maybe it's
because Europeans are so desperate to have their own King of Rap that they
are sweating his stuff so hard, but he does not impress me at all. After
hearing the hype about Maxinquaye (sp) I listened to it and couldn't
believe it was that bad. He should be permanently dissed for that
f*cked-up Public Enemy cover ("Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos"). There
are probably many people who dis European hip-hop (a/k/a "trip hop")
because the press is making Tricky their poster boy for the genre.

While I'm complaining about overrated artists, am I the only person who
finds DJ Shadow a bit pretensious? Every article or interview I read with
him leaves me liking him less and less. It's cool that he has all those
records (how he gets them, I don't know; either he's rich or he's got
someone bankrolling him) but it's stupid to dis people for buying
compilations, or to suggest he should get props just because he uses
original records ("I use all originals...and I think people should keep
that in mind." -- quote from the most recent URB, I believe). I believe
someone already made the connection between some trip-hop artists and 70s
progressive/art rock. but I have to say that I see it more clearly
everytime I hear this record, and other "out there" t-h tracks. I'm all
for expanding boundaries, but it seems that some of these "artists" are
just being excessive, trying to purposefully move away from traditional
hip-hop.

Anthony