Southsiders [LP]

by Atmosphere

Overview

Eight albums in and Minnesota's indie rap act Atmosphere are as angsty as ever, but on the great Southsiders, MC Slug and producer Ant fight hard against the dreck and depression of everyday life as they take a mature stance and muddle through it all with style and a sense of purpose. Think of a Macklemore without the Black Eyed Peas-sized pop moves and the brilliance of singsongy and snide tracks like "Bitter" ("Everything used to be so good then/Now it seems you're mad at my footprints") is at hand, while "Kanye West" lives up to its bold title with a combination of claustrophobia (Ant's production features a Yeezus-worthy, suffocating guitar crunch), a crooked chorus ("Put your hands in the air like you really do care"), and a new manifesto ("If we gonna struggle, I'm a gonna do it comfortably/And live life like I like to breathe"). Put a '40s-influenced beat under "Mrs. Interpret" and Slug's off to the Cotton Club with "It ain't no misbehavin' to tell you you're the taste that I've been cravin'," and even if "The World Might Not Live Through the Night" sounds like an apocalyptic bit of dour, the MC interpolates the wild choices of Wu-Tang ("Leaning against the same crutches/Like a new game plan ain't nuthin' to fuck with") and Musical Youth ("Pass the judgment pon the left-hand side"), and suddenly the end times seem funky and fun. It's not all cheekiness and light as the moving "Flicker" deals with the death of rapper and friend Eyedea with poignancy and pride, but even on this superior cut, the veteran group pulls on the strength of its past and drops a couple clown references so the insiders feel rewarded. The spark and hunger of early efforts like God Love Ugly still offer the biggest thrill for newcomers, but since growth and groundation are skillfully balanced on Southsiders, this is arguably the most deep and different album in the band's discography. It's also the best argument that the "mopey" duo is much, much more. ~ David Jeffries

Product Details

Release Date:	05/06/2014
Label:	Rhymesayers Entertainment
UPC:	0826257018014
Rank:	43795

Tracks

1. Camera Thief
2. Arthur's Song
3. The World Might Not Live Through the Night
4. Star-Shaped Heart
5. I Love You Like a Brother
6. Southsiders
7. Bitter
8. Mrs. Interpret
9. Fortunate
10. Kanye West
11. We Ain't Gonna Die Today
12. My Lady Got Two Men
13. Flicker
14. January on Lake Street
15. Let Me Know That You Know What You Want to Know

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Atmosphere   Primary Artist
Slug   Rap
Kim Manning   Vocals
G Koop   Vocals
Prof   Vocals
Plain Ole Bill   Scratching

Technical Credits

Slug   Composer,Executive Producer
Eddie Sancho   Mixing
Kim Manning   Composer,Lyricist
G Koop   Engineer,Instrumentation
Dan Monick   Photography,Art Direction
Jason Cook   Project Coordinator
Ant   Producer,Executive Producer
Joe LaPorta   Mastering
Siddiq   Executive Producer
Plain Ole Bill   Cut
Dillon Parker   Engineer
Skye Rossi   Project Coordinator
Alex Everson   Engineer
Brent Sayers   Project Coordinator