The Sleeprockers team up with Hieroglyphics on the Bay Area’s venerable rap group’s long-awaited new album
Words by Andrew Bell • Photos by Zaved Khan
Going to see The Sleeprockers live is like going to watch the hip-hop version of Miles Davis with his band. With an MPC, a mountain of turntables between them and a bunch of pedals, loopers and other alien-looking technology, the crew has taken collaborative live beat production to a new level, even catching the attention of West Coast hip-hop hall of famers Hieroglyphics.
Is it any wonder the Hiero crew would tap the five-man DJ/production crew (DJ Nocturnal, DJ Wanted, Kwes the Bess, Mr. Vibe, and Rated R) to sleeprock (yes, it’s a verb when Hiero asks you to do it) a new group album that would become The Kitchen, the first group album from Hieroglyphics since releasing Full Circle a decade ago?
“They really gave us creative control for the most part,” explained Kwes the Bess. “The more we wanted to push boundaries the more they were with it.”
Aptly named after The Sleeprockers’ practice of setting up their production equipment in the kitchen, the new album is an innovative recipe for hip-hop brought to you by some of the most seasoned lyricists in the game.
Hiero and Sleeprockers go back a few years. In 2010 Hieroglyphics put the word out that they were looking for DJs. “I hit ‘em up and told ‘em I had a whole crew of DJs who came from all different backgrounds, from party-rocking to battling and everything in between,” explained DJ Nocturnal.
In 2011, Hiero asked the crew to collaborate on a new group album that would become The Kitchen. They got busy finding samples, mixing, cutting, scratching and sometimes flipping whole beats.
In the process of recording The Kitchen, Hieroglyphics member Tajai was so impressed with The Sleeprockers’ work he asked them to collaborate on his latest album, Machine Language, which was released January 2012.
All that time, The Sleeprockers have been sitting on what is definitely one of the most anticipated albums in West Coast underground hip-hop.
For anyone under the impression that any of the Hieroglyphics camp has lost a step lyrically over the last 20 years, have no fear. All the uniqueness and funk that you loved about everyone’s signature styles in 1993 are still there, just with updated content and more current beat production. And, of course, sleeprocked.
The bass-heavy, boom-bap revamp is apparent, beginning with the intro track, produced by The Sleeprockers and including juggling by West Coast DMC Champion DJ Wanted (currently residing in Japan), and carrying into the second track “Livin It Up,” a futuristic, funk slapper produced by Del The Funky Homosapien.
The Hieroglyphics camp flexes their own production muscles throughout The Kitchen as well with more than 11 of the 17 tracks produced by Del, Opio or A-Plus. The Kitchen is stocked with that trademark trunk-rattling Oakland funk that the crew has taken around the world.
Lyrically, the Hieroglyphics cast has always had the unique ability to represent both the “street” and “conscious” sides of hip-hop simultaneously, and The Kitchen is no different. The entire album is chock full of social commentary while still…Um… how do you say “Slumps like a MF” in journalist-ese?
After 10 years, there is a distinct development in The Kitchen. More than just a whole crew full of flavorful rappers with flamboyant personalities and flows, there is a cinematic feel to the album. This is largely due to The Sleeprockers’ influence on the intros, interludes, mixes and cutting (scratching) on the album.
So what is it like to work with some of your hip-hop heroes? For The Sleeprockers it didn’t sink in until the end. “I don’t think any of us looked at it like that when we were working on The Kitchen,” explained Mr. Vibe. “But there was definitely a moment after it was done that was like, ‘We just DID that.’”
When asked their favorite individual tracks from The Kitchen, discussion bounced around the room between Sleeprockers. The first track brought up is “That Merch.” Produced by Unjust and featuring Pep Love, “That Merch” documents the hustle involved in peddling the now-infamous third eye memorabilia at shows and how important the merchandise game has been to Hieroglyphics’ success. “That Merch” is to underground rappers what Notorious B.I.G.’s “The Ten Crack Commandments” was to drug dealers.
“Gun Fever,” the first single from The Kitchen, followed closely behind “That Merch.” A conscious banger about America’s obsession with guns, the track features Tajai, Pep Love, A Plus, Del the Funky Homosapien and Casual speaking on their own personal experiences with gun violence.
The track was originally recorded in 2011 before the State of Florida vs. George Zimmerman case was headline news. “It was expressing what was going on in our own neighborhoods,” explained Hieroglyphics member Tajai. Released at the end of April, the music video for “Gun Fever” has reached almost 50,000 views on YouTube in only a couple of months.
Last but not least, Opio’s laid-back, classic West Coast production on “Highway 5” gets passed around the circle as another Sleeprocker favorite. A shining example of the key ingredient that The Sleeprockers bring to The Kitchen, “Highway 5” features both Rated R and Mr. Vibe bringing the patented sleeprock flavor to the track.
There are still tracks like “wShores Galore” (no, that’s not a misprint) for all of the die-hard “93 ‘til Infinity” heads, but the overall feel is an updated, kind of Golden Era 2.0. nostalgic. But for as much as The Kitchen “takes it back” it also moves it forward.
The Kitchen drops July 16, 2013 on iTunes, Amazon, etc., but you can pre-order packages now at Hieroglyphics.com including posters, CDs, T-shirts, and instant downloads of the next single, “It’s Partly Me.”
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