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BY H.V. CLAYTOR
JR.
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OutKast, Black Eyed Peas, Melky Sedeck, Cool Nutz, Hungry Mob Roseland Theater 8 NW 6th Ave., 224-8499 9 pm Saturday, Nov. 28 $28 This has been a damn good year for hip-hop music. Five definitive albums were released Sept. 29, significantly impacting hip-hop music in the '90s and beyond. Brand Nubian overdosed headz with righteous consciousness while A Tribe Called Quest introduced the crisp digital sounds that will be emulated in years to come--once cats catch up to the science. Black Star took it back to the basics, spitting heavy rhymes to the one-two work of real DJs. Jay-Z proved the current dominance of raw hip-hop by entering Billboard's 200 at numero uno and maintaining that position for more than five weeks. Yet it is the masterpiece dropped by OutKast that will stand the test of time. Aquemini, the duo's third album, is similar to Prince's Sign o' the Times: relevant the day it greets the public but not fully understood until many tomorrows have come and gone. An album of this magnitude was destined to come from OutKast following the success of the group's two previous joints. Big Boi and Dre, the player and the poet, have shown with each release that hip-hop has no limitations, and they dare to go into musical territory many MCs fear to explore. Rising from Atlanta's Dungeon Studios with Organized Noize Productions in 1994, OutKast gave the hip-hop culture new interpretations of the pimp game with the sample-free Southernplayalisitcadillacmuzik, a platinum debut by two adolescents wise beyond their 18 years. In 1996, the yang, Atliens, shook 1.5 million headz with the funk of live instruments and ancient Egyptian symbolism, which dominated the videos from the album, forcing eyes skyward in search of the Mothership. Aquemini is a superb blend of the hard boom-bap of the freshman joint with the abstract, esoteric lyricism of the second album. From beginning to end, OutKast delivers gifts to the headz feenin' for some new shit. Few groups, if any, can traverse the vast spectrum of musical genres like OutKast, gospelizing the blues, rock 'n' roll, reggae, R&B and jazz over the typical deep Dirty South bass, fluttering speakers and rattling windows. Aquemini is more of a groundbreaking hip-hop joint than any album released by peers like the Roots and the Beastie Boys, the favorites of white college kids. The Roots' simplistic music and the Beastie Boys' excessive crossing of hip-hop with punk rock pales--pun intended--in comparison to the production heard on an OutKast album. Dre and Big Boi fatten the powerful breaks with butter-ass instrument arrangements. The acoustic guitar, congas, piano, horns and strong background vocals bring their verbals to life. L.A.'s South Central Chamber Orchestra fills out the threatening "Return of the G" with an eerie string arrangement. On "Chonkyfire," Dre and Big Boi rock the fuck out over dragging guitar riffs, and "SpottieOttiedopalicious" is rooted in the Bob Marley sound, supporting their spoken-word pieces. "Da Art of Storytellin' (Parts 1 and 2)" is steeped in the oral tradition of the Black culture, the mood journeying from the blunted bounce of Part 1 to Part 2's apocalyptic piano melody and distorted vocals. The 808 bass of "Synthesizer" pushes the wig back as Dre demonstrates top-notch mic skills, delivering his take on American society: "give me a drug so I can make seven babies/Pump my breast up, can you suck the fat up/Please make my life appear like ain't no such thing as bad luck." OutKast's penchant for incorporating various genres with Southern church music pleases folks in the city and in the country. Aquemini peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and currently remains in the top 20. The strength of the sales, along with the group's prior success, warranted a national tour, and OutKast will be touching down in Portland this Saturday. On a recent BET Soundstage concert series, Big Boi and Dre moved the crowd with Mr. DJ manning the turntables. Of course, they could show up here with a live band, as their labelmates Goodie Mob did in May, and tear the club up. Big Boi and Dre are notorious for dropping unforgettable hooks, from the "Hooti Hoo" of the first joint to the "Me and You" of Atliens. Whichever way they decide to go--band, DJ or both--OutKast will no doubt take the Roseland crowd on a Black experience with the hook from the current single "Rosa Parks": "Ah ha hush that fuss/Everybody move to the back of the bus/Do you wanna bump and slump wit us/We the type of people make the club get crunk." Amen.
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