Bronx, New York native Kool Keith’s eccentric long standing career as an abstractly prolific hip hop artist, paired with Nashville, Tennessee power-violence/harcore duo, Thetan, makes for an aggressively eclectic collaboration. The aforementioned collaboration recently released their latest single “Let’s Take A Trip” from their forthcoming joint album, Space Goretex, via Anti-Corporate Music, set to release this coming Friday, April 10.
Kool Keith’s (born Keith Matthew Thornton) prominence dates back to the late ’80s where he got his start as a founding member of Ultramagnetic MCs releasing their breakout “golden age hip hop” defining debut, 1988’s Critical Beatdown. Ultramagnetic MCs, comprised of Keith, TR Love, Moe Love and Ced Gee, went on to record three more albums together: 1992’s Funk Your Head Up, 1993’s The Four Horseman and 2007’s The Best Kept Secret. Keith already proven to be a virtuoso lyricist went on to build as an artist going under various aliases and personas he created, that range from Dr. Octagon, Black Elvis and Dr. Doom just to name a few. As a predominately independent artist, Keith has released a myriad of solo and collaborative studio albums, with one of his latest albums, 2019’s Keith, serving as his 17th solo effort.
According to a press release, “Space Goretex is the first album combining all of Kool Keith’s primary personas – Dr. Octagon, Dr. Dooom, and Black Elvis. The instrumentation is primarily comprised of bass, drums, theremin, and synth, performed by Thetan’s Chad L’Plattenier and Dan Emery. The album also includes some special guest appearances, including Gangsta Boo (Three 6 Mafia) who performs as Officer Lola. Casey Orr (Gwar, X-Cops) appears as his X-Cops character Sheriff Tubb Tucker, marking the first time he has recorded anything as this character since 1996. Blag Dahlia from the Dwarves provides a monologue alongside Ashley Mae of Lost Dog Street Band and DJ Black Cat Sylvester, inventor of the Synth-Table. Blowfly’s right-hand man Uncle Tom Bowker also makes an appearance.”
“Let’s Take A Trip” is an amalgamation of hip hop and hardcore elements that amount to a warped, psychedelic funk groove that bleed into each other, to the point where it’s uncertain where one begins and one ends. The edgy wailing stings coupled with a steady repetitive baseline and drums, amplifies the abstract approach Keith is prone to flex his off kilter lyrics that birthed the stylings of an artist like MF Doom. Thetan’s contribution serves the track’s rough exterior as its in your face aggressive tone shapes Keith’s raw and raunchy demeanor.
The aforementioned press release furthers that, as a collective, Thetan’s spontaneity and improvisational style blended well with Keith’s own experimental approach in the recording process of Space Goretex, saying:
“This is the type of track that unbeknownst to most people, we record in nearly every recording session. We just kind of goofed around with a bass line and added a bunch of improv noise around it. Then we whittle it down to the sounds that work with the vibe. It keeps the recording sessions interesting. They’ll be hours of screaming and rage, then a short period of laidback improvisational tomfoolery.”
To listen to “Let’s Take A Trip” stream below, via YouTube.
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