Timbuktu & Ollie Teeba/Nikolas L.B.
Timbuktu & Ollie Teeba
Million Pound Note // URBNET
It was the late 90's, and man that was a time. Having seen Herbalizer once before, I knew what I was in for. This time I had some cousins in tow. I had been gently talking the show up prior to heading downtown for a Winnipeg Jazzfest show at the Pyramid Cabaret. Man I miss live venues.
If you've seen a show there, you know what it's like. Summer or Winter, the humidity sits at about 80 percent. Well this was a hot August evening and we were all in for a treat. As I recall, it was mostly dutchies and Heineken for the cousins and I all friggin evening. They took to the stage with horn blasts and settled into one of my most memorable shows ever. They rocked that brick building. I still remember the condensation dripping off the ceiling and walls. What a night.
It was a modern treat when I settled in to listening to Million Pound Note. I had read that Ollie Teeba had production connections to Ontario. Little did I know that relationship would be so fruitful. Back in 2013 Teenburger (Ghettosocks And Timbuktu) were on tour with Herbalizer in Europe. From there, the seeds were sown to begin working on this side project. Timbuktu and Ollie Teeba began in 2015 putting together this 8 track long player.
Bounce to the bounding bass in "Dark Hymn". Ponder the advice of "The Sermon". Try to keep up with the bars on "Level Up". Shout the chorus of "Conspiracy". Arm yourself with the fortitude of "Fire in Our System".
The undeniable production flavor of Ollie Teeba lends a time worn feel into the contributions of Timbuktu, Ghettosocks, Savillion, Chokeules, and Nilla. The effort is effortless. The beats are jazzy, the couplets are tight. The grooves are thick. In their own words, "The world has changed a lot recently; these are some strange and frightening times. We are sending love out to everybody and hope this album can provide some big brolic, enthusiasm and slapping crunchy distraction as we continue on... Stay safe and sane. Big love."
- Drew Cox
Nikolas L.B.
The Foie Gras Anti-Thesis // Independent
A Musical Jekyll and Hyde
There are some albums that require repeated listens and some that necessitate repetition. In the former category I place albums that confused me on first listen; a particularly different sound from an artist I am accustomed to that forced me to re-visit the album because “I didn’t get it”. The latter category, the “Necessitated Repeated Listen,” is where The Foie Gras Anti-Thesis by the Vancouver-based Nikolas L.B. finds itself.
This daring synthesis of post-punk, hip-hop, and pop grabs your attention from the very first track, “Rubbing Feet”. The distorted sounds of a chaotic schoolyard and busy street-corner give way to a rap verse that I can’t help but compare with a Kool Keith-esque flow, combined with the raving vocal antics of The Talking Head’s David Byrne.
A musical Jekyll and Hyde (“Oo My”): This chaotic energy is tempered with moments of clarity, accompanied by gentle vocal melodies and arpeggiated guitar chords, before exploding back into raving rap verses—which I absolutely adore by the way (“Terrify”). The way L.B. inflects certain words brings to mind a host of various artists (Jimmy Urine from Mindless Self Indulgence or Danny Brown) but nothing specific. I think that a trait of really interesting Fusion Music (interesting in that it can be a centre of discussion) is what I call the Déjà-vu quality: how many different types of music can one piece remind me of while still retaining a unique character?
My favourite song on the album is either “Calloused” or “Faux Fortune”. Both of these tracks exemplify (I think) what L.B. is trying to capture with this album: Frenzy in musical form. They both have slight spacy-funky vibe to them in the guitar before hitting crescendos inspired by both electronic-pop and hip-hop beats. The tension is handled masterfully in both tracks: it is built and then released alongside energetic and rhythmic hip-hop verses.
Despite the frenzied nature of Nikolas L.B.’s The Foie Gras Anti-Thesis, there are many opportunities to catch your breath along the musical journey. “Humbug”, the longest track on the album, takes its time reaching its peak, echoing The Idiot-era Iggy Pop, before dropping us off at a busy railway-crossing. This album really is a journey: the last song “Cycle of Err” has heavy trip-hop influences and rounds out the album very nicely. There is a lot to enjoy on this offering; it truly “Necessitates Repeated Listens.”
- Alex Bennett
