Thoughts on Death Grips?

[Eureka]

Death Grips are quite a polarizing group in hip hop so I wanted to know what my sp heads thought of em.

Some of their songs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd1-P-R_f-0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Htl3XWUhUOM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Orlbo9WkZ2E

And their second album, NO LOVE DEEP WEB

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yhoCvpYePU

[Unfolding]

Nice, I was waiting for someone to mention them around here.

To be totally honest I haven't really paid much attention to their music, heard a few songs off Ex-Military & thought they were good but nothing new (I'll get to that soon). Maybe that changed with the 1 or 2 albums they did with Epic. Weird they ended up on a major, but good on 'em! Pity it didn't work out.

They seem like intelligent people doing their best to cover their smarts with confrontation. Ie- taking major label money, recording an album with it, securing unrestricted a Creative Commons lisence on the music (without the major's knowledge & consent), then leaking the album, with a dick on the album's cover. Just so they'd be released from contract.

To be shocked & surprised by them is to be ignorant to the extremist ends of music. As someone who was around when Atari Teenage Riot were making room for other digital hardcore bands, when Dalek called themselves "The Melvins of Rap" & when Techno Animal crossed rap with the heaviest take on electronica & dub possible this (Death Grips) really isn't so unique. Not to say Death Grips suck, they do seem like a band worth getting in to.

The formula they're working seems to be to take something that can be referenced by your audience then play louder & meaner than the next mob. That or cover conventionally nice music in loads of distortion, volume & militaristic rhythms. Check what Death Grips have sampled- Link Wray & 60s surf rock? Yep.

Don't forget to check (the drummer) Zach Hill's old band- Hella. They're basically a fucked punk band, but not fucked in the way that punk bands like to act. They were immense musicians playing profoundly fucked music.

Check these oldies for a taste of where Death Grips are coming from (but as far as I know haven't spoken of in interview):
Dalek - Distorted Prose
Atari Teenage Riot - Revolution Action
Techno Animal - Cruise Missile 101 feat. Rubberoom
Milanese - Dead Man Walking feat. Virus Syndicate
Salem - Release Da Boar
Slab! - People Pie
My Bloody Valentine - Only Shallow

[ellaguru]

@Unfolding
i hear dalek or techno animal or the atari influences; i don't the MBVs...i have to relisten better those death grip.

[Unfolding]

Ah, good point Ellaguru. The MBV (+ Salem) clips were about taking something nice & ruining it, which Death Grips did with the Link Wray sample used in the first clip Eureka linked. They're not a direct precedent, more a parallel to Death Grip's uncompromising angle. Probably should've explained that earlier. Salem were probably a better example seeing they're so damn loud & set on agitation. You won't hear much 'nice' in DG, but if you do let me know!

Also Slab! were all about taking unrelated genres & bending them in together. The ugliness was in the process, not just the result. Which was why I linked them.

[Hooded Menace]

Zach Fucking Hill.

[ellaguru]

Also Slab! were all about taking unrelated genres & bending them in together. The ugliness was in the process, not just the result. Which was why I linked them.

Unfortunately i cannot hear them: maybe a limitation in my country? It happened also with other videos...mah...
I remember they were an industrial/jazz bop act from the 90s or not? Are they from switzerland?

[Cornelius The Third]

I AM THE BEAST I WORSHIP!

i think they rule...if u like zach hill shit u also shud check out CHLL PLL...another side project thing he did

[Unfolding]

Unfortunately i cannot hear them: maybe a limitation in my country? It happened also with other videos...mah...
I remember they were an industrial/jazz bop act from the 90s or not? Are they from switzerland?

Weird, just checked the links then- they're OK on my end. You remember Slab! correctly: noise rock/jazz etc but they're from the 80s & the UK (as far I'm aware).