Beauty and the Beasties (Ill Communication - Beastie Boys)

Member Name: indiecater

Product:	Ill Communication - Beastie Boys
Date:	24/02/01 (50 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Classic Rap Grooves.

Disadvantages: That Godawful Cover of 'Fight For Your Right'.

Oh tread carefully you innocent ones, it's got one of those 'Parental Advisory, Explicit Lyrics' stickers. Must be good then eh!. I reckon this sort of sticker is a ploy to inflate sales, a dark and sinister
marketing tool that more often than not achieves its aim. It lends hormonal teenagers in need of a way to further infuriate their poor parents a vehicle to do so. There are so many albums with this much
abused sticker that I'm surprised no one has thought of a 'Teenage Advisory - No Explicit Lyrics'. It would surely appeal to the
over-35's.

So there were bad boys before Eminem, although you'd be hard pressed to be offended while listening to 'Ill Communication' as the lyrics are indiscernible a lot of the time. The album was recorded in 1994 and entered the mainstream when 'Sabotage' and 'Sure Shot' became popular. A lot of the Beastie Boys success could be put down to the clever video
for 'Sabotage' which is a pastiche of 70's cop shows. Ill Communication sprawls over 20 tracks which makes it close to impossible to take in, in a single listen.

The Beasties sound is a fusion of rap and hip-hop but they are prone to throwing in the sweetest guitar turn that rounds things off nicely. The lyrics are intelligent (use the inlay card!) and rebellious and there are moments where the humour is side splittingly funny (who needs apple pie when you have mashed potato!). 'Sure Shot' slides on a repetitive flute groove that toddlers to Grans will find hard to resist. Incidentally the dog barking at the start is supposed to be saying 'I Love You'!

'Root Down' has that San Francisco flares and hot weather feel to it. So much so that dancing to it afro-less might feel like dancing naked in the rain. It is followed by the albums centrepiece 'Sabotage' which
you will undoubtedly know. Adam Yauch more or less screams, records scrat
ch, guitars tumble and a chorus of hoods join in at various intervals. It sounds a mess but is a modern piece of Pop genius. The Beasties have since proven that they aren't just a one trick outfit with their very successful clothing company.

The first 8 tracks are an album on their own and I rarely go beyond this point because all the juicier tracks are contained here. Things get a little skewed but not wayward from here on in. There is the sense of a bit of creative doodling going on highlighted by tracks like 'Flutterman's Rule' and 'Ricky's Theme' that provide gorgeous backdrops.

While Ill Communication is essentially a modern day production it has one foot set firmly in the corridors of pop history. This unique blend of influences give the album a polished feel. For those not sold on Rap/Hip-Hop style (I've got my hand up) I would urge you to give Ill Communication a listen. Good music is precious, it should be embraced
even when it comes from genres that are normally a turn off. This is a great album, why not get it together and do the necessary, know what I'm sayin'.

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