A.Dd+

This afternoon, an e-mail from one of my favorite up and coming rap groups, Dallas’ A.Dd+, appeared in my inbox. It contained their latest freebie “Genocide.” I was ready for it to be good, but I wasn’t at all ready for what I heard.

“Genocide” is, for lack of a more descriptive word (and believe me extended metaphors are coming shortly), strange. It sounds like a combination of Busta’s “Touch It,” some Southern tinged house drums, a healthy heaping of Outkast, and a dash of the experimentalism that typified indie East Coast music in the late 90s (in particular, I’m thinking of Anti-Pop Consortium and some of the noisier noise rap that came out of Def Jux and co.).

Of course, it also sounds like none of those things.

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This afternoon, an e-mail from one of my favorite up and coming rap groups, Dallas’ A.Dd+, appeared in my inbox. It contained their latest freebie “Genocide.” I was ready for it to be good, but I wasn’t at all ready for what I heard.

“Genocide” is, for lack of a more descriptive word (and believe me extended metaphors are coming shortly), strange. It sounds like a combination of Busta’s “Touch It,” some Southern tinged house drums, a healthy heaping of Outkast, and a dash of the experimentalism that typified indie East Coast music in the late 90s (in particular, I’m thinking of Anti-Pop Consortium and some of the noisier noise rap that came out of Def Jux and co.).

Of course, it also sounds like none of those things.

It’s a genuinely refreshing and vital take on what a hip-hop song can sound like, not just a skin graft that places some rapping on a Dubstep beat or samples a Pitchfork favorite and pretends to be cool. It’s the sound of actual inspiration and even if you can’t stand it, with its complete chaos, buzzing bass, and off-putting rhythm, “Genocide” forces you to at least pause for a second and go “What the fuck is that?”

Which gets me on the road to my point. A.Dd+ has been putting out quality music since the beginning of 2011. That’s not a particularly long time, but in an era when ASAP Rocky can literally appear, release 6 songs, and several months later get signed (which is no slight to ASAP, congrats to him and I’m hoping for the best to come) that could be an entire career.

Why don’t people seem to be more interested?

They’ve got a couple of killer songs, which many of their peers are arguably missing (hell, J. Cole just sold 200,000+, and I’d argue he hasn’t recorded a song that could be considered a proper calling card…and don’t say “Lost Ones” or “Work Out”…on a sidenote, J. Cole probably gave one of his finest beats to Kendrick Lamar for “HiiiPower,” giving K Dot a signature song in the process). “Likeamug,” “Greedy,” and, now, “Genocide” stand as diverse, fantastic representations of a young group that deserves praise and recognition far beyond what it has gotten thus far (and to be fair, they’ve gotten love, but it’s hard to feel good about it when Future is apparently driving Ferraris around and YC is signing million dollar major label deals).

So, rather than providing baseless conjecture as to why they haven’t broken yet, or how they can best break on through, I’ve got a plea for you: download their music. Download their debut album, When Pigs Fly. Download their collection of free singles, Loosies. And for the love of the hip-hop gods download “Genocide” and blow your speakers out.

And, for the record, I am not a paid A.Dd+ spokesperson. I am not related to either of the members of the group. I’m not even close to being from Dallas. I’m just a fan with a platform. So I hope you take the time to check out A.Dd+’s music and that you get as excited about it as I do. Along with a handful of other artists, A.Dd+ proves that Hip-Hop isn’t artistically bankrupt. It’s just no longer a viable business. We’re in the midst of exhilarating creative times, so stop complaining about Lex Luger’s drums and Flocka’s lack of deep content and open your ears. - Respect Magazine

A lot of quality indie rap got buried under all the early-2011 Odd Future think pieces. How else do you explain a mixtape like When Pigs Fly slipping through virtually unnoticed? In any case, while every rap internet commentator was busy scratching around trying to think of something clever to say about Tyler, anybody with half a brain should have been closing their web browsers, firing up a house party and inviting A.Dd+ around to host the whole event.

But nobody was, it seemed. Slim Gravy and Paris P had sat on this Picnic Tyme-produced tape for a year while they built up a profile in their hometown of Dallas, and still the release hardly registered in the wider rap community. That’s a shame because rap music as rambunctious, fun-loving and just straight up good doesn’t come around every month. Picnic Tyme’s meaty, funked-up productions couch A.Dd+’s flows but rarely dominate, allowing the inside-out charisma of Paris and Slim to run rampant. Like Meridan’s Big K.R.I.T., A.Dd+ know how to balance boasts with self-effacement, although they go about it an altogether more breezy fashion.

In another dimension this record would have easily crossed over into the mainstream. “Brain Sex”, “Likeamug” and “Mary Go” all have the making of killer singles, whilst “Under” crimps Little Dragon’s “Twice” to create one of the sweetest downbeat rap cuts of 2011. As it turned out, When Pigs Fly has required the back-up of a steady stream of new material throughout the year to help push A.Dd+ over the line and into the critical spotlight, but as 2011 draws to a close the number of people discovering this mixtape finally seems to be on the rise. A good thing too: it’s nothing less than essential. - Passion Weiss

The rap-duo ideal has always been modeled on yin and yang. Complimentary opposites. Q-Tip, the Abstract and the Phife, the Five-Footer. The Pimp and the Bun. On their focused debut, Dallas' Paris Pershun and Slim Gravy of A.Dd+ are the rapper and the poet, the spawn of UGK and OutKast, combining street and cerebral. "Smell My Cologne" borrows its hook from a legendary Pimp C radio interview, and the album's extraterrestrial voodoo comes courtesy of ATLiens. There are Eddie Hazel guitar riffs, "Lodi Dodi" samples, and B-Boy scratches as producer Picnic Tyme teleports via Erykah Badu's Cannabinoids crew and projects an acid-boiled strain of soul music. Paris and Slim proclaim themselves the new Beavis and Butthead, "just a little tanner"-- and like fellow Lone Star Stater Mike Judge, A.Dd+ know how to strike the perfect balance of smart and dumb. - Pitchfork

Speaking of new albums that are worth their substantial hype, allow us to point you in the direction of another big recent local release: A.Dd+'s When Pigs Fly. That album came out this weekend, with the duo of Slim Gravy and Paris Pershun's a-couple-years-in-the-making masterpiece finally earning its release at a free Friday night party at The Loft.

And make no mistake, the new disc very much is a masterpiece. Writes Nic Hernandez in his album review (on newsstands now!): "When Pigs Fly is a showcase album, a snapshot of an important turning point in local hip-hop." Meanwhile, that's just the start; he also goes on to call the album "fantastic" and, in his conclusion, that "the album is nothing short of a classic."

High praise -- enough to give a reader some pause, no doubt. Except, that, well, it is true. My perspective: When Pigs Fly might be the best hip-hop album Dallas has ever released.

And it's not hard to give it a listen and find out if you agree: The band is releasing the album, in full, as a free download. Grab it here.

You can buy it, too -- and, if you do so on Bandcamp (it's also available for purchase on iTunes), you can get a whole bunch of freebies, in addition to a hard copy of the disc.

Regardless, it's well worth the download -- if not for the smart beats from Picnic or the clever rhymes and flows of this impressive young rap duo, then for DJ Sober's included on the album "I'm So Dallas" mix, which mashes together a whole collection of sound bites from Dallas hip-hop's biggest names, from Lil Wil to Big Tuck and Big Chief to, of course, Ms. Erykah Badu.

Seriously: Go get it. - Dallas Observer

To say there was reason to be skeptical when the Granada Theater announced a show with the fully reunited (with the one obvious exception) Wu-Tang Clan would be an understatement. The smart money was on a cancellation, or at best a mostly reunited version of the group with a few missing pieces.

Then, sure enough, just days before the show, RZA drops off the tour. Further fueling the pessimists, U-God was the only Wu member who calls in for a planned group interview with print version of DC9, and offers nothing but apathy about the tour.

But if the Wu -- last night also missing Method Man along with RZA -- had any intention of half-assing their way through the show, they had no choice but to give it their full effort after a blazing opening set from A.Dd+, which was loaded with guest appearances.

A.Dd+ and Picnictyme didn't need any help to get the crowd bouncing, but a great guest appearance from a female singer, Mizz LV, offering beautiful hypnotic backup vocals added a welcome touch of soul to their set. Meanwhile, "Likeamug," which saw appearances from both Brown and Blue of Sore Losers, nearly brought the house down, and definitively proved that all parties are ready for their close-up. The shout-out tribute to Pimp C and one-verse cover of UGK's "International Players Anthem" wasn't necessary to get the crowd on their side, though -- but who'd turn down an opportunity to sing along with it?

Wu tour support La the Darkman couldn't quite match their energy, but gamely put up with "Wu-Tang!" chants and W hand signs throughout his transitional set and seemed to mostly win over a crowd that for the most part had no idea who he was.

But once the beat for "Bring Da Ruckus" started up, all that ceased to matter. And the crowd -- steaming and sweating, nut-to-butt, mostly white and easily the most jam-packed I've ever seen the Granada -- shouted along with every word. It was a mess in the same way the best parties are a hazy, sloppy mess, where you go home reeking of blunt smoke whether or not you indulge, your clothes soaked in other people's sweat and beer.

The chaos extended to the stage, with many songs cut off after a single chorus, and piped in vocal parts from missing (dead or otherwise) members making it look as if there was occasional lip-synching and dudes stepping on each others' lines.

But that's to be expected from such a collective of egos.

The night started with Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) interspersed with Raekwon and GZA solo material, but frequently returned to the obvious crowd favorite 36 Chambers material. They even did "Method Man" in Method's absence, and the crowd didn't seem fazed.

Another highlight was a cameo by Erykah Badu, who stepped on stage long enough to soak in the roar of approval from the crowd but sadly didn't touch the mic. Still, the moment was enough to add to the love-fest, family reunion vibe. As did the appearance from Young Dirty Bastard, son of the late Ol' Dirty Bastard, who led the group through verses of "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" and "Baby I Got Your Money" in tribute to his father. Which might be why the group's sorta-sincere cover of the O'Jays "Family Reunion" went over so well.

Closing the set with 36 Chambers classics "C.R.E.A.M." and "Protect Ya Neck," the Wu departed in a swarm, leaving some random MCs on the stage to lead the crowd through chants of "Wu! Tang!" until the shouts gradually and awkwardly died down as the realization set in that yup, that was it.

Of course, it wasn't the full Clan promised, but only a sucker would expected as much.

And only an ingrate wouldn't be completely satisfied with the version of Wu that rocked the house for an hour and a half. It was a night showing the best of hip-hop's past and, for those who witnessed A.Dd+ and friends, its future.

Critic's Notebook
Personal Bias: My own Wu-Tang ranking would be pretty similar to that of Cory Graves, but with Method Man and ODB higher on the list. Meth's live energy (which was on display in Phoenix a couple days ago -- why'd Dallas get the shaft?) would have put an already bananas show over the top. Also, for all his don't-give-a-shit attitude in pre-show interviews, U-God's tight a capella freestyle after "Method Man" may just move him up from No. 9 in my book.

By The Way: The unexpected opening set by La the Darkman proved to be more than just a time-kill. "Black James Bond" was a great transition from the gritty bounce of A.Dd+ to the Wu's crime narratives.

Random Note: A friend who'd seen the Wu's backstage rider said they requested 162 condoms for this show. Aside from the question of how many condoms each fortysomething Wu member (and, OK, maybe the weed holders in their entourage) could possibly use in a single night, that number seems rather optimistic for another reason -- there may not have even been 162 females at the show. It was a sausage fest. - Dallas Observer

Dallas, Texas duo A.Dd+ (pronounced “A-D-D,” silent “+”) triumph with a much delayed project of their own. When Pigs Fly was scheduled for release last year, before the crew went back to the lab with producer Picnic Tyme to rework some material. The resulting fat-free platter strikes an impressive creative balance between Third Coast bravado (the nasty single “Likeamug,” the bass-heavy anthems “Smell My Cologne” and “Southbound”) and self-deprecating quirkiness (the self-explanatory “Greedy,” the dour booze fest “Erica & Jamie”). In theory, A.Dd+’s stylistic dichotomy can be traced to the distinct personas of members Slim Gravy (gruff, brash) and Paris Pershun (artsy, thoughtful) – that is, until you listen and realize that they’re less distinct than they are complimentary pieces essential to a greater whole. As P announces on “The Rapper & the Poet,” “Our melodic notes make everybody jump for hope/And haters look at us different because we don’t take the same approach.” Super-duper Fly. - XXL Magazine