ECOMOG
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States | SELF
Music
Press
Ecomog claims to be changing Hip-Hop and with their latest album “808s and Ecomog”, I believe they are doing just that. This album is based on Kanye West’s 808s and Heartbreaks hence the name. It was impressive to hear how this talented group used sampled pieces from Kanye West’s album. They managed to turn the samples into their own songs and “own it”. I felt they were on point with every song and there was never a dull moment. Ecomog’s style is very unique from what is out today in Hip-Hop. It’s Hip Hop with a pop rock feel. Ecomog brings the element of storytelling to the table as well. They know how to set the tone and atmosphere in order to include their listeners. Standout songs include “We Can Dance” and “Bad News”.
The lyrics on “We Can Dance” are very entertaining to me. “Go skinny girl with yo baggy thong” perfect example. “We Can Dance” is full of energy and gives off a great vibe. I thought this song stood out because it gave a different feel from the rest of the album. It’s a very playful upbeat song. With the song “Bad News” I thought they did an amazing job with the storytelling. The lyrics compel you to continue listening. Their tone throughout the song allows you to feel what they are going through. Once again they did a remarkable job with the lyrics.
Ecomog is without doubt a making some changes. “The group consists of Entity, Epidemic, Confucius, and Shizz; 4 individuals that have perfected their craft whether it be lyricism, production, or engineering, aiming to bridge the gap between mainstream and the underground. ECOMOG… changing hip-hop.” I couldn’t of said it better! - Jae Cy
ECOMOG (Economically Conscious Morally Gifted) is group out of Philadelphia. Entity,Epidemic,Shizzi and Confucius have been together for about seven years. They haven't made much noise outside of Philadelpha so I'm sure ,like me, you haven't heard of them before.
This album was by their account produced and recorded within one week. An amazing feat if true.
How do they sound? They have a nice underground sound. Not too hardcore but not too commercial either. It's a nice mix. Lyrically they're decent and vocally they're still need improvement, more confidence on the mic.Well at least some of them do. One MC , I don't know who's voice is who's, is on point but the others need improvement. Which I'm sure will come with time.
You can sure hear the Wu Tang influence in their productions. Which isn't a bad thing. It's just something that will you will notice when listening to some of their songs. You can hear a little Kanye in their music too.
I would say "ECOMOG Family" is best joint of this album. A sample of Sly Stone's "Family Affair" over a nice Hip Hop beat. Not exactly the most creative use the sample but it works and you can't argue with that.
You can hear samples of their music on their myspace page or soundclick page. The soundclick page is mostly filled with instrumentals. - Hamza-Domeshots and Fat Laces
The idea to “re-imagine” a well know album is fraught with danger, if you don’t top the initial release then the whole thing could easily end up an embarrassing disaster. But did you really thing Entity, Tonik and the ECOMOG boys weren’t going to bring the fire? Please.
This is a hard album to review, mainly because I need to get my thesaurus out to come up with more adjectives then “amazing”, “dope” “ill” etc.
The only track I’m not that crazy about is “We can dance/Paranoid” where the flows seem a little crowded. “Remember the good times” is solid but at 5:37 it’s a little long and the “back in the day” concept is surpassed by the others which are as sharp as a new set of steak knives.
Lyrically and thematically this is as good as anything I’ve heard in a long, long time. The sense of optimism on “get away from here”, the power of music to change lives for better or worse on “never know”, dealing with despair on “bad news” and the slew of solid verses on “amazing”. Peep these lyrics: “You can hear the cheers coming from the bleachers/Modern day teachers/Walking on water with Jordan sneakers” then T.y.T sums up what’s good in life with “What is the meaning of being amazin’/Warm feet on carpet watching my daughter playin”. At 6:27 “amazing” never comes close to wearing out its welcome.
“Chasing the American dream” is the standout track on an album of standout tracks. It’s a combination of frustration and optimism. Seriously how much iller do you need to be to attract attention in this game? Two weeks into January the standard for “Album of the year 09” has been set. - Kincade
Philly as always represents in their own way. ECOMOG is a band which relies heavy on it's old school Hip-Hop heritage of relying on simple beats combined with a forceful, relevant and intelligent message. They do a good job of offering an outlet for those who can appreciate artists who don't have hook, snap beats and drug tales. - Urban Mainstream Magazine
Discography
SEVENDAYS
808s & ECOMOG
In the Air
Classics Revisited
As Seen On TV
The Five Elements
The Message
Photos
Bio
ECOMOG, brandishing the slogan "changing hip-hop", has time and time again proved that anyone with talent and a common goal can come together to make a difference. With lyrics centered around educational realism, they harness the essence of old school hip-hop, with the energy of new school music. "ECOMOG is much more than just a group, it's a movement." says Entity when asked about the group. Growing sick and tired of the "get rich quick" format of music that populates the airwaves, ECOMOG plans to make their name known on a worldwide scale to show that success and originality go hand in hand.
In an effort to build upon their talents and gain even more outlets for their music, group members Epidemic and Entity started ECOMOG TV in June 2008 following the success of their sketch comedy parodies "The Hardest Rapper Alive" and "Homey The Rap Clown." "We just got the idea one day to make these sketches, it was all spur of the moment," recalls Epidemic. These spur of the moment ideas gained ECOMOG over 300,000 viral views for "The Hardest Rapper Alive" and over 1 million for "Homey the Rap Clown." The success of these videos also spawned a YouTube partnership through JumpOff TV where their most recent sketches can be seen. "We do it all; write, produce, comedy, you name it. We just get an idea and run with it and it seems like we're gaining more and more fans every day." replied Entity when asked about their comedy endeavor.
In September 2008, ECOMOG released its first major effort, SEVENDAYS; a project crafting an entire full length album from scratch in only a week while filming the entire process. "SEVENDAYS subvertised the process of creating an album for a major label," explains group member Tonik when asked about the purpose of the project. "It showed people that making a solid album is possible without all the stated principles and theatrics of industry politics." This test of ECOMOG's compatibility was a rising success as it went on to gain over 2,500 viral downloads to date.
In an attempt to capitalize on their momentum, ECOMOG released another full length recording in January 2009 entitled, "808s & ECOMOG.", an album produced and recorded entirely by ECOMOG in almost the same amount of time as SEVENDAYS. "We gave 808s & Heartbreak a completely, different feel. We used it for our own purpose in order to improve our own skill and once again showcase our diversity," recalled Entity about the album. This unique spin on Kanye West's experimental record gained ECOMOG another 4,000 viral downloads and an additional 80,000 listeners on YouTube and other social media outlets. Now with the 2010 release of their latest effort "CLASSICS REVISITED", ECOMOG is adamant about claiming their spot in music history.
"I think it's great that we're putting out the music that we, are considering the current state of Hip-Hop and music as a whole right now," boasts Epidemic. "We know that we're almost there and I think 'CLASSICS REVISITED' will open us up to even more fans and genres of music." CLASSICS REVISITED, ECOMOG's first collaboration album with an outside source, blends the rhythmic sounds of Ratatat with the innovative ideas and lyrical dexterity of ECOMOG to give a whole new identity to the 2006 Ratatat release, "CLASSICS". "Creating these remix albums gives us a chance to expand on our own music and makes for a great marketing strategy," adds Epidemic.
The album's first single, "1 Mile," featuring long-time friend and accomplished emcee T.Y.T captures the emotion and struggle that it took ECOMOG to get to this point in their career over a melodic guitar-laden backdrop courtesy of Ratatat. "I think [1 Mile] is one of the truest songs we've ever written. It's very personal, and a struggle we've gone through and are STILL going through. But knowing that we're almost there makes the battle that much more rewarding," asserted Entity.
ECOMOG plans to go full force in 2010 with 4 additional releases scheduled for the first half of the year alone. Releasing concept albums "AS SEEN ON TV," and "FEATURE PRESENTATION" as prequels to their long awaited, and much anticipated mixtape, "Path of Glory", 2010 will be the year the world discovers hip-hop's best kept secret, ECOMOG.
Links
