The Hard Road

一提到RAP你头脑反射的第一印象大多数都是 那些或许肥大的或者肌肉的美国黑人, 带着一大串的亮闪闪的字母或者宝石项链, 露着金牙, 搂着穿着暴露的美女, 开着很拉风的跑车, 唱的无外乎是些: 吹嘘自己有多NB; 吹嘘毒品; 吹嘘性和暴力;...... 实际上hiphop是有着深厚底蕴和艺术深度的音乐形式 她的多样化同样是其特点之一 可以不夸张的说这是世界上最自由的音乐形式之一 这张专辑同样来自澳洲说唱团体Hilltop Hoods 由3名成员组成 两个MCs：Suffa, Pressure 以及DJ Debris 非常独特的说唱音乐风格 曲风有爵士和电子风格 flow平稳 尤其是MCs的独特澳洲口音 给人完全不一样的感觉 这大概就是hilltop hoods如此受人喜爱的原因吧 说老实话 这张专辑可以说是代表作级别的 至少我是从这张专辑认识Hilltop Hoods的 非常经典 推荐Recapturing the vibe、The Hard Road、Stopping All Stations、What A Great Night等等等等 好了 再推荐就成了曲目列表了哈哈~~ 总之非常之棒 喜爱说唱和好奇说唱的人必须下来听听 这里转载网上一段评价： 很少有白人嘻哈团体这么让人耳朵顺畅,一方面是语言原因,我实在受不了东欧语言的说唱,音节突兀完全不能连读(你去听听德语系rap)...另外尽管有点当地口音,Hilltop Hoods 还是很好利用如此多的小配器,让每首歌都充满了旋律变化的小亮点,说直白点就是够"绕",听的我舌头阵阵快感啊... 虽然两位rapper是Hilltop Hoods 的主要表现者,但我更喜欢其他成员像David Essex,极其出彩的声音插入饶舌旋律,却不画蛇添足,绝对不是国人嘻哈那种yo~yo~check~check流. Hilltop Hoods 你能听到的所有声音分明层次也是我喜欢的地方,不像老黑那种绝对抢耳的背景节奏音乐,第一层背景音乐常辅助于小提琴,钢琴去烘托,碟机制造的背景也不吵很享受;第2层David Essex的穿插,浑厚磁性让节奏感提升;最后Hilltop Hoods 两位不同声色的主唱绕的不行~ 虽然外型很失败,没有老黑那些团体酷,如果老黑适合一群人在club里互相撞着身体,或着做爱的时候,杀人时候或着其他冲动的时候,那么Hilltop Hoods 更适合在家或开车的时候享受被单词环绕作乐的快感. 至少我准备开车的时候好好跟着Hilltop Hoods 摇摆. by Jody Macgregor The opening track of The Hard Road, "Recapturing the Vibe," makes it plain right there in the title that the Hilltop Hoods are out to repeat the lightning strike of their previous album. Pretty soon it rolls out the funk samples and chipmunk soul that are fixtures of the Australian hip-hop sound and were a large part of The Calling, but what doesn't appear is the lyrical import that made that album's narratives so gripping. MCs Suffa and Pressure still trade witty punch lines, like Suffa's declaration that there's "now no stopping me/I'll finish with a bang like Kurt Cobain's biography," but their storytelling lacks the heft it previously had. "Stopping All Stations" tells the tale of a mugging on a train from three perspectives in three verses, but the final verse's revelation that the mugger turned violent because he was made into somebody's wife in prison is a weak climax, not to mention a lazy invocation of hip-hop's tendency to homophobia (on an earlier track they call out a rival for being "flamboyant like Oscar Wilde" as if it's an insult). The title track's complaints about their tough lives sound like begging for sympathy, and Pressure's mention of joyriding in stolen cars when he was younger seems like a forced attempt to add credibility -- it worked for Akon, who based a career out of rapping about grand theft auto -- but doesn't fit the theme of the song. Surely the people who had their cars stolen and trashed were the ones on the hard road. Many of the songs feature shout-outs to then-label Obese, which serves mainly to date the record, and a posse cut featuring their labelmates reminds listeners that the Hoods, even when not at their best, still rate well above most of the Obese roster. Throughout it all, Suffa and DJ Debris retain their ability to make your head nod, and one area where the crew members have improved is in their ability to add catchy hooks and choruses, which lifts songs about topics they've covered extensively before -- like how much they enjoy a drink -- and makes them memorable. Unfortunately, it's not enough to stop this album from being an obvious step down from The Calling. They chase the vibe, but can't keep it in its cage.