Restiform Bodies

Shattering the expectations of modern hip-hop and presenting a jagged, oddball debut, the Restiform Bodies are one of the most distinct voices in the genre. No other rap albums in 2002 presented a dreamy avant-garde synth instrumental and then traveled through a dense landscape of fuzzy noises and old-school percussion just to change gears and embrace the corpse of early-'80s new wave. And certainly none of them had the gall to do it all within the first six minutes. But the Restiform Bodies are far more Sonic Youth than Eminem, unafraid of experimentation and change in a genre dictated by a small set of mainstream producers. This is music that welcomes innovation and abstract thought, from the unbelievable production to the thin-voiced beat poetry of rappers Passage and Telephone Jim Jesus. Their raps create an icy distance from the listener via creative wordplay and weird subject matter, but their complicated rhymes are an excellent counterpart to the production from the Bomarr Monk and Agent Six. Their approach to the tracks is comparable to Dan the Automator being set loose in a Sam Goody with a handful of psychedelics, with just about any genre that can be twisted into a beat being successfully drafted into the mix. Not everything works, but so much of it does that it's easy to forgive the moments that don't quite gel. Besides, no one outside of the Anticon collective is even close to matching the Restiform Bodies' experimental spirit and unique sound. These guys work very hard, and it results in an awesome debut that spits in the face of tradition and presents one of the true classics in the indie hip-hop scene.