| On the opening track of Free Kamal, rapper Radioinactive calls for his listeners to "have no genre." Throughout the album, he and producer Antimc follow that advice. Their songs all fit into the loose association of hip-hop music, but the artists don't stick to one sound throughout. Antimc mixes samples and live tracks for beats that fit the backpack tradition, but draw on everything from old-school rap to reggae to jazz. Radioinactive stays more straightforward with his rhymes, but he does vary his flow enough to stay interesting. One thing that remains consistent throughout the album is the duo's theme of neo-transcendentalism. Henry David Thoreau would be proud of these guys, at least on the surface. On "With Light Within," Radioinactive spits out almost new agey rhymes about simplifying life and appreciating the little things: "Be thankful / And live in the moment / And enjoy life / And breathe more." The second track, "Chop Chop" advances the idea of living deliberately with a little more wit, asking us to avoid PCs, MTV, HIV, SUV, STDs, and "any CD by Master P." It might not be Thoreauvian to release these messages on high-tech CDs, Radioinactive and Antimc at least have their hearts in the right place. They continue to expound their anti-capitalist, anti-materialist view on "The Physics of My Success," a parody of an instant-success infomercial. The "Physics of Success" hotline can teach you how to get rich, lose weight, and improve your grades, and attract "rich women with perfectly-shaped commercials." The lyrics are humorous but some of the best moments come during the spoken breaks, such as when the millionaire-to-be has to thank his mom for lending him her car. - Pop Matters |
2XLP/Out Of Print