Mar 01, 2010
Souls Of Mischief
Montezuma’s Revenge
Hiero Imperium
On a freezing winter’s night, a queue of shivering heads snaked along a London street and right round the corner. Those at the front clamoured for entry into the clothing store, which was already packed full of punters on the hunt for free beer. This party was a hot ticket alright, and for good reason. It was Oakland crew Souls of Mischief’s only appearance in the capital on their European tour to promote their new album ‘Montezuma’s Revenge’.
It’s heartening to see that, after all these years and following countless ’93 Til Infinity’ respins, the boys still invoke such excitement. And, fortunately, after all the hype, their brand-new album doesn’t disappoint.
Emcees A-Plus, Opio, Phesto and Tajai have hooked up with producer Prince Paul on their latest outing, which is released on their own Hiero Imperium Records. It’s their fifth record and the sound is classic Souls of Mischief – story raps that bounce along to poignant beats in ‘Tour Stories’, and true-school braggadocio in the head-nodding ‘Proper Aim’.
It’s all solid stuff, but nothing that makes it particularly 2010 – ‘Montezuma’s Revenge’ plots safe and well-trodden territory. For fans tired of the ‘hip hop is dead’ barrage, it’ll feel like hanging out with an old friend and for others, it’ll feel charmingly old school. In a recent interview, Tajai was quick to defend this sound, insisting that the crew continues to innovate through their wordplay and is proud of maintaining consistency in an industry that’s becomes so very fickle. Fair play.
What’s also evident is that Souls of Mischief still really enjoy doing their thing. Look out for the Morgan Freeman skit (it’s actually Prince Paul) and take part in the good times described in ‘Home Games’. Yes, we really can still kick it with the Souls.
Montezuma’s Revenge is out now on Hiero Imperium
