Chewing Pine

dälek – Gutter Tactics (Ipecac, 2009)

Between Blu releasing Johnson and Jonson recently and Gutter Tactics arriving in my mailbox, I’ve had a good amount of the boom bap to get through. Luckily though, Gutter Tactics is as strong as any other Dälek release thus far.

The Real Dälek

Beginning with a righteous screed by Rev. Jeremiah Wright, where he perhaps goes a bit over the top, the disc shapes up to be even more overtly political – or at least aware of the political nonsense that goes on around us everyday – than previous work. That doesn’t mean that every lyrical tidbit is agreeable, but at the very least dälek has obviously remained entranced by the social workings of the country since Abandoned Language.

One of the reasons that each of Dälek’s releases is so strong is because of the overall unity of each track production wise. While occasionally, listener’s can loose track of what song their listening to or even which of the duo’s discs they have in the cd player, that kind of forethought and planning serves the group well. But also, that disallows stand out tracks in the same way that other release may feature them.

Subtitle & dälek – Live Freestyle

A rarity though on “A Collection of Miserable Thoughts Laced with Wit,” is the laid back beat that crops up. There still isn’t a real melody, but an assortment of jangled instruments and swelling drones is a welcome break in the often abrasive music that Dälek features. On this particular track, dälek’s voice is set deep in the mix, as if he’s telling you something from the next room. But the relaxed and relatively quiet musical setting properly accompanies his witty thoughts.

There’s no place to find fault with Gutter Tactics. And while it’s not perfect, it’s another step forward for the group, for hip hop and hopefully visibility for an act that has of yet to be generally embraced by the rap cognoscenti.