REVIEW: B.T.K., B.T.K. (Ignition)
- Franklin Johnson
Toronto, Canada-based five-piece B.T.K. help create a new categorization of music - psychedelic hip hop for the 90s - on their full-length debut, B.T.K..
Melding rap, hip hop and real guitars, B.T.K. produces more fun on any album since De La Soul were rising three feet high. The pro-marijuana magazine High Times *needs* to make "Corncob Pipe" its anthem. 70s Backing music - rock, not disco - can be heard throughout the entire album. So "Things Gotta Change" has a Lynryd Skynyrd meets "Sun City" feel, "Peppyrock" takes the ghost of Jerry Garcia and mixes it up with hip-hop, and the song which garnered a 'best indie video' award from Canada's Much Music, "Superchile" could be placed on the turntable at any college and inspire a stoned nation to dance.
Fortunately, B.T.K. - an abbreviation for Birth Through Knowledge - stick with what they know; no Vanilla Ice tall tales here of growing up in the 'hood, or any other nonsense. Instead, their raps focus on conspiracy theories, childhood dreams, and marijuana. Let the music speak for itself, as two totally distinct brands of music unify themselves into an innovative recording for 1998.
