The Mighty Underdogs (Gift of Gab, Lateef, and Headnodic)

The Mighty Underdogs: (l-r) Headnodic, The Gift of Gab, and Lateef the Truthspeaker

I'm finally getting around to writing up a review copy of an Ep that's been in very heavy rotation on my iPod for the past month: The Mighty Underdog's The Prelude.

The Mighty Underdogs are The Gift of Gab (Blackalicious), Lateef the Truthspeaker (Latyrx, with Lyrics Born; Lateef and the Chief with Blackalicious' Chief Xcel), and Headnodic, the bassist / producer from Crown City Rockers (which began as Mission in Boston where most of the members met at Berklee in the mid-late nineties). The Prelude is a precursor to the supergroup's full-length album due out next year (see below). The group produced and self-released the Ep independently; it's sold through Giftstribution on Gift of Gab's website.

The Gift of Gab, as one half of Blackalicious, and Lateef co-founded the legendary SoleSides collective and lablel in 1992 with DJ Shadow, Jeff Chang, and Lyrics Born (you should really pick up a copy of SoleSides Greatest Bumps if you don't have it, btw). Since then, Blackalicious and Lateef have gone on to be major forces in underground and progressive hip hop, releasing a string of acclaimed albums on SoleSides and its successor Quannum (Blackalicious and Lateef and the Chief will continue to release on Quannum, while not ruling out more self-released projects in the future). And while very big names in underground hip hop, Lateef and The Gift of Gab are (mighty) underdogs in the face of Clear Channel controlled radio and mainstream, corporate, major label hip hop. Less widely known (undeservedly so), Headnodic and Crown City Rockers have been a key voice in the resurgence of jazz rap and progressive hip hop following in the footsteps of los amigos favorites Tribe, De La, and Digable Planets.

The Mighty Underdogs' new Ep features guest appearances by DJ Shadow, MF DOOM, Ladybug Mecca, and Rashaan Ahmad from the Crown City Rockers.

The biggest standout track is "Gunfight," featuring MF DOOM. It's incredibly infectious, with a chorus that will stick with you through the day and stellar raps all around (of course DOOM's flow and wordplay is always a supreme treat). The old west, high noon themed "Gunfight" includes Ennio Morricone Spaghetti Western Soundtrack twang and the spooky, slow whistling trill from Morricone's theme to The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (don't even think about trying to fix those terms on the individual Underdogs).

"Gunfight" is so damn good, it's worth the price of admission alone. But all of the tracks are strong. "United Flow Champions (UFC)" (featuring cuts by DJ Shadow), "Status Symbol," and "Lovelife" (featuring Ladybug Mecca) are other los amigos favorites (anything w/ Mec on the Mic is worth hearing in los amigos' book).

And then there's "Bring Me Back" -- which does just that. Over a bouncing (or jiggling?) sample from LL Cool J's "Jingling Baby" (talk about bringing you back), the track reminisces about the golden age (late eighties - early nineties), with shouts out to In Living Color, The Cosby Show, and Robert Townsend's Hollywood Shuffle. The ubiquitous PE "bring that beat back" sample is included, but the Dogs reach back to the early seventies to borrow the intro from The Jimmy Castor Bunch's funky cave man epic "Troglodyte." If you know that track (and you should) you understand how much the sample fits ("what we gonna do here is go back, way back, back into time. . ."). Finally, "Out of My Life" features deliciously cheesy analog synth lines and squiggles straight out of Quincy Jones' Body Heat.

Here's a small taste, including the progressive lyrics and breezy, jazzy, mid-60's bossa-lounge sound of "Status Symbol," and a 1 min+ clip of "Bring Me Back" (it's jingling, baby). You can hear more clips on Gift of Gab's site.

Status Symbol -- The Mighty Underdogs: The Prelude Ep

Bring Me Back (feat. Raahsan Ahmad) clip -- " . . ." (2007)

The Mighty Underdogs full length Lp, Dropping Science Fiction, drops next year. The forthcoming album will feature Damian and Julian Marley, K-OS, Lyrics Born, Chali 2na, DJ Shadow, Zion, and more. Expect an update.

Purchase The Mighty Underdogs' The Prelude Ep ($8) directly from Giftstribution (Gift of Gab's site). Definitely recommended.


p.s. As the Mighty Underdogs note: "This ain't no commercial sh*t! This is independence with a passion."

p.p.s. Happy Hanukkah. Expect a themed post halfway through the Festival of Lights.

p.p.p.s. remember: Ghostface's new album was released today. Despite the late in the season drop, it's assured a place in the obligatory los amigos year end top ten list.
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