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Rating: I fear that for readers under 30 years of age and interested in Hip-Hop for less than 10 years, the name of the group in question means absolutely nothing. Four-fifths from Vercelli and one-fifth from Turin, the crew had the opportunity to showcase their Rap skills on the stages of some of the most important events of the '90s.
After the compilation "Dal sottosuolo" and appearances on various mixtapes of the time (probably the most famous in the volumes of "Lo capisci l'italiano?" curated by Dj Double S) in '98 the five ventured into the not yet (then) overly saturated world of self-productions with this EP. For those unfamiliar with them, the members were Sir Two, still one of the most appreciated representatives of aerosol art made in Italy, Tosse, known for his prowess in freestyle and in recent years entirely devoted to turntablism and Funk productions, Ozio, beatmaker and MC still in full activity, and Lazy P and Rata. The latter two are currently, respectively, producer and MC in the Turin-based Randaz, although Rata is probably best known for his collaborations with Dj Enzo. Ozio, on the other hand, continues to make music under the Covo delle Bisce label, together with his brother Japo T and his longtime partner Sir.
Well, we've established who they are but... How is this little record? Honestly, I find it difficult to talk about it objectively, being from Vercelli myself, this EP constitutes the very first example of Italian rap I ever had the pleasure of listening to, and I'm deeply attached to it. However, I believe that even listening to it for the first time thirteen years after its release, Rap lovers will find more than a good reason to be satisfied. Starting with "Solo roba spessa", probably the most well-known track of the entire work, also due to Esa's presence and its inclusion in the compilation "Suoni dalla strada". It's hard to remain indifferent even to the almost nostalgic reflections of "Il sogno", further enriched by a catchy chorus just right. Fans of punchlines and metric tricks will find their match in the combative "Da jam a jam" (obviously keeping in mind that it's a track with more than a decade under its belt). Rounding out the circle (of vinyl) is "Vita", with the recognizable opening riff of "Voodoo Child" sampled in the beat and the MC's intent on delivering an interesting survival lesson (to be clear: mostly mental) in an urban scenario that is at least degraded and degrading.
Four tracks plus intro to tell the point of view of those who continue undeterred to pursue their idea of Hip-Hop, regardless of current trends, easy money, and the filth that pollutes this culture from day one. I believe the bitterness that emerges in certain passages is mainly due to the daily degradation of their own culture that had to be sadly witnessed even back then, nevertheless the authors don't convey negative messages, they simply express their disappointment without mincing words. For collectors, the chance of coming across one of the 1000 vinyl copies pressed (and as far as I know completely distributed by hand at jams) is quite remote, but a stroke of luck cannot be ruled out entirely. If you're REALLY lucky, you might come across the cassette reissue released the following year, enriched by an additional track called "Sul ring". To everyone else, I recommend giving these tracks a listen on YouTube (they should all be there and more). Like them or not, they remain a beautiful testimony of how Rap was made in a small provincial reality like this one.
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