Information About

El-p





HISTORY

As a member of Company Flow , on the Rawkus Records label, he honed his production skills alongside DJ Mr. Len and Bigg Jus . His unique style helped Company Flow gain critical, then popular success, culminating in 1997 with Funcrusher Plus . Eventual differences between the group and Rawkus lead to El-P and Len leaving Rawkus in 2000. El-P then decided to start his own Record Label , Definitive Jux . Of the many albums he has helped produce (most on Definitive Jux), the most influential and successful has been Cannibal Ox 's only full-length album, ''The Cold Vein'' (2001). El-P has also contributed productions and guest raps to albums by DJ Krush , Aesop Rock , Murs , Cage , Mr. Lif , Prefuse 73 , Del The Funky Homosapien , Mike Ladd , The High And Mighty , Aceyalone , and Alec Empire on the first Handsome Boy Modeling School album. Cannibal Ox member Vordul Megilah can be heard on ''Linda Tripp'' El-P's cruel response to Sole's ''Dear Elpee.'' He was also selected to work on Rage Against The Machine frontman Zach De La Rocha 's solo album. El-P also provided the soundtrack for the graffiti film Bomb The System .


STYLE

As a rapper, El-P's style can be characterized by his dense, aggressive, and verbose attacks, which include notable use of Metaphor , Science Fiction and Fantasy themes and references, and Associative Word Play . Regardless of this sophistication, he does not eschew traditional Hip Hop subject matter, a description which would fit equally well several of his colleagues. His impact as a producer owes to his innovative mix of bleak Futurism and Low Fidelity sounds. This sound is influenced by Public Enemy 's production team, The Bomb Squad . El-P is a great fan of science fiction Writer Philip K. Dick , and many of Dick's themes— Paranoia , the nature of Reality —feature in El-P's work.

El-P has worked with Free Jazz Pianist Matthew Shipp , a fan of El-P's music. In an interview with Shipp, Meline stated:
:First and foremost, I wanted to do it because it scared the shit out of me ... And when I get offered the chance to be involved with something that scares me, I usually do it, because I'm trying to learn, I'm trying to understand music as much as I can, to become a better musician in general and work in different capacities.

El-P has done some work as a DJ. In November 2004, he spun alongside Peanut Butter Wolf , owner of Stones Throw Records at a small club named Sonotheque in Chicago. Also, in the summer of 2005, at the Intonation Festival hosted by Pitchfork Media El-P did a short DJ set alongside Yo La Tengo member James McNew , both denizens of the same apartment complex in Brooklyn. El-P is not considered to be a gifted turntablist however his broad knowledge of music and personality make his sets enjoyable.


SOLO DISCOGRAPHY


Albums

  • ''El-P Presents Cannibal Oxtrumentals'' (Def Jux) (2001) was a simple premise: instrumental versions of the tracks on Cannibal Ox 's album ''The Cold Vein''. What emerged was the realization of how far El-P had progressed as a producer. The album easily stands alone as an instrumental work, with a similar, cinematic feel like that of RJD2 , DJ Shadow , DJ Z-Trip .


  • '' Fantastic Damage '' (Def Jux) (2002) has been compared to his previous works with Company Flow and Cannibal Ox , but favorably so. The density of sound and focus on the album, combined with some of El-P's finest vocal contributions to date make this album one of the most important and impressive in the underground revival of the past decade.


  • '''' (Def Jux) (2002) Includes instrumentals and remix of Dead Disnee featuring El-P's group The Weathermen.


  • ''High Water (Mark)'' (Thirsty Ear) (2004), received mixed reviews. However, most of these reviews have been negative, likely due to the experimental jazz and instrumental content within.



Mixtapes


  • ''Weareallgoingtoburninhell '' (Def Jux) (2003), A super limited release only sold at shows and was said to have been recorded by the New York native shortly after September 11.



Singles


  • ''Stepfather Factory '' (Def Jux) (2001), released to promote then upcoming album Fantastic Damage . Features the same voice synthesizer used by Radiohead in ''fitter, happier.''


  • ''Urban Renewal: Dead Light/Train Buffer'' (Chocolate Industries)(2002)


  • ''El-P Presents: Sunrise Over Bklyn'' (Thirsty Ear)(2003) Limited edition vinyl only jazz record featuring ''The Blue Series Continuum'' with Matthew Shipp (piano), Roy Campbell (trumpet), and William Parker (bass).



EXTERNAL LINKS