I’m just going to put it out there. If you’re feverish from Kanye’s fusion of industrial, goth, and laser tag, there is no excuse not to ride with the BLKHRTS. The media has the bad habit of hailing only pop stars as visionaries, when anyone paying attention knows that there are often a dozen underground acts comparably ambitious and effective. I’m not trying to play the “yo, underground rap is better card” with you. I’m telling you that Yeezus has a lot of great ideas stitched together awkwardly by a gifted but delusional kilt connoisseur. I’m telling you that you shouldn’t ignore music like Denver’s BLKHRTS because they are no less notable just because they haven’t been on the cover of Time. Besides, David Sitek is executive producing their new record, so there is the cool white-person endorsement that casual rap fans sadly may need.
If Kanye allows rap fans to become receptive to outre sounds like this, we all win. There’s all the hallmarks of hip-hop heads seeing the world as all shrapnel (no Atmosphere). The pitched up vocal sample slams head-on into the twisted metal textures. Three voices bleeding into one hoarse bark, filled with chants and drums too dark to glitter. And you don’t even have to hear played out jokes about eating Asian pussy that weren’t funny the first time you heard them. This is the first single from the group’s new mixtape, Death, Romance and The Color BLK. It will precede the EP, Love is Thicker Than Blood, which will precede the LP JZBL JNKNS, which will precede our eventual death.
