A. Skillz and Krafty Kutz – Tricka Technology (2003)

Now, this is awesome. A funky, new school Hip Hop album? Yes, please! Sounds good, and the listening experience proves this. This album is very underrated, but how does it sound track by track?

Let’s dive in and have a listen to the music at hand.

The Intro is first. It gets us ready for the musical experience at hand and sounds awesome, even though it is only 20+ seconds long.

The first song is Tricka Technology (feat. T.C. Izlam). It’s so good, seriously. Some Hip Hop rhymes and electric guitar mesh together with breakbeats and an infectious sound. It’s definitely a party tune and gets us into the mood of this album. Hip Hop is alive and well here. It’s repetitive without being boring. The chorus and bridge really shine here, and it is a great piece. Great effort! The breakdowns are great too.

First New Message (feat. Dr. Luke) is a short recorded piece on an answering machine. It segues into the next song on the album.

Simple Things (feat. Real Elements) is another funktastic tune. As the title suggests, it’s about simple pleasures in life. It compares those simple things and puts them above money and other potentially corrupting ideas that people may have. This is pure weekend music and should be played at house parties. Awesome stuff. The lyrics are fantastic and intelligent, which is highly unusual for a Hip Hop album.

There is another short intermission via Kurtis Shout, which gives us a bit of flavour to what comes next.

Then, here we go! Gimme the Breaks (feat. Kurtis Blow) is yet another killer tune. As suggested, it’s a breakbeat heavy and driven piece. The party really begins with this album. It’s a neat tune, the quacky sounding electric guitar here is just really good. This is totally underrated, and a must-listen. An uplifting song. It also refers to birds, women presumably.

Ill Type Sound (feat. T.C. Izlam) is another funky song. It’s a great listen with a flute-like sample in the chorus. This is not your average Hip Hop album, it’s well crafted and intelligent 100% of the time. Music like this deserves to be remembered. The scratching of samples in the middle of the tune is really cool, too. It sounds optimistic and better than most other music of the time.

Flutism is a short break with more flute playing. A nice twist, eh? It’s short, but vital here. Not bad for less than a minute.

Next up is about lusting for women. Peaches (feat. Droop Capone) is a brilliant piece with beautiful instrumentation. The chorus here is really unforgettable and reveals the cleverness of sexual desire analysed here, it’s a nice summary about the beautiful women of the world. Another brilliant listen, not a bad track on this album at all. “I think I am going to write a thesis,” is as intelligent as Hip Hop gets. Brilliant. The female backing vocals are beautiful too.

After that, we have Check Em. It’s relatively short at two minutes or so, but it is a nice exercise in studio technology, not just a few random sounds thrown together. Cool stuff, these guys have a sensibility most RnB artists today lack. Interesting, and very good too.

Roll Over Baby (feat. Ashley Slater) begins with the main recorded melody on an answering machine, before going into psychedelic funk James Brown territory. It’s really awesome, and one of the great highlights of the album. The lyrics and melody of this song, along with the instrumentation, are damn near perfect. If you dig funk, hear this song right now. It’s danceable and just as good sounding at home as in the club. Great stuff. It might refer to drug use here, but so what? It’s a great song. It’s never dull, even though it clocks nearly seven minutes long, which is rare for music of any kind.

Give You That (feat. Obi & Real Elements) is about love at first sight. It’s a nice piece about the definite experiences at hand in relation to this matter. It may even take you back to your first love upon hearing. It’s epic-sounding and totally awesome. A must-listen for this specific experience, if you have felt this way before. Great song it is as well. One of the best love songs ever. It fades out gently, as it should.

Next up is Party in Central Park (feat. Dr Luke). This song (and album) is perfect for a great BBQ and lazy Sunday sort of situation. This music crosses traditional boundaries to be more than throwaway records by the likes of other Rappers, it is anything but. There are no real lyrics here, it’s just a good and solid listen. Good effort.

Following that, we have Come Alive (feat. Dr. Luke) which is a good, almost freestyle sounding piece. It’s a cheerful and upbeat tune which is beat heavy. This album is very consistent, even though elements of it are repetitive. Mind you, repetition is not a bad thing, and this piece proves that. Once again, good effort. Some rhythmic scratching occurs here too.

Short Breath is a basic interval sort of track, but with superbly original melodies. It’s short, around a minute and a half. It still fits in here, so no need to skip this one. Good innovative sounds here.

On Your Own (feat. Cathy Burton) is a great way to finish this listening experience. It sounds lush and surreal, with cut up beats in the background. It confirms this album as a great one to hear, or purchase to keep in your collection. Brilliance.

This album transcends Hip Hop. It’s simply that good and is a great way for all involved to kickstart their respective careers. Never heard of these guys? Now you have, if you want to hear at least one Hip Hop album in your life, this should be it.

9/10