CD REVIEW | Tech N9ne, ‘Everready: The Religion’
Best moments hard to equal
Kansas City’s hip-hop representative gives voice to intriguing self.
By BILL BROWNLEE
Special to The Star
MIKE RANSDELL | THE KANSAS CITY STAR
Tech N9ne is at his most confident on the new “Everready.”
Kansas Citians unfamiliar with one of the city’s best-selling exports might wonder whether they should proudly embrace Tech N9ne or lock their doors as he passes by. As Tech N9ne is a singularly complex figure, there’s no easy answer.
“Everready,” his new release, is a startlingly ambitious statement from an artist who seems to sense that his career and his very life are at stake. Its sprawling 75 minutes contain innovative musical and lyrical heights that trample hip-hop’s tired clichés.
In its best moments “Everready” is the artistic equal of the hip-hop world’s premier releases and compares favorably with the groundbreaking work of Kanye West and Outkast. Yet his longtime fans need not fear that Tech N9ne has gone soft; there’s more than enough violence and misogyny on hand to offend anyone not already desensitized by the grittiness of contemporary hip-hop.
The album’s broad palette of innovative sonic textures is unrivaled by all but the most experimental rock and hip-hop releases. “Welcome to the Midwest” marries the cadence of a military march to a Dean Martin-style croon. The ominous “Night and Day” smartly contrasts Islamic prayer accents with a smooth, soul ballad hook.
While the riveting “Running Out of Time” references a classic-rock hit by Steve Miller, Tech N9ne demonstrates that he’s also completely up to date on the hyphy “Bout Ta’ Bubble.” The slamming club anthem is “Everready’s” most conventional, radio-ready track.
Tech N9ne’s favorite subject is himself; fortunately he’s an intriguing figure. He’s the rare rapper who openly exposes his fears and faults. Often employing his famous rapid-fire delivery, Tech N9ne’s powerful voice has never sounded more confident. He brazenly challenges the local competition on “Come Gangsta.”
“With my red hair and my face paint,” he asserts, “I may look like a clown, but you … sound like a … circus.” The jovial “Jellysickle,” featuring E-40, is a less abrasive attack on his detractors.
“They love my pain because it makes for great music,” Tech says of his fans on the oddly affecting “The Rain.” It’s true that the self-described “crazed clown” seems most inspired on his darkest material.
When he revels in earthly pleasures, such as the ode to his favorite adult beverage, “Caribou Lou,” Tech N9ne falls back on offensive platitudes and stale beats.
Kansas City doesn’t fare especially well on “Everready.” According to Tech N9ne, it’s a place punctuated by gunfire. Mutilated bodies are dumped in Swope Park. But just as he unflinchingly documents Kansas City’s troubles, Tech N9ne proudly extols the virtues of the place he calls home.
“Everready” is an artistic triumph that should make Kansas City proud of its most popular musical ambassador.