Joyful Rebellion

k-os

Hip-hop continues to grow up, expanding beyond the 'hood and outside of its American birthplace. Like France's IAM or Britain's Dizzee Rascal, this Canadian rapper puts a unique internationalist spin on contemporary rap. K-os is a skilled rhyme-slinger who openly loathes "bling rap" ("Emcee Murdah") and who harks back to rap's golden era on cuts like "B-Boy Stance," a James Brown breakbeat-fuelled number. However, like Andre 3000 and his "Hey Ya" pop affectations, K-os's strongest material might be the tunes that are the least hip-hop-inspired. Between the foot-tappin', finger-snappin' "Crabbuckit" (with a rhythmic backdrop that mimics Ray Charles's "Hit the Road Jack"), the reggae-pop mix of "Crucial," and the wily Michael Jackson impersonation of "Man I Used to Be," the wide array of musical reference points show rap's sonic possibilities. The ultramodern blend of frenzied turntable scratches and classical strings on "The Love Song" is reason enough to cop this. --Dalton Higgins

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