It’s been almost nine months since I last talked to Philly Moves. In that time they’ve been busy. The ever-productive local hip-hop act has released several videos and an EP, played countless bar shows and took to the stage at Bluesfest 2011. Now they are getting ready to release their second full-length album, How to Drink Yourself Famous. It promises to satisfy the growing legions of supporters this Ottawa band has cultivated, while at the same time breaking new ground for the group. The twelve-track effort is slated for release this Saturday the 21st, but Philly Moves has given Apartment 613 a preview.
Philly Moves has created a name for themselves with their energetic shows, positive vibe, and their involvement both with their fans and with the Ottawa hip-hop community. They are a two-man group. Tynan “Tragic” Phelan works the microphone and writes the lyrics while Jon “Rockwell” Desilva fills the role of producer, instrumentalist, and backing vocalist. Their troupe also includes Hassan “DJ So Nice” Hamdan, who often works the scratches and cuts. Their sound is loose and beat-driven, characterized by Tragic’s fast, intelligent rapping and Rockwell’s skill for sampling and song structure.
And their newest album is no different. “How to Drink Yourself Famous” is classic Philly Moves. It contains all the humour, positivity, and catchiness of their previous efforts. And while they haven’t fundamentally changed their sound, they don’t seem to fear trying new things. The album is also an exploration of what can be done with Philly Moves’ hip-hop sound. An example comes in the second-to-last track. Titled “Little Brother,” the song is a blues-rap fusion without a beat. It features raspy, emotional vocals courtesy of Desilva. It’s a complete surprise on an album filled with anything but blues, but what’s more surprising is how well the track works. Phelan’s rapping fits so well over the strumming of Desilva’s electric guitar that the song is instantly compelling. Instead of confusing and alienating the listener, it proves that Philly Moves can be Philly Moves under a variety of conditions.
This is a consistent theme over what is a fairly diverse piece of hip-hop. In addition to the underground-style catchy rap tracks that fans will recognise as characteristic of the band, the album features other tracks like Just Think, an R&B-style song with a pop aesthetic and a stadium sound, and The Paper Caper, a rap mini-opera that describes the fictional death of Phelan and Desilva at the hands of some angered mob bosses. Another, Too Cold for a T-Shirt is a folky, guitar driven piece and features melodic vocal backup from Kaylie Seaver . Though tracks like these are uncharacteristic of the group thus far, they work well with their established sound. The group approached this album the same way they always do, says Phelan: “We make music how we want to – no boundaries, not trying to be anything we’re not.”
He explains that the largest difference to be found in this album is the samples. “There are way less samples on this album,” he says. Instead, the album features more instrumentation, something Desilva has plenty of experience with due to his history playing in live bands. According to Phelan, the move away from pure samples is a result of their increasing presence on the scene. “As we start getting more serious the risk of getting sued gets bigger and bigger,” he says. Instead of relying on samples exclusively and putting the album into legal uncertainty, Desilva samples his own playing, cutting it up to give it that hip-hop sound. “That’s what’s cool,” says Phelan, “the songs with instruments don’t sound like band songs. Jon mixes them to sound like hip-hop songs.”
Jon Desilva’s skill as a producer is evident in every song on this album. His creativity and his prowess has evolved, and the overall sound benefits from his abilities. The instrumentation and structure is in constant flux beneath Phelan’s lyrics, remaining interesting and inventive throughout. In addition to this protean quality, Desilva creates a sense of progression with his productions, something missing from a lot of hip-hop. “Cliché,” for example, starts out with a heavy, almost dubstep vibe, then evolves seamlessly into an upbeat jam featuring what sounds like a xylophone as a backing track. Overall the care put into the mixing and the backing situate this record a cut above previous Philly Moves albums, and perhaps this is thanks to Desilva’s recent studies in music production in Atlanta.
The album works well as a complete entity. There is a good flow throughout and there is plenty of variation to keep things flowing. The layout and flow of the album was something the pair considered carefully, says Phelan: “We put a lot more work into this one as far as making it a complete album, as opposed to a smattering of songs together.” And it shows. The album is centred around no clear single contender. Instead, each song is given care and attention. It’s a polished, complete album, even in the early form in which I’ve listened to it.
The album, Plelan tells me, will be released to coincide with Winterfest , a new hip-hop festival debuting this weekend at Carleton University’s Oliver’s Pub. The festival features a plethora of local talent, as well as some from out of town. It was originally meant to be one night show, but as Plelan appropriately puts it, “It snowballed from there.” It’s now planned as two shows, one afternoon and all ages, the other at night and presumably more R-Rated. A preview show is planned for Friday .
Philly Moves will be selling How to Drink Yourself Famous at the show. If you’re interested in previewing the album, you can check out little snippets over here. Two of the songs from the album are already up as videos on Youtube. They are It’s Too Cold for A T-Shirt (featuring Kaylie Seaver) and Dear Hip-Hop.
