When I was first introduced to Jedi Mind Tricks I thought it might be a part of nerdcore, however, it’s definitely not. Jedi Mind Tricks can best be described as having an east coast rap style with deep, prophetic lyrics. Vinnie Paz, lead MC & songwriter, pulls a lot of his inspiration from personal despairs, recent wars (Vietnam/Iraq), old theological books, and political/world issues. His delivery is gritty and raw, combine this with Stoupe’s hardcore trip hop instrumentals, and you get a group from phili that takes east coast rap to another level.
Just a little on the album…
“The Psycho-Social, Chemical, Biological & Electro-Magnetic Manipulation of Human Consciousness” is first off a long title. Second, it made Jedi Mind into a highly respected group across the underground hip-hop scene. This is an album with innovative written all over it, whether you like it or not…
[audio:NevaAntiquated.mp3,TheApostlesCreed.mp3,LastStraw.mp3,TheWindsofWar.mp3,SoulsfromtheStreet.mp3|titles=Neva Antiquated,The Apostle’s Creed,Last Straw (Onesoul Remix),The Winds of War,Souls from the Street]
Push play!
Neva Antiquated has one of the best flowing melodies I’ve encountered in awhile. It’s starts at around 1:24 and goes on for just over 20 seconds (it can be heard in the sample I provide). It may be a little abstract, which you could say for most of Vinnie Paz’s lyrics, but it sure has phonetical finesse.
The Apostle’s Creed has an ominous harp playing in the background while Apathy, Yan and Paz spit some “hard” lyrics. It’s a simple concept, but when applied to the minds of Jedi Mind, it’s brought to a whole ‘nother level.
Last Straw (Onesoul Remix): The beat is uniform & monotonous, yet addictively hypnotic. It’s not as complex compared to Jedi Mind’s other tracks (some containing up to 50 sounds), yet I can’t get enough of it. Stoup has an ability to make a simple beat into a pleasurable, hypnotic trance… not to mention Paz’s cunning lyrics.
Also featurin’ The Winds of War & Souls from the Street.
“The Psycho-Social CD” is a classic underground hip-hop album. Jedi Mind hasn’t come to anything close since the album premiered in ’97, but still maintains a quality sound with the occasional winner. Their new project, Army of the Pharaohs, is a compilation of quite a bit of talent (a good amount featured in this album), and is showing some promise for something new from the minds of Jedi Mind.
Artist Information:
Genre: Hip-Hop
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Members:
Vincent Luvineri (Vinnie Paz): MC
Kevin Baldwin (Stoupe the Enemy of Mankind): Producer, DJ
James Bostick (Jus Allah): MC
DJ Kwestion
Label: Enemy Soil
Additional Albums: Violent by Design | Servants in Heaven, Kings in Hell | […]
Similar Artists: Army of the Pharaohs | R.A. the Rugged Man | Apathy
Links: JMT Hip-Hop | MySpace | Facebook | YouTube | Wikipedia | Last.fm | iLike | Y! Music | AllMusic
Album Information:
Label: Superegular Records
Release Date: November 4, 1997
Buy Links: Amazon | Amazon Mp3 | iTunes
