What exactly is Aristocrunk and where can I find it?
This past Friday night, I had the pleasure of seeing some of the best live, hip-hop music I’ve seen in well over a year. The Rev Room was slow to fill up, but by 10:30 there was a mass of people crowding the bar and dance floor. When the house lights went down and the stage lights went up, most everyone packed on to the dance floor. I had not seen the Rev Room that crowded in quite some time, so it was nice to see all of the different ages and faces there. The Rev Room chose two amazing acts that were, in my opinion, perfectly suited for the venue.
Al Kapone, is most notably known for his songs “Whoop That Trick” and “Keep Hustlin’-It Ain’t Over” from the feature film Hustle & Flow and for co-writing Lil’ Jon’s “Snap Yo Fingers.” Kapone and a friend, whose name I did not get, got up on stage and brought the audience to their feet. As soon as he started rapping, the crowd was a large mass of happy, dancing people. I had never had the pleasure of hearing his music before, or at least I thought I hadn’t. He brought up the hook for “It’s Hard Out There For A Pimp,” which got the audience’s attention. However, he moved on to “Whoop That Trick” which united the crowd when the chorus came up, and I soon realized I had heard of this man, even though I previously could not attach a name to the song. Kapone rapped for about half an hour and kept the attention of everyone in attendance. His lyrics are catchy, the beats are fierce, and he is one of the finest rappers Memphis has to offer.
After Kapone left the stage, the crowd was left standing sweaty and in good spirits. Ten minutes later, the lights came back up and MysterE ran up on stage followed shortly by Maurice Eloise XIII and Lord Aloisius Treadwell, or known more simply as Lord T & Eloise. This trio boasts the use of one of the most intriguing named music genres, Aristocrunk, that I have ever heard mentioned. Most people would find that the concepts of aristocrats and crunk music would never mix, but lo and behold these men make that happen. Aristocrunk blends baroque instrumentation with witty lyrics full of social commentary and satirize many of the topics other contemporary artists rap about.
Enough of the back story though, this performance was a spectacle in itself. Eloise entered the stage in a tuxedo shirt and pants, a bow tie, rollers in his hair, and his skin painted gold. Lord T entered donning a fantastic wig of white hair, a period costume reminiscent of the Baroque era, and black aviator sunglasses. MysterE entered looking somewhat more contemporary in a gray suit, black tie, and sunglasses. I was a bit confused as too why these particular outfits, but in further searching at www.lordtandeloise.com, I was given the answers. They are relatively outlandish and humorous, but I will let you look for yourself instead of summing up what they have to say about themselves.
Lord T & Eloise’s set lasted about an hour and was full of dancing, crazy antics, and some performance art, including pantomiming riding a horse. They never once lost the audience’s attention and kept them dancing the entire set. I did not see one disappointed face as I left the venue. Everyone got their money’s worth and seemed to have been happy that they had chosen to spend their Friday night there.
To sum everything up, if you like hip-hop music with some ridiculous flair, or just want to experience Aristocrunk for yourself, check out Lord T & Eloise. If you like a little more traditional, dirty south, Memphis rap, check out Al Kapone. Both acts hail from Memphis and definitely earned my respect and I would go see them again in a heartbeat. Each act kept me entertained and kept me focusing on the witty lyrics and catchy hooks, and because of those two reasons I had a great time and will most definitely be checking out each group more in the future.
--L
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