About Me
One of the most important developments in Portland music has been the local
and national success of Libretto and Lifesavas. They're longtime Portlanders
steady grindin' with their crew, Misfit Massive, since the mid-'90s. But
their 2003 release, Spirit in Stone (Quannum), put them in the worldwide
underground, and exposed them to parts of the city that might not have known
their music otherwise (aka much of white Portland). In a segregated city
that seems to only talk to one another about racism when someone dies, the
sheer uniting force of Libretto & Lifesavas' larger presence--and
message--has been an important one for the spiritual well being of Portland.
And, put simply, the talented Misfit Massive crew--which includes
Libretto, the three Lifesavas (Vursatyl, Jumbo, and Shines), Sly Da Brown
Hornet, Dubb-Flexx aka Wolverine, --is defining the Portland hiphop sound in
the early oughties. Each artist has his own style--but when you work
together for upwards of 10 years like they have, you start out friends and
end up brothers. They help each other out as individuals, as only a family
can. As Libretto puts it, "Lifesavas represent that underground raw, head
knockin' lyrics. But when me and my man Dubb hook up, we be coming with that
whole gangsta whatever you wanna call it, but at the same time, I'm droppin'
that wisdom on 'em. So that's how hot our arsenal is... I kinda look at us
like the Wu-Tang--we got too many styles. Anyway you come at us, you gonna
get served a nice dish."
Libretto is next in line for liftoff. Fresh off a shot on the West Coast
opening shows for Talib Kweli, he released "Volume" b/w "Slum Funk," a new
12" released by LA punk/hiphop label Dim Mak in June 2004. Now the big debut
of "Illoet The Last Element" filled with 14 tracks of pure soul, hip hop and
urban resonance from the streets of Watts LA to Portland OR. With a hot
grimy-soul production by Jumbo and Dubb-Flexx, and featuring a vocal turn
from Jumbo and Vurs, the single "Volume" trots Libretto's low, stern
delivery and rubber band styles out for show. He reaps elements from both
coasts, and knowledge from his life experiences. His father, an ex-Black
Panther, came from New York; Libretto grew up in Watts. They both moved here
in the mid-'90s, a history he tells on "Slum Funk": "Ain't no civilians
livin' inside these buildings/ everybody's ready, willing to leave your
blood spillin'/'95 came/and pops wanted to switch lanes/and move me to the
503... bomb threat: cassettes I spread throughout the projects" and
throughout his debut album.
"I do what I do," he explains. "I can come complicated, or I can come for
you smart-dumb cats. On the album, it's all comin' out. They can't put me in
no box. Only thing I haven't done yet is make some booty-shaking music...
which is part of me I can't do," Libretto laughs.
For years, we've been hearing "hiphop's gotta change"--that it needs
shaking up. Lately, it seems there's been an urgency--and you can hear the
change.
"It's a 9-1-1 on hiphop, no doubt. I think we need to dig back in, man, go
look at Krush Groove, go look at Style Wars, and then go into the studio and
make that stuff; don't forget where you came from.
- excerpt from Portland Mercury - Julianne Shephard
