About Me
MyGen
Profile GeneratorThe Icepick is probably the most multi-faceted emcee in the UK game, and is unarguably one of its best. He has one of the games most viscous flows, battles at an incredibly high level, and has a body of work that is both varied and experimental.The Icepick came into the game at the tail end of the 80s, serving as the front man for his crew, The Zombie Headhunters, founding members of the HQ Squad. He instantly made an impact with his legendary Enter The Tormentor verse that was used on both The Burial Proceedings In The Coarse of Three Knights put out on the Music of Life imprint, and The Contract which was featured on Hijacks Horns of Jericho LP. The Icepick also made a memorable contribution to the BROTHER Movements Beyond The 16th Parallell, a track rallying UK Hip Hops finest against apartheid in South Africa.His punchy, vociferous style and mind-blowing imagery made a huge impression on all who heard him, and many were waiting for him to follow up his explosive entry into the game with a single of his own. Unfortunately, fans were left wanting for at least another four years before they would hear anything new. But then, in 1995, The Icepick came back out of retirement to record The Genocide EP with a new crew called The Body Snatchers that comprised of DJ Supreme and MC Grizzly. The EP contained blistering battle raps related over the type of militant, vicious production that Supreme had used to make Hijack a household name. It was a classic record. Unfortunately, The Genocide EP saw a very limited release so not many people even knew of the records existence. Futhermore, fans had to wait a further two years before they would have access to new, widely available, commercial material from The Icepick.When The Icepick did return with the single Phenomenal Criminal in 1997, there was a slight change to his sound. The punchy inflections and battle mentality that are his signature energy were still in effect, but now The Icepick was holding up a mirror to life on the streets. So the subject matter and the language he was using in his lyrics had changed slightly, and it was more in line with the kind of language youd associate with man from road. The Icepick had made a radical transition the mentality was less B-Boy and more Roughneck. To draw attention to the change, Supreme altered his production style too. Gone was the Old Skool Hijack sound we had come to associate with him. Now Supreme was on a live flex, centered around the use of analogue keyboard sounds and slower drum programming an auditory experience more inline with the old skool reggae sound systems from the 80s.The reinvention didnt stop there. In 1998, The Icepick dropped The Icepick EP which featured the track Sour Puss. Here, The Icepick played the Slick Rick role, demonstrating his ability to tell funny stories. I remember hearing him freestyle this track live on 279s show, and the whole studio was on the floor weeping with laughter. This is one department where UK Rap traditionally lacks, but The Icepick, who has always demonstrated an ability to be witty, funny and insulting in his more battle oriented material, is a comedic master.In 1999, The Icepick altered his style yet again when he dropped the Dungeon Funk EP on Ruf Beats/Backbone. Here, The Icepick demonstrated that he was adept at mastering that frenzied style of flow one normally associates with a Busta Rhymes or Twista. However, what he produced came off as a whole new style in its own right, since The Icepick melded it with the UK nuances and ebonics one would usually hear on inner London city streets.Since then, The Icepick has contributed vocals to a variety of projects. These include Gunshots English Patient, MellOs Against The Grain Project, and his own crews HQ Radio mixtapes. More recently, his most notable appearance has been his collaboration with Insane Macbeth entitled True Heart, which dropped in July, 2001 but was recorded in 1999. The track was re-released in the middle of last year.Insane has had a close relationship with the HQ since the late-80s, and a collaboration between The Icepick and Insane was always on the cards. It was around 1997 that Insane was approached by The Icepick about doing a track together. This was at a time when Insane had become so frustrated with the industry he was almost ready to retire from the game and move onto pastures anew, but The Icepick played a big role in convincing him to stick with it.In 1999, The Icepick finally recorded True Heart with Insane for his Retardation Project. That vicious and moody vibe that Insane is so great at putting together made a perfect compliment to The Icepick, who attacks the track, spitting lyrics that served to reflect Insanes mindset and life situation, and in some cases even foretell events that would come to pass in Insanes life on this side of the new millenium. Since then The Icepick (now known also as Jack Jones), has recorded with acts such as Against the Grain featuring arstists such as Grizzly,Don E, MC Mello and Estelle as mentioned earlier. His Heart however can be found in the two mix tapes he contributed to. HQ Radio Vol 1-2 have gained cult status maybe causing Icepick to realise the true potential he and his compadres Shaka, Matt Chrome, Grizzly, Supreme, J one and Doug Chedda have.WATCH OUT FOR HQ RADIO (the album)As Penned by Byron R Davies, The Hip Hop Arsonist.To be found in it's original and entire state on www.insanemacbeth.comCouldn't of said better guy's... JJThe Heat.
