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  • #25
    The Underachievers - Indigoism (Mixtape Review) | Read Hip Hop Reviews, Rap Reviews & Hip Hop Album Reviews | HipHop DX

    The Underachievers cohesively merge today's turned up sound with that which came from their formerly dominant homeland of Brooklyn.

    Determined to please disgruntled heads from the Northeast region, the Beast Coast collective has banded together as separately established acts out to make a unified statement much like the prior generation's Native Tongue camp did. The gifted clique (officially named by Joey Bada$$' Pro Era crew) has ties of brotherhood to Harlem's A$AP Mob and lays brag worthy claim to the Flatbush Zombies and their fast rise towards prominence, all friends gaining inspiration watching each other's strides. Cosigned by Flying Lotus under the banner of his Brainfeeder label, The Underachievers are this squad's next of kin up to bat with their debut Indigoism.

    Yet another example of the modern path to viral buzz paved by Odd Future, The Underachievers have quickly become the latest hope for shifting Hip Hop's culture back to its currently irrelevant origins. With youth and innovation on their side, group members Issa Dash and Ak show a wisdom far beyond their years as Indigoism simultaneously strays from convention while observing the musical formula of strong lyricism and production that brings them to life. The project's title is based off of the purplish color dealing with a spiritual enlightenment fostered through books and hard drug usage, as they spit higher knowledge on "Revelations" and trip out on the hypnotic LSD anthem "Potion Number 25."

    Not only do The Underachievers push the envelope, they cohesively merge today's turned up sound with that which came from their formerly dominant homeland of Brooklyn. Where the complex flows on songs such as "Maxing Out", "Herb Shuttles" and "T.A.D.E.D" cater to the erratic energy of younger listeners, "New New York", "Land Of Lords" and "6th Sense" are likely to attract a jaded audience starved for edgy material to see an upswing once again. As well, the duo sneaks a positivity that isn't contrived through the aggression on "Leopard Shepard" and "Gold Soul Theory", speaking to and for whoever chooses to absorb the gems offered.



    Indigoism is a refreshing first effort for Issa Dash & Ak whose themes of consciousness and psychedelics boost their creativity in developing something vaguely familiar while not exactly derivative, a rarity in this day and age. Despite a slight amount of filler and the topics suffering a lack of diversity, The Underachievers have covered their bases well enough to attain fandom from purists and adolescents alike.

    DX Consensus: "Free Album" (the highest possible praise for a mixtape)

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    • #26
      New review of Indgoism:
      The Underachievers: Indigoism | Album Reviews | Pitchfork

      The Brainfeeder-affiliated Brooklyn rap duo the Underachievers are part of New York City's loose knit Beast Coast collective, which counts Joey Bada$$ and his Pro Era crew along with Flatbush Zombies among its membership, and the A$AP Mob as friends. But the Underachievers are a singular presence within the new New York scene. They're not retro-leaning traditionalists like Bada$$, whose 1999 mixtape studiously replicated the vibe of classic 90s New York rap. They're not as aggressively weird as the Flatbush Zombies, and their seriousness of purpose sets them apart from the A$AP Mob's faded party rap. And while many of their contemporaries subscribe to a school of rap that extols the joys of drug use, gleefully cataloguing chemicals consumed, the Underachievers' Issa Dash and Ak treat mind-altering substances like sacraments, like battering rams at the doors of perception. Their debut mixtape, Indigoism, is druggy, but aesthetically so; beneath the surface lies a work of art-damaged mysticism and pyrotechnic wordplay.

      Indigoism derives many of its psychedelic properties from its production team, the Entreproducers, whose broad palette supplies Issa and Ak with bountiful and bizarre sounds. "Herb Shuttles" and "T.A.D.E.D" affix spectral keys to the skittering hi-hats and 808s of modern Southern rap. "So Devilish" and "New New York" are built around menacing psych rock grooves. "Revelations" seamlessly marries elements of blues and reggae to trap. Indigoism covers a lot of ground, and there is as much movement within songs as there is between them. "Leopard Shepard" chops a muted horn sample no less than three different ways, and songs like "Gold Soul Theory" and opener "Philanthropist" modulate between divergent verse and chorus sections like a live band would. Even meat-and-potatoes boom bap numbers "6th Sense" and "The Madhi" sneakily shift melodic elements in and out of the mix as they progress. Indigoism's one relative constant on the production front is a tendency toward a low BPM.

      Slower beats are the perfect launchpad for the breakneck doubletime raps and stop-on-a-dime flow shifts that are the Underachievers' calling card. Indigoism's dizzying flurry of internal rhymes matches California rap luminaries Kendrick Lamar and Ab-Soul at their most switched on, but where the Black Hippy crew likes to slow things down periodically to air out the rhyme schemes, the Underachievers rarely let up. It's as if they have too much to say without the time to get it all out. The fury of their lyricism also calls back to unsung technicians of 90s rap like Freestyle Fellowship and Organized Konfusion, acts possessed of an almost intimidatingly masterful command of words. This isn't to say that Underachievers' ability to rap very well is a liability, but Issa and Ak's battery of lyrical speed trials occasionally feels one-note when spread over 16 songs. Indigoism clocks in at under an hour, but it feels longer than it is, and is probably most effectively ingested in smaller doses.

      After more than a year of sporadic live shows and piecemeal track releases, this full reveal of Underachievers' vision shows a group that's thick with promise. Issa Dash and Ak are intriguing thinkers with formidable mic skills and a team of producers challenging them with moving, breathing soundscapes. In an era rife with aesthetes playing dress up with rap and auteurs who treasure texture and feel over good old-fashioned musicality, the Underachievers are a monument to the complex lyricism and drug-friendly experimentation of Souls of Mischief and the offbeat spirituality of the mystics in the Dungeon Family. But Indigoism isn't really about showing off a good record collection; it's about digesting influences and turning out something vaguely familiar but somehow brand new.

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      • #27
        The are going on tour with Joey Bada$$ and Flatbush Zombies: Joey Bada$$ Announces Beast Coast Tour Dates | Get The Latest Hip Hop News, Rap News & Hip Hop Album Sales | HipHop DX

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        • #28
          Who Are The Underachievers? | Complex

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          • #29
            mixtape is dope.



            protect dunston at all costs

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            • #30

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              • #31
                Anyone know where purple shirt in herb shuttles is from?

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                • #32
                  Originally posted by murrich View Post
                  Anyone know where purple shirt in herb shuttles is from?
                  the one Issa is wearing at the beginning of the video?

                  - - - Updated - - -

                  this is the closest thing i can find to it so far
                  http://www.ebay.com/itm/180996390156?hlp=false&var=480195832287
                  it has a similar design and under the color drop-down menu you can get purple, but it doesn't show what the purple looks like

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                  • #33
                    Originally posted by Heartbreak Jake. View Post
                    the one Issa is wearing at the beginning of the video?

                    - - - Updated - - -

                    this is the closest thing i can find to it so far
                    Ganesh Baseball T Shirt | eBay
                    it has a similar design and under the color drop-down menu you can get purple, but it doesn't show what the purple looks like
                    Yeah the one Issa is wearing, love the design on it, I found this which is sort of similar; http://krishnastore.com.au/images/ca...irt_Ganesh.jpg

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                    • #34
                      full mixtape here:

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                      • #35

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                        • #36
                          These guys are cool.

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