Bakla
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MACHINE HEAD
Coming hard out of Oakland,
Machine Head plays heavy metal
full of angst, passion and frustra
tion, with a wrathful voice demand-
ing to be heard
Coming of age in the East Bay
taught Machine Head the value of
respect "Respect is the key and
it's what we're about 6xplains
guitarist and lead singer Robb
Flynn. And if the respect isn't
returned," he chuckles "then they
can go to Oaktown and get the
downtown beatdown."
"It's hard to explain," says Flynn,
"Respect is just something that my
parents really instilled in me. They
did not have a lot of money when
I was growing up in the very worst
part of East Oakland. We were
eventually able to get out of there
and how my parents live in a really
nico neighborhood. They always
taught me that even though we
don't have much, at least we have
respect and we have each other
And that's the way Machine Head
operates All of us were raised that
way to be respectful towards
other people. But on the other
ARTIFACTS
hand, if people disrespect us,"
Flynn smirks, "then we're going to
have to do something fucked up to
them. I'm cool with everybody. I
got punk rock friends, metal
friends, hip hop friends and I got.
grunge friends, or whatever-just
as long as you're a good person
and your heart's good, that's all
that matters" -Sara Tassione
As their name suggests, Artifacts"
debut album Between A Rock And A
Hard Place is a throwback to the spirit
of hip hop's early days. But it's not
like they're on a retro fashion vibe like
everyone else, they're concerned that
the roots of hip hop have gotten lost
since the music has become so com-
mercialized. El the Sensai explains,
"There are three basic elements that
make hip hop culture: Being an MC,
breakdancing and aerosol art. The con-
tributors to hip hop that are most
respected by the general public are
the MCs, but without respecting and
acknowledging the other aspects of
the culture, you have no foundation."
El and Tame are distressed at the
lack of creativity they see both in music
and in art. "Creativity is the utmost
and that's one thing that hip hop is
lacking." says El. "We want people to
know that they can be themselves. You
don't have to be an image or a fake
nigga. Just do what you gotta do so
that people will know where you're
coming from and so that they can
appreciate what you're doing."
-Jennifer Lehrer
COP SHOOTOUP
AFRO-
PLANE RELEASE
The Atlanta-based foursome known as Afro-Plane touts an
imaginative yet cutting-edged sense of lyrical wizardry fused
with a semi-retro sound complete with funk-enriched bass lines
and heart-rattling percussion. The pay-off? A universal groove
dancing on the margins of abstract taste and Afro-activism
drama. Comprising the group are Rodney Trevon Oliver as
"Nous" (pronounced "Know-Us.") Houston Bryan Perry Ill as
"Blues," Khalil Sharif Mcintosh as "Moon" and Christopher
Lehman Turner as "Brother SOGGI" (that's Son of God with
Great Intelligence to you kid).
Afro-Plane's self-titled CD features an altogether hell-raising
collection of what the group dubs as "psychadialectichypno-
funk!" One could say their vibe continues where groups like PM
Dawn and Arrested Development end. But that's not to ignore
the impression of acts like Jimi Hendrix, The Last Poets, George
Clinton, Janis Joplin, Sly And The Family Stone, LL Cool J and
the UK's own Stereo MCs present in Afro-Plane's sound. Moon
explains, "Everything that comes out of Afro-Plane revolves
around what our parents listened to when we were growing up.
When we went into the studio it was never, "Okay, we have to
come with this sound. We have to come out with something dif
ferent. It was like, "We need a beat, and we started messing
with the keyboards. So when the music came out it just ended
up different. We never planned it to be different. We just want-
ed to make good music and something that was true to us."
DeVonne
DING CORP ALL WIGHTS RESERVED. 93434
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