Themselves
Encyclopedia
Themselves is an Oakland-based hip hop
group, made up of rapper
Doseone
(Adam Drucker) and producer
Jel
(Jeff Logan). Dax Pierson
, from the affiliated group Subtle, has played keyboards for the group, though he is not considered an official member. To date, the group has released three full-length albums and two singles on the anticon. label, as well as being featured on multiple compilations.
's 1998 breakout compilation Music for the Advancement of Hip Hop with the song "It's Them". Their first album was self-titled (Them) and was released in 1999. This was followed in 2000 by the single
Joyful Toy of 1001 Faces and another single, This About the City Too, in 2002.
In 2003 they changed their name to Themselves and released The No Music
. A remix album
was released the next year titled The No Music of AIFFS
.
The group returned in 2009 by releasing a free "mixtape" album on the internet, entitled theFREEhoudini
, as a promotion for a new upcoming album http://www.anticon.com/thefreehoudini/. TheFREEhoudini featured guests such as Sole
, cLOUDDEAD
, Slug
, Buck 65
, Serengeti
, Pedestrian, Aesop Rock
, Alias
, Passage, Mr. Dibbs, D-Styles, Busdriver
and Lionesque. This followed a month later by their 3rd studio album, titled CrownsDown
. Another remix album, CrownsDown & Company, was released later in 2010.
13 & God
along with German band The Notwist
. The self-titled first album was released in 2005 and was followed up in 2011 by the album Own Your Ghost.
Doseone and Jel also make up part of the band Subtle.
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...
group, made up of rapper
Rapping
Rapping refers to "spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics". The art form can be broken down into different components, as in the book How to Rap where it is separated into “content”, “flow” , and “delivery”...
Doseone
Doseone
Adam Drucker, better known as Doseone , is an American MC, artist, and poet from Idaho. Dose is known for his nasal, high pitched, fast polyrhythmic rapping style and abstract lyrics. He often simultaneously performs synth, sampler, or keyboard on stage. His words tend to express upon topics of...
(Adam Drucker) and producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Jel
Jel
Jel is a hip hop producer and rapper for the Anticon label. He is a part of the hip hop duo Themselves and is also heavily involved in the bands Subtle and 13 & God.-Style:...
(Jeff Logan). Dax Pierson
Dax Pierson
Dax Pierson is the keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist for anticon.-related electronic/hip-hop groups Themselves, Subtle, and 13 & God.In late February 2005, Pierson was seriously injured and left paralyzed from the chest down when the Subtle tour van hit a patch of black ice in Iowa during their...
, from the affiliated group Subtle, has played keyboards for the group, though he is not considered an official member. To date, the group has released three full-length albums and two singles on the anticon. label, as well as being featured on multiple compilations.
Career
Themselves initially recorded and released music under the name Them. The group first made their debut on AnticonAnticon
Anticon is an Oakland based independent record label founded in 1997. It is collectively owned among six founding artists and one manager...
's 1998 breakout compilation Music for the Advancement of Hip Hop with the song "It's Them". Their first album was self-titled (Them) and was released in 1999. This was followed in 2000 by the single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
Joyful Toy of 1001 Faces and another single, This About the City Too, in 2002.
In 2003 they changed their name to Themselves and released The No Music
The No Music
-Track listing:# Home Work# Mouthful# Good People Check# Poison Pit# Live Trap# Only Child Explosion# Paging Dr. Moon Or Gun# Dark Sky Demo# You Devil You# Out In The Open# Hat In The Wind...
. A remix album
Remix album
A remix album is an album consisting mostly of remixes or re-recorded versions of a music artists' earlier released material.One of the earliest remix albums was 1971's Aerial Pandemonium Ballet by Harry Nilsson, which was released by Nilsson after the successes of Everybody's Talkin and The Point!...
was released the next year titled The No Music of AIFFS
The No Music of AIFFS
The No Music of AIFFS is a compilation of various remixes of Themselves' 'The No Music' album.- Track listing :#"Terror Fabulous"#"Hat Set For Butler" #"Mouthful"...
.
The group returned in 2009 by releasing a free "mixtape" album on the internet, entitled theFREEhoudini
TheFREEhoudini
The Free Houdini is the third album of original material from Oakland-based rap duo Themselves and a return after a six-year hiatus that saw the members spend the majority of their time on their other band Subtle...
, as a promotion for a new upcoming album http://www.anticon.com/thefreehoudini/. TheFREEhoudini featured guests such as Sole
Sole (artist)
Tim Holland, known as Sole, is an alternative hip hop artist and a co-founder of the Anticon collective/label. Sole is known for his dense and often dark stream-of-consciousness style of rapping. His verses are often filled with abstraction, metaphor and sarcasm while avoiding or deconstructing...
, cLOUDDEAD
CLOUDDEAD
Clouddead was a musical group consisting of the experimental hip hop musicians Doseone , Why? , and Odd Nosdam . Generally Drucker and Wolf provide the group's vocals while Madson produces the music...
, Slug
Slug (rapper)
Sean Michael Daley, better known by his stage name Slug or "'Sep Seven'", is an American rapper. He is from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Slug is best known as one fourth of the hip hop group Atmosphere, which he founded with Derek Turner...
, Buck 65
Buck 65
Richard Terfry , who uses the stage name Buck 65, is a Canadian experimental artist, MC and turntablist. Underpinned by an extensive background in abstract hip hop, his more recent music has extensively incorporated blues, country, rock, folk and avant garde influences.Terfry is also a radio host,...
, Serengeti
Serengeti (rapper)
Serengeti, real name David Cohn, is a hip-hop artist from Chicago. His music is a sharp departure from most mainstream hip-hop, which he considers "depressing" and always consists of "the same redundant ideas." Serengeti's music includes numerous references to Chicago culture often done in...
, Pedestrian, Aesop Rock
Aesop Rock
Ian Matthias Bavitz , better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American hip hop artist and producer. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emerged during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was signed to El-P's Definitive Jux label until it...
, Alias
Alias (artist)
Brendon Whitney, known as Alias, is an abstract hip hop musician and producer. He is mainly affiliated with the anticon. label/collective.-Biography:...
, Passage, Mr. Dibbs, D-Styles, Busdriver
Busdriver
Busdriver is a rapper from Los Angeles currently signed to Epitaph Records and Fake Four Inc-History:...
and Lionesque. This followed a month later by their 3rd studio album, titled CrownsDown
CrownsDown
CrownsDown is an album from hip-hip duo Themselves, released on 20 October 2009.-Track listing:#"Back II Burn"#"Oversleeping"#"The Mark"#"Gangster of Disbelief"#"Daxstrong"#"You Ain't It"#"Roman Is As Roman Does"#"Skinning The Drum"...
. Another remix album, CrownsDown & Company, was released later in 2010.
Associated groups
Themselves is also a part of the supergroupSupergroup (music)
In the late 1960s, the term supergroup was coined to describe "a rock music group whose performers are already famous from having performed individually or in other groups"....
13 & God
13 & God
13 & God is an American and German electronic collaboration group between Weilheim, Germany-based The Notwist and Oakland, California-based anticon members Themselves. The group is signed both to anticon and Alien Transistor. They are joined live by Jordan Dalrymple who now plays Dax Pierson's...
along with German band The Notwist
The Notwist
The Notwist are a German indie rock band. Formed in 1989, the band moved through several musical incarnations despite maintaining a relatively stable lineup...
. The self-titled first album was released in 2005 and was followed up in 2011 by the album Own Your Ghost.
Doseone and Jel also make up part of the band Subtle.
Albums
- Them (Anticon, 2000)
- The No MusicThe No Music-Track listing:# Home Work# Mouthful# Good People Check# Poison Pit# Live Trap# Only Child Explosion# Paging Dr. Moon Or Gun# Dark Sky Demo# You Devil You# Out In The Open# Hat In The Wind...
(Anticon, 2002) - CrownsDownCrownsDownCrownsDown is an album from hip-hip duo Themselves, released on 20 October 2009.-Track listing:#"Back II Burn"#"Oversleeping"#"The Mark"#"Gangster of Disbelief"#"Daxstrong"#"You Ain't It"#"Roman Is As Roman Does"#"Skinning The Drum"...
(Anticon, 2009)
Remix albums
- The No Music of AIFFSThe No Music of AIFFSThe No Music of AIFFS is a compilation of various remixes of Themselves' 'The No Music' album.- Track listing :#"Terror Fabulous"#"Hat Set For Butler" #"Mouthful"...
(Anticon, 2003) - CrownsDown & Company (Anticon, 2010)
Singles
- Joyful Toy of 1001 Faces (Anticon, 1999)
- This About the City Too (Anticon, 2002)
As 13 & God, with The Notwist
- Men of Station (Anticon, 2005)
- 13 & God (Anticon, 2005)
- Own Your Ghost (Anticon, 2011)
External links
- Anticon artist page
- [ Allmusic.com entry]
- http://www.undergroundhiphop.com/store/detail.asp?UPC=ABR0106CD