New Kingdom (band)

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New Kingdom
Origin
PolyGram Records
Past membersNosaj
Sebastian

New Kingdom was an American rap rock duo from New York City consisting of Jason 'Nosaj' Furlow and Sebastian Laws. Formed in 1987, New Kingdom was known for its psychedelic, funk, and blues-influenced style and abstract lyricism. The duo released two albums on Gee Street Records in 1992 and 1996.

Biography

Group members Furlow and Laws met in New York City,

CBGBs, and Furlow met Harding while helping a friend record a demo at Calliope Studios.[3]

The two rappers began writing rhymes and marking records with Post-It notes, which Harding would sample and compile into backing tracks for the pair.[4]

Harding helped the group develop its sound and introduced the duo to Jon Baker of Gee Street Records, which officially signed the act in 1992. After two years on a demo deal, New Kingdom released its debut album, Heavy Load, in 1993.[5] Allmusic's Bret Love wrote of the album, "Heavy Load shows an awful lot of promise, but all too often New Kingdom fails to deliver."[6]

New Kingdom released its second album, Paradise Don't Come Cheap, in 1996. Allmusic writer Ned Raggett, who gave the album 4 out of 5 stars and selected the album as the site's Album Pick, wrote, "[The album] arguably beats out the fine debut Heavy Load—there's something even more belligerent, raunchy, and fiery about Furlow and Laws this time out."[7] However, The San Diego Union-Tribune writer Jeff Niesel wrote, "[It's] a clunky affair."[8]

The group was more successful in Baker’s native UK than their own United States, where they were met with miscategorisation and industry indifference.[4] The band were a significant influence on the emerging UK trip-hop scene - Tricky spent time in the studio with the group, learning their methods, while Morcheeba attended New Kingdom’s concerts and later collaborated with Furlow on record and in live performances.[4] After releasing two albums, the band split up, feeling they had accomplished everything they'd set out to do.[3]

Musical style

New Kingdom was praised for its unique sound and performance style.

science-fiction fantasies.[2] References made by the band range from Bruce Lee[7] and Super Fly to the folklore of Paul Bunyan.[2] Nosaj and Sebastian's rhymes are often unintelligible.[2]

Sebastian was previously a member of some local

Public Enemy, Anthrax, Cypress Hill, and Wu-Tang Clan.[2] MTV News said that "New Kingdom make rap rock hard as hell by mixing acid noise with funky, pea soup-thick beats and detective show horns".[9] In his review of Paradise Don't Come Cheap, Allmusic writer Ned Raggett wrote, "[The group's sound compares with] a Goodie Mob/Bubba Sparxxx collaboration produced by the RZA—or, say, Eminem's "Square Dance" completely gone to hell—well before its time" and concluded that the only easy comparison between New Kingdom and another musical act is Wu-Tang Clan.[7]

Discography

References

  1. ^ "New Kingdom: Tripping Towards Paradise". Red Bull Music Academy. Retrieved 2023-08-16. Jason Furlow AKA Nosaj of psychedelic NYC rap group New Kingdom
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Parales, Jon (September 9, 1996). "Shooting For Excess". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  3. ^ a b c Chick, Stevie. "New Kingdom: Tripping Towards Paradise". Red Bull Music Academy. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  4. ^ a b c Mlynar, Phillip (August 2017). "How Jason Furlow Became One of The Forefathers of Trip-Hop". Bandcamp Daily. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  5. ^ a b Bush, John. "New Kingdom - Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d e Love, Bret. "Heavy Load - New Kingdom". Allmusic. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Raggett, Ned. "Paradise Don't Come Cheap - New Kingdom". Allmusic. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  8. ^ a b Niesel, Jeff (August 8, 1996). "Paradise Don't Come Cheap - New Kingdom". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 11 November 2011.
  9. ^ Staff (December 16, 1996). "While You Were Sleeping #10: New Kingdom's 'Paradise Don't Come Cheap'". MTV News. Retrieved 2023-05-10.

External links

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