KASHMERE REVIEW

“All the way live from the Centre of the sun: Kashmere, Iguana Man, represent where you’re from” - Next Level Response

The Iguana Man, The Lone Stranger, the ever-changing forms of Kashmere, who stormed the scene with the Raw Styles EP series, while at the same time collaborating on albums all over the scene, notably his track “Next Level Response” on Food (Lowlife), where alongside other tracks, showed his part in the new era that was emerging in the arena of hip hop. He continued to release music which had real content, humour and ill-thought flow, the beats are filled with weighty layers and pin-point arrangements, always refreshing with samurai edge sampling, worth much re-listening.

"The rumbling percussion causing sampling discussion..." Kashmere

In his albums, 'Raiders Of The Lost Archive' and 'In The Hour Of Chaos', the rapper consistently tears apart each track with mad vocab and cadence like a waterfall, stories and images you just can’t hear on radio, or mainstream hip hop. He is original and keeps being original, an element that runs through his work. It might seem on the surface that he makes concept albums, because every rhyme adds to the theme and is soaked in imagery that drives the track, however to me this is hip hop how it should be; expressive, fresh and raw, and creativity that breaks through clichés all over the verse.

Throughout his material and when featuring he has that undeniable link with the listener through his easy going conversant flows, while over time he has built a lyric archive imbibed in mysticism and insightful offerings about the high plains he roams upon. The more he collaborates, the more his own productions flourish and bring his ethereal travelogues into vivid life, specifically alongside Jehst he ranges from the immense depths in 'The Souls Of The Unborn' to the marvelous heights of 'Center Of The Sun'.

Working with the YNR fam amongst others, Kashmere is rolling out tunes like tanks out the barracks, so check his shows and watch for the release of a new album in 2009, a lot of hip hoppers are waiting for his next dose of dopeness. 
Want to travel through sound? Buy Kashmere.

Reviewed by J-Bodes


Check the Kashmere & Verb T interview on Basement Sessions here for news on kashmere's upcoming GALACTUS release.

http://www.myspace.com/kashmereiguana
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