They call him “Tricky” for particular reason, though I’m not really too sure what that reason is to be honest, this is how I first heard about Tricky as he raps that line on Massive Attack’s debut album “Blue Lines”. Tricky worked with Massive Attack who were recently at the Malkin Bowl and unleashed an unholy ass kicking upon Vancouver, until he presented some work they weren’t too fond of and he went the solo route. Since then Tricky has released 9 studio albums including his breakthrough album which he dedicated to his mom and titled after her “Maxinquaye”. That was 15 years ago, since then he’s released 8 more and worked with everyone from Live, Alanis Morrissette, Bjork, Red Hot Chili Peppers, starred in a Tool music video and too many more to list, let’s just say that the man has been around. His latest effort “Mixed Race” has been met with mixed reviews but as without bias I’d have to say he hits the mark beautifully.
Tricky himself describes the album:
“Mixed Race is a gangster album. I can’t do gangsta rap. That’s not me. I can’t talk about being a bad boy, ‘cos I’m not. But I’ve been around that. So this is the closest I can get to a gangsta album. Its very gully, as Jamaicans call it… very dark. Tense, street and urban. It’s like a movie, almost.
This is also the most uptempo album I’ve done. I wanted something that could be played in a club… maybe! Which is unusual for me. Because I don’t give a shit about clubs.”
The second single “Ghetto Stars” which just had a video released is a chilling song about the reality of being a gangster, Tricky isn’t sugar coating anything and after spending some time in jail himself during his youth he doesn’t need the hype or fan fair other “rappers” may need (see also: 50 Cent, Lil’ Wayne). Though it’s hard to categorize Tricky as a rapper, with his grunt like, raspy voice he almost whispers through his songs and lets his beats do the talking. That or the on-slaught of guests or backing vocalists to lend him a hand.
It’s likely we’ve all heard a Tricky song or two growing up here and there if you aren’t already a fan, you should definitely take a listen to the songs below and if you want the see the King of Trip Hop (note: he isn’t a self proclaimed king like one Lebron James) live, he’ll be performing at Venue Saturday December 18th and tickets are still available through Ticketmaster’s partner site Ticketweb.
Who: Tricky
When: Dec 18th 7pm
Where: Venue ($23.00)
Why: See below
Written By: MPAH
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