|
 |
|
BACK |
|
Ever since they were a fledgling group in the
environs of Los Angeles , The Black Eyed Peas
have flaunted a passionate, energetic hip-hop
spirit people have always been drawn to. They've
earned fans worldwide with their inventive approach
to hip-hop music, inspiring people with loose
rhymes, and a positive spirit and funkafied vibe.
On Elephunk, the group's third album, that spirit
seems to course through their beings even more than ever.
The Black Eyed Peas will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo and newcomer Fergie named
the album Elephunk to conjure up a big, deep funk sound. Produced in its entirety
by will.i.am and apl, the album boasts a mix of live instruments and traditional
hip-hop samples and beats. It also mixes the group's breathless verbal acrobatics
with a very conscious view of the world.
BEP's music has always been firmly entrenched in hip-hop but also with an eye
to other musical forms. Elephunk, more than previous albums, seems to transcend
the simple genre categorization, something will.i.am admits was intentional,
both lyrically and musically. "This is a hip-hop record but we didn't go
into this with hip-hop on our mind," says will.i.am. "We were just
thinking of good songs, good music. We didn't want to say anything typical, like
'My style is this, and my rhymes are like that.' A couple might have slipped
in but we were really tired of saying things like that."
Elephunk was recorded in three different spurts over the last two years, beginning
in 2001. "We would record about eight songs each time," remembers will.i.am. "Then
each time we went back, I felt I'd changed and grown as a producer. So we'd do
eight more songs, and those eight would be better than the previous eight. It
kept going until we were done."
will.i.am's rhymes are clever and irreverent but it's his work as a producer
on Elephunk that he's most proud of. Songs like "Where Is The Love," with
Justin Timberlake, the quickstepping fast-rap of "Hands Up," and the
Louis Armstrong growl of "Smells Like Funk," demonstrate not just a
sophisticated ear for new sounds but a head for interesting arrangements and
tight songwriting. will.i.am's talent lies in his ability to mold live instruments,
samples and drum machines into a uniform sound. He's always taken a musically
broad perspective and on this album, it shows more than ever.
"My volition as a producer has definitely grown," he says. "I
think my understanding of music has grown, I've discovered new ways of manifesting
my thoughts into reality, and I know my equipment better."
Elephunk also welcomes a new member into the BEP fold Los Angeles native
Fergie. The singer met will.i.am at BEP shows around town and was invited to
join in on a recording session. In the studio, one song turned to three turned
to five turned to an invitation to join the group. Says Fergie about her experience, "This
group is just totally open to new ideas and directions."
Some of those new directions on Elephunk include songs like "Anxiety," which
matches The Black Eyed Peas with popular platinum rock band Papa Roach, whom
they met and bonded with on tour. The group's are really similar says will.i.am. "The
energy between us was thick. When we started talking to them, it was a real conversation,
like we were 60 and just hangin' out at a bus stop."
The song itself relates the tension of the world today with personal struggles
the members of the different groups have gone through into one, hard-hitting
rhythmic jam. "These last couple of years haven't been easy," says
will.i.am. "Is it guilt? Stress? Uncertainty over what's going to happen
in the next five years? Is it rap? Hip-hop? The fact that everyone is clubbin'
and gun totin' and we're thought of as just some fashionable motherfuckers? It's
a whole bunch of stuff going on."
Overall, will.i.am couldn't be happier with the way the album's turned out,
and he feels people will be open to the new directions The Black Eyed Peas
are going in. "The audience is smarter than they've ever been," he says. "Maybe
ten years ago, they were run-of-the-mill, but these kids today aren't the same.
They've got it together." |
