It's been proven that Atlanta has been the breeding ground for today's famous rappers, and hip hop artists. That's where the amazing duo Da Backwudz was located. Two cousins Marcus "Big Marc" Thomas and James "Sho-Nuff" Redding are from Decatur, GA, and were choirboys in the past. They were raised on different genres of music, but gospel had a big influence on them. Da Backwudz began stompin' around Atlanta, doing shows non stop, and appearing on mix tapes. Later on the group was introduced to mega music and film producer Dallas Austin who was so knocked out by Da Backwudz that he signed the duo and reactivated the Rowdy Records label. According to Austin, Big Marc and Sho-Nuff are the best group to come out of Atlanta since he moved to the city 20 years ago. But even without the full support and such claims from Austin, Da Backwudz would have a lot to live up to. Their debut album Wood Work is a masterpiece. There aren't any musical genres on this album, Da Backwudz wanted to encompass all sounds and vibes. It's a collection of classic crunk, throwback funk, and juke-joint soul. Wood Work features guest appearances by Nas, Slim Thug, Big Gipp, George Clinton, Jermaine Dupri and Sleepy Brown.
With a mesh of hip hop, jazz, rock and soul, the rap duo is proving the south has more to offer than simple snap records and strip club crunk anthems. Early single I Don't Like the Look of It (Oompa), produced by Milwaukee Black & the Execs, was a great and daring way to assert Da Backwudz as a distinct group with a specific lineage; using a sample from the Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory soundtrack and a neo-Timbaland tribal beat, the track carries an off-kilter mix of humor and menace. Tracks like You Gonna Luv Me and The World Could Be Yours – also produced by Black, a Midwesterner who does little to affect the duo's Southernness – combine Southern machine bump with flipped soul samples worthy of Just Blaze or Kanye West, and the MCs are adept over slow-grinding funk and bracingly tense soul, utilizing their heavy drawls and lyrical versatility. Feelin’ Lonely is the standout track of the LP. Not so much because of the production but because Big Marc and Sho-Nuff provide honest and heart-rending narratives of individual drama. Same Song is the group’s fair indictment of an industry of closed doors for talented newcomers.
Southern hip hop seems to be dominating the airwaves right now, snapping and trapping its way into the ears of listeners worldwide. Big Marc and Sho-Nuff are trying to prove that, besides crunk and trunk-rattling music, people in the south got stories to tell. Representing a more conscious approach to music, Da Backwudz have – not unduly – been compared to Georgia hip-hop legends Outkast and Goodie Mob. The similarity to Big Boi and Dre is especially apparent on the promising album opener Welcome To The Backwudz, an upbeat, handclap-driven and horn-heavy affair reminiscent of The Whole World. On the second half the duo gets more introspective on cuts like Whatcha Know Bout My Life and the Sleepy Brown-assisted Mama Always Told Me. Releasing their debut Wood Work, Da Backwudz hope to spread some socially conscious hip-hop and make listeners love them along the way. They're technically from the backwoods of Decatur, but they certainly fit within the context of fellow groups and MCs that have come from Atlanta proper. There's the potential for at least two strong albums, especially if the duo continues to develop alongside Black.
Stand UpDave Matthews Band obviously had a lot of fun writing and producing this record, and this sort of cooperative behavior and sense of community often produces the more intriguing and complete material