Hip-Hop bands are few and far between in today’s landscape, and good ones are even fewer and even further between. El Jefe falls somewhere in between, not just in quality but in classification. The San Fran crew doesn’t have what you would call a traditional “hip-hop” sound, and that could be good or bad depending on your tastes. They have been dubbed as Living Legends meets Sublime, which I’d say is a fairly accurate description.
So I guess you are still wondering who this group is, well it consists of emcees Wiz, Nomad, and Daryl along with Peter Lazarus on bass, Fernando Cardoso on drums and Ken Bryant on guitar. The first thing that will jump out here is the quality of the band. All the beats are really crisp and you could easily listen to it without realizing that a band is playing. The problem comes with the beats themselves, for the most part, they just aren’t that good. The opening song “Element” is a good example, the beat isn’t great, it isn’t bad, it is just kind of there. “1/2 Self 1/2 Expression” and “Reflected Deceptions” are the best offerings, for the content as well as the sound. For their part, the emcees provide good content all the way through. Each is a serviceable emcee and get their points across clearly if unspectacularly.
“Amorphous Phormula” is a tough call, because it really hinges on your particular tastes. It didn’t really suit my tastes but I still enjoyed it to an extent. All I can say is check it out for yourself, it could be just what you are looking for.
5.5/10
