The New Beasties?

I promised a blog entry on Das Racist. The hip-hop trio from Brooklyn have released two mix tapes and are set to release their first commercial release Relax next month. And dare I say it, these guys are the new Beastie Boys.

For now, let's count the reasons why you need to listen to these guys.

#1) Great references
They name-check Gerard Depardieu and Alexander Ovechkin in "Speaking in Tongues", and manage to mention conservative guru Dinesh D'Souza, Maya Angelou, W.E.B. Dubois, John Philip Sousa AND the 1987 movie Throw Momma From the Train in a song called "Hugo Chavez".

#2) A good sense of musical history
They tag everyone from A Tribe Called Quest to Cream. And that's just in one song -- "Who's That? Brown" from 2010's Shut Up, Dude.

#3) Narc (!!!)
The video for "Who's That? Brown!" is essentially an homage to the classic arcade game of our youth (and also references Frogger among other games) and it links to an online video game you can actually play.

#4) Great samples
Check out their use of Enigma's "Return to Innocence" from Sit Down, Man (which also references actors Mark Ruffalo and Sam Rockwell.)

And how about this use of Billy Joel's "Movin' Out (Anthony's Song)" in "You Oughta Know"? They manage to poke fun and pay tribute all at once. Priceless.

#5) The perfect balance of the juvenile and the profound
Take their breakthrough song -- an ode to American consumerism called "Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell" -- about getting lost at one of several combination Pizza Hut/Taco Bells in Queens. It's the musical equivalent of Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle and it's pretty awesome.

#6) "Shorty Said"
This song makes me laugh out loud. Especially the string of Indian references Heems makes starting around 1:44. I have no idea what it all means but he just keeps piling it on -- it's sublime. If you want the full effect of Das Racist, play this song.

#7) Not just a one-trick pony
When you get tired of all the staccato raps, chill out with "Fashion Party" -- a track they did with the Boulder/ Williamsburg band Chairlift. And laugh at lines like "I'm at the fashion party/I'm wearing fashion clothes/I'm putting fashionable powders up inside my nose" and "The pope wears Prada/The devil wears Prada/I can't be bothered/I'm trying to holler."

I could go on. I just remember the days when I'd listen to Paul's Boutique and get lost in the references and the samples. And I know it's sacrilege, and Das Racist haven't stood the test of time -- yet -- but these guys are smart, funny and have the potential of doing the Beasties one better. Or at least they are poised to be to this era what the Beasties were to the 80s. There's just a whole lot here to like.