Artist

CURATOR
WEB SITE:
http://www.blackstaxmusic.com/
LOCATION:Seattle, WA
Black Stax
is the avant-garde of Seattle hip-hop that will release their debut
album Talking Buildings on June 1, 2010. Comprised of MCs Silas Blak
and Jace ECAj and vocalist Felicia Loud, Black Stax creates an eclectic,
urban sound that is reminiscent of The Roots and The coup with a
dash
of classic Janis Joplin.
Black Stax makes creative,
challenging and emotional music with an injection of hip hop and 70s-era
soul. “Our sound is the soul of a songbird full of parables and
riddles. We speak to the streets, classrooms, clubs and community,”
explains Jace ECAj. "It’s more than hip hop, R&B or soul, it’s more
of a classic combination like Soul 2 Soul and Groove Theory or just
dope ass vibe music," adds Blak.
A collaboration that works, Black Stax successfully blends musical genres and attracts a varied and supportive following.
In a recent review, The Stranger
said “what defines Loud is…is her flawless command of the tones and
textures of American Soul…what defines [the MCs] is their commitment to a
hip hop that is complicated at the levels of ideas and expression,
politics and language.”
Besides their unparalleled sound, what sets Black Stax
apart is their ability to put on a memorable live show. Individually
they are veteran performers and collectively they are masters of setting
a vibe and drawing in an audience.
Felicia Loud is a born performer, an impressive stage actress (who most recently starred in Strawberry Theater Workshop's Lay Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill)
and has a reputation for packing live music venues both big and small.
The Seattle Times called her “more than good – she’s a wonder.” Fellow
Black Stax member Silas Blak explains “Felicia brings light to our darkness, clarity to women and intrigues men.”
Silas Blak and Jace ECAj, of the
The Silent Lambs Project, have been a Seattle hip-hop staple since the
1990’s. ”At every Silent Lambs Project concert they remind the audience
that ‘this is serious music.’ It's not ‘innocent’ ass-shaking rap, or
thugged-out ‘reality’ rap, and it isn't watery ‘elevated-consciousness’
rap, either…[they] have figured out is not to make reactionary rap that
provides answers, but to maintain rap as a challenge. As a result, they
write complex, refreshing songs,” raved The Stranger.
Black Stax has appeared in the
pages of The Stranger Newspaper, Seattle Weekly Newspaper and The Hype
Magazine; online features include publicola.net and hiphoppress.com.
They have also performed at Seattle’s popular music venues such as
Rendezvous Jewel Box Theater, Contour, ETG, Langston Hughes Performing
Art Center, ACT Theater, and Chop Suey, at the Malcolm X Hip Hop
Festival and on the national Dope Emporium Tour.-Blackstaxmusic.com
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