Hip-Hop From the Basement

The hardest working stoners in the biz. Hello there,
Kottonmouth Kings fans. Put down your giant bongs, step away from the
half-eaten bag of Cheetos and come up from your parents stank basement. Safely
find your way down to the Midtown Ballroom for a night of worship for the Kings
of your kingdom. The Kottonmouth Kings, a rap-rock crossover based out of
Orange County, California, come to Bend to promote the green movement, and
we’re not talking sustainability and recycling here.

The Kottonmouth
Kings have described themselves as “psychedelic hip-hop punk rock” and the
band’s latest, The Green Album, reached number five on the Billboard
Top Rap Albums chart and is the outfit’s tenth full length studio album. The
tracks range from the straight-up rap anthem “K.O.T.T.O.N.M.O.U.T.H. Song” to
the more rock-influenced “Where I’m Going?” The Kottonmouth Kings are probably
the hardest working stoners in the business-running their own record label,
which hosts 24 other acts as well as their own clothing line.

If you’re more on
the straight-up hip-hop side of things, Vancouver, BC hip-hop heavy hitters
Swollen Members split the headlining bill. In Canada, Swollen Members are one
of the best selling urban acts of all time and have worked hard over the years
to create a name for themselves in the international hip-hop community. The
Members create hip-hop in which the strength lies in the songs, not in flashy
grills and gimmicks. Which is probably why they’ve taken home multiple Juno
Awards (aka the Canadian Grammy) for Best Rap Recording, most recording for
their song “Black Magik.”

Opening in support
of these two crews is our very own homegrown rapper The Dirtball. The rapper,
who sounds strikingly similar to Eminem, grew up in Central Oregon (but hasn’t
been back to town for a while now) and his latest album, Crook
County, pays tribute to that. It’s not too often we get to check up on
our hometown boy, so be sure to make it out of the basement to catch him in
action.

Kottonmouth
Kings, Swollen Members, The Dirtball, Short Dawg the Native

8pm
Saturday, Aug 1. Midtown Ballroom, 52 NW Greenwood Ave.

$24/adv, $28/door

This article appears in Jul 30 – Aug 5, 2009.