Music reviews. CD reviews. Critically hip!

Rapping about Leif Erikson and De Colores doesn’t exactly make you hardcore, but the Flobots – who hail from Denver, Colorado – aren’t necessarily trying to hang in there with artists like Nas and Eminem. Rather, these seven talented young musicians would like to be compared to the likes of Linkin Park and possibly even the Beastie Boys. This is a fresh group, with two talented emcees – Brer Rabbit and Jonny 5 – who are backed up by some usually uncommon instruments in hip hop, including a viola (Mackenzie Roberts) and a trumpet (Joe Ferrone). The rest of the group is equally talented, with Andy Guerrero (guitar/vocals), Kenny O. (drums), and Jesse Walker (bass) rounding out the sevensome.

If you are looking for a new sound in the indie hip hop scene, then look no further than Flobots. Their rhymes are both catchy and meaningful, and the group is incredibly outspoken in the area of politics.

The catchy lead track from the album is Handlebars, and you’ve probably heard this one on a local alternative station. It’s a song about the new generation, saying that it’s time for us to show that we can do things on our own. It’s blowing up all over the country, and it’s only a matter of time before fans begin to listen to more of this intriguing new group. Same Thing has a solid repeating riff that you’ll remember for days and days. Stand Up has quite possibly the most powerful chorus that I’ve heard in awhile, and it goes as follows:

Stand up/
We shall not be moved/
Except by a child with no socks and shoes/
Except by a woman dying from a loss of food/
Except for a freedom fighter bleeding on a cross for you/
Stand up/
We shall not be moved/
And we won’t fight a war for a fossil fuel/
It’s times like this when you want to plot a coup/

Put your hands up and I’ll copy you/ Basically, this is a group that could move a nation of youths that finally want to get involved. Thankfully the Flobots arrived just in time to save us from…