Check'd

Artist Information

Biography

Check'd is a politically charged nerdcore hip-hop group that spawned out of Portland, Oregon in May, 2006. Since then, Check'd has recorded two EPs, one full length album - titled Project: Reconstruction (P:RC) - and does shows regularly in the Eugene and Portland areas.

Check'd was founded by MC's Onegin Offegan, Jon the Rappist, and King Oliver. Together, they recorded 'The Check'd EP' in July, 2006. In December of 2006, trumpeter Your Funk joined the band and helped record 'The Non-Violent Fist EP.'

In the summer of 2007, Testament joined the group as an MC to complete the quintet that recorded Check'd's first full length album - Project: Reconstruction. P:RC also marks the first full length release on Haunted House Records, the record label owned by King Oliver and Onegin Offegan of Check'd.

Check'd is driven to create political music that is reproduced in sustainable ways. All CD packaging is hand made by Check'd using 100% recycled paper.

Recently, MC Jon the Rappist left Check'd.

Instrumentation

Christopher Uehlein (aka Onegin Offegan) - MC/Producer
Bryan Oliver (aka King Oliver) - MC
Derrick Francis (aka Testament) - MC
Cory Polacios (aka Your Funk) - Trumpet
Fritts Misanthrope - Turntables

Discography

2006 - The Check'd EP
2006 - The Non-Violent Fist EP
2007 - Project: Reconstruction LP

All tracks on The Non-Violent Fist EP and Project: Reconstruction have had streaming play on Last.FM, Virb, and many others.

Official Website

http://checkdrevolution.com

Audio

• Wal-Mart on Fire
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• Rocket Ship
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• Fear
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Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Politcal Hip-Hop [+ Show ]
  

  Political hip hop is not quite an accurate description of the sophisticated, whimsical lyrics of thi...Political hip hop is not quite an accurate description of the sophisticated, whimsical lyrics of this troupe. The term gives no sense of the intricate musicality that Check’d weaves into its tracks. One of my personal favorites, “Imaginary Riot,” incorporates a feet-movin’, body-groovin’ trumpet solo melded together with a contagious clapping underlay, combined with a beat-popping keyboard and riot-inspiring vocals. “There’s gonna be a riot/A stampede/Throw your hands up/If you do agree with me/There’s no justice/No peace/No security/’Cause freedom ain’t free,” shouts the troupe, and frankly, I’m already on my feet.
  Each song on this album seems to have come from my ADD-driven dreams: unique and ending on a different riff every time. “Non-Violent Fist,” “Wal-Mart on Fire,” and “Welcome to America” are excellent examples of Check’d mixing the musical equivalents of ranch and BBQ sauce, then dipping their deliciously crispy lyric-nuggets into their new creamy-sweet condiment. In “Wal-Mart on Fire,” Onegin puts it simply, “There’s famine and kids/Who would kill for a piece of/Jammin’ up bread/There’s workers in other countries /Who are better off dead/You know this country’s so wrecked/You know, if you ask me/ Earth should get itself Check’d.” I couldn’t agree more.
  True to nonconformity, Check’d is a local gem that shouts out from beautiful Portland, OR. Icing on the cake? Their album’s cover is made from 100% recycled paper. For its mind-buzzing mellifluousness, powerful messages, and pleasing use of environmentally –friendly packaging, Check’d gets eight scrumptious nuggets out of ten.

• Braille, Check'd, DLUX, Andy Stack [+ Show ]
  

  DIVERSE HIP-HOP] If you haven't heard from Braille lately, it's not because he's sitting on his hand...DIVERSE HIP-HOP] If you haven't heard from Braille lately, it's not because he's sitting on his hands. The Lightheaded alumnus has been spreading his hip-hop/gospel throughout the U.S. and Europe, and judging from the pictures he brought back, he packed some stadium-sized venues along the way. The Hawthorne Theatre might feel a little cramped by comparison. The Portland-based sci-fi/revolution nerds in Check'd aren't the most lyrically refined openers on the block (with the notable exception of Onegin Offegan, who is actually pretty quick and original on the mic), but they have a certain Soul Sonic Force-meets-Rapping Rodney charm, and fight valiantly for the title of "most meta hip-hop outfit in Portland." CASEY JARMAN.

• Boo! Local Label Turns Two! [+ Show ]
  

  Boo! Local Label Turns Two The voices lead the way by Jeremy Ohmes Chris Uehlein says he hea...Boo! Local Label Turns Two
  The voices lead the way
  by Jeremy Ohmes
  
  
  Chris Uehlein says he heard voices growing up. They spoke outside of his bedroom; they sang from the attic. “Oh, my house was definitely haunted,” asserts the 20-year-old music student. He doesn’t know exactly what the ghosts were saying, but they must have howled some encouragement his way. A musician since his salad days, Uehlein had always aspired to support himself with his art, but he didn’t know how to break into the music industry. “So I decided to make the industry myself,” says the enterprising UO sophomore. With his friend Bryan Oliver and the motto “Fuck man, we can do that,” he started Haunted House Records, a fiercely independent label that holds radical politics and social consciousness near and dear to its DIY heart.
  
  Initially, Haunted House revolved around Check’d, a politically driven experimental hip-hop group, and Spring Project, a metal band, of both of which Uehlein is a member. But what began as little more than a vanity project has evolved into a legitimate, up-and-coming label. In the last two years, Uehlein has doubled the roster (from two to four bands) and expanded his vision of Haunted House’s business model. “It’s not just music we want to put out,” says Uehlein. “It’s more of an art collective … I want to put out the stuff from the people I believe in, from graphic novels to poetry books to paintings.” Recently, the label has promoted a status quo-skewering collage artist named Fritz as well as “signed” (more mutual agreement than a contract) Testament, an MC out of Brooklyn, and the Alder St. All Stars, a radical bluegrass/honky-tonk group based out of the student-run Campbell Club co-op.
  
  At the core of Haunted House Records is a subversive, DIY spirit that not only unites the label’s artists but also just makes sense financially. Uehlein cuts down on costs by making and producing nearly everything in-house. He records, mixes and masters most of the bands at his home studio, and he hand-makes all the packaging and promotional materials (from 100 percent recycled material, of course). It’s this self-sustainability and business savvy that has Uehlein thinking he could do this full-time for a very long time. Maybe those voices from his childhood home keep giving him good ideas, but he’s already planning to buy property in Portland and transform the label into an autarkic artist’s co-op. Hopefully, that house will be
  haunted, too.
  
  Haunted House Records Two-Year Anniversary with Check’d,the Alder St. All Stars and Testament. 9 pm Friday, June 6, Campbell Club, 1670 Alder $4 or whatever you can donate
  
  

Setlist

Our sets feature original songs as well as freestyles and call-and-response style songs. Our typical set has been 45 minutes long, but we can fill longer and shorter sets.

Our last shows set list was as follows:

Rocket Ship
Introduction
Mathematics
Wal-Mart on Fire
The Nasty Face
Fear
Welcome to America
And it All Started with a Little Love
Non-Violent Fist

Basic Requirements

Calendar