GRINDER

YBFREE.com: An Alternative Entertainment E-Zine
Copyright 2004
August 2004
Grinder
By: Jennifer Walford
Usually when you get a rap rock band, they either lean too much toward rock or too much toward hip hop. Grinder, however, is a perfect mix with a dash of punk. The Group perfectly kneads both genres into a socially conscious airtight musical experience.

This is the New Jersey based quintet’s first album and it is undeniably a monster hit! The sound and lyrics are poppin’ fresh and could rival any of the mainstream bands today. This thirteen-track album will keep your head bopin’ and give you an unnerving need to want to mosh. The album opens full force with the socially conscious observations of Promise Land

Enter a world where logistics are moot/where regurgitated answers speak from tailored suits/shoot first from the hip with ammo from the lip/when the bullet shells fall quick reload the clip/with Glock and Tech 9 and infrared scope/the war on the street is battled over dope/we're territorial like dogs we mark by pissin'/calculated hits intended target missin'

One thing I have to say about artists influenced by hip hop is that their lyrical and musical influences are probably among the most diverse. While most people deny the musical influence of the Disco era, Grinder pays the best homage I have ever heard with a Tribute to Disco. From Freddy Stubbs to Sister Sledge right down to the dance stylings of John Travolta this party song remembers disco with a ton of funk, rock, and rap. This song is just so great it is hard to explain, so here are a few snippets just to give you some essence of how great it is:

Freddy Stubs, Freddy Stubs (Re-Run ‘What’s Happin’?) you know that brother with the fatty nubs/Freddy Stubs, Freddy Stubs red suspenders and the fatty nubs

Strutin’ my stuff to the new debut looking for a scene something that’s neutral I do it butter I do it Crisco. Listen up Mother Fucka it’s a tribute to disco.

If my ravings have not sold you on this band, maybe some of their other credentials will. Grinder has performed with such top name acts as Kid Rock, Eminem, Everlast, and Blink 182. The band currently music can also be heard (and you probably already have!) on MTV’s Road Rules and Extreme Challenge.

All I can say is that Callitstylin’ kicks ass! Hands down one of the best independent CDs I have ever heard! From start to finish you will be groovin’ and head banging to each track. This group has the makings of stardom. Mix a little hip-hop, a little rock and throw in a dash of punk; put it through the Grinder and out comes the tightest musical masterpiece anyone’s ever seen from the independent scene. Grind to this!

Send your questions and comments about this article to JenniferJ@ybfree.com.
- Jennifer Walford, YBFREE.com