Erik Lamb

I've listened to Erik Lamb's newest CD -Shoot Everything- close to 50 times since it came out on July 24, 2010 and about half of those times have been straight through. With the exception of "The Intro to the Intro," I can easily listen to the whole CD non-stop. The verses are intelligent, you know all the chorus' after hearing them a handful of times, the audio and movie clips are placed perfectly under the overkill line, and the production value is as crisp as you'll find. Overall, fans of clever rhymes and catchy hooks will find this album easy on the ears.

"The Intro" featuring Skobie Won, is a perfect first track, almost telling the listener to open their ears because something is about to happen. Though none of the songs sound alike or share a common theme, all of them have a distinctive feel. After your first listen, you can already tell that Erik knows how record a solid CD. You won’t find any miss-stepped words, or mangled pronunciations here, nearly everything on the CD is flawless. The only time you may get lost as a listener is when Erik throws out a word you’ve never heard before, and you’re left wondering how a hip-hop song just made use of “derivatives.”

In all honesty, I've never been a fan of hip-hop over electronic/techno/dubstep/what-have-you type beats, but laced with Erik’s words and the way he delivers them, I've found the perfect balance of enjoyment. For example, listening to the beat of “Yellow Fever” alone wouldn’t be that interesting to me, but after only the first 8 bars of lyrics I am, and you will be, instantly hooked with the way the words and beat combine. When you can listen and enjoy an artist outside your bubble of preference, that's saying something.

On top of Erik’s rhymes being clever and well delivered, he touches on so many subjects I could never list them all. He references everything from his South Korean culture to Greek mythology and everything in between. I have no problem saying that I don't get or understand many of his lines, but every time I listen to Shoot Everything I understand more and more. Even in my everyday life I've found myself suddenly understanding another line in one of his songs, saying "oh shit, I get it now. Daaaaamn." His lyrics are more than pop culture references and witty similes, Erik Lamb is on a completely different level than the other "I hustle, make money, buy expensive things" rappers and I'm sure he'd be willing to prove it anytime.

My one and only problem with this album is that, while I understand the preference to lay down eight polished tracks and not add three half-assed ones just to keep us fans happy, as soon as the songs on Shoot Everything really get going, it’s almost over. The first two tracks (“Intro to the Intro” and “Introduction ft Skobie”) almost serve as a warm-up, where Erik shows you what he can do and how he does it. Then tracks three through six (title track “Shoot Everything,” “Hello World,” “Peapod” and “7:30 Darling”) are Erik unleashing on you non-stop. Tracks seven and eight (“Yellow Fever” and “Pyrthic Victory”) are more experimental beats and styles that take the entire experience to a new level. Then the last track comes to an end, and you are left begging Erik in your head - "no! Wait, gimmie like 2... No 3 more!" “Pyrthic Victory” is an epic cliffhanger – making sure you’ll know when his next CD comes out.

In a time where everyone wants to go to the store and buy music packaged nicely, in bulk for a fair price, then make it and eat it in as little time as possible, Erik Lamb has gone out, killed the cow, gutted it with his bare hands, cooked, seasoned and then served it to you as fresh and humanely possible and we appreciate the time and effort. The fact that it’s MSG free only makes it better.


Reviewers pick - “7:30 Darling”A perfectly-made song with a verse that gets your attention and a chorus that gets you singing along with your hands up. 10x better live and in the front row. - James McKeon (of Catfish Phillips)

CD Review by Adam Wujtewicz

I always wondered why there weren’t more hip-hop artists that embraced beats with more of a techno/electronica sound. I may have been looking in the wrong place all this time but Erik Lamb is doing it and he’s making it sound like a viable option.

Shoot Everything is as professional sounding an album as you’ll hear. All the sounds are crisp, the vocals are all duplicated in the right places and the beats all bounce at the right tempo. None of this makes Shoot Everything sound cookie cutter… it means it’s easy on the ears, it means that there is more than likely going to be some fist pumping going on at his shows. Actually I think the thing that takes the longest to get used to is Erik’s voice. It’s got an Aesop Rock sort of nasal quality that gives it character. I personally love Aesop Rock and think his voice is his best attribute and similarly with Erik Lamb. He’s got an incredibly laid back sound to his voice no matter how fast his rapping or what he’s rapping about. It’s a sort of quiet confidence that is incredibly refreshing when compared to the soulless mainstream hip-hop chest-beating and materialism.

Speaking of mainstream hip-hop, stealing a page from Jay Z and twisting it into a clever turn of phrase Erik says "99 problems, the past is done, I’ve got 99 bananas let me pass you some” in “Peapod”. Things like that make me laugh and that’s what makes hip-hop fun, and isn’t that why we’re listening? The song after “Peapod” is “7:30” and that’s my vote for best beat on the record. Just about every tone in the song has the skipping CD sound to it and when you line them all up it sounds amazing.

Shoot Everything is equal parts indie rap intelligence and mass appeal madness. This may be one of the only records that fist pumping goons, uber stoned cheeba monkeys and everyone in between can agree on the merits of.

Visit Erik Lamb's Band Camp Page to download this album, as well as check out his previous recordings posted. - WailingCity.com

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Q: Hello Erik Lamb! To get things started, let's get the basics out of the way...

A: Hi, yes, thanks, my name is Erik Lamb and I was born in Incheon, South Korea. I grew up in the New England area, and I am a Raiders fan.


Q: Raiders Nation! I see you. So tell me, how did you start doing what you do as far as music?

A: When I was 10 or so I took piano classes from a lady who lived a few miles from my house. I was eventually kicked out of her program, but that was, technically speaking, my first exposure to how music works (outside of listening to it). After high school I was living in my car and performing at house parties/local shows/open mics, using either beats that I had written in Garageband or an old Casio keyboard a la the Capricorns. After that I moved in with some friends I met through performing and spent about a year writing, studying, and figuring out how to do what I was doing. Around the same time I met a guy named N.M.E. and through him a bunch of other people who were all kinda doing a similar thing, and we've been fam ever since.


Q: Sounds exciting! So how exactly would you classify what you do?

A: I rap. I hate when sub-genres get too specific. I grew up listening to the Lyricist Lounge, and in my mind that's what I am doing.


Q: So who are some of your influences then?

A: Lately I have been listening to a lot of electronic stuff. Rusko, the Glitch Mob, Crystal Castles, La Roux. As far as rap, I am primarily influenced by the stuff that came out in the mid 90's - Hiero, Camp Lo, Big Pun, Blackstar, Digital Underground...I could go on forever. Shock G and Slick Rick are two of my favorite rappers ever. When I was younger, like 2nd grade-ish, I was exposed to a lot of the stuff Teddy Riley touched, and a lot of really classic rap. I don't know if it's nostalgia, but all that stuff is all that to me. My friend's older sisters knew what was up haha.


Q: What is your creative process like? How do you write your songs/music?

A: Everything except my most recent album (Shoot Everything) I wrote/produced/whatever'd using Garageband. For Shoot Everything, Skobie produced almost all of it except for one song and the intro. He is really good with Reason, and I've learned enough from working with him on the album to smoothly transition from one program to the other. As far as writing, I have no idea....I freestyle a lot, and often put everything else on hold if I have a good idea.


Q: Interesting insight. So for those of us who haven't had the pleasure of attending, what is an "Erik Lamb show" like?

A: About 95% of the time I perform with Skobie. We form a group called Sexual Healing. There are fans who are sweating ethanol and breathing fire, there are pheromones on the inside of the venue and vomit on the outside. Everyone is moving around, including the hard-asses at the bar who put down their Heineken to throw their hands up. Girls are usually drooling, but in an attractive way, not an "I-have-no-sweat-glands" manner. The bartenders tip jar is full, and sometimes I lose my shoes.


Q: What a sales pitch! Well thank you for your time Erik. Is there anything else you'd like to add? Any last words?

A: No bottles to break - just hearts. Arpege Perfume

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- interview by DJ Sleevs