One Above Below None

The Great: Hip hop crew One Above Below None, 2015’s winners of the EMP Sound Off! Competition, started things off with a throw-down bang. Bounding across the stage with the confidence of guys half their age, MCs Devante Cash and Mundy delivered refreshingly unsentimental but sometimes bluntly poetic lyrics, charged up big-time by Quise’s forceful real-drum backbeat and some nearly Black Sabbath-level heavy live guitars. - Tony Kay

Dynamic and currently thriving in the Seattle hip-hop scene, One Above Below None dropped this four-song EP treat in advance of their Bumbershoot debut this Saturday, 9/5/15, at 1:45 PM on the Rhapsody Stage. The four man crew stands out from many of their Town peers in that they’ve prioritized their live stage presentation, folding expert live instrumentation into their tight, engaging performances. OABN can be counted among the new wave of Seattle acts poised to define the city’s current rap movement. - 206up

Soon thereafter, the Vera Stage was treated to another local hip-hop outfit, albeit one I’d never heard of, One Above Below None. They were a hip-hop duo, also backed with a live band. Some point into their set, they’d mentioned that a lot of the songs they were performing, they’d never performed live before, which surprised me, because considering how much charisma and proficiency they had live, it seemed like they’d been doing this for quite a while now. The duo masterfully tag-teamed verses, and brought so much energy that it was impossible to deny. Though the crowd was small, the applause between songs was massive. They’re certainly a local act to watch out for. - Jess Casebeer