Tes - 'X2' (Lex)
4/5
By: Matt Tomiak
Now this really does represent a dilemma. How best does a middle-class Brit with a grounding strictly within the confines of the indie-guitar ghetto best go about reviewing Tes - New York's most hotly-tipped new MC? Should the street vernacular featuring on his website ('Tes is the Geiger of sound killing shit like no one else!') be utilised? Nah - it'll probably just end up sounding like a painful Chris Morris sketch.
So we won't inform you that Tes is the most kinnin', happenin', succeeded cat in the hood right now. But he is rather good. 'X2' is an album full of lo-fi, eerie scratchy hip-hop and minimalist piano-loops: altogether coming off like a sort of rap-equivalent of the eels.
A lifetime spent in Brooklyn provides most of the lyrical inspiration: 'If you listen to Tes/You'll know where I'm from', he confesses on 'New New York'. By turns, Tes' (Terrence Tessora to his mum) confident, rapid-fire delivery showcased via the record tells of a difficult upbringing, financial hardship, and a struggle to escape from crime; 'Receiver' in particular does an effective job of encapsulating his fight to make it in music, and it's an endearing quality never too gloomily wallowing in its own introspection.
Suffice to say that, whilst the 50 Cent's of the world kick up a storm of controversy along the lines of bullet-hole wounds and outstanding doctor-payments, it's aural refreshment to know that a cohesively less taboo-seeking hip-hop playa is lining the streets with a sound that could easily form one of 2003's most eloquently enticing listens. It feels as if something's happening here.
Artists in this article: Tes, Test-Icicles
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