| ||||||
|
| |||||
| ||||||
| ||||||
| ||||||
| ||||||
| ||||||
|
The Gauntlet
Offsides - Foul Language [Odouble F Records/URBNET] By NA Offsides don't need pimp style to party Hip-hop outfit prefer life's struggles to cars and cash in their rhymes Navin Jagasia The Offsides with Tru-Paz and Mood Ruff Sidetrack Café Tuesday, 16 November at 8pm Nowadays, mainstream rap is mostly about expensive cars, shiny jewelry, and gang bangers. While many feel that image is what most listeners will buy into, occasionally you get the courageous few willing to sidestep conventional attitudes in favour of something different. In a lot of ways, Montréal-based rap group The Offsides try to do just that—staying true to the roots of hip hop by rapping about their personal lifestyles and struggles. “We don’t rap about cars and girls because that isn’t who we are,” says the group’s MC Bailey. “We are about creativity and the artistic aspect. We are educated and business minded, and we got the skills to throw down a party.” Their style stems from, but isn’t confined to, the East-Coast sound, with close similarities to Talib Kweli and a hint of Kanye West. But the group’s creative inspiration comes from artists such as Jay-Z, Naz, and Eminem, because of their unique abilities with wordplay. “But we have our own Offsides style as well,” claims Bailey, who describes a typical Offsides show as a mix of tempos and style, courtesy of the group’s three MCs—Bailey, Lowkey, and Malicious—and their DJ, DR ONE, who is a “master of scratching.” “We speed it up and get the crowd moving and we slow it down to get the crowd thinking. Sometimes we just kill the beat cold and rap without music, and that really pumps everyone up,” says Bailey of The Offsides’ shows. But as far as describing The Offsides’ style, Bailey says that nothing captures the group better than their favourite track off their newest LP, Foul Language. The song is “Motivation,” a track that Bailey says gives the realest impression of what The Offsides are about as a group. Though Bailey and his bandmates aren’t thugs from the hood, they have had their share of struggle—trying to make it in the diminutive Canadian rap market since 2000. Citing instances of discrimination and jealousy, Bailey says obstacles only helped the group stay motivated to work hard. “We have a long way to go, and we know what we have to do. We are confident we got the skills and we hope people become fans,” he says. But like a lot of budding artists who are still tied to the underground scene, popularity is both a blessing and threat to the future of their careers. “In an interview in Montréal I was asked about piracy, and the interviewer did a quick search and found a lot of our songs on the Internet. Even though I was happy people are listening to our songs, and we are gaining popularity, we need people to buy our album because that’s the only way we can stay alive.” And Offside record buyers have the assurance these guys will be putting the money they earn off of CD royalties to a good use—or at least they won’t be blowing it all on pimped rides and bling.  | ||||||
| ||||||
|
 |