“WE CARE ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT US BECAUSE YOUR THOUGHTS ARE NECESSARY IN ORDER FOR US TO TELL YOU THAT WE DON’T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT US . . .”
- DekoyOkt.
What do you get when you combine a Lawyer with a Rapper, Poet, Producer, Graffiti Artist, B-Boy, and DJ? The answer is Jestoneart, Esq. - one of the original members of the underground group known as Atoms Family. Numerous Atoms releases include cult classics: Centa of da Web, "Beyond Human Comprehension;” and Prequel. Those projects inspired solo and collaborative albums like Cannibal Ox's "Cold Vein,” Vast Aire's "Look Mom No Hands,” Hangar 18's "Platinum Debut" and “Sweep the Leg,” Vordul Mega's "Young Havocs,” Cryptic One's "Anti-Mobius Strip Theory” and many more. Undoubtedly, Atoms Fam's contributions have earned them respect within New York City’s underground, and worldwide.
Now, take all of the above and combine it with the dark baselines of old-school reggae (rockers), the deep stringy elements of drum and bass and electronica (rollers), the “boom-bap” of reconstructed break-beats, and clever spoken word poetics and you get TheParadoxicalState - the newest project from the Atoms Family camp. “P.State” consists of lyrical front-man Jestoneart, Esq and his faceless sound-boy DekoyOktopus. Together, this strange duo invites all listeners to join them for a shadowy journey through “DarkCity” and DarkCityDos (Dub Sessions) - P.State’s newest upcoming musical releases on Hoverock Records.
“WE’VE NEVER RECORDED TRACKS IN A STUDIO. WE WILL ALWAYS PREFER A DUSTY-ASS BASEMENT. . .”
- DekoyOkt
DarkCity was born and recorded following the attack on the World Trade Center in September 2001. Both Jest and Dekoy worked and went to school only a few blocks from the World Trade Center. A few minutes following the collapse of the towers, while Jestoneart walked across the Brooklyn Bridge amidst a mass exodus of people who were also trying to get home, Jest recalls looking over at the area where the towers once stood. He recalls seeing nothing except a smoke engulfed “black hole.” Just moments before, Jest and Dekoy struggled to escape the calamity within the same black hole. “The sun was out and the rest of the world was bright as day. But the City was dark . . .” says Jest “ . . . the City’s been dark ever since . . .”
“WE’RE NOT RAPPERS. WE’RE JUST RANDOM CATS WITH EVERYDAY JOBS, EXPERIENCES, PLEASURES, AND PAINS. WE’RE “NINE TO FIVERS” JUST LIKE YOU. WE EXPRESS OUR FRUSTRATIONS THROUGH A DARK COMBINATION OF BEATS AND WORDPLAY . . .”
- Jestoneart, Esq.
DARKCITY: Following the 911 attack, Jest and Dekoy were both separated from their jobs for months. This is when they began recording DarkCity. According to Jest, “DarkCity was really just a personal project for us. We never intended for DarkCity to be released as an album or for any other purpose. It was a personal journal for us.” “A few songs where released on mix-tapes, which caught a buzz in the underground. That’s when we were asked by our former record label to release the whole thing” says Jest.
Among the songs from DarkCity that Jest refers to is “Spectacular Event” - the most controversial piece on DarkCity where Jestoneart raps from the perspective of a terrorist who is preparing for another “spectacular” attack on an enemy. DekoyOkt adds his hard, dark, dub-influenced signature sound to create a theme around Jestoneart’s words that is sure to stir the deepest emotions in anyone who listens. Also, the track “Expandable Men” is another powerful song where Jestoneart’s unusual cadence and endless rhyme-flow weaves the listener through everything from everyday street violence to violence in the Middle East. See also, “Disturbance Identified” where Jest and Dekoy use their descriptive word-play and dark trippy music to compare being in love to being committed in a mental institution. Another notable track from DarkCity is “Resident” where Jest describes the eight-member gang (composed of misfortune, depression, stress, hate, love, loneliness, despair, and envy) that terrorizes DarkCity residents. Jest turns these emotions into human-like characters and describes their ruthless rampage through the streets of DarkCity.
DARKCITY DOS (DubSessions): “DubSessions” is the sequel to the original DarkCity. However, these two albums sound nothing alike. Indeed, Jest seems to tone-down the emotional display seen in “DarkCity.” DekoyOkt also seems to tone-down his emotional musical compositions displayed in DarkCity. Nevertheless, Dubsessions follows the same innovative lyrical and musical experience that one would expect after listening to DarkCity. Like DarkCity, Dubsessions is influenced and inspired by old-school dub Reggae music over reconstructed break-beats. But, unlike DarkCity, Dubsessions is totally inspired by old-school dub, which creates a sound that has never been heard in any rap album. Once again, P.States takes it’s listeners through another incredible experience in P.State’s signature sound.
Among the more notable tracks of Dubsessions is “Respectfully Yours” where P.State comes from the perspective of a woman who was apparently scorned by Jest’s typical male shenanigans. Here, Jest raps as though he reads from a final letter that was written to him by this angry woman, who continues to remind Jest throughout that he will “never be anything more in life than a . . .” In “Sandman Tenant,” Jest provides a heart-wrenching tale of a man that desensitized by the daily violence that takes place outside his window. Jest seems to cope with the violence by . . . sleeping through it all? Here Dekoy adds an awkward mix of dub with cinematic strings that build throughout the song and sets the emotional tone for the following trip-hoppy interlude, “Seconds Before Sleep.” In the track “Holy Ghost” Jestoneart demonstrates his innovative rhyme technique wherein he seems to repeat the same verse over and over - yet each repetition sounds like the first time. “Holy Ghost was created to give listeners the impression that a cycle continues and will never end - even after the song is done, you can continue the same verse forever” says Jestoneart. The innovative song “Black,” features a guest appearance from female rapper F.A.T.A.L.E. Together, the two expand on the color black and it’s significance to daily life in DarkCity. Dekoy demonstrates a lighter dubby side to his typical dark production style.
“WHAT DOES P.STATE SOUND LIKE? NOTHING, REALLY. GOOD LUCK TRYING TO FIGURE THAT SHIT OUT . . .”
- Jestoneart, Esq.
In all, DarkCity and DarkCity Dos (Dubsessions) are light on guest appearances. DarkCity features an appearance by Atoms Family member Alaska (Hangar 18, Definitive Jux) on the song entitled “New York Rock Exchange.” Dubsessions features appearances by the above-mentioned rapper F.A.T.A.L.E, as well as the newest addition to the P.State camp, Chicago underground M.C. Lord Basis (Man Bites Dog Records/ ParadoxicalState). P.State and Lord Basis will be teaming up to release music in the near future. Nevertheless, P.State definitely shows that they can stand on their own and are probably better-off that way.
“THE PARADOXICAL STATE IS NOT A RAP GROUP - ITS A MOVEMENT. ITS EVERYDAY LIFE WHETHER YOU’RE A NINE TO FIVER OR SOMETHING ELSE. IT IS A STORY OF A PERSON THAT LIVES MANY DIFFERENT LIVES - MUCH LIKE YOU PROBABLY DO. BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW, THERE CAN BE MANY HEADS ON YOU, INSTEAD OF ONE . . .”
- Jestoneart and King Alvin
See the “many heads” of the ParadoxicalState (including videos, street interviews, Jestoneart’s drunk-ass dancing, and more) at www.paradoxicalstate.com
VIDEOS:
TheParadoxicalState - Writters Block
TheParadoxicalState - Prophet
- DekoyOkt.
What do you get when you combine a Lawyer with a Rapper, Poet, Producer, Graffiti Artist, B-Boy, and DJ? The answer is Jestoneart, Esq. - one of the original members of the underground group known as Atoms Family. Numerous Atoms releases include cult classics: Centa of da Web, "Beyond Human Comprehension;” and Prequel. Those projects inspired solo and collaborative albums like Cannibal Ox's "Cold Vein,” Vast Aire's "Look Mom No Hands,” Hangar 18's "Platinum Debut" and “Sweep the Leg,” Vordul Mega's "Young Havocs,” Cryptic One's "Anti-Mobius Strip Theory” and many more. Undoubtedly, Atoms Fam's contributions have earned them respect within New York City’s underground, and worldwide.
Now, take all of the above and combine it with the dark baselines of old-school reggae (rockers), the deep stringy elements of drum and bass and electronica (rollers), the “boom-bap” of reconstructed break-beats, and clever spoken word poetics and you get TheParadoxicalState - the newest project from the Atoms Family camp. “P.State” consists of lyrical front-man Jestoneart, Esq and his faceless sound-boy DekoyOktopus. Together, this strange duo invites all listeners to join them for a shadowy journey through “DarkCity” and DarkCityDos (Dub Sessions) - P.State’s newest upcoming musical releases on Hoverock Records.
“WE’VE NEVER RECORDED TRACKS IN A STUDIO. WE WILL ALWAYS PREFER A DUSTY-ASS BASEMENT. . .”
- DekoyOkt
DarkCity was born and recorded following the attack on the World Trade Center in September 2001. Both Jest and Dekoy worked and went to school only a few blocks from the World Trade Center. A few minutes following the collapse of the towers, while Jestoneart walked across the Brooklyn Bridge amidst a mass exodus of people who were also trying to get home, Jest recalls looking over at the area where the towers once stood. He recalls seeing nothing except a smoke engulfed “black hole.” Just moments before, Jest and Dekoy struggled to escape the calamity within the same black hole. “The sun was out and the rest of the world was bright as day. But the City was dark . . .” says Jest “ . . . the City’s been dark ever since . . .”
“WE’RE NOT RAPPERS. WE’RE JUST RANDOM CATS WITH EVERYDAY JOBS, EXPERIENCES, PLEASURES, AND PAINS. WE’RE “NINE TO FIVERS” JUST LIKE YOU. WE EXPRESS OUR FRUSTRATIONS THROUGH A DARK COMBINATION OF BEATS AND WORDPLAY . . .”
- Jestoneart, Esq.
DARKCITY: Following the 911 attack, Jest and Dekoy were both separated from their jobs for months. This is when they began recording DarkCity. According to Jest, “DarkCity was really just a personal project for us. We never intended for DarkCity to be released as an album or for any other purpose. It was a personal journal for us.” “A few songs where released on mix-tapes, which caught a buzz in the underground. That’s when we were asked by our former record label to release the whole thing” says Jest.
Among the songs from DarkCity that Jest refers to is “Spectacular Event” - the most controversial piece on DarkCity where Jestoneart raps from the perspective of a terrorist who is preparing for another “spectacular” attack on an enemy. DekoyOkt adds his hard, dark, dub-influenced signature sound to create a theme around Jestoneart’s words that is sure to stir the deepest emotions in anyone who listens. Also, the track “Expandable Men” is another powerful song where Jestoneart’s unusual cadence and endless rhyme-flow weaves the listener through everything from everyday street violence to violence in the Middle East. See also, “Disturbance Identified” where Jest and Dekoy use their descriptive word-play and dark trippy music to compare being in love to being committed in a mental institution. Another notable track from DarkCity is “Resident” where Jest describes the eight-member gang (composed of misfortune, depression, stress, hate, love, loneliness, despair, and envy) that terrorizes DarkCity residents. Jest turns these emotions into human-like characters and describes their ruthless rampage through the streets of DarkCity.
DARKCITY DOS (DubSessions): “DubSessions” is the sequel to the original DarkCity. However, these two albums sound nothing alike. Indeed, Jest seems to tone-down the emotional display seen in “DarkCity.” DekoyOkt also seems to tone-down his emotional musical compositions displayed in DarkCity. Nevertheless, Dubsessions follows the same innovative lyrical and musical experience that one would expect after listening to DarkCity. Like DarkCity, Dubsessions is influenced and inspired by old-school dub Reggae music over reconstructed break-beats. But, unlike DarkCity, Dubsessions is totally inspired by old-school dub, which creates a sound that has never been heard in any rap album. Once again, P.States takes it’s listeners through another incredible experience in P.State’s signature sound.
Among the more notable tracks of Dubsessions is “Respectfully Yours” where P.State comes from the perspective of a woman who was apparently scorned by Jest’s typical male shenanigans. Here, Jest raps as though he reads from a final letter that was written to him by this angry woman, who continues to remind Jest throughout that he will “never be anything more in life than a . . .” In “Sandman Tenant,” Jest provides a heart-wrenching tale of a man that desensitized by the daily violence that takes place outside his window. Jest seems to cope with the violence by . . . sleeping through it all? Here Dekoy adds an awkward mix of dub with cinematic strings that build throughout the song and sets the emotional tone for the following trip-hoppy interlude, “Seconds Before Sleep.” In the track “Holy Ghost” Jestoneart demonstrates his innovative rhyme technique wherein he seems to repeat the same verse over and over - yet each repetition sounds like the first time. “Holy Ghost was created to give listeners the impression that a cycle continues and will never end - even after the song is done, you can continue the same verse forever” says Jestoneart. The innovative song “Black,” features a guest appearance from female rapper F.A.T.A.L.E. Together, the two expand on the color black and it’s significance to daily life in DarkCity. Dekoy demonstrates a lighter dubby side to his typical dark production style.
“WHAT DOES P.STATE SOUND LIKE? NOTHING, REALLY. GOOD LUCK TRYING TO FIGURE THAT SHIT OUT . . .”
- Jestoneart, Esq.
In all, DarkCity and DarkCity Dos (Dubsessions) are light on guest appearances. DarkCity features an appearance by Atoms Family member Alaska (Hangar 18, Definitive Jux) on the song entitled “New York Rock Exchange.” Dubsessions features appearances by the above-mentioned rapper F.A.T.A.L.E, as well as the newest addition to the P.State camp, Chicago underground M.C. Lord Basis (Man Bites Dog Records/ ParadoxicalState). P.State and Lord Basis will be teaming up to release music in the near future. Nevertheless, P.State definitely shows that they can stand on their own and are probably better-off that way.
“THE PARADOXICAL STATE IS NOT A RAP GROUP - ITS A MOVEMENT. ITS EVERYDAY LIFE WHETHER YOU’RE A NINE TO FIVER OR SOMETHING ELSE. IT IS A STORY OF A PERSON THAT LIVES MANY DIFFERENT LIVES - MUCH LIKE YOU PROBABLY DO. BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW, THERE CAN BE MANY HEADS ON YOU, INSTEAD OF ONE . . .”
- Jestoneart and King Alvin
See the “many heads” of the ParadoxicalState (including videos, street interviews, Jestoneart’s drunk-ass dancing, and more) at www.paradoxicalstate.com
VIDEOS:
TheParadoxicalState - Writters Block
TheParadoxicalState - Prophet
