In the hip-hop world, an even slightly different style from the norm is startling. The Press Project, the hip-hop group who will be at the Jack McGee's Pub next Thursday, does more than deviate just a little?the group takes a giant step away, combining a classic hip-hop singing style with interesting instrumentals that are more reminiscent of jazz, soul, and funk.
Composed of seven members, The Press Project's music isn't the hip-hop heard at campus parties. Their lyrics are concerned more with the political state of the world and how music relates to all aspects of life.
Formed in early 2005, Cap (Brian Capobianchi), The Face of Fate (Pat Joyce), The Journalist (Alex Beguin), Roland Nicol, Dan "Hollywood" Shure, Jim Dozet, and Jay Trikakis all met at UNH and began the group now known as The Press Project. Cap, the Face of Fate, and The Journalist all provide the vocals, with Nicol on bass, Shure on keyboard, Dozet on guitar, and Trikakis on drums.
Based in Portsmouth, The Press Project has quickly gained fame in the Northeast. In early 2006, the group won one of Boston's foremost Battles of the Bands and quickly progressed from there to open for The Roots, as well as performing at the Spotlight Music and Art Awards.
Touring with Slick Rick, and performing alongisde George Clinton and Robert Randolph, has helped The Press Project cement their status as "one of the premiere emerging underground hip-hop acts" according to the band's bio page.
The mish-mash of hip-hop beats with funky guitar and blues-y piano promises to be a spectacle, one that Bowdoin has surely never seen before and shouldn't miss.
In an article with Redhookfes, Cap said that those who are experiencing The Press Project for the first time should "expect to have the energy sucked out of [them], cycled through seven musicians onstage, and thrown back out in the form of thick bass lines, ill guitar riffs, banging drum solos, keyboards, and lyrics that inspire." Most importantly though, these first-time audience members should "be prepared to sweat."
The group stresses their energy more than anything else. Cap said the group looks at a live performance as "a continuum of energy." They rely on the audience's reaction more than anything, because both the audience and the band have "to come together in that one space; that's the reason enough to pump each other up and enjoy each other's company."
Fellow vocalist and emcee, Alex Beguin said in an e-mail to the Orient that the group is usually "more concerned with the energy of the audience rather than the number."
He expects that the audience is going to want to get up and dance, even to the band's more serious songs.
"Even those are meant for people to dance [to] and have a good time," said Beguin.
Their debut album, "Get Right," is available now at Bullmoose. They have 20 original songs, 14 of which are on the album; they perform some covers by the Roots, Guru, Common, Talib Kweli and other artists.
Samples of their music are on their Web site www.thepressproject.com.
The Press Project will be performing at Jack McGee's on Thursday, November 8.