Army of the Pharaohs' new album The Unholy Terror has been getting its fair share of spins over at the Case de Ivan. The Philly-based supergroup has put out yet another solid effort with gritty beats and murderous raps (as usual). One particular song to catch my ear is track thirteen on the album, "Burn You Alive". The spooky piano murmurs and pounding bass create the perfect atmosphere for one of the most pleasant-sounding choruses in recent memory; ironic since the lyrics are about as sadistic and twisted as can be. Interestingly enough, the hook is performed using auto-tune. Call it blasphemy or call it mockery, either way my position is that when autotune is done right I can't complain - and these guys have got it right.
Most intriguingly though, another element that makes this track so engaging is the sample they dug up: Janis Ian's "In the Winter", released in 1975. Written, arranged and scored by Ian, "In the Winter" features the lyrics "For a dime I can talk to God/ Dial-a-prayer/ Are you there?/ Do you care?/ Are you there?", effectively scooped up by AOTP. A+ crate digging for Triple Z:
Most intriguingly though, another element that makes this track so engaging is the sample they dug up: Janis Ian's "In the Winter", released in 1975. Written, arranged and scored by Ian, "In the Winter" features the lyrics "For a dime I can talk to God/ Dial-a-prayer/ Are you there?/ Do you care?/ Are you there?", effectively scooped up by AOTP. A+ crate digging for Triple Z:
"In the Winter" by Janis Ian
Example:
"Burn You Alive" by Army of the Pharaohs
