The Madlib Mystique

Very well written article from LA Weekly on easily one of my favorite artists ever, Madlib. Check it out. Here are a couple of my favorite quotes from the article.

Read “The Madlib Mystique” at LA Weekly

Everyone can listen to music, but Madlib’s ears detect alternate frequencies. He’s a ghost-whisperer summoning analog ancestors — a ferocious Bootsy Collins bass line, a Mario Van Peebles film clip, a half-bar Hugh Masekela horn blast, an extemporaneous Redman ad-lib, a funky-but-forgotten Mantronix drum break. A mad scientist breaking beats down to their molecular level, seamlessly stitching loops and reshaping them into something with preternatural groove.

At a time when Eminem is writing 12-step odes to sobriety, Madlib is one of the few who truly does not give a fuck.

“I do it for myself and for like-minded people. Half the time I don’t know why I make what I do.” He flashes a Loki-like smirk. “I’d do this if no one was listening. I’m stuck. I’ve got the curse.”

Madlib doesn’t need any of the trappings of success. He’s content to loom in the background and create alternate cosmologies — aware that it’s always better to be heard than to be seen. After all, he may be the last person left whom we allow to disappear.

(All quotes taken from LA Weekly)