Rating: NNNN
The French are famous for their appreciation of fine stinky cheeses, and the latest effort from Gallic hiphop crew TTC is some deliciously slick fromage. In lieu of gangsta posturing and bling, these Franco fools are all about self-parodic geek chic – hence the album title, which means “sensitive bastards” en français. It’s a sleazy collage of bloopy Axel F-style synths and squelchy electro beats, with sparse production that keeps the MC triumvirate’s voices front and centre. Unlike MC Solaar’s gruff mumbles, TTC’s Tido Berman, Teki Latex and Cuizinier affect a weirdly over-enunciated, goofy delivery, which is cool cuz most kids with a high school French education can pick up on a good portion of their hysterical rhymes (the title track is a killer evisceration of sissy indie boys, à la the Faint’s Desperate Guys). The one low point is Latest Dance Craze, the only English-language rap, on which Radioinactive’s Busdriver does his best imitation of Ed Robertson in BNL’s One Week.
