El-P

Infobox musical artist |
Name =


Img_capt = El-P live at Irving Plaza, February 10, 2007
Img_size = 250
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Jaime Meline
Alias = El-Producto, Lazerface
Born = birth date and age|1975|3|4
Died =
Origin = flagicon|USA Brooklyn, New York City, United States
Genre = Hip hop
Occupation = Producer, Rapper
Years_active = 1993 – Present
Label = Definitive Jux
Thirsty Ear
Associated_acts = Company Flow
Central Services
The Weathermen
URL = [http://www.definitivejux.net/ Definitive Jux]
[http://www.definitivejux.net/jukies/el-p/ Definitive Jux - Bio]
Notable_instruments =

El-P aka El-Producto (born Jaime Meline on March 4, 1975) is an American hip hop artist and entrepreneur from Brooklyn, New York City. A major driving force in alternative hip hop for over a decade,cite web |url=http://wc05.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:fbfpxq8jldae~T1 |title=allmusic ((( El-P > Biography ))) |accessdate=2007-10-04 |publisher=Allmusic ] he is the co-founder, owner and CEO of the Definitive Jux record label. El-P is also a member of the Weathermen.

Biography

The son of Jazz pianist Harry Keys (born Harry Meline), El-P (born Jaime Meline) became involved with the hip hop culture of New York City at an early age. After being expelled from several schools for problems with authority, Meline decided to pursue a career in music. At his 18th birthday party, he met Mr. Len, whom he had hired as a DJ for the night. The two quickly became friends and formed Company Flow in 1992. They released their first vinyl single, "Juvenile Techniques", in 1993. Bigg Jus later complemented the group and in 1996 the trio released their debut EP, "Funcrusher". Subject to a major label bidding war after the success of the EP, Company Flow waited until they could get a contract on their own terms. They eventually signed to Rawkus Records, and released their debut full-length album, "Funcrusher Plus" (1997), which is now widely recognized as one of the most ground-breaking and influential alternative hip hop albums of all time.

After an instrumental album called "" (1999), also on Rawkus, disagreements between El-P and the label led to Company Flow's leaving Rawkus. El-P then decided to start his own record label, Definitive Jux (known informally as Def Jux, and extra-formally as Definitive Juxtapositions), and because of critically acclaimed albums like Cannibal Ox's "The Cold Vein" (produced by El-P) and Aesop Rock's "Labor Days", the label quickly rose to prominence.

Company Flow (now only El-P and Mr. Len) dissolved amicably in 2001 and the following year El-P released his debut solo album, "Fantastic Damage", to wide critical acclaim. In 2004, El-P collaborated with The Blue Series Continuum for a jazz-fusion album entitled "High Water", which received favorable reviews from both the hip hop and jazz worlds, as well as from more mainstream critics independent of both scenes. 2005 saw the release of "Collecting the Kid", an odds an ends assortment including work from "High Water" and "Bomb The System" in addition to several songs of unknown provenance. El-P's second proper studio album, "I'll Sleep When You're Dead", was released on March 20 2007. It generally received very favorable reviews and became El-P's most commercially successful album to date, peaking at #78 on the U.S. Billboard 200.

El-P has been involved in at least two notable Hiphop feuds (or "beefs"): one with anticon. rapper Sole, in which El-P incorporated a taped telephone conversation that took place with an eager-to-reconcile Sole into his song/"dis track", which he titled "Linda Tripp" for the damning effect of his inclusion of the surreptitious recording. The second involved Boston rapper Esoteric of the group 7L & Esoteric. This feud included various Definitive Jux artists and members of the Demigodz.

El-P has contributed productions and guest raps to albums by DJ Krush, Aesop Rock, Murs, Cage, Mr. Lif, Prefuse 73, Del tha Funkee Homosapien, Mike Ladd, The High and Mighty, Jedi Mind Tricks, Aceyalone, Atmosphere, and Techno Animal. He collaborated with Alec Empire on the first Handsome Boy Modeling School album and with Cage and Chino Moreno on the second. He was selected, along with DJ Shadow, to work on Rage Against the Machine frontman Zach de la Rocha's solo album (which never materialized). He has provided remixes for the likes of Beans (of Anti-Pop Consortium), Beck, Blackalicious, Head Automatica, Hot Hot Heat, Syd Matters, Nine Inch Nails, Push Button Objects, Rob Sonic, TV on the Radio, and Yasushilde, among others. El-P also provided the soundtrack for the graffiti film "Bomb the System".cite web
year = 2002
title = El-P Biography at DefinitiveJux.net (old)
publisher =
accessdate = 2007-04-07
url = http://www.definitivejux.net/jukies/el-p/] cite web
year = 2007
title = El-P Biography at DefinitiveJux.net (current)
publisher =
accessdate = 2007-04-07
url = http://store.definitivejux.net/store/artist_el_p.html/]

tyle

As a rapper, El-P's style can be characterized by his dense, aggressive, and verbose attacks, which include notable use of metaphor, science fiction and fantasy themes and references, and associative word play. Critic Steve Huey describes him as "one of the most technically gifted MCs of his time, spitting out near-impossible phrases and rhythmic variations that simply leave the listener's head spinning." [ [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:fnfpxqq0ld6e allmusic ((( Fantastic Damage > Overview ))) ] ]

El-P is a great fan of science fiction, notably writer Philip K. Dick, and many of Dick's themes, such as paranoia and questions about the nature of reality, feature in El-P's work. References to George Orwell, Arthur C. Clarke, and Star Trek spin-off "Deep Space 9" sit comfortably alongside more traditional rap references, such as to the likes of LL Cool J and Boogie Down Productions.

As a producer, Meline is notable for his innovative mix of bleak futurism and low fidelity sounds. His dense, claustrophobic sounds are strongly influenced by Public Enemy's production team, The Bomb Squad, as well as innovators like Art of Noise and Nine Inch Nails.

2004's "High Water" was a radical departure, pitting El-P's beats and production against a Jazz band under the direction of pianist Matthew Shipp, a fan of El-P's music. In an interview with Shipp, Meline stated:

El-P has done some work as a DJ. In November 2004, he spun alongside Peanut Butter Wolf at a small Chicago club named Sonotheque. Also, in the summer of 2005, at the Intonation Festival hosted by Pitchfork Media El-P did a short DJ set alongside Yo La Tengo member James McNew, both denizens of the same apartment complex in Brooklyn.

Discography

olo studio albums

*"Fantastic Damage" (Definitive Jux - 2002)
*"I'll Sleep When You're Dead" (Definitive Jux - 2007)

Instrumental/Remix albums

*"El-P Presents Cannibal Oxtrumentals" (instrumental version of the 2001 Cannibal Ox album "The Cold Vein") (Definitive Jux - 2002)
*"" (Definitive Jux - 2002)
*"High Water" (Thirsty Ear - 2003)
*"Collecting the Kid" (Definitive Jux - 2004)

Mixtapes

*"Weareallgoingtoburninhell" (Definitive Jux - 2003), A limited release only sold at shows and was said to have been recorded by the New York native shortly after September 11.
*"Weareallgoingtoburninhellmegamixx2" (Definitive Jux - 2008), A limited release only sold at the No Chiefs Allowed tour with Dizzee Rascal and Busdriver.

References

External links

* [http://www.definitivejux.net/ Definitive Jux - Official Website]
* [http://www.definitivejux.net/jukies/el-p/ Definitive Jux - Bio]
* [http://www.worlds-fair.net/ El-P's Management team - World's Fair]
*myspace|elproducto|El-P

Persondata
NAME=El-Producto
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=El-P; Meline, Jaime
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Record producer, rapper
DATE OF BIRTH= March 4, 1975
PLACE OF BIRTH=Brooklyn, New York City, United States
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=