Doing the Dirty Work: Golden Soul Comrade is DirtyDurdie’s Best Album Yet

It’s here, Providence — the hip-hop summer anthem of 2015. Gremlyn and Dirty Ice from Providence’s dynamic hip-hop duo DirtyDurdie have once again teamed up with emcee/producer Sky King to bring you Golden Soul Comrade.  DirtyDurdie has been bringing the real hip-hop to RI since 2008, and with all the success from their last album Group Therapy, the anticipation surrounding Golden Soul Comrade is tangible.

“You can expect no-frills, 2015 boom bap, with raw rhymes, strong break-beats and a variety of conceptual engagement,” says Gremlyn of the album.

DirtyDurdie, who draws comparisons to the unrefined creativity of MF Doom, Old Dirty Bastard and C-Rayz Walz, found inspiration for this album in a variety of places, and Sky King is excited about the integrity that this project brings to the game. He says, “The priceless experiences of actually living through the golden era of hip-hop, and being old enough to fully appreciate what I was witnessing, is ingrained in this. My production on this album is a summation of all the music, graffiti and break dancing from that period in my life.”

These guys effortlessly stay true to the roots of hip-hop, something that has slowly eroded from what hip-hop was intended to be — rebel music. “They tell us, ‘Yo, you guys are like that real hip-hop, that old school right?’ The answer is no! We make hip-hop music for 2015 and beyond. We might reflect signs of classic golden era vibes, but that’s what you should do as an emcee in the first place. We are futuristic, not a throwback. We are here and now, moving forward, being the voice of the unheard,” Gremlyn explains. “Our creative goal is to bring the truth to the surface. Our mantra is ‘We do the dirty work.’ We attempt to skillfully fuse controversy, consciousness and comedy in a lyrical way.”

DirtyDurdie has always had a unique sound, creating a refreshing blend of familiarity and obscurity. Sky King has worked with Dirty Ice and Gremlyn before, but this project brings their relationship to a whole new level. “For me, it is completely independent from anything that I have done in the past. I feel that it’s a culmination of our expression of the true art form. Even though that’s what I have always tried to convey in my music, this album is very different. For DirtyDurdie, we try to recreate ourselves with every project we release. As artists, it would be really boring to walk the perpetual path of stagnation. We’ve established personal standards regarding how left or right we might go as a group, but priority is always beats and rhymes,” Sky Kings says.

With all the content DirtyDurdie has provided to Southern New England and the experience they gained throughout the past few years, they revel in the continuous growth of their brand. Gremlyn says, “Our vision before embarking on this journey was philosophically concise. We anticipated some of the challenges we would encounter, but when enacting the plan, the evolution has been more of a visceral experience. In retrospect, I’d say we’ve become better writers. Our vision continues to refine itself and we’ve learned that ‘doing the dirty work’ is a thankless job, particularly when doing it with integrity is part of our mission.  Our commitment to leading by example is more important than our music. We’ve learned that our music is a vehicle, and connecting with people is the best way to encourage constructive change.”

This album is sure to be breaking car speakers and headphones all summer, so find your rubber gloves — it’s about to get dirty.

The Golden Soul Comrade album release party is Thurs, Jun 25 at The Met, with opening act Universal Disciplez, hosted by Bad Lab ‘the voice of the city’.  Spinning music all night is DJ John Gotem. Doors open at 8pm. All ages.