The Allergies Recruit Frequent Collaborator Andy Cooper for "Utility Man" Music Video (Jalapeno Records)
You can do it, if you put your back into it: The Allergies and frequent collaborator Andy Cooper are back at it once again with yet another prime slice of funky Hip-Hop, topping off a fine 2021 with a final chance to get "stoopid fresh" from their recent 6 Music Album of The Day, Promised Land. Riding a super-slick double-bass groove and neck-snapping drums, LA Hip-Hop legend Cooper flips fearsome Rap styles, pitching his case as the ultimate go-to gun-for-hire emcee. It clinches B-side banger status as the flipside to "Going to The Party" featuring Lyrics Born, available as a 7-inch sureshot purchase in early 2022. On their latest full-length, producers Rackabeat & DJ Moneyshot dig deep into their souls, as well as their record collections.
Today, The Allergies are serving up a Day-Glo blast of super-positive sampledelia that'll have you smiling from ear-to-ear. Built from scratch during Lockdown, each song offers up a world to lose yourself in, free from any dark clouds. This is their Promised Land and everyone is welcome to bask in the sunshine. Andy Cooper, known for his extremely fast and incredibly tactful rhyme schemes (and of Ugly Duckling fame) rips through any array of lines at rapid-fire pace: "Diving, I'm high and I'm low and I'm wiley as Kylie Minogue / I'll arrive at the show on the side / I'm dying to go with the vibe on the road / I'm fly with the style and flow..." is just a brief example of what Cooper's able to do here, across "Utility Man."
Andy Cooper tells The Witzard: "When I heard the "Utility Man" instrumental, I thought it was very good, but I wasn't sure if I could do anything original with it, so I demurred until Adam [Volsen] (DJ Rackabeat) suggested that it might be more important to be good than original; I saw that light. From that point forward, I just tried to keep it funky and factual because the opening bit about me being born with highly-developed rhythmic ability is completely true." "If you search The Long Beach Press Telegram archives from the summer of 1975, you'll find loads of newspaper articles about a miraculous, musical baby being born which, of course, was me. The swing of the track reminded me of Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg's "Deep Cover.'"
"So, I rhymed with a little of that flow and attitude, minus the desire to murder people working in law enforcement. I, also, liked how the boys sampled one of my favorite artists for the hook when they scratched a dope line from 1986's "Fresher Than Fresh" by LaRonda B: "I can do anything that you need." When you combine a great beat, tight turntablism, and a serviceable, reasonably-priced vocalist, everyone walks away happy," Cooper explains. The Allergies' "Utility Man" Featuring Andy Cooper will become available in a physical format next year when it's released on a 7-inch vinyl single as the B-side to The Allergies' "Going to The Party" FEaturing Lyrics Born. However, for the time being, "Utility Man" & "Going to The Party" are both available digitally on The Allergies' latest album, Promised Land, out now on Jalapeno Records.
