Local Review: Pikkoroh – Voix

Pikkoroh
Voix

Self-Released
Street Date: 10.25.17
Pikkoroh = MF DOOM x Madlib

You wouldn’t think a single human being could be futuristic yet vintage, ruthless yet loving, dark yet jovial, eclectic yet utterly predictable—like showing up to the function with a plastic bottle of booze—but that’s just some of the paradox you get with the enigma named Pikkoroh from the Dine Krew. His track record speaks for itself, really. The classic sounds under his belt have whipped records into shape for one of, if not the most notorious hip-hop crew in the valley (seek Bap Boom for reference).

Voix is a 15-track instrumental offering that is cinematic and creative. Pikkoroh’s use of drums, piano keys, strings and flutes is used to transport the listener into the various terms he chose to name his tracks. It’s as if he’d like to take his patrons with someone (or himself?) on a journey into madness, approximating a mental patient who goes from normalcy to eventually taking their own life in a psychiatric ward. It’s a neo-jazzy boom-bap-hybrid beat tape with a dark twist. It’s not as sad as one would think a record dedicated to something so weighty and morbid would be, but if you know Pikkoroh, it totally makes sense. The Joker had some fun on his descent into lunacy in Arkham Asylum, right? 

The adhesive that binds the project together is the soundbites from scary movies. They’re chopped up and arranged in a manner that is creepy yet comical. The attention to detail and mood is remarkable. It’s as though Pikkoroh used other people’s voices to narrate and score an Alfred Hitchcock thriller that he’s hijacked for his own maniacal purposes. Track 12, “Ghost,” is the melting point between horror film and hip-hop. Pikkoroh uses an eerie whistle and a xylophone to evoke feelings of the supernatural. Dialogue bookends most tracks to add meaning and depth. Voix is a project that can be rapped over—or even used in your October playlists every year. Copping it on Bandcamp (Pikkoroh.bandcamp.com) for $5 is a good investment for your music library, if you’re not the easily scared type. –Keith McDonald