It is perhaps unfair to pigeonhole Killa Kela as simply a beatboxer - the man himself prefers 'multivocalist', recognising his all round vocal skills. Indeed, his live show and previews of his new album indicate more of an electro vibe.
Now, this is handy for me. I'm certainly no expert in beatboxing, although I'm aware of Rahzel's reputation from his expert beatbox-singalong combos and I had the pleasure to witness a young fellow named MC Xander (check out his White Stripes remix on Youtube) in action at the Notting Hill Carnival a few years back. Likewise, I managed to catch Mr Kela live recently at my university summer ball at the IndigO2. A pretty swish venue if you ask me.
My friend Katie (who writes a film blog called The Stories That Really Mattered) described Killa Kela as "a bit like that guy off Police Academy". She is, of course, referring to Lavelle Jones. Here he is acting like a robot. And just for relevance, here is Peter Crouch dancing like a robot. Good times.
Perhaps Katie was being a little harsh on Killa Kela but I didn't take all that much away from his performance either. While beatboxing is an undoubtedly challenging skill, performers need to utilise it in an appropriate manner for wider appreciation. It appears that 'Amplified', the upcoming album from Killa Kela, is an attempt at incorporating different styles to attract a larger audience and also represents an evolution from an artistic perspective. No bad thing, in my opinion.
Free download 'Couple Of Wasters' is a hefty dose of dirty electro, an inbred mix of Basement Jaxx, Freeform Five and The Prodigy. Check it out below.
'Amplified' is out this summer, preceded by the single 'Built Like An Amplifier' which is out on June 29th.
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