I Don’t Like Das Racist.
It’s the answer to a question that’s been kicking around my head for a while. I first heard Das Racist pretty much when everyone else did, with their track “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell”, a vapid song to say the least, and like the rest of their material it’s catchy, but is that enough?
They’ve been referred to as art, and they refer to themselves in art historical terms like Dadaism, and Deconstructionalist. They acknowledge the use of dumb lyrics, but claim it to be a mask to some great and important discourse, however this seems like a defense mechanism I’ve become all too familiar with through my own experiences in the art world. It’s easy to throw out academic terms in order to inject meaning into something that has inherently none. I think in this approach Das Racist are very smart, and their audience seems to have bought into this pseudo-intellectual approach to music.
Seeing them on stage at Bumbershoot was the moment my question was answered, and I was horribly disappointed. Das Racist was one of the acts that I was most looking forward to, but when they took the stage and began their set it was awkward, it was like showing up to a party I wasn’t invited to, and everyone was far too cool for me. Maybe I didn’t get the performance because I’m not cool, or perhaps it was because I wasn’t as drunk as they were.
In their clearly inebriated state Das Racist came off as annoying, poncey, and amateurish. Their drunken buffoonery was an insult to their audience. It’s always been my belief that to produce a record is for the band, but to perform is for the fans, it’s too bad Das Racist don’t feel the same way. Even though they may have encouraged their fans to download their music without paying for it, it’s clear that Das Racist view their fans as merely a meal ticket.
Perhaps with time they will be able to hold their liquor, or learn not to drink before performing. If they do they may be able to deliver a stellar performance like so many other hip-hop acts that graced the stage at Bumbershoot, like Mad-Rad, and Champagne Champagne, a performance that connects with the audience in attendance instead of alienating it. Until then Das Racist will be written down in my books as worst performance ever.
Dean Belder
Originally appeared on Vanmusic.ca