Followers of nerdcore should recognise the name of the ThoughtCriminals. A collaboration on Random's highly lauded Black Materia album and a track on the first Nerdcore Now compilation are but two signs of their whole-hearted participation in today's nerdcore community. If such guest appearances are your only experiences of this band, however, you are missing out on some of the most interesting and compelling music on offer in this scene, as listeners to Cold Winter, their latest release, will attest.
An atmospheric sound pervades this album, the band's tight instrumental and vocal efforts augmented by often subtle touches added by producer (and rapper) Mikal kHill. This level of atmosphere complements the vocal efforts of kHill and Sulfur, the group's other primary vocalist, which deliver emotion at a level suiting their lyrics. These lyrics are reminiscent of Random's in that they manage to deliver on thoughtful and personal levels as well as appealing to the nerds (and, in particular, the gamers) in the listeners. Combined with satisfyingly skilful flow, the result pleases the ears in ways both familiar and less familiar to fans of good rap music.
True to their habit of sharing the love amongst their fellow nerdcore artists, Cold Winter plays host to verses from five visiting luminaries of the genre. The first such guest of the album, Stevie D of the Illbotz, rounds off Return of the Antagonist well with a style melding nicely with those of the regular vocalists. Later on the album we are reminded of nerdcore legend Beefy's versatility as he delivers strongly on the personal-feeling Our Time. Following this, and closing the album, comes Earthbound – a strong closing track if ever I heard one, boasting the talents of Adam WarRock and the (twice) already mentioned Random. My favourite collaboration of the album, however, is delivered in the form of All the Coins, a great song made greater by the mature flow of Dual Core's Int80.
With no weak tracks, the only conclusion can be that this is one of 2011's strongest nerdcore releases so far. The clear and continuous respect afforded the ThoughtCriminals by more established favourites of the genre is justified by the consistent standard of this album. The group's somewhat raw sound is both an endearing feature of their music and an encouraging sign that further growth can be expected in their future releases. Now, on the back of this release and on the cusp of surely ever-better releases to come, is a perfect time to expand your knowledge of the ThoughtCriminals. And with this album's 'pay what you want' pricing model, what excuse do you have not to?
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