Smoked Out Three 6 Mafia's latest may be the biggest record out of Memphis in years, but is it all good? by CHRIS HERRINGTON Three 6 Mafia I'll be honest -- since exploring the Hypnotize Minds catalog about a year ago for an article in these pages, I've made it a point to avoid anything related to Three 6 Mafia. As a music writer in Memphis, I'd like nothing more than to be a fan of the city's most popular musical export, but this stuff turns me off in every conceivable way--aurally, morally, politically, you name it--and I'm a huge hip-hop fan. But when the group's latest, When the Smoke Clears, debuted at number six on Billboard's album chart, it was obviously time to reevaluate. Even in a musical climate conservative and aggressive enough to embrace rape-inciting goons like Limp Bizkit, Three 6 Mafia's pleasureless, rabidly antisocial horrorcore hip-hop couldn't possibly break this wide without exhibiting some degree of um progress? Could it? So, have they gotten any better? The answer: kinda, sorta. On the new album's "Mafia N****z," the group chants, "We gotta come like we're equipped to pull back on some triggers. We gotta come, you know that devil shit is still up in us" over a "chilling" sample that reeks of second-rate horror movie soundtracks. But the reckless, kitchen-sink sensationalism of previous Hypnotize Minds projects has been toned down in favor of more believable hyperboles about "street" life. And musically, though the group's rough, hectoring flow isn't any easier on the ears, they've recruited some more talented vocal acrobats for guest duty in the form of Houston's UGK and Big Gipp of Atlanta's Goodie Mob. But the breakout success of When the Smoke Clears is a shock only partly due to its local status. Never mind B.B. King or the local-through-technicality likes of 'N Sync -- Memphis no longer expects true homegrown products to make such a huge national splash. How long has it been since a true local album made top ten Billboard? Beyond that, When the Smoke Clears might be about as unlikely a national top ten record as there's ever been. That might sound like an exaggeration to those who'd point out platinum-selling, so-called gangsta rap artists from N.W.A. to New Orleans' currently ubiquitous Cash Money crew. But, though most people aren't moved to make these kinds of subcultural distinctions, Three 6 Mafia shares exactly none of the redeeming traits exhibited by any of the roughly similar artists who have dented the national charts. When the Smoke Clears contains none of N.W.A.'s political rage, and the group's literally fantastic "reality rap" (as lone female member Gangsta Boo has called it) conveys none of the reportorial integrity of artists as disparate as New York's late Notorious B.I.G. or Houston's much-maligned Geto Boys. Of all the subgenre touchstones Three 6 Mafia's success conjures, the closest comparison is probably Dr. Dre's epochal The Chronic. When the Smoke Clears shares that record's unnerving, amoral coldness and calculated, bone-deep cynicism, but there's no MC in the Three 6 contingent as distinctive as Snoop Dogg. As for the difference between the Hypnotize Minds camp and their Crescent City competitors Cash Money (or even the more cartoonish No Limit), that can be boiled down to three letters: F-U-N. On When the Smoke Clears, sex-soaked songs like "From Da Back" and "Tongue Ring" display the same depressing attitudes toward intimacy as previous Three 6 Mafia releases: Sex is a crude, pathetic transaction that turns every woman into a prostitute and every man into a john (or rapist). By contrast, the horny party vibe (and butt-shaking beats) of N'awlins cuts like the 504 Boyz' "Wobble, Wobble" and Juvenile's near-historic "Back That Azz Up" is so infectious and good-natured that minor qualms about misogyny don't stand a chance. In a recent feature on Three 6 Mafia in The Village Voice, appropriately titled "Memphis Bleak," the paper's critic wrote that the music of the Hypnotize Minds crew is "the least soulful, least upbeat black pop Memphis has ever produced," and then tried to defend what he perceived would be taken as an outlandish comment. But we all know better. Hypnotize Minds have often stated their desire to build a music empire on the Stax model, and their commitment to building it locally is commendable. But musically speaking, they've got a long way to go. You can e-mail Chris Herrington at herrington@memphisflyer.com. Music Notes by CHRIS HERRINGTON Rooster Crows One of the best stories on the local scene this year has been the rebirth of Rooster Blues, a seminal blues label of the Eighties and early Nineties. With offices in New York and Memphis, the reformed label released its first spate of records in April and will bring forth another bounty of blues July 18th. The highlight of the bunch might be Portrait, a reissue of West Helena native Lonnie Shields' 1992 debut album. Hyped at the time, and deservedly so, Portrait is a blistering blast of electrified Delta soul-blues that might be as good as modern blues albums get. But Rooster also has two brand-new records coming out that, while not as undeniable as Portrait, offer solid excursions into a couple of distinct blues styles. "Philadelphia" Jerry Ricks' Many Miles of Blues is acoustic folk-blues in the mode of legends like Mississippi John Hurt and Furry Lewis. Ricks is a younger performer who, much like contemporaries Corey Harris and Alvin Youngblood Hart, brings an aesthete's ardor to the task of preserving the country blues tradition, though Ricks' music isn't quite as varied or exciting as that of Hart or Harris. And then there's Eddie C. Campbell's Hopes & Dreams, a solid, smooth, Chicago-style blues album from the veteran performer who emerged from the shadows of mentors such as Muddy Waters, and Jimmy Reed in the late Seventies. International Gangsta "It was meant to be." That's what local rap artist Gangsta Blac says of his recent record deal with KOCH International. With Three 6 Mafia blowing up nationally through their partnership with New York-based Loud/RCA, it was just a matter of time before another local rap artist got the call from the majors. Gangsta Blac, who made his name with indie discs like I Am Da Gangsta and 74 Minutes of Bump, joined the musical family at KOCH on June 27th. According to Gangsta Blac, he was signed to the label by the same A&R rep who once signed local beat and rhyme legends Eightball and MJG to Relativity. Gangsta Blac will record for KOCH's urban music subsidiary, In the Paint, which also boasts Cleveland hip-hoppers Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and Wu-Tang Clan sound scientist RZA. Blac says he'll have his own imprint with KOCH, Taylor Made Productions, and that he'll be going into the studio next week to record his KOCH debut with local producer DJ Squeeky at Orange Mound's Mocheda Records. Look for the new album in September. Star Search The Beale Street Blues Foundation's annual talent search is under way. Qualifying heats are being held at Black Diamond, at 153 Beale Street, on July 12th, 19th, and 26th. Participants can sign up at 6 p.m. the evening of each show for a $10 entry fee. The competition will begin at 7 p.m. each night. The top two scorers from each heat will win $50 and advance to the finals, to be held at Black Diamond on Saturday, August 12th. The winner of the competition will receive a $300 grand prize, eight hours recording time at House of Blues recording studio, a paid gig at Huey's downtown, and a spot in the Blues Foundation's International Blues Challenge in February, during BluesFirst weekend. Entry forms can be picked up at Memphis Music on Beale. For more information, call Dennis Brooks at 274-5059.