LATEST PRESS
The Valley Advocate
VERMONT VOX
by James Heflin
September 25, 2008
Now there's a rhyme
for these times: "lockbox" and "smallpox." If
you like your hip-hop clever, Rhythm Ruckus delivers. With a
healthy dose of old-school vibe, these Vermont originals, Dr.
Caucasian and Scribe 1, create textures not quite like most rap.
Their sly sampling and easy way with words appeals even among the
non-rap-inclined.
Rural Vermont may not seem like the likeliest spot to produce
hip-hop that shouts out to Run DMC while feeling utterly current,
but it's hard to argue with the results Rhythm Ruckus delivers.
This week they raise the ruckus at the Latchis in Brattleboro.
Sept. 27, $8, 8 p.m., Latchis Theater, 50 Main St., Brattleboro,
(802) 254-6300
Sonic Youth: Rhythm
Ruckus Performs This Weekend
By Jon Potter, Reformer Staff
March 27, 2008
BRATTLEBORO -- Somewhere at the intersection of the Beastie Boys
and the Green Mountain Boys, Rhythm Ruckus is carving its niche.
There are lots of hip-hop groups out there, but few are deserving
of the Vermont brand. Based in Saxtons River, Rhythm Ruckus has
been going for five years and features two friends who set out to
say something with their hip-hop that appeals to kids around
here.
"We wanted to bring a sense of reality into hip-hop,
especially Vermont rap," said Dr. Caucasian, who is one-half
of Rhythm Ruckus. "Our whole thing is we're proud of where
we came from, and we also about the negative things."
"We were disillusioned with anything that anybody is
offering," added Scribe 1, Dr. Causasian's partner in
Ruckus.
On the heels of successful shows this winter at The Tinderbox and
the Weatherwane, Dr. Caucasian and Scribe 1 are tapping into some
of the Green Mountain Boys pioneer spirit as the lead performers
in a new initiative at the Hooker-Dunham Theater.
In an effort to expand its audience and its offerings, the
Hooker-Dunham is embarking on a new series of events with a youth
spin.
"One of the things that I've been trying to do is increase
the visibility of the theater. I began thinking in terms of
reaching out to younger people," said Alex Gutterman, the
new managing partner of the theater. "I see two reasons why
it's important. First, it's a whole new line of programming for
the theater, and second, it's important just being connected to
the youth of this community."
On Friday, Dr. Caucasian and Scribe 1 bring their "singular
and incendiary performance" to the theater at 139 Main St.,
for an 8 p.m. show -- the first hip-hop show in Hooker-Dunham's
history.
Admission is $8. Gutterman and Dr. Caucasian expect a big crowd.
"I find people getting behind us in a big way," Dr.
Caucasian said.
In fact, it was a fan of Rhythm Ruckus who connected Gutterman to
the duo.
"They're just new and they're really good," said Ilsa
Greatorex-Duncan, who works at In the Moment, upstairs from the
Hooker-Dunham.
Rhythm Ruckus is working on a CD, "Backyard
Farmacology," that is due out this summer. They duo
describes it as "a sprawling meditation on rural existence,
confusion, rebellion, depravity, joy and ruin." It includes
guest appearances from Kool G Rap, Vast Aire of Cannibal Ox,
Sticman of Dead Prez, Cottonmouth TX and Chris Ballew of the
Presidents of the United States of America.
On Friday, opening for Rhythm Ruckus are fellow Cartoon Cartel
musicians Judas Booth and Brattleboro's DJ Forcefed.
Further information is available at www.ruckusnet.com and
www.hookerdunham.org.