Rap's Rebels

Riding a wave of blogger hype that hardly has abated since the release of the group's first single, "Cappuccino," in March, the Knux has infiltrated the national consciousness with its genre-bending sound that incorporates elements of New Wave, Electro-clash, '80s hard-core, "golden era" hip-hop and Nu Rave. The two, who have opened for bigger rap names including Q-Tip and Common, play their own instruments and self-produced "Remind Me in 3 Days . . .," their debut album on Interscope Records, which entered the national album chart at No. 23 last month.

"Remind Me in 3 Days . . .," which earned a four-star review in Rolling Stone, is a churning melange of disparate musical styles. The songs percolate with heavy metal guitars (played by Al), reggae bass lines, Big Beat electronica a la the Chemical Brothers and Gary Numan-style synths. Krispy and Al's lyrical interplay can bring to mind certain rap forebears -- the machine gun flow of OutKast, De La Soul's well-considered randomness and the rollicking party heartiness of the early Beastie Boys -- while avoiding sounding self-consciously "alterna."

With their gunslinger swagger and habit of partying like rock stars (but also rapping about those experiences), the Knux has done more to organically conjoin the Sunset Strip and the Dirty South, the Pixies and the Pharcyde, than any number of self-proclaimed mash-up artists like Girl Talk or 2 Many DJs. "Not since Guns N' Roses has a local group rendered the fast-lane lifestyles of the young and debauched so vividly," critic Jeff Weiss wrote of the Knux in LA Weekly last month.

Moreover, at a time when L.A.-based rappers faced with the declining popularity of gangsta rap are looking to redefine the city through new sounds and ideas, the Knux has made a big impression with its high-energy, take-no-prisoners performing style honed over the last two years.

"If some [stuff] happens, it's part of the set," said Krispy, 26, over lunch later that day. "If the amp busts, if the guitar string snaps, smash that bad boy! We just go with the flow. We try to connect with the audience like it's a big party. Make them feel part of the scene."

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