king fantastic the collection (mmx-mmxiii)

Being a fan is a funny thing. We like things, things like Twinkies, Arrested Development, video arcades, you know, fun stuff that we expect will always be around for us. Then one day something happens and that thing we enjoy free and easily is gone, paused, or muted, and sometimes it causes us to panic or bug out.

When this happened last year to one of our favorite artists as they were on a steady ascent we realized it may be a while before we heard something new.Let's discuss the state of Southern California-based duo King Fantastic, a producer-rapper team with a reputation for not only being different but also intriguing with their Rage Against the Machine meets Public Enemy "Fight the Power"-esque message. They're known for making videos that range from funny, like THIS ONE to super racy one like THAT ONE (NSFW) and pushing the envelope from every angle one can dream of. The live show--yes we've witnessed it--is explosive and one some occasions followed by a visit to the local police station. It's the honest truth and without embellishment that we can say there is not an outfit currently like this pair. Which leads us to the current state of affairs.

While the rapper half of King Fantastic, Maurice "Reese" Rivera, is on a bit of a vacation the producer half, Josh Kouzomis, has been handling business and recently hit us up to let us know they've released an anthology of sorts. This new release Westcoastsynthesizerbeachbungangstermusic (The Collection MMX-MMXIII) consists of the first three years of King Fantastic music, including one album, three EPs, 32 songs, and a new track. The crazy thing we've realized about this collection as we go back through and listen to the tracks is just how ahead this duo is. The newest track "State of the Union" sounds like it was made yesterday and some of the earlier cuts like "Bonfire Sessions" and "Hollyrock Jam Session" almost sound like sonic predictions of what music would sound like in 2013. Let's be honest, these dudes have been super slept on, but when you listen to this collection of tunes, you can't argue with the fact that they were way ahead. The entire collection is available HERE and we can only hope that when Reese returns from his sabbatical King Fantastic heads directly to the tour bus so we can see this full collection of jams live. Check out the videos below for a bit of the old and a taste of the new and head over here for more info on these guys go HERE.