The hidden gem of the 2010s has been uncovered and been gifted to music listeners everywhere by three zombies from one of South Brooklyn’s most well known and old neighborhoods, Flatbush Avenue. Meechy Darko, Zombie Juice and Erick the Architect came together to form the Flatbush Zombies and began making music together in the early 2010s.
In 2016, they released their debut studio album under their own label, Glorious Dead Recordings, titled “3001: A Laced Odyssey.” Much like the famous Stanley Kubrick film it is named after, this album sounds like a chaotic journey through space.
This odyssey consists of many twists and turns, terrifying imagery, incredible instrumental and vocal mixing and juxtaposes the highs of human experiences with the lowest of lows imaginable. Its 12-song tracklist, which runs for an hour on the nose, is action packed, unpredictable and irresistibly unique.
Its opening song “The Odyssey,” introduces the artist and album by name and sets the tone for the Zombies’ unique presence and sound. Meechy Darko has the last word on this track and provides a striking verse loaded with alliterations and cheeky wordplay. The verse documents the shocking violence he has experienced growing up in the ghetto in Brooklyn, which has motivated him to rap in an unapologetically controversial manner, where he questions Christianity, brags about doing acid and claims to employ a rare combination of rock and rap elements in his lyrics that put him in a category of his own.
Meechy Darko’s cut-throat closing verse on “The Odyssey” then transitions into the well-matched vocals and lyrics of the next song, “Bounce,” which ends with a chilling outro that reminds listeners “Tag on your soul, everybody got a price.” The third song, “R.I.P.C.D.,” has Erick the Architect on the hook, reminding listeners that in the rapid transition from the compact disk to complete digitization, many classic mixtapes — including some of the Zombies’own — can no longer be listened to and have been lost forever.
The fourth track, “A Spike Lee Joint,” is much slower in pace, and each Zombie speaks on their participation in crime and drug use, as this was the norm in Brooklyn at the time. Zombie Juice talks about smoking weed before church at his Grandma’s house and recalls his early inspiration from Eazy E and the Notorious B.I.G., the most famous rapper to ever emerge from New York. Anthony Flammia, a Yonkers native, is featured and provides a smooth hook for the song.
The next two songs on the album stay slow as well, and Meechy Darko is the only artist who does vocals on either of them. The song “Fly Away” illustrates the heavy-hearted and overwhelming nature that questions related to existence, belonging and meaning in one’s life often have. His thoughts on these questions leave Darko asking, “Will suicide end the pain?”
“Ascension” documents an intrapsychic conflict within Meechy Darko, which juxtaposes a sense of primal anger and rage with a sense of grandiosity and cosmic power. The track ends with the fictitious intergalactic FBZ satellite radio station offering to take calls from its listeners, which are then used in the final song on the album.
The FBZ radio segment transitions into “Smoke Break (interlude),” in which the Zombies speak on their drug use which they do to self-medicate when they feel jaded and overwhelmed in their lives. They feel as if drugs allow them to see the world for what it is, be grateful for what they have and manifest their success.
However, the success they feel that drugs have allowed them to capture comes at a cost. In the song “Trade-Off,” they present the remarkable success and limitless potential for advancement they feel they have, along with a lingering insanity and instability they cannot seem to shake as a result of the impact these substances have on their thinking and health.
In “Good Grief,” Erick the Architect admits that he is afflicted by addiction to alcohol, women and drugs. While he is dependent on these things, his loyalty lies with Flatbush Ave. and the Zombies. He proclaims, “I’m only faithful to my bros, my rights and my wrongs.” This lyric highlights the fact that this group is extremely unified and loyal to one another, and this unity is displayed in many other parts of the album.
This loyalty is so extreme it excuses violence towards others, as shown in verses on “New Phone, Who Dis?,” where the Zombies continue to resort to their innate criminal instincts by behaving violently and trafficking various hard, illicit drugs while adjusting to their newfound success.
The penultimate track, “This Is It,” highlights the unique sound and individualistic style the Zombies bring to rap, their unfailing loyalty to one another and their many triumphs against all odds that have allowed them to reach this point. Zombie Juice says, “Always was a winner, even when I wasn’t ‘posed to,” and Erick the Architect says, “All my ****** need a plan ‘cause all my ****** need to win.”
Despite their success, Meechy Darko worries that his untimely death is written into the intrinsically violent environment and affiliations he grew up with and the life he has led to this point: “Will I die from homicide, or will I die from taking too much drugs?”
The album concludes with the track “Your Favorite Rap Song,” which is a 12-minute track featuring hard-hitting verses from each Zombie and ending with various positive and negative phone messages from both fans and haters. These messages illustrate a picture of the fanbase the Zombies’ music has touched, from druggies to low-wage workers, people in hard times and people who are tired of conforming to society.
The Zombie fan base is as unique, odd and incongruent as their music is. This album is really unique and intriguing, and if you have not checked it out, I highly recommend that you do.
While it went relatively unrecognized, it is not worth missing out on this “Laced Odyssey,” as it is truly a ride on a chaotic space shuttle through the highs, lows and everything in between of the Flatbush Zombies’ artistic vision.
