Oregon Music News

Alternative hip-hop duo The Cool Kids proved they should be heard throughout the city of Portland Monday night at the Roseland Theater. The lyrical tag team (Chuck Inglish and Mikey Rocks) arrived at the Roseland along side of Southern California natives Pac Div (MCs Mibbs, Like and Be Young). Both groups accomplished the task at hand: showing Portland their unique rap styles influenced by the sounds of the golden era of hip-hop.

Pac Div (from left to right): Be Young, Mibbs, Like

Pac Div started the evening with songs from their mixtape, Church League Champions. The trio clearly stated with their performance that their chemistry alone will help Pac Div emerge from the underground hip-hop ranks. With the performances of “Mayor” and “Shut Up,” Pac Div cemented a well-deserved bid for a position as a front-runner in the future of authentic West Coast hip-hop in the years to come.

Passing the mic to The Cool Kids, both Chuck and Mikey looked their parts with crisp clothing and fresh kicks complementing their sounds of heavy bass driven music. Starting the show with two new tracks from their upcoming album, When Fish Ride Bicycles, the Kids showed they were only warming up for the night.

With bass levels high enough to fill all corners of the theater, The Cool Kids did what they do best, especially while performing their hit song “Delivery Man.” They brought Portland alternative hip-hop drums and lyrics about their pop-culture lifestyle and endless swagger.

The Kids rapped about everyday life in a serious but entertaining manner on “A Little Bit Cooler” off their debut EP, The Bake Sale. Mikey came on strong, bar for bar spitting, “So I’m sittin’ on the couch / holding the remote / flippin’ channels / I’m a rebel / eating a bowl of them Fruity Pebbles, Fruity Pebbles / how gangsta is that? / not gangsta at all / aww, you judging me dog / please, you shop at the mall / me, I shop at boutiques.” Rapping with such ease, The Cool Kids displayed a calm savviness that comes from the Midwest.

Chuck Inglish and Mikey Rocks

Midway through, The Cool Kids made sure the audience knew they were enjoying themselves at the Roseland. During a quick break, the two MCs described their love for Oregon’s well-known greens, and they followed this up with a shout out to the city of Portland during “Hammer Bros” that ignited the crowd. After the uproar from the crowd, the rappers continued with party-driven hits “Basement Party” and “Mikey Rocks,” which was featured in HBO’s hit series Entourage.

Before leaving the stage, The Cool Kids wrapped up their set with two popular songs, “Black Mags” and “88,” and another fresh track that will be featured on their upcoming album.

The air still filled with fading beats, the audience insisted the duo continue with chants of “Cool Kids, Cool Kids.” Giving more, the boys came back to the stage for a well-deserved encore, cutting up three additional tracks (including another unreleased track). Inviting members of the audience on stage, they wrapped up the night performing “What Up Man” as hordes of teenagers engulfed the Kids in a sea of waving arms and bouncing bodies.

As the lights came up, The Cool Kids stuck around longer than most of the crowd, signing autographs and sneakers for the rest of the cool kids.