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TRACK: 88

WHO: Cool Kids – Chicago rappers Mikey Rocks and Chuck Inglish who are indeed kids. And very cool.

THE HYPE: “With their head-nod-inspiring boom-bap beats and clever lyrics in common language, maybe they're just ‘bringing '88 back.’ But something about it feels like the future.” - Pitchfork

WHAT: New-school, old-school hip-hop.

WE SAY: It almost feels a bit weird writing about Cool Kids as new artists. Such has been their impact already in the hip-hop community and beyond that newer artists are already being placed within the Cool Kids’ bubble, a sure sign of their role as alpha scenesters.

The surprising thing is though that this is actually their debut release; it’s just that 88 and their BMX-homage Black Mags, along with the compilation Totally Flossed Out, have unofficially done the rounds of the net for some time, allowing the hype kettle to come to the boil. Now it’s time to brew up.

Bracketed with the hipster rap fraternity, those punk kids who are shedding some of the earnestness and reclaiming some of the daffiness that characterised early hip-hop, Cool Kids hark back to the era of ‘sucker MCs’ with their chat about sneakers and jeans. But as Mikey was only born in 1988, with Chuck scarcely older, their retro love isn’t an ‘I remember when all this was fields’ trip, but an impartial appropriation. This is partly what makes them so ace. As 21st century kids, no matter how much they ape Eric B or EPMD or layer on the Rick Rubin guitar stabs, there will never be any personal resonance to it – they can’t help but sound achingly now. Sparse and stoner mellow in its use of 808 beats and loops, 88 - and perhaps more so with Black Mags with its Screwed and Chopped chorus and android bass – aren’t light years away from this varnished delivery of Pharrell and Clipse. Even the Technics technique sounds sweetly tailored to modern ears, Hollywood wax-smooth, nowhere near the gnarliness it’s riffing on. And lyrically, the Nas steal shows their hearts don’t totally belong to 88. The old school verbal clichés are there in spirit, but knowing that they are cliches brings its own distance and playfulness. Cool Kids have traditional cockiness, but their toned-down delivery counterpoints any possible 88 bombast.

The fact is that Cool Kids are in all likelihood going to be big this year, the buzz is already too firmly in place. It’s just whether they can translate that buzz from the style mag column inches into sales. That isn’t a given, but with the canny execution of The Bake Sale, they’ve given themselves every chance.

IF YOU ONLY NEED TO KNOW ONE THING: The dudes have also just set free their mixtape to wander the planet. That’s Stupid can be downloaded now from their myspace page.

WHERE CAN I GET MY HANDS ON IT: The Bake Sale is released on XL Recordings on August 4.

FIND MORE: www.myspace.com/thecoolkids

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