The Pharcyde
Austin Music Hall
Tuesday, January 30 “I feel most relaxed when I’m smoking a blunt and reading, that’s a great
feeling.” Strange words from Imani Wilcox, a member of one of hip-hop’s most
seafaring acts, The Pharcyde, and today’s band representative who’s kind of
buggin’ on the other end of the line. “Smoke a blunt, then read, and then after
you finish reading, smoke a blunt, and then play some Sega,” he reiterates.
“But I gotta get at least an hour of reading in before I play Sega, that’s my
new shit because I was getting hooked on that shit — [even though] I only got
three cartridges. Really I only got two cartridges!” Almost sounds like
slackertalk, but check the resum� on these guys between the years ’91
and ’96 and you’d be hard-pressed to find where they’ve had time to do anything
but work.
The Pharcyde’s debut, Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde, sparked an
underground buzz that quickly spread through the worlds of both hip-hop and
alternative music like California wildfires, and like (yet so unlike) L.A.
counterparts Cypress Hill, NWA, and Ice T, that buzz allowed them to tour
consistently around the world. After two solid years on the road throughout the
U.S., Europe, and Japan with acts like De La Soul and
A Tribe Called Quest,
and two years in a row on the second stage at Lollapalooza (not to mention the
release of their second full-length album, Labcabincalifornia), Imani
seems like he’d rather talk of his recent discovery of meditation and his
infatuation with mushrooms than anything really work-related. Imani:
“Last time I took ‘shrooms I made some ‘shroom tea.” Matt: “The tea
is nice, the tea hits you faster…” Imani: “Oh I’m glad you say that
cuz I was trying to explain to people how fast that shit came on, I guess they
wasn’t feelin’ it cuz you gotta wait for the effects when you chew `em. But
yeah, mushrooms are somethin’ I would probably do up into my gray days…” Even
during interviews?!?!
— Matt Sonzala
The Pharcyde open for Cypress Hill and 311.
This article appears in January 26 • 1996 and January 26 • 1996 (Cover).