Lord T and Eloise

Musical style

Lord Treadwell and Maurice Eloise XIII (aka Lord T and Eloise) have dubbed their own unique rap style "aristocrunk", a combination of the terms aristocratic and crunk. Aristocrunk, also the name of their first album, is meant to describe both a philosophical lifestyle as well as the musical genre itself. Many songs from their albums Aristocrunk & Chairmen of the Bored are accompanied by harpsichord and baroque style music, while others stay close to the traditional Memphis crunk sound. Lord T's are similar to the slow train lyrical style of Snoop Dogg, Eloise's style draws more comparisons to Chuck D of Public Enemy. Drawing from a diverse palette of influences, the group admits that the Beastie Boys, David Bowie, Busta Rhymes, The ODB, 8Ball and MJG, Al Kapone have all been influences. While tracks like "Million Dollar Boots" and "Penthouse Suite" have a more refined, classical edge with the incorporation of strings, other tracks like "Pillz" and "Dance Move" have more of a crunk, dirty south edge to them, featuring 808 drums and a heavy bottom end.

Lyrical content

The lyrical content of this band has been praised by critics, who cite the cleverness of the turns of phrase and the catchiness of the hooks. Unique in its disregard for traditional rap dialect, "aristocrunk" lyrics are nevertheless made up of many rap mainstays, using common themes, such as the supremacy of the artists in the areas of success, sexual prowess, technological savvy and financial know-how (e.g., in the video for "Million Dollar Boots", they are shown with the ticker for the NASDAQ stock exchange displayed across their teeth, in place of a "grill"). Lord T and Eloise are a mixture of performance art, party rap, and social commentary; the group's lyrics cover a range of topics from plastic surgery to the stock market, from time travel to prescription drug use, mixing fun with satire.

Critical reception

Lord T and Eloise have received positive reviews from numerous newspapers and music publications. Accolades have included an "A" from the Memphis Flyer, "Editor's Pick" from Blender Magazine and a review from VH1 that lauded them as "the world’s first purveyors of aristocrunk". They have also made appearances on Ellen! and E! Fashion Police. Now signed with R.E.M. and Widespread Panic's booking agency, P.G.A., Lord T & Eloise released their third full-length album, RAPOCALYPSE, in August 2010, with a national tour following.

Discography