179: Come Find Yourself, by Fun Lovin' Criminals

Fun Lovin’ Criminals (USA)
Come Find Yourself (1996)
15 tracks, 57 minutes
Spotify ∙ iTunes

Other than the vaguest definitions of cool being a sort of unflappability, it's so hard to describe what makes something cool without getting into circular logic, that cool is... well, cool. Or, y’know, hip. The easiest way to explain it is to offer examples, and every so often there comes some piece of culture that helps us to calibrate our (individual) sense of ‘cool.’ The first time I heard Come Find Yourself, I had to rejig my conception of cool.

Because I'm not sure there is a better way to describe this album. It is a distillation of cool. Musically, the Fun Lovin Criminals' debut album is based on rock, rap and funk with lyrics heavily referencing New York City and crime, but also deeper and more ponderous topics. But the coolness comes, as it often does, in its personality. There are small elements of jazz in the album's music, but I hear a lot more jazz in the attitude – lead singer Huey Morgan's performance mannerisms can't help but put me in mind of hipsters and beats from the 1950s, with a Latino edge, even when he's rapping.

The album is full of great tracks, from the most famous singles of ‘Scooby Snacks’ and ‘The Fun Lovin Criminal’ to lesser-known album tracks such as ‘Smoke ’Em’ and ‘Bombing the L’, but to me, the track that really stands out comes at the end of the album as a bonus track: an alternate, 'Schmoove' version of the piece 'I Can't Get With That'. In some ways, I feel like it's the epitome of the album; although musically quite different from the rest – the rock is stripped back and replaced by a groovy, soulful jazz; the rap slowed down and its rhythm relaxed into more of a speech-song – it takes the coolness cultivated throughout to the next level. It really takes its time. Nothing about the track is rushed, nothing is overstated, but it has everything it needs, no more or less. I'm not usually one for alternative takes or versions of tracks (apart from remixes and dubs), but for me, this track has become my go-to of the album, and the one I think of whenever Fun Lovin Criminals come to mind.

Real coolness may be indefinable, but it's easy to point at something that defines cool through its very existence. And if you're under any misconceptions: Come Find Yourself is COOL.