k-os ( @kosinception ) Joyful Rebellion Virgin ( ) It would be easy to knock K-OS for his repeated threat to leave the music business after his debut, Exit. On the other hand, once you hear Joyful Rebellion, you won't want to knock him - you'll want to thank him for sticking around. Joyful Rebellion could be called the Miseducation of Kevin Brereton, for its combination of hip-hop, soul, jazz, funk, folk, reggae and countless other forms; lyrically, his topics are equally diverse, from the expected (calling out sucka MCs on "Neutroniks") to the unexpected (referencing the Tragically Hip on "Crabbuckit"). The album begins on a foreboding note with the cautionary "Emcee Murder" but immediately soars upwards with "Crucial," Marleyesque reggae that briefly slips into pure pop but so seamlessly that you hardly notice. He rocks the Billie Jean bass with "Man I Used To Be," manages to freshen up the funky drummer break on the single "B-Boy Stance," and even suggests Madlib's Quasimodo with the album's hidden track. K-OS has a few guests, but doesn't succumb to the cross-promotional mess some hip-hop artists create; besides, when the most notable guest is Sam Roberts, you know he's not just angling for cred. He doesn't need to, anyway. "Hallelujah," he sings on the track of the same name, "Babylon is falling." If hip-hop produced more albums like this one, it certainly could be; Keven Brereton, in the meantime, is doing his part to bring it down. By James Hayashi-Tennant Sep 29, 2004