Artist description soul mechanical.

Music Style Pigeon-holed Hip-Hop.

Musical Influences Ice-T, Chuck D, Company Flow, Nine Inch Nails, The Cure

Similar Artists Company Flow, Cannibal Ox, Alias, Sage Francis

Artist History Reading, PA, emcee/producer Lazarus Divine has experienced more of the music industry in his 19 years than most artists do who are twice his age. After turning down many a questionable offer from several major record labels years ago, he has since decided to pursue music independently. Since that decision, he's built a considerable fan base in Reading and Philadelphia, where he formerly resided. Beginning in the early 90's, Lazarus has independently released several albums on his own, which collectively sold many thousands of copies. He's also produced entire albums for several other artists. Though he's reluctant to talk openly about his difficult past, Lazarus finds solace by dealing with his demons via his lyrics. After a troubled childhood, stints of homelessness, and the loss of several friends to street violence, drugs and crime, his bleak outlook on life is not for the faint of heart. His sincere delivery, skillfully composed verses, and dark production give his songs a very genuine and relatable feel, as opposed to the generic hip hop that saturates today's mass media. Having honed his ability as a performer over many years, and in cities all over the country, his live shows are often very emotional. It's during these live performances that Lazarus' passionate approach to songwriting is fully realized and best understood. -FuseONE of HipHopInfinity.Com

Albums The Genocide Machine (2003)

Press Reviews HipHopInfinity.Com Review by Fuse0ne: Lazarus Divine is not much for semantics. His name was written on the CD-R in pencil, and instead of entitling this group of songs, he unceremoniously called it "a demo" on the cover. Of course this isn't a beauty pageant, it's underground hip hop (as we like to to say around here), so we enjoy the unpretentiousness. Yes, what you hear is what you get with Laz, and what you get is some extremely dope music. Coming straight from his heart and mind, the Reading, PA native brings it on the mic and behind the boards. His demo only runs three songs deep, but in this age of gross excess on albums and even demos, the succinct style is much appreciated. It also helps that each cut is very strong. [Lazarus Divine]'s first cut "Face The World," is an impressive beginning. Over a dope violin sample, he drops one poetic line after the other with an impassioned delivery. The somber imagery and vivid lyrical style would fall under the "abstract" heading in most peoples' opinions, but LD has a sound that should be universally appreciated. On his second song, "Gone," LD digs even deeper into his soul. For starters, his production is an absolute aural treat. The haunting choir sample and violins are eloquently arranged, as are the drums. Conceptually, he details the pain behind personal loss, his mother in particular. If that sounds sad, it gets better. He tosses himself off a cliff onto jagged rocks for "Slow Torture." Does he really though? Or is it a dream? That's to be debated, but in this poetic journey, he's describing several different scenes. Among them is a poignant description of the pain he feels as he misses his girlfriend from beyond the grave. The raw emotion displayed during this particular part of the song is downright gripping. It may take a couple hard listens before you fully appreciate what a good writer Laz is. A good voice and a solid, emotional delivery will be obvious quickly, however, as is the excellent production. Also, just like it says on the cover of his cdr, this is "unmastered," although Laz humbly dubs it "a bunch of unmastered crap," therefore he only receives four stars in the quality department. It still isn't far off from the vaunted ten-star rating, though. Lazarus Divine has the necessary skills to become an underground hero, and if his next release is professional, expect to hear his name a lot more. Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Location Reading, Pennsylvania - USA

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