A mysterious and highly experimental hip-hop group, Restiform Bodies deconstruct rap with the same approach that bands like Sonic Youth and Swans took toward punk in the early '80s. Often harsh, moody, and quite bizarre, the troupe is made up of songwriter/vocalist David Bryant (Passage); percussionist and beatmaker Matt Valerio (the Bomarr Monk); and synth, sample, and effects slayer George Chadwick (Telephone Jim Jesus). Inspired by electronica, ghetto-tech, prog rock, and vintage R&B, the group took an aggressively inspired view of the genre, taking alternative rap beyond the fringes already established by Kool Keith and Cannibal Ox. Often sounding more like Stereolab than any other point of reference, the group's unique sound and image led to a deal with Anticon Records (a collective that Bryant belongs to), which released their 2002 eponymous debut, as well as 2008's TV Loves You Back. ~ Bradley Torreano