Cannibal Ox is an American hip hop duo from

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, United States. It consists of

Vast Aire Theodore Arrington III (born February 5, 1978), better known by his stage name Vast Aire, is an American rapper from New York City. He is one half of the New York hip hop duo Cannibal Ox, which consists of him and fellow rapper Vordul Mega. He i ...

and

Vordul Mega Shamar Gardner (born March 24, 1979), better known by his stage name Vordul Mega (a.k.a. Vordul Megallah), is an American rapper from New York. He is one half of underground hip hop duo Cannibal Ox and a member of the hip hop group Atoms Family ...

, often accompanied by DJ Cip-One.

History

In 2001, Cannibal Ox released their first album ''

The Cold Vein ''The Cold Vein'' is the debut studio album by American hip hop duo Cannibal Ox. It was produced by El-P and released on his Definitive Jux label on May 15, 2001. The album has since been reissued by iHipHop Distribution. Release ''The Cold Vei ...

'' on

Definitive Jux Definitive Jux was a record label based in New York City. It was co-founded in 1999 by El-P and Amaechi Uzoigwe. History Definitive Jux was initially known as Def Jux. However, popular hip hop label Def Jam Recordings sued Def Jux over the nam ...

, which was the label's first full-length studio album. ''The Cold Vein'' received positive reviews from critics and put the duo in the underground hip hop spotlight, and has since been described as one of the best rap albums of the 2000s. In 2003, the group was rumored to have disbanded. However, fellow Definitive Jux rapper

Murs Murs may refer to: People * Marc Athanase Parfait Œillet des Murs (1804-1878), French ornithologist * Olly Murs (born 1984), English singer-songwriter * Murs (rapper) (born 1978), American rapper Places * Murs, Indre, France * Murs, Vaucluse, ...

said "Can Ox is not broken up, it's just a rumor" between tracks on fellow Definitive Jux rapper

Aesop Rock Ian Matthias Bavitz (born June 5, 1976), better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American rapper and producer from Long Island, New York. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emerge ...

's album '' Bazooka Tooth''. November 2005 brought the release of the live album '' Return of the Ox: Live at CMJ'' with a statement in the liner notes hinting at a Cannibal Ox LP to be released summer of 2006. Supposedly, RZA,

Pete Rock Peter O. Phillips (born June 21, 1970), better known by his stage name Pete Rock, is an American record producer, DJ and rapping, rapper. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time, and is often mentioned alongs ...

and

El-P Jaime Meline (born March 2, 1975), better known by the stage name El-P (shortened from his previous stage name El Producto), is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Starting his career as a member of Company Flow, he has been a ...

were set to contribute. However, the alleged album was never released. In March 2007, El-P answered "I really doubt it" when asked if a new Cannibal Ox album was coming out anytime in the near future.
That same year, Vast Aire confirmed that he was no longer working with Definitive Jux, that he left The Weathermen, and that plans for a new Cannibal Ox LP were scrapped. He cited creative and financial differences with El-P and Definitive Jux as well as Vordul's alleged clinical depression. In January 2008, Vast Aire plugged a project entitled Mighty Joseph with rapper Karniege and spoke about future projects in the works. When asked about his relationship with Vordul, he confirmed Vordul as a feature on his upcoming solo LP ''Deuces Wild''. Vast Aire was later featured on Vordul's album ''Megagraphitti''.
After many requests for him to produce a second Can Ox album, El-P stated on May 28, 2011 via his Facebook page that "there wont ever be a can ox album produced by me again and thats a fact." On May 31, 2011 Vast Aire released a solo record titled ''Ox 2010: A Street Odyssey''. Vordul is featured in the song "Thor's Hammer." Vast Aire revealed, “We never broke up, but the timing is now right for a new Cannibal Ox LP. Iron Galaxy Records is about to take over.” He also confirmed that he and Vordul Mega are in the studio now working on the album. On April 16, 2013, Cannibal Ox's EP "Gotham" went on sale. The 3-track album contains new songs produced by Bill Cosmiq: Gotham (Ox City), Gasses in Hell (Inhale), Psalm 82. Their second album, ''Blade of the Ronin'', was released on March 3, 2015 under

iHipHop Distribution iHipHop Distribution was founded in 2009 in an attempt to provide artists and record labels with a new paradigm for distributing their music and building their brand. iHipHop Distribution has worked successfully with many artists and continues i ...

to favorable reviews. Bill Cosmiq produced the majority of the album.

Discography

;Studio albums * ''

'' (2001) * '' Blade of the Ronin'' (2015) ;Compilations * ''Gotham (Deluxe LP Edition)'' (2013) ;Live albums * ''Return of the Ox: Live at CMJ'' (2005) ;Singles * "Iron Galaxy / DPA (As Seen on T.V.)" (2000) (with

Company Flow Company Flow was an American hip hop trio from Brooklyn, New York City, consisting of Bigg Jus, El-P and Mr. Len. The group was at one time associated with the independent record label Rawkus Records. Rapper/ producer El-P and DJ/producer Mr. ...

) * "Vein / A B-Boy's Alpha" (2001) * "The F Word" (2001) * "Cosmos / Streets Be Testin' You" (2003) (with Invisible) * "Gotham" (2013) * "Metal Ox" (2021) * "Raspberry Jelly" (Ft Double A.B.)(2021)

References

External links

Official website
* {{Authority control African-American musical groups American musical duos Definitive Jux artists Hip hop duos Hip hop groups from New York City Underground hip hop groups 1998 establishments in New York City