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More than a decade after their genre-blending Licensed to Ill (which added rock guitar riffs and frat-boy humor to hip-hop), the trio still delivers their lyrics in a Run-D.M.C. pass-the-mic style. Their backing tracks, however, have progressed through the sample-a-rama of Paul's Boutique to the mostly organic Check Your Head and Ill Communication, and onto the turntablist-incorporating Hello Nasty. As the boys who helped usher rap into the mainstream, they've proved to be responsible stewards, pushing the envelope of the genre's sound, evolving lyrically, pushing political agendas and reigning at the top of the charts without selling out to pop conventions. Always ahead of the curve, the Beastie Boys were among the first "big name" acts to embrace MP3 technology as a way of promoting their music -- much to the chagrin of their handlers at Capitol Records.
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