Track of the Day: 'Virus'

Deltron 3030 is something of an anomaly. The hip-hop supergroup, comprised of Del the Funkee Homosapien (of Heiroglyphics and, more generally, Gorillaz fame), producer Dan the Automator, and DJ Kid Koala, debuted with their eponymous masterpiece Deltron 3030 in 2000 before almost immediately falling off the face of the earth. Rumors of a second album have persisted for years, but the group seems to have gone on a songwriting hiatus for the past decade. Given that Deltron 3030 took a mere two weeks to write, the album may be more of a flash of inspiration than a rigorously planned opus.

A highly stylized and surprisingly coherent concept album, 3030 tells the story of Deltron Zero (Del's alter ego), battling against huge corporations that rule the universe in a post-apocalyptic fiction. The lyrics, laden with extravagant allusions to outer space and an industrial society overrun with technology are more reminiscent of Afrofuturists like Sun Ra and George Clinton, while the expert production and crackling hooks of Dan the Automator keep the album connected to the trio's hip-hop roots.

The members of Deltron 3030 are, for lack of a better phrase, the futurists of the hip-hop world. After listening to "Virus," one of Deltron's most recognizable tracks, I'm sure Julian Assange would have them on his iPod.

On iTunes: Deltron 3030 / "Virus"