But that was then, and this is now. “Shaniqua” was taken off YouTube, the duo’s profile page on MTV.com has been all but abandoned, and Fite himself has had a lot of growing up to do. In roughly a decade, he’s gone from recording joke rap songs to building a fairly credible career as a singer-songwriter, whatever that means in this day and age of digital downloads and disparate musical tastes. It’s a great coming-of-age story, and he tells it with aplomb.

At the heart of the album is “We Are All Teenagers”, invoking milestones that we may be nostalgic for or, in some cases, glad to be rid of: prom, being late for school, puppy love. But the inescapable groundwork for who we are is laid out during these nascent years, whether we like it or not, and Fite has managed to harness this youthful chaos into a mature and accomplished album.

“Because I Was Scared” serves as a kind of retrospective confessional for an unnamed crime. Fite’s musical creativity is on full display here, with steady drums serving as the backdrop for his voice and some subtle help from chimes and bells. It’s a charming song, with just enough unease to make it truly compelling.

While the album will draw you in, you may find it hard to stay there until the last track. Songs such as “Tiger Shopping” invoke TV on the Radio without reaching the same ear-popping crescendos, while tracks like “Joyriding” can seem a little simplistic in their sentiments. Fite has built an album around adolescence that can both take you back to that painful, exhilarating place and make you glad that you left.

Essential Tracks: “We Are All Teenagers”, “Because I Was Scared”, and “Tiger Shopping”

Brooklyn’s own eccentric freak-folk rapper Tim Fite will soon return with a new studio album, as Exclaim! points out. Titled Ain’t Ain’t Ain’t, the record is billed as the final installment in Fite’s Ain’t trilogy, which also included 2005′s Gone Ain’t Gone and 2008′s Fair Ain’t Fair. However, unlike its predecessors, which were created with samples, the 13-track Ain’t Ain’t Ain’t was recorded with instruments in a studio.

Lyrically, the album is said to focus on “pain, hope, and unbridled passion of one’s teenage years.” Explained Fite in an issued statement: “This record is shamelessly clad in the high hopes of high school hot pants, just as much as it is ashamed of its insecurities and aging self-awareness. Like cafeteria lunch tables, Ain’t Ain’t Ain’t is as vulnerable as it is invincible. I hope that anyone who knows what it is to be a teenager might see their reflection in these songs, and feel more alive.”

Below, you can find the album’s tracklist, as well as a short teaser trailer advising us on why we should write about this album (not that we needed a reason.) Ain’t Ain’t Ain’t is out March 6th, 2012, via ANTI- Records.

Ain’t Ain’t Ain’t Tracklist:
01. Hold Me All Night
02. Girard
03. Bunnies
04. Joyriding
05. Telephone Booth
06. We Are All Teenagers
07. Because I Was Scared
08. Tiger Shopping
09. My Brother Sings
10. Bully
11. Talking to the Air
12. Goodbye
13. Ain’t Ain’t Ain’t

Album Trailer:

We won’t mention the fact that the release of Teeth Lost, Hearts Won is a long time coming, what with the Australia outfit having released it in its native country nearly a year ago — oops. What we will mention is that the band’s sophomore effort consists of 13 tracks, was produced by Peter Katis (The National, Interpol), was recorded at Tarquin Studios in Connecticut, and as alluded to, features guest appearances by by Kori Gardner of Mates of State and the one and only Tim Fite.

In support of the release, The Grates will perform a number of one-offs in the coming months, which includes an appearance at this year’s Monolith Festival.

Teeth Lost, Hearts Won Tracklist:
01. Burn Bridges
02. Carve Your Name
03. The Fun in Every Start
04. Two Kinds of Right
05. Aw Yeah
06. Milk Eyes (feat. Kori Gardner)
07. The Sum of Every Part
08. Storms and Fevers
09. Earthquake
10. Not Today (feat. Tim Fite)
11. When You’re Scared of Dogs
12. Let It Die
13. The Biggest and Longest Adventure Ever

The Grates 2009 Tour Dates:
07/12 – Ottawa, ON @ 88 Lounge
07/15 – New York, NY @ Pianos
07/22 – New York, NY @ Pianos
07/24 – Guelph, ON @ Hillside Festival
07/29 – New York, NY @ Pianos
07/28 – Toronto, ON @ Horseshoe Tavern
09/13 – Morrison, CO @ Monolith Festival

But then again, I found this all out the first time I stumbled upon Fite. Last August, I experienced the “man with itchy legs,” as he likes to be called, opening for Ben Kweller at a show in Charlottesville, Virginia. At first sight and sound, the 27-year-old musician appeared to be an odd choice to open for the folk-friendly Kweller. Yet as Fite made his way through a 45-minute set full of anti-societal raps, clever folk ballads, and occasional story telling, I, like so my other around me, transitioned from an initial state of sheer awe to utter enjoyment. Who would thought that this funny looking man, complete with his suspenders, long finger nails, and a single piece of long hair drooping down from his shaved head, was capable of delivering a performance full of not only musical excellence, but indescribable fun?

Unfortunately, whether by choice or not, Fite has neither received the respect, nor following he so very much deserves. Instead, as was the case in Charlottesville and surely every other show he plays, Fite walked into the Rock ‘n Roll Hotel last night as a relative unknown, serving as opener for The Watson Twins. After some quick mingling in the crowd, Fite and his brother Greg, aka “Doctor Leisure,” took the stage behind the backdrop of the computer generated sounds and a projection screen that would accompany the duo with humorous videos and pictures throughout the set. Aside from a select few, the collective response as Fite followed up an acoustic strummed opener with a vulgar filled rap, was confusion and head scratching.

But again, as he did with myself and the rest of the crowd back in August and so many other times before and after that, Fite’s enthusiasm and passion turned the confusion into excitement, head scratching into head bobbing. A venue-wide, forced game of “Heads Shoulders, Knees, and Toes” led to smiles, while a rendition of Fite’s anti-consumerist “It’s All Right” brought out laughter. By the time the Brooklynite played the overly catchy “Big Mistake”, the first single off Fair Ain’t Fair, he had once again earned himself a new crowd of fans, ones who after the set, raced to the merch table to pick up one of his albums.

Though just as it’s hard to define his style, it’s hard to know what exactly Tim Fite hopes to accomplish. He’s approachable and friendly, smart and funny, exuberating as much talent as any other blog-approved, fellow Brooklyn native. Essentially, Fite offers everything we look for in an artist – catchy sounds, sincere lyrics, and an engaging persona. Yet for whatever reason, whether because of his hodgepodge of sounds or “non-hipster” look, he has failed to earn the reception of the masses, instead forced with the task of building his fanbase each and every night with each and every performance. But then again, as strange as it may sound, that’s probably how Fite likes it.

In some sense, Fite is a modern day cross between Tom Waits and Bob Dylan, not afraid to discuss the problems of consumerism and politics behind a perambulation of musical experimentation that does as much talking as the lyrics. But then again, the 27-year-old musician is also a rapper and DJ, whose original sampling styles and collage of diatribes helped result in the critically acclaimed Over the Counter Culture. Like his music, he is a man who doesn’t fit into a category, can’t be described with the words you would use for every other musician, every other band, in every other review. Fite is a one-man musical enigma, lacking boundaries and definition, whose originality and ever changing sounds, styles, and vocals have us keep coming back for more. After all, nothing will sound the same, anything and everything is fair game.

Fair Ain’t Fair, Fite’s lastest musical conglomeration, offers a return to the folk styles and cool melodies reminiscent of 2005′s Gone Ain’t Gone. While certainly still full of odd samples and obscure sounds, the album is far less complex and radical than the Brooklynite’s most recent works. The ruckus, Waits-esque nature of the album’s second track, “Trouble,” soon gives way to the a less frantic waltz (“The Barber”) and the uber-catchy, dare I say, radio friendly, “Big Mistake”. Much of this simplicity remains throughout of the album as Fite even goes on to showcase his voice in “Inside Man” and “Yesterday’s Garden”.

Lyrically, Fite continues to shine as his usual satirical rhetoric and clever jargon are present in full force. The first lines we hear from the young musician inform us that “Fair ain’t so far fuckers/There’s folly in the pork fat / The devil needs a doormat / For his dirt,” setting the stage for album full of both humor and passion. Yet like the album’s sound, Fite chooses to tone down the themes, divulging more on morality than political commentary. “Big Mistake” offers feelings of forgiveness, while “Inside Man” looks at the idea of humanity.

For a man who is so hard to classify, a characteristic that without a doubt has become part of his own nature, Fite has opened himself up more than he ever has on Fair Ain’t Fair. The booming of sounds and complexity of beats, have given way to the both vocal and emotional exposure. And while the “no one song sounds the same” nature will likely always remain, Fite has created an album that exemplfiies the growth of not only his beliefs, but his music. For a time, Fite could be described as a novelty, a man who garnered attention solely by the interest of seeing what he’d do next. Yet if Fair Ain’t Fair does anything, it tells us that this young Brooklynite has transformed from an enigma to a misunderstood, musical genius.

Check Out:
“Big Mistake”
“Yesterday’s Garden”