Nuclear Beef

New School Energetic Art Hip Hop Audio Beef Today. Azeem can't stop pouring palm wine on the froggy FBI.

(all tracks are by or featuring Azeem)

'Palm Wine Two' from 2001's Craft Classic

'Frogs' from DJ Zeph's 2004 album Sunset Scavenger

'Non Stop' from 2004's Show Business

'Under Surveillance' with Variable Unit from 2004's Mayhemystics

Azeem is one hard-working guy, and yet another example of how badly heads can sleep on the right MC at the wrong time or in the wrong place. Slept on like a Labtekwon or Skillz or Danja Mowf. If it were 1991 and people were still excited about intelligent hiphop, Azeem would be on everyone's playlist.

I first became a fan with 2001's Craft Classic, which is consistently excellent. I posted 'Palm Wine Two' first because if you only listen to one song it should be this one. A type of Hip-Hop love song that is all too rare in that it involves.. actual people.. living actual lives. Imagine.

(This song has made me bawl before. Plus that beat is hot to death. Kanye West is a biter.)

Choice Beef Quote:

For the praises of God, I'd rob heaven
Cause it's harder not to be with you
Get on the phone and tell your Pops I want to marry you

CHORUS:
It's not your look or what you're doing, it's (who you are)
Your body shape or your booty, it's (who you are)
You know the reason that you move me, it's (who you are)

'Frogs' is one of the few standout tracks on DJ Zeph's Sunset Scavenger album. It and 'Non Stop' show that Azeem knows what to do with an ill beat from Zeph. Unfortunately, the rest of the tracks on Sunset Scavenger and Show Business aren't as good as the wonder-twins team-ups. DJ Zeph and Azeem, if you're listening.. do a whole album together, ok?

(Sunset Scavenger is now called Sunset Salvage, presumably because Zeph was cease-and-desisted by Sunset Scavenger Sanitation. If you're local to the Bay Area, Zeph and Azeem are both playing at Otherworld Halloween in Oakland this Saturday night, Oct. 30 2004.)

Line for line, who rhyme better than you do
Genetically test your style: I'm your father, dude
That's the truth, you tested and it's certain
I spit so hard, the front row need a shower curtain

Slowly I creep through the world of deceit
And breath through my feet
Everything seen disintegrates
Like sillhouettes, cinnamon mist, smoke from cigarettes... LSD trips

I've included the track with Variable Unit as a bonus, just so you understand how versatile Azeem is. Variable Unit is a big possee band, and with Azeem on the mic sounds like a Do You Want More?!?!? or Organix era The Roots. Great when you're in that mood.

(Both the Variable Unit album and DJ Zeph's album are on Wide Hive Records. Show Business is on Bomb Hip Hop Records. Craft Classic is on Stray Records, which is a subset of Dog Day Records though neither label seems to have a working web page. It's 2004, guys. Get it together.)

Posted by darwin at 01:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

UK-Indian Warm Groove Audio Beef Today. Cornershop and Bubbley Kaur rock the top-knot.

'Topknot' by Bubbley Kaur (presented by Cornershop) from 2004's Topknot b/w Natch 12 inch vinyl

I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on either Indian-influenced music or Cornershop. I knows what I likes... and I likes this. The track by Tjinder Singh (of Cornershop) alone puts a smile on my face. Bubbley Kaur (who apparently has never recorded before) makes a stunning debut and rides the beat in a way few western singers could. Sometimes songs give me mental pictures; all I can think of when I hear this song is a sunny summer roadtrip with friends. Heaven.

Of course, with my luck the (Hindi? Punjabi?) lyrics are about death, dismemberment and suffering.

Natch!

(The B-side of this 12" ('Natch') sounds like Indian Italo-disco. Pretty solid, if you're into that sort of thing.)

UPDATE : Thanks to TJ in comments, the translated lyrics to this song now appear in the extended entry. Click below for them.

"don't keep turning to look back
and when you look back don't you laugh
don't keep turning to look back
and when you look back don't you laugh

keep one girl alone in your heart
don't keep all the girls under your spell

the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls

have your fun, loving and kissing
youth won't last forever, darling
whatever wishes are in your heart,
fulfil them today, as soon as you wish
these days won't come back again
so think about that first, darling

the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls,
the girls all follow you, the girls

your fashions and whims have killed us all
now you relax in your car and listen to songs
don't come into other people's business
and give them false hopes with your false promises
truth is truth and can be nothing else
try to live the truth, darling

don't keep turning to look back
and when you look back don't you laugh
keep one girl alone in your heart
dont keep all the girls under your spell

the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls

have your fun, loving and kissing
youth won't last forever, darling
whatever wishes are in your heart,
fulfill them today, as soon as you wish
these days won't come back again
so think about that first, darling

the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls, the girls
the girls all follow you, the girls"

Posted by darwin at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (9) | TrackBacks (1)

Country and Western Duet Audio Beef Today. Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn hang up the phone after the fire is gone.

'After The Fire Is Gone' and 'As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone' by Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, collected on 25 #1s

Here's two great duets from Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, in honor of Mr. Tofu's call for country musicblogging.

I've always loved the storytelling style of country music, and the duet format is perfect. Loretta and Conway deliver phenomenal vocal performances, and everything else takes care of itself. A steady beat, some heartwrenching piano or pedal guitar and some sad lyrics about love. What else does a man need in this world?

I particularly enjoy these two because the concepts are a bit unusual. One song is about a pair of cheating lovers who can't seem to kick the habit, the other a breakup in the form of a telephone call-and-response. Country music to play for all those people who say "I love every kind of music.. except country."

Have I steered you wrong before? Didn't think so. Listen to the mp3s already.

(The new computer is finally working. Expect more posts. Go Sox!)

Posted by darwin at 01:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Digable Hip-Hop Wine in a New Bottle Audio Beef Today. Butterfly pours himself a tasty sip of Cherrywine.

'What I'm Talking About' by Cherrywine from their 2003 album Bright Black on Dcide Records / Baby Grande

Cherrywine is the solo project of Ishmael Butler, the Digable Planet formerly known as Butterfly. Spacey funk guitar (played by Butler) and a synth bassline make it clear that he has moved beyond Blue Note samples. He's still got that classic voice, clever lyrics and a butter (*cough*) smooth delivery.

This is the strongest track on the album, which is (unfortunately) hit and miss. I have to give Butterfly credit for continuing to explore, and I'm sure that he'll make an excellent contribution to the new Digable Planets album.

Got sex appeal, mass appeal, drug appeal
Guns Guns Guns! (For Real.. ?)
Hos do it for the cash
You might be a good crook, but your rap is trash

(Apologies for the protracted break in blogging.. the Red Sox and a janky new computer have been eating up all of my blogging time...)

Shouts out to Lucas, who loves Digable Planets even more than I do, and hipped me to Cherrywine.

Posted by darwin at 09:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Offbeat Hip-Hop 'Friend'ship Audio Beef Today. Anacron has a talk about where we stand.

'Friends' by Anacron from his 2004 album 5 Songs I Wrote About You

This little ditty by Chicago musician, producer, MC and Living Legends affiliate Anacron goes out to all you guys out there with that special woman in your life. No, not a girlfriend... that girl who would be your really cool girlfriend except that she isn't.

Sometimes it's easy, sometimes it's hard, sometimes it's both at the same time.

Unfortunately that's also true of Anacron's quirky cutesy lounge-hop. Some of it (like this) is great. Some of it is just kinda silly. I invite you to make up your own mind. In the words of Charles Isbell (The Homeboy From Hell): That's just one Black Man's opinion -- what's yours?

('Five Songs I Wrote About You' is actually 10 tracks long. All instruments (pianos, sax, clarinet, guitar, upright bass, percussion and drums played by Anacron. Yeah. Not bad!)

I don't know what happened but I know things have changed /
When we meet and I smile, you just look at me strange /
We had a conversation about where we stand /
With all the complications, I can't be your man
...
Damn girl, you're flipping like a gymnast schizophrenic /
One minute's cool, the next is something different /
You give me kisses, hold my hand and want me close /
Then you act distant and your output is morose / From week to week it switches and I'm so confused /
This routine really is emotional abuse

Shouts out to all the girls I've loved before like I was Wyclef. I miss y'all.

Posted by darwin at 11:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Anti-Computer 80s Electro-Funk Audio Beef Today. Johnny Guitar Watson stands in solidarity with the workers of the world, against our new computer masters.

'Strike On Computers' by Johnny 'Guitar' Watson from his 1984 album Strike On Computers

(This is a weird one, alright.)

I confess that I've been feeling a love-hate relationship with my computer lately. On the one hand it's the most powerful tool a curious person could have. On the other hand it ciphers my entire life into something both beautiful and dreadful.

Johnny 'Guitar' Watson captured this computexistential horror perfectly in this electro-funkin' rant, circa 1984. The groove is thick and Johnny sure knows how to express himself on the microphone and the guitar.

Mmm mmm mmm
Home computers
TV Game computers
Pac Man.. Mr. AND Mrs.
They done got married
Ain't that somethin?

I'm talkin' 'bout
Boy, this computer thing is ROUGH!

Help me!

For the benefit of you
Who thought that I was through
Cause you haven't been hearing Guitar too much
I can understand it
Uh.. something was wrong
And that's why your pal been gone
And just for you I did some research!

Now listen
As my research will show
The music business and all the businesses were slow
And one thing I didn't realize
All them regular jobs
That you and I do
Have all become computerized!

Help me!

CHORUS
We need to strike on computers!
People, I ain't lyin'!
We need to strike on computers!
Before there ain't no jobs to find!

Now there is a computer
That is connected
To the nose of a missile
That will seek out a target
And blow it up anywhere

But dig!

There's a brand new missile
That's got a computer that'll
Seek that missile out and
Blow that sucker up in midair

I think you better help me!

CHORUS

Owww! Listen!

Unemployment is at an all-time high
And you wondering how you lost your job

Well let the Guitar lip (?)

You might think it's funny
But the computer gonna save the company money
And it's gonna be done your job before you start!

Help me!

Now let me talk to your kids
Listen, all you kids in school
Everybody that got a teacher
I'm gonna tell you what to do
When the bell ring for lunch

Now you grab that teacher by the arm
And you rush to the cafeteria and buy
All the food that you can and say hey
Teacher, would you teach me something about
T punch?

Help me!

Now listen!

Just the other day I had to go down to the music store
Because I didn't have any more guitar strings left
The salesman said:
"Awww Hey Guitar! I got just the guitar you need to see"
People.. the damn thing played by itself!

Awww! Help me!

CHORUS

(I have no idea what he means by 'T Punch' either. We just report it, it's up to you to get confused.)

Posted by darwin at 10:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Abstract Head-Nod Audio Beef Today. MF Doom follows Daedelus too close to The Sun, while Jogger sends away in the mail.

'Impending Doom' and 'I Sent Off II Sus Percoll - Jogger Remix' by Daedelus (feat. MF Doom and Jogger, respectively) from his forthcoming album Exquisite Corpse on Mush Records

Daedelus is going off. In the downtempo world he is to 2004 what Prefuse 73 was to 2003. His excellent A Gent Agent sounds like DJ Spooky and Amon Tobin had a baby and its head popped off. As Telephone Thing points out, the album these two tracks are from is currently only available at shows on the Mush Tour Fall 2004.

The Doom track is ridiculous, as expected. More deranged storytelling wordplay over a beat most MCs couldn't handle. Pure heat.

Bro, this beat is beat is simply retarded, yo /
Sound like it came off 'The Hate Ricky Ricardo Show'
...
A lot of y'all rappers be rapping to dull beats

Ain't that the triple truth, Ruth.

The track remixed by Jogger (who is impossible to google for) is a perfect example of where I want music to go. Opera samples chopped beyond recognition, edits galore.. and a 120+ bpm beat that just keeps building. Make 'em say UNNNNNNH. In the words of Cristian Vogel : 'All Music Has Come To An End.' The next time someone tells me that music based on samples is somehow less creative than 'original' music.. I'll think of this song and chuckle quietly to myself.

(I didn't post the Prefuse 73 track because it's not as good as the Jogger remix and I'm sure someone else will do it. Besides, Prefuse has enough (deserved) hype to last him a few years.)

Posted by darwin at 01:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (10) | TrackBacks (1)

I don't have much to say on the debate. I'm sure everyone else has already said everything. Really the only thing I have to add is that John Kerry comes off like Artie Ziff from The Simpsons. His selling point seems to be that people should support such an obviously brilliant candidate.

Hello, classmates. Instead of voting for some athletic hero or a pretty boy, you have elected me, your intellectual superior, as your king. Good for you!
-- Artie Ziff's acceptance speech, ``"The Way We Was":http://www.snpp.com/episodes/7F12''

Update: OOOPS. This post was in the wrong category, and got incorrectly aggregated to mp3blogs.org. Sorry!

Posted by darwin at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)