c101: August 2005 Archives

Welly, I have to say dropping So Easy... this past week was simply mad fun. Props to MC Rumpee-Pumpee for extending the mix-making idea to those I wouldn't usually send mixes. I can only hope that peeps that received it felt it. Werd.

To be honest, I debated over what tracks to share and what direction to move in, but I have to also give props to Fresh for showing me how to use Cool Edit - it is a brave new world for C$ thanks to Dr. Ocean. And, the use of that super little program allows the mixer to be seen in one full installment, thereby increasing overall cohesion 10-fold. Last, props to all of you that took the time to share your lovely comments. I am glad you enjoy my effort. Also, if you are curious, that "Thursday 2:15" track is none other than our favorite Texan, T. Johnson. Ween and a "Fire Walk with Me" reference all in one voicemail - lovely. Now, I can lean back in my chair for the next 11 months and await more mixy greatness. Yes, Thunderpants, this means you..

So, to cap this installment, lets rok some Radiohead off Com Lag "I am Citizen Insane". Enjoy and have a good week.

I am Citizen Insane

Enjoy Vitamin S' photographic prowess? He also can find good bands. VS found Drink Me long ago and I still listen. Something about them has always stayed with me. I even wrote them once in college, begging them to come to Athens to play their drunk and depressing songs. They didn't reply, but I knew that they wanted to, they just couldn't get off the floor and find a pen because they were too damn depressed or drunk or most likely both. Alas, thanks to Vitamin's whim, we can listen to "Train to Chicago" off their sophomore release, Sleep. Which ties in nicely with my impending move, I suppose. Instead of driving, though, I need to take the train with a pint of Dewar's White Label...

Train To Chicago

Fresh and I were driving around yesterday roking The Mouse and the Mask, by Dangerdoom - a slick collab' of Dangermouse and MF Doom. Fresh is going to write about it in a couple days and post a song or two. So, go to his blog and read what he says...

The MATM got me thinking again how good hip-hop can be when done right. I was lucky enough to be in the thick of the hip-hop renaissance in 1991. Sophomore year in high school and my tape deck (yes, tape deck) only played Eric B. & Rakim, Gang Starr, Geto Boys, all Native Tounges, Digable Planets, Big Daddy Kane, Beastie Boys, EPMD, Ice-T, Ice Cube, N.W.A., U.M.C's, 3xDope and basically any other hip-hop act that featured a tight beat with an MC that could flow. And I didn't feel bad (still don't) about it , being a white boy from the 'burbs and all. Rakim told me early on, "It ain't where ya from, it's where ya at." I took heed.

My dog AZ and I were loyal "Yo', MTV Raps" fans and both of us still quote Dr. Dre (the fat one) yelling "Red Alert, Red Alert..." And if you want to see a mean Ed Lover dance, well, go no further than yours truly. Currently, we have Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Slum Village, Kool Keith, Method Man and Redman making hip-hop great again. I just hope it don't stop...

Now, I got two cuts to crumple your scrunchies. First, Eric B. & Rakim - "Mahogany" - Second, Gang Starr - "Work - Part II." Soak up two master DJ's in Eric B. and DJ Premier and, of course, two of the best MC's ever to melt a mic.

Mahogony

WorkII

I have been unemployed for the past month, so part of this post is my fault. If I weren't at home at 1:00 p.m. on a Tuesday, I obviously wouldn't have the opportunity to watch the genius that is daytime TV. That said, I usually try to make my television experience fruitful and watch informative shows.

Yet, sometimes there is simply nothing on. It is when I find myself channel surfing that I find crap like "My Super Sweet 16" on MTV.

I do not know quite were to begin to try and describe my complete and utter hatred of this show and the little spoiled, beeatches it spotlights. If nationwide,16-year-old girls believe they are divas, (whatever the hell that means, I have never understood that term either) then I really need to go on that killing spree I have been thinking about.

I have heard quotes like "Money is no object" and "I can't go dance with my friends, because I have to go model" in the 5 seconds it takes me to violently change the channel. If I watched an entire show, I think I would be forced to drench myself in gasoline, light a match and run screaming through the streets. NFL players should be forced to watch MSS16 every Sunday morning - I think we would see some of the most vicious football ever played that afternoon.

On that note, I need something decidedly real. And I think I have just the thing. I am hopeful that Thunderpants and T-Luv approve of this unauthorized post. Here you go y'all - I give you "Over the Underpants." I hope you know greatness when you hear it...

OTU

Our man Evergreen (pictured) knows this mantra (please see title of post) and he makes sure Oh Dae-su knows it all too well - seeing that it appears on a poster in Dae-Su's room/prison for 15 years. Why? Oh Dae-Su doesn't know and neither do you - just one nuance to a film that will have your wheels spinning for days.

The film "Old Boy" begins with one drunken night in Dae-Su's life. Upon his release from the drunk tank he wakes up in a fully furnished room that becomes his prison. A consistent diet of fried dumplings and nightly doses of sleeping gas mark 15 years. And then, finally, he is released onto a bright, sunny rooftop. His mission - to find out who imprisoned him and why.

As for me, I am feeling blue. Not as blue as Dae-Su by the end of the film, but blue nonetheless, which works for this Bobby Vinton ditty, "Blue On Blue". Fellow Bobcats may recognize this sample from my forthcoming disc. First, please enjoy Bobby's version...

Blue on Blue

Flowing like water and flying like wind; this is the way the Japanese film industry describes the acting of Tadanobu Asano. And my, oh my, how he flows in "Ichi the Killer." Asano plays hyper-sadomasochistic Kakihara of the Japanese mafia Yakuza in a movie that is a strong contender for the most demented of all time. Let's just say that director Miike Takashi relishes in the arterial spray like no other director out there. Tarantino, maybe...maybe. If released at your local Super Cinema...what am I saying? The possibiltiy of this movie seeing several thousand big screens in 'merica is as likely as monkeys flying out of my a-hole.

Not only does our little Ichi kill with reckless abandon, he gets off on it. If that weren't enough, he only kills because he has been hypnotized by an ex-Yakuza who has a plan to take down the whole Anjo-Yakuza branch of the gang via Ichi.

In one particular scene, aforementioned Kakihara proves he is so, so sorry to the bosses in the Yakuza. He is apologetic because he decided to hang a fellow Yakuza from the ceiling with hooks to try and get some info. Kakihara then decides to make some shrimp tempura and rather than waste the hot grease, he dumps it on said hookee. The bosses deem this treatment a wee-bit excessive, so Kakihara makes amends by chopping off his own tongue. He is careful, however, to wear a bib to protect his wardrobe when he chops said tongue. And then, he immediately answers his phone afterwards and has one of the funniest/sickest conversations in cinema history.

So, a song to measure up to that insanity? I think I found it. Appparently, this song is huge everywhere in the world except for here. I give you - "Schnappi - Das kleine Krokodil" - some German craziness. If this tune doesn't make you want to kill, I don't know what will. UPDATE! I found someone who shares my sentiment. Click here to take pot shots at Schnappi with a machine gun. Warms the cockles of my heart. Long live Ichi!

Schnappi

I have been gone for a few days visiting Chicago and it really has been lovely. The weather has been perfect. The hustle and bustle of the city reminds a fella that it is good and necessary to force one's self out of Le Zone de Comforte and see some isht. Speaking of, I revisited "Dawn of the Dead" this weekend (a rooftop movie no less). While the Chicago skyline twinkled and the warm breeze off Lake Michigan provided perfect ambiance, I was reminded just how the movie's sly undertext slices and dices (and quite literally blows the head off) our current state of affairs. Plus, D.O.T.D. boasts one of the best opening 10 minutes of any movie I have ever seen.

Also, I am very happy to report that my dog P has provided a copy of "Old Boy" to me and I am very anxious to see it because I have heard great things. Here is the premise - A man is kidnapped and awakens in a privately built makeshift jail, during his horrible 15-year stay, he learns that his wife was brutally murdered. After he is released, our protagonist commences on a vengeful mission to figure out why he was put in the pokey, let alone why his wife was murdered.

As for music, let's go with - J_1/4rgen Paape "So Weit Wie Noch Nie" off DJ Kicks by Erlend __ye - You might know __ye from his other project, Kings of Convenience, which should be a group on your must-listen list.

So Weit Wie Noch Nie

I was reading over my last few entries and I was shocked, yes, shocked at just how introspective I have been lately. That ain't right - there is a big, wide world out there and it needs to be discussed. That said, I hope all of you have the chance to watch good 'ol Charlie Rose on PBS. One of the best shows on TV, me thinks. Mr. Rose consistently interviews the most interesting people or at least interviews boring people who know interesting things. Such was the case on Wednesday night. Seems there is a fella by the name of Ray Kurzweil who has written quite the new book -Fantastic Voyage. Kurzweil asserts that we are a merely years away, perhaps as close as 20, from developing bio-technology sophisticated enough that we, well, I will let his website explain it:

"In Fantastic Voyage, high-tech visionary Ray Kurzweil teams up with life-extension expert Terry Grossman. M.D., to consider the awesome benefits to human health and longevity promised by the leading edge of medical science...and what you can do today to take full advantage of these startling advances."

This means, kiddies, that we are closing in on immortality. At least, that is where Kurzweil believes further development of bio-engineering and nanotechnology will take us. This obviously has major implications, the most obvious being, if I can live forever, what in the hell does it matter if I want to spend 300 years perfecting the lovely backyard game of cornhole?

On that note, let's rok some Deltron. "Update your grey matter because one day it may matter..." off Deltron 3030...

Upgrade (A Brymer College Course)

Hello, my friends. It has been a rough and tumble few months for yours truly, but I have finally seen the light. Well, at least I have chosen a light to go toward. Which, in of itself is an accomplishment. Sure, it is a far off light for most, but it might also provide the biggest illumination - enough of that metaphor. I suppose, though, that it is destiny that I dwell where the namesake of my bloggy is erected -101- the tallest building on earth. I trust with my departure that I will continue to receive not only further visitation, but also participation from all of you. So, what song to mark my departure? Well, I am going to give a sneak-peaky into my OU mix. David Snell's International Flight, off Thievery Corporation's, The Outernational Sound, which fits snugly with the whole departure, I suppose.

International Flight

Well, I thought I should post something regarding the fact that I am hitting the road and heading back far easty. I do, however, do not forsee any difficulties in continuing c101. So, please, don't fret. Also, it is soon to be my turn to drench all my lovely OU peeps in some musical gravy. And I, for one, can't wait. Being that my mix is so damn good, I think I will post something so bad it hurts. This is for you eSwede. Coco Lee's Di Da Di, please don't hate me upon listening to this abomination. Because it will get into your head, whether you like it or not...

Di Da Di