Mothafucka, play the 20 minute version.

Doesn’t matter how you feel about Diddy, electro, pop, yadda yadda yadda.  This mix is sublimely, supremely unadulteratedly dope as fuck.  Period.

‘Lectro Black-The Last Train to Paris Mixtape is an extended electro love letter from Felix Da Housecat and Sir Puff that unfolds over 59 minutes of the most gorgeous, razor edged beats I’ve heard in a minute. I mean, after all, it is Felix on the cuts.  He of Kitten & thee Glitz royalty.  Dude’s almost like God.

I once heard a quote from Gregory Hines about how hoofers never turn in their tap shoes, and, well, you could kinda say diddy’s a bit of the same. There’ve been a lot of shiny, ghostwritten permutations since the days he made his bread as a dancer for Father MC but every once and a while the roots show through.  Remember Get Off?

This 8 minute spoken word piece from DJ Hell and his diddyness  (IMO one of the best spoken word/electro joints since Coded Language) should put things back in perspective:

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Why we love Dylan Thomas and Rodney Dangerfield

A little morning motivation

DO NOT GO GENTLE INTO THAT GOOD NIGHT

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

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Go Go for the people

Woke up this morning with DMV dreams and Go Go visions.  It’s hard as hell describing a Go Go to someone’s who’s never been so here ya go.  Rock with me…

Filed under: Uncategorized , DC, DMV, Go go, Gogo, Northeast groovers

Underword tonight? In Oakland? Fuck. At least I’ve got the video…

If you’re in the Bay and haven’t, unlike some other preoccupied morons who also happen to write this blog, made other plans tonight, there’s absolutely no excuse for not going to this show.  I mean fuck, look at this video.  I need some of what this guy’s on.   Catch the british bleeps of Underworld tonight at the Fox in Oakland.

Filed under: Uncategorized , "Raymond Saunders", Oakland, underworld

Afrofuturist down. RIP Charles Huntley Nelson

more about "Mutropolis on Vimeo", posted with vodpod

While a lot of the future soul crowd has been (rightfully) mourning the death of Slum Village MC Baatin, another afrofuturistic luminary passed over the weekend.

Filed under: Uncategorized , Afrofuturism, Art, avante garde, baatin, Charles Huntley Nelson, dj spooky, rebirth of a nation, slum village, Video

Back up! film explores female harrasment and activism. Free tonight

Hey Baby…Hey Sexy..Wit’ yo fine self…Come ‘er girl…Damn, can I get summa that?

Just for the record, “Damn, can I get summa that?” is never a good introduction.

A few years ago I was walking with a female friend and she was striding ahead about 10 feet in front of me, which I supposed, was enough distance for people to assume we were’nt together.  During the course of our 10 block walk she was hit on no less than 5 times, by dudes who not only had no game but who were overall kinda lame and disrespectful, enough to make me up the pace and make sure our connection was a lot more clear to any other potential wack romeos.

When I told her how shocked I was all I got a shrug, and a “whatev, that’s the way it always is.” Now of course I knew about the inequalities women go through on the reg, but this was the 1st time I had seen it so crudely and repeatedly.

Unfortunately, fimmakers Nijlan Mu’min and Monique Hazeur, along with, well, just about every other woman on the planet, knows about this kind of on the street harassment pretty damn well.  

Filed under: Uncategorized , Activism, Back Up, documentary, Film, Monique Hazeur, Nijlan Mu'min, sexaul harrasment

Michael Jackson Memorial tonight in Oakland

Anyone in the Bay Area looking for some Michael Jackson communion tonight should head over to the Black Dot Cafe,

1195 Pine st in West Oakland from 7pm-10pm. Folks will be reading memorials, poems, playing music (bring your axe) and watching the CNN memorial. call 510-594-4340 for more info.

Filed under: Uncategorized , Michael Jackson, Oakland

Death of Autotune or Death of Hip Hop?

Alright, I’ve been thinking about this for the last few weeks as I’ve been rewinding the hell out of Jay Z’s latest and I want to get a couple things out of the way from the jump. 1) Autotune is hella overused and kind of annoying after the 50th listen. 2) In a sea of catchy hooks and brain dead verses, Jay Z’s DOA is like a Super Lyrical life preserver. Granted, Jay’s call for an end to all things Autotuned isn’t on par with that original Big Pun joint but still, as my man DKing says- “That dude there, he raps. That’s what you call RAPPING.”

So for the first 15 or so spins of Death of Autotune I had to geek out on the head nod. Of course there are mad underground heads making dope songs but I’ve still got a soft spot for old school terrestrial radio, so to hear a mainstream cat going in like this touched off some back in the days nostalgia. It almost felt like the mid 90’s again.

But with all that being said, once I took off the hip hop cheerleader’s helmet and picked up my critic’s notebook my opinions shifted a bit. Where once DOA sounded like a breath of fresh air and a rallying cry for “Real Hip Hop” (does anyone even seriously have this debate anymore?) it was now beginning to sound like the last swan song of a style past it’s prime. A damned fine swan song, but still one that signals the beginnings of a march out the Exit door.

Filed under: Uncategorized , Art, chuck palahniuk, Death of Autotune, DOA, essay, fight club, Hip Hop, hipster rap, Jay Z, Kid Cudi, Music, T Pain, Wale

Martin Luther: “Home” live

“You see my neighborhood’s already been gentrified

SinFrinpsycho killafornia was my home…”

The funky man name after a monk kills this live perfomance.  I’ve heard this song  a lot and I have no idea how I missed the lines above.  But given the city by the Bay’s current state of mass exodus, it’s an apt statement.

Filed under: Uncategorized , Martin Luther, San Francisco, Video

Weekly Link Orgy

Intellectual Viagra. The links and info that gave my brain an erection this week. (Umm..)

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