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The price of hip hop intellectuals
Times Standard, October 30, 2008
In 1931 the brutal soviet dictator Joseph Stalin convinced writer/intellectual Maxim Gorky to “return to become Stalin’s literary ornament” as written by Simon Sebag Montefiore in his recent book Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar.
It turned out authors and poets were relatively inexpensive. A mansion, a pair of vacation homes, the rights to his publishing monies, and a driver were all it took to lure the founder of “socialist realism” from Italian exile back to the Soviet Union, where Gorky became a mouthpiece for a bureaucratic machine that murdered and displaced millions.
I wonder what the price would be for most hip hop “stars” these days? Would a down-on-his-luck Flavor Flav be as willing to rap for a dictator as he is to embarrass himself on a reality television show?
In the money-driven world consumption and wealth have only become more important since 1931. The MTV/BET fashion amplification engine seems to be bumping 250 dollar jeans and cocaine as icons of glamour which lays hip hop in precisely the place Gorky was for Stalin: cover.
Hip hop conversations about politics are important. Far beyond the rappers who plug for Obama, (and the tiny handful who have advocated for McCain) we need to consider the long-term consequences for so-called political hip hop that acts as a cover for political scheming.
NWA star Eazy-E dropped $2500 for a fundraiser dinner with George W. Bush in 1991, an antic he described as a publicity stunt. Regardless of who got used in that exchange: George W. Bush, or Eazy-E, the desire for publicity with no thought to the discussion the sound bite pushed off the stage is a logical extension of Gorky’s greed.
In 2008 country music stars and rappers face off in a corporate chain store version of the presidential debates – and some second tier emcees have advocated for McCain precisely because it is the kind of tantalizing entertainment/reporting that will get their names in the paper.
In the presidential election coverage, pundits have enjoyed picking on rappers who have advocated for Barack Obama, and musicians have made quick work producing political themed songs (the best of which, in my opinion, is reggae star Cocoa Tea’s “Barack Obama”), but they are shallow versions of the political capacity of hip hop.
As a medium of discussion, the least valuable conversation in hip hop is who people are going to vote for. I’d rather hear emcees debate about the war in Iraq, economic crisis, and women’s issues – but heck; I’d rather hear the candidates discuss those issues.
As the economy tightens and wealth pools in the hands of a few, the price of a struggling hip hop musician will certainly go down. Given the success rate hip hop musicians is one-in-a-million, and that those on the top amplify their consumptive success by name-dropping “necessary” labels of fashionable clothes and expensive cars, we shouldn’t be surprised to see more hip hop musicians working for well-paying oppressors in the future. The only question will be at what price?Current Music: Cal Tjader |
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Times Standard, August 1, 2008
Humboldt is thick with musical talent. One of the casualties of the proliferation of rappers in this area is that some voices get overlooked. When Dirty Rat producer GMG handed me a CD-R labeled Humanoids from the Deep, it joined a fairly large pile of new music, but it only took one play to stand out.
The Humanoid emcee’s Ink and the Broke Superhero were not only musically talented, but they were clever with the rhymes. As Ink says on “emcee for life,” “If it’s a war of words, I hit you with a triple letter score.” The Humanoids from the Deep mixed the political with the humorous, and created just plain old great hip hop.
Ink is a Humboldt musician – and I was honestly curious about his background. I called him up and got a few words from the emcee on his collaboration with Fortuna’s Dirty Rats, (appropriately called Dirty Humanoids) and a little history. ( Read more... )
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Show review
North Coast Journal August 1, 2008
In front of an adoring crowd, Culture’s lead singer Kenyatta Hill dedicated his performance at Reggae on the River to his deceased father, the roots star Joseph Hill. The senior Hill helped found the band and penned such esteemed roots classics as “two sevens clash” and “zion gate.” ( Read more... )
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CD review
North Coast Journal August 7, 2008
The Delta Nationals are a talented quartet of local blues-rooted musicians whose second album, All over the map emerged this year. As the title suggests, the album is a diverse collection of toe-tapping music authored by the band members. The Delta Nationals have created a wonderful boogie sound on this album which should resonate with most dancers, enliven almost any dinner party, and even elicit nostalgia in the stubborn-minded. ( Read more... )Current Music: Lee "Scratch" Perry |
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The Humboldt Crabs bested the Humboldt Steelheads in both games of the doubleheader on Wednesday night. Despite the losses, the Steelheads are shaping up to be a strong baseball team – made up of local college students; the team is full of scrap and quickness.
There were more than a thousand appreciative fans glad for the Steelheads last minute substitution for the Marin Merchants. This is also an excellent year for the Crab roster and the teams played good fast baseball. Of course, in Crab Stadium the baseball game is only part of the experience. ( Read more... ) |
| » Subtle obscenity: Art in a time of war |
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Maxwell Schnurer, Times Standard July 3, 2008
The Coup’s Boots Riley is an incendiary poet – a Maya Angelou level verbal antagonist. Teamed with with Pam the Funkstress, a DJ/Producer who makes some of the funkiest tunes in all of hip hop, The Coup have made five albums of politically charged hip hop. This week Boots Riley was pulled off a Virginia festival stage and charged with “abusive language,” putting an end to the set. ( Read more... )
Jul. 10th, 2008 @ 01:34 pm
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| » Destination digging |
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Am I desperate? Am I willing to jump at any record because it is cheap and I have new storage space? Am I just a loser who wants to consume, but doesn’t have cash and is channeling all his energy into records to numb a wack life?
Quite possibly. But f** it. I like records.
( Read more... )
Jul. 5th, 2008 @ 12:08 pm
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| » Summer solstice diggin' |
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Summer Solstice Diggin’
I’m under a fairly strict policy of fiscal austerity, so selecting the few full price LPs that I can afford is a grueling task. I agonized over purchasing the reissue of Cal Tjader’s Soul Sauce LP from Dusty Groove. I put it in my digital shopping cart. Then I took it out. Repeat cycle and add google searches, and frustration, only to finally decide against the album.
I was hipped to Tjader by Larry Grogan, who runs the absolutely fundamental blog Funky 16 Corners. Of Swedish descent, the vibraphonist made cosmic latin jazz like no one else. I found an LP of his live work at People’s records in Arcata and it has been in heavy rotation at my house.
Contrast my greedy record desire with the relatively slim pickings of the Humboldt tag sales this season, and you have some beautiful bike rides with an empty backpack. Last weekend I rode my bike to fourteen tag sales and found four records. Two nice flute LPs and some seventies Humboldt country folk LPs.
So imagine my surprise when I strolled up to the fourth tag sale this morning and spotted Soul Sauce on the top of a pile of Lps being fondled by a middle-aged couple. Catching my breath, I chatted with the tag sale proprietress until the folks finished looking.
It drives me nuts when people rush up in the piles of records hoping to ‘race me to the good ones!’ Crass greedy suckers. I’m happy to wait until folks finish, and I like chatting with people who sell records because they usually have cool stories to go with their LPs.
My heart sank when I saw the fondler pick up a Brubeck Lp and the a Tjader record, but I tried to keep perspective. Finally, they split, and I got to dig. I zoned out once the records were in front of me, and I was pleasantly surprised to see what they had left me.
Cal Tjader Soul Sauce, Breeze from the East
Dave Brubeck Quartet – LP w/ Tjader!, countdown, and time out.
Antonio Carlos Jobim – Wave (Trying to get myself psyched to get on my bike this morning I was reading a wax poetics article about brazilian tunes and ran across this Bossa Nova star and bang, twelve blocks later I find his epochal album).
Leo Kotke – Armadillo LP
Les McCann Beaux J. Pooboo – this record is nuts. So funky, and so live – I guess the Reverend Beaux J. Pooboo was Les McCann’s zany alter ego. One of the first things I put on when I got my piles of LPs home.
Mamas and Papas – Papas and Mamas
Bad Company – Run with the pack
Janis Joplin – Pearl (doubles for this blues beat album)
Allman Bros – Eat a Peach
Xavier Cugat – Best of
Joe & Eddie
Mason William – Phonograph LP
I’m shaving my pile down & preparing for negotiations, when they bring back the Tjader record “several shades of jade” and the Brubeck LP. I guess the previous purchaser wouldn’t pay two buck a piece for them. Well I certainly did.
I had to ride home to drop off the albums and then rode out again. A few sales later, I hit a gigantic pile of country stuff. I was sorely tempted by two 7” record cases filled with classic country 7”s, but the seller was firm, and wanted a bit much for ‘em. Instead I filled up on fifty cent LPs.
Billy Joel – Glass Houses
Lou Rawls – When you hear lou, you’ve heard it all
Aretha Franklin 7” respect
Jerry Reed 7”
Diana Ross – touch me in the Am
Dolly parton & Sylvester Stallone – Rhinestone (hell yeah!)
5th dimension – loves lines, angles and rhymes, age of Aquarius, and the magic garden
Dionne Warwick – The Dionne Warwick story
Waylon Jennings – I’ve always been crazy, Dreaming my dreams, and greatest hits (If you ain’t hip on Waylon Jennings, then you’d better get some learn on. Guitar star, total heartfelt poet. Good shit.)
Donna Summer Live
Charles Vicks – Does Disco (seems to be a relatively small DIY disco project?)
Gertrude Stein – reads Gertrude Stein (one of two spoken word LPs I bought today . . .usually I’m the spoken word hound)
Thomas Dolby – Flat Earth
Twenty blocks away I discover another huge pile at a tag sale. These folks had some varied records, but some neat scores. The ‘five for a buck’ helped me to get a little more exploratory.
Ramsey Lewis – Movie LP and The in crowd
Terry Gibbs – El Nutto (this vibes LP is off the hook!)
Jon Faddis – Good N Plenty
Atlantic Jazz Mainstream
MJQ – Blues at Carnegie hall
Coltrane live at birdland
Milt Jackson – born free
Cannonbal Adderly – Bossa Noval LP
Sonny Criss – Saturday Morning
Bob Dylan – first LP
Apache –
Sunny Ade – Master guitarist
Vincent Capretta 12” (the cover of this LP has a handsome man covered with pink lace. Looks like obscure queer disco heaven. I notice that someone loved the track enough to put doubles in there. Can’t be terrible for the price? We’ll see. What sold me was that it was produced by James Mtume, Miles Davis percussionist deity).
Bigg Ocean Mobb – the only hip hop 12” in the pile?
Pretenders first LP
Gloria Gaynor – Never Say Goodbye
Jamal – Christian spoken word picture disc . . . in a heartbeat. I hope this is bad. Really bad.
Tom Paxton – Up and up
Hair – Ray Bloch
Animal House LP – again, someone was kind enough to provide two copies of this right next to each other in the pile. Thank you.
Olatunji – Flaming Drums (this looks rad.)
The Carnival – The carnival
New Riders of the Purple Sage – Brujo
Django Rinehard – Parisian Swim
Bessie Smith – World’s greatest blues singer
Simon & Garfunkle – the graduate (doubles for the hippy parties)
More than enough to keep me busy. I’m excited about all the cool jazz options. Thanks Eureka! You rock.
Jun. 21st, 2008 @ 03:02 pm
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| » Connect the dots, follow the arrows: Humboldt Hip Hop |
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By Maxwell Schnurer, Times Standard June 5, 2008 Hip hop is commonly defined by the four elements (dancing, djing, graffiti writing, and emceeing), but it entails a whole host of other knowledge. Comic books, cinema, fashion, and of course location are crucial in understanding this cultural movement. Thinking about the geography of Humboldt Hip Hop can be a valuable way to consider this movement. I rode my bike to The Works, Eureka’s fine independent record store on a sunny Sunday morning and discovered DJ/emcee/Dirty Rat Stir Fry Willie crouched over the record bins at a time many people would be in church. Willie is a charming, ecstatic, often costumed performer whose DJ nights featuring rock, soul and hip hop offer a chance to see this kinetic artist show off his musical inspirations. We shared words on disguises, records, motivations and spoke of our places in the universe. Stir Fry Willie a handful of his fellow Dirty Rats rep Fortuna, while I honor the fair city of Eureka – which I consider the center of hip hop culture on the north coast. Affordable, accessible, and complete with the semi-regular drama of cities ten times its size, the stories of hip hop bubble through the record stores, clubs and streets of this beautiful city. A few blocks away from the record store, I am dazzled by the art on the alley wall of the Accident Gallery, a crucial local performance/gallery space. It’s worth noting that the alleys of several local businesses have become dizzying optic-stimulating art spaces. One business contacted me with the tale that they’ve added large full-color art pieces to their outside wall largely to deter low-quality writing on their walls. The outside writers deserve kudos for sharing their visions with the citizenry and the idiot who has been writing on trees deserves 100% shame. Among other cross currents that blow through the Accident Gallery have been the recent spate of slam poetry contests run by the feminist and verbally-savvy crew A Reason To Listen. After some cut-throat preliminaries, the Humboldt Slam Team is now final and prepared to represent the lost coast in the world of stage poetry performance. Carved out of the competition, the newly inaugurated Slam team consists of: Vanessa Pike, Brad Wilson, Mischief Mic, and Lorena Boswell. The Humboldt team will travel to the national championship in Madison Wisconsin in August. Backwoods star Garth Culti-Vader had an accident recently with some injuries. His recovery period was spent crouched over a computer editing his first film. Titled: Chronic TV: Humboldt Hip Hop Volume 1, the movie shows Garth rocking a handful of live shows, a new song from Sub Sab emcee Elision, a video from producer emcee Myster DL and some high-speed, dank-inspired editing. Accompanying Myster DL into the Universal Balance Productions Studios, I ran into Massagana vocalist and emcee Ishi Dube. Ishi has been performing and rocking hard for 2008 bringing conscious reggae and repping his location to audience at a moment’s notice. Myster DL was in the studio to work on a couple of tunes, and it was rad to see producer/guitarist Piet “Demolition” Dalmolian lay down some guitar solos and tweak the pro tools. DL is a behind-the-scenes kind of musician, whose catalogue of tracks is rich with underground stars. With some time spent soaking up the sounds in Miami, his albums are catchy and kicking. Check out his recent album The Storm, and his first local mix tape Humboldt County Stories hosted by Onyx emcee Sonny Seeza. I cadged an invitation to see Dirty Rats GMG and Stir Fry Willie do some MPC damage in their Fortuna, Dirty Rats lair. Watching a beat evolve from vinyl to chopped loop under the talented fingers of GMG was a real honor. As I exited Stir Fry Willie laced me with some of the Dirty Rats back catalogue, including the 2004 album the Plague, and a copy of his ultra-rare first album Piss in the Crisper. Pass the verses or ride in hearses. Humboldt State’s Poetry is Not a Luxury collective have been hosting a series of politically charged open-performance spaces, including contributions by Watts Prophet Amde Hamilton and Anarchist Black Panther Ashanti Alston. L.C.A., or Lower Class Alcoholics have been opening shows all over Humboldt, including for the recent Devin the Dude stop. They’ll be touring around California in June supporting their album Bottom of the bottle, concluding in Eureka with a star-studded Red Fox Tavern show Friday June 13th with Himp C, the Resonators, and the Republican Duck Hunters. Local bass player and Opti-Pop emcee, J the Sarge has a new project with Freestyle Fellowship star Myka 9 called Magic Heart Genies – the debut video is out on the internet and the sound is quick and slippery – check it out and get the album when it drops this summer. Subliminal Sabotage emcee MCP has released his long-anticipated solo album I’m in love with death. The release is worth the wait – featuring keyboards masterfully played by B Swizlo, contributions from many of the Subliminal Sabotage/Nucleus musicians carving out a a smooth plate for MCP’s whisky tortured dark vocals. Humboldt Rocker Reckless Rex organized and hosted a B-Boy dance battle last month and dancers swarmed to fight for the thousand dollar top prize in a two-on-two breakdancing battle which was captured by global stars the Break Disciples -- RoxRite and Kid David. Claiming the victory in the popping battle was JHits who will be coming back through town to teach some workshops with Rex this weekend. Check the workshops June 12 at 8pm and June 15 at 6pm in the old creamery building in Arcata. Respect the geography, and keep the music and culture moving forward ‘til next time.
Jun. 6th, 2008 @ 11:48 am
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| » Rocky Horror event to support film festival |
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It might be the perfect Arcata valentine event. Rocky Horror Picture Show is renowned for it’s horny aliens, catchy song and dance numbers, and of course, heavy audience involvement. This year, the Humboldt Film Festival and Psychotic Cabaret present a midnight showing of the cult film at the HSU studio theatre, complete with props and guaranteed chaos.
The film is a 1975 homage to early horror movies and presents many of the traditional cinema themes of sex and terror in a witty and subversive way that has made the film legions of dedicated fans. It is also a film with a lot of audience participation. At midnight showings, fans will sing along, add in their own puns after character lines, and use a collection of funky props (dry toast, for example, is traditionally tossed when the mysterious doctor Frank-n-Furter proposes a wedding toast).
Audiences are invited to come in costume (the more dedicated may perform on stage under the film, copying the voices and inflection with studied focus), but props will be provided by the film festival staff.
The event is a fund raiser for the Humboldt Film Festival, now in it’s 41st year of supporting non-profit independent film makers. Mark your calendars; the film festival happens March 24-30 of this year. Films are being accepted through the end of this weekend, and more information can be found on their website (http://www.humboldt.edu/~filmfest/).
Last year, the Rocky Horror fundraiser sold out and a second show was necessary. The same thing will likely happen this year, so get your tickets early (they are on sale at the Works in Arcata, and join the extravaganza.
When: February 14
Where: Humboldt State University Studio Theatre, Theatre Arts building 115
How much: five dollars
Maxwell Schnurer, Times Standard, February 14, 2008
May. 22nd, 2008 @ 08:23 am
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| » Mad Professor: Dub Eureka |
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Dub is a music that relies on absence. Dub, in the most magical incarnation, comes from the productive mind of a selector who will cut out parts of the tracks to a reggae tune remixing and manipulating the components of the tracks. As channels fade in and out, and bass thunders alone, suddenly to be layered with drums or haunting keyboards, an echoing sound of familiarity and longing is born.
The Mad Professor is one of the world’s greatest dub masterminds. Guyana-born, moved to England when he was 13, the Mad Professor embodies the connection between the African diaspora and dub. A music born from the refuse of the recording industry, dub creates new sounds out of components of music, made most often by the children of African slaves, themselves now refused.
In love with electronics, a young Professor found sonic healing in circuits and plugged into music as a teenage transplant to England. He helped to record some of the greatest classics as expatriate Jamaican superstars fled the former British colonial island and reggae sounds blossomed. Horace Andy, U-Roy, Scientist, Mikey Dread and of course the mystical Lee “Scratch” Perry recorded with the Mad Professor.
Black power meant self-sufficiency for the Mad Professor, and so a few decades ago he founded Ariwa, a black-owned label and recording studio – hand-built by the Professor himself. Ariwa is a Yoruban word that means communication, and through his label and studio, the Mad Professor developed the tools for sharing ideas of liberation through the rearticulating of sounds.
The model was laid down by King Tubby who tweaked sounds to make noises out of the ordinary. As technology evolved, the Mad Professor took the idea and drew out the sounds to their extreme in his series of albums called Dub me Crazy. Animal noises, extra-planetary squeals, echoed beyond comprehension and glued together with bass and drums, his sound became the example against which all dub was held.
In his Black Liberation Dub series the Mad Professor hoped to communicate some musical arguments about racism. In an interview with Nice Up, the Professor explained his motivation for this series: “Just to remind people that, well yeah, we went through this slavery period and you know, some might be free but some are not free and some don't want to be free, and some could never be free, you know . . .”
In 1997 I was inspired when I first heard the Mad Professor live at the mixing boards during the Vermont Reggae Festival. Driving an Ariwa soundsystem that included Sister Carol and Macka B and anchored by the backing band Black Steel, the Mad Professor added sound effects, horns, played tracks backward, added reverb and distorted every sound that emerged. Standing on a hill in Hardwick Vermont, the earth shuddered with the bass and from somewhere came a distant laugh through the overpowered soundsystem.
The Mad Professor will be performing on Saturday March 29 at Eureka’s Red Fox Tavern.
Maxwell Schnurer, Times Standard March 27, 2008.
May. 22nd, 2008 @ 08:19 am
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| » Africa Bambaataa 2008 and beyond |
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The master of records, Africa Bambaataa arrives in Humboldt for a performance on Saturday February 23. Bambaataa is a famed DJ, the founder of the hip-hop collective the Universal Zulu Nation, and a sound innovator.
Bambaataa has always been a leader and an organizer. Initially he created networks and friendships in the South Bronx with the Black Spades organization. Afrocentric and strategic, Bambaataa the street revolutionary evolved into something never before seen. In the late seventies he began to re-articulate the discipline and structures of the street organization to be a hip hop army.
It isn’t as trite as putting down guns to pick up instruments – Africa Bambaataa’s vision of the Universal Zulu Nation was a forward reaching collective who not provided a means for poor youth to look out for each other, but also to nurture community talent with the honest aspiration to create a new world.
The result: Bambaataa’s Universal Zulu Nation has helped to develop the skills of an incredible number of hip hop’s elite, not to mention helping to articulate the hip hop arts as we know it. Here is a short list of some of his collaborators: Cowboy (Grandmaster Flash’s famed emcee), Afrika Islam (Ice-T’s DJ/producer among many others), turntable innovator Jazzy Jay, hip radio DJ Red Alert, emcee Mr. Biggs, DJ Zambu, and Busy Bee. Oh yeah, don’t forget the legions of graffiti writers, and dancers who found their place in the universe with a nod of encouragement from the head of Africa Bambaataa.
Of course, each one of the young folks Bam shared stage time with that developed into a superstar stayed true to the Universal Zulu Nation – ‘each one teach one’ ideology – they, in turn, mentored new generations of hip hop stars.
Bambaataa is a radical DJ who is famous for his diverse palette of records. The record, the beat, is at the forefront of a Universal Zulu party, surgically cut, but researched by Bambaataa to be something startling. Equally likely to use a nursery rhyme, a classic rock track, or a punk anthem to rock a crowd – the only think you can be sure of at a Bam party is that you’ll be surprised by what he’ll play and you will move your rear end.
At outdoor jams in the housing projects of the South Bronx and soundsystem battles in New York high schools, Bambattaa’s soundsystem, and his Zulu collaborators, built traditions that last to this day. In the crucible of gritty competition, Bambaataa’s black power, mytho-poetic collaborations, bizarre record selections, and great sound made him a champion, not to mention a legend.
It can’t have hurt that wherever he plugged in, hundreds of Universal Zulu Nation folks rolled with him. His academy produced legions of breakdancers who specialized in popping or power moves on the floor, every one trained Bruce Lee hard to defeat any challengers. The people who carried Bam’s crates were often legendary DJs in their own rights, waiting for their chance to show off their skills. Graffiti writers, the street propagandists of the highest order, schooled youngsters on letter styles. You better believe emcees practice before they grabbed the microphone at Bam’s party.
The next phase of Africa Bambaataa’s career was his stint as a DJ at a series of downtown New York clubs that helped to expand the audience of hip hop. At clubs like the Roxy, Bambaataa and his DJs, played funk anthems, backwards records and of course cut everything down to the absolute best parts of the records – the breaks – showing artists like the Beastie Boys, the Clash, and Luscious Jackson, who were in the audience, the blueprint to sell millions.
More takeover than crossover, financially advantaged audiences flocked to buy graffiti art, learn to breakdance, and hear this ‘new’ sound at the clubs. Zulu showcases were tantalizing experiences, ushering in collaborations between painters, dancers, and of course, the thumping DJ.
Around this time Bambaataa, a notorious record fiend, discovered the techno electronic drum sounds of Kraftwerk, and their introduction to his set encouraged him to put together his own electric band. The result was ‘Planet Rock,’ the hip hop classic by Africa Bambaataa and the Soul Sonic Force. “Planet Rock” exploded with the then-unheard, up-tempo, electro-hip hop sound. In a single stroke, Bambaataa forced open the popular conceptions of hip hop and introduced his sound to the largest audience it had ever known.
Not many artists are at the inception and popularization of a social movement. Bambaataa can legitimately claim to have created whole segments of the art form known as hip hop, and also to have spread the music with his courageous approach to music. If you add the Universal Zulu Nation, and all the innovation that came from Africa Bambaataa’s musical progeny, then you truly are talking about one person changing the world in their lifetime.
And he isn’t done yet. Bambaataa has bypassed much of the fame and consumption of commercial hip hop for living a life of musical revolution. An engine of creation, he helps to spark imagination and shatter conventions around the world as a global Zulu ambassador. His Humboldt visit is a rare chance to be in contact with the living heart of this music.
Joining Bambaataa will be the founder of the Northstar chapter of the Universal Zulu Nation, DJ/organizer Madplanet from Sacramento. DJ Red will showcase the Humboldt turntable skills, and the Humboldt Rockers will present the finest in breakdancing.
If you’ve every enjoyed hip hop culture in music, dance, screen, language, fashion, or in any other way, you owe Africa Bambaataa hearty thanks. Come to Mazottis and pay your dues to this hip hop legend, and of course get your mind blown by a thirty plus year turntable veteran.
- Maxwell Schnurer, Times Standard February 21, 2008
May. 22nd, 2008 @ 08:15 am
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| » Activist poet Jared Paul in Eureka (Times Standard) |
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Jared Paul is one part community activist and one part blistering spoken word performer. Unlike many of his peers, as he becomes more successful in the world of competitive poetry, he hasn’t given up his organizing work. He brings his punk-rock poetry to the Accident Gallery on Saturday April 26.
Jared Paul resides and bicycles in Providence Rhode Island, where he organizes protests, practices journalism, and coaches the local youth poetry slam teams. His politics and community engagement are not only laudable, but also seem to contribute his long-term perspective on poetry.
It doesn’t seem to matter what the music is behind Jared Paul, he drops political verses. On his tune: “ABCs for Roger,” Paul borrows from the handed down alphabet songs to give a lecture on veganism, police, and colonialism through his poem a cappella. He rocks a hip-hop beat to express his straight-edge politics on “dead sober, and fronts what sounds like a punk band for some tunes.
On his myspace page he documents advancing to the final round of the Individual World Poetry Slam Finals in 2006 and 2007 and a handful of other slam poetry awards. But he also provides links to activist groups, and documents his protest/organizing schedule calling on folks to join anti-war demonstrations and to vote for Obama.
Jared Paul is a stunning performer – staring audiences in the eyes and calling for conscious responses to injustice. His talent at sharing complex ideas through verse should not be missed.
In the era of hip hop, it is impossible to lament that young people don’t like poetry. Humboldt is representative of a national upswing in interest in lyrical performance through rhyme, and at the center of our local scene have been poetry slam organizers Vanessa Pike-Vrtiak and Therese Keslin-Fitzmaurice, also known as A Reason to Listen.
Together they have organized and nurtured much of the local slam poetry scene. Their commitment to youth and justice are clear, whether they are on the stage with former Green-party presidential hopeful Jared Ball, or sharing poems at Humboldt State’s Take Back the Night.
Pike-Vrtiak and Keslin-Fitzmaurice are organizing a youth poetry spoken word showcase the Friday before Jared Paul’s performance. Join A Reason to Listen at the Accident Gallery on Friday for the youth showcase, to see the best of the region, and on Saturday to see Jared Paul.
(Times Standard, April 24, 2008)
May. 22nd, 2008 @ 08:08 am
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| » Potluck: Grinding Toward Stardom |
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Times Standard 10/25/07
Grinding. It is the unspoken part of being an up and coming hip hop artist. Print up full color posters and coordinate in-store visits. Make sure the CDs are in stores and drop by the local radio for some drops. 2007 means you have to keep in mind podcasts, and never forget myspace. Potluck have been working hard to become well-known musicians, but this week the Humboldt hip hop stars will get a chance to show off when they open for Snoop Dogg at the Muni in Eureka.
Potluck are out to make a living at hip hop. They have a deep understanding of the game because they got to watch some underground kings make their moves. Kansas City’s Tech N9ne was the first independent ruler to give a nod to 1Ton and Underrated when he tapped the Humboldt rappers to open for him on a national tour.
“Tech was the first one to give a chance – sheerly based on ability, not even ticket sales. Most acts put together a national tour on who can sell the most tickets. Tech took us to spots where there wasn’t one person who knew about Potluck. He helped us to get a lot of fans” explains emcee 1Ton.
The relationship continues today – Underrated and 1Ton talked during a rare break of their 41 date tour with Tech N9ne – their fourth such collaboration. “After 13 shows nine have sold out” says 1Ton.
During a quick break in the action, Tech N9ne takes the show to Alaska, and Potluck are headed home for a day off and the show with Snoop Dogg. Snoop at the Muni is big news for Eureka, but the chance to share the stage with major label rap stars is nothing new for 1Ton and Underrated.
“We opened for Lloyd Banks, Too $hort, E-40,” says 1Ton. “We’ve done a lot of shows with a lot of major label acts but I can tell my grandma and she’ll know who Snoop is.”
Back in the day you could find Potluck at house parties and clubs all over the county, especially NOFX’s El Jefe’s nightclub where they met during a DJ tryout. Underrated was a local DJ who graduated from Arcata High and went to Humboldt State, 1Ton came from San Diego with deep crates. After finding musical synergy, the pair created Potluck and started performing.
It all started with Humboldt County High a homegrown album that they created, marketed and sold by themselves. And sold. And sold. 1Ton breaks down the beginning of the group:
“When we started making music, we didn’t think about it as a career. All those times we DJed . . . we’d get paid, we knew if you were good enough for people to come into the club, you had to get paid, but we never approached it like a business. For the first CD [Humboldt County High] we got a thousand copies made because we were tired of making copies for friends. We wanted to sell a hundred. Next thing you knew, it was getting played on the radio. Number one requested for two months on the local stations. We sold ten thousand copies and that was the first time we thought we might have something.”
For the weed-savvy youth of Humboldt County, Potluck created anthems that really did speak to the experiences – simultaneously expressing their disaffection and having a great time. They released “Tha Lost Koast Kollective” a compilation that showcased the band mixing it up with underground artists from Redway to Red Hook. A year later they relased “Harvest Time,” another weed drenched album with contributions from E-40 and the now familiar collaborator Tech N9ne.
Regional musical champions, it could be argued that the band outgrew their options in Humboldt County. 1Ton is quick to point out how excited the band is to perform in their own back yard. “Given how our schedule’s been and our need to take care of business, we have had limited shows in Humboldt. To get a chance to come back and do a show as big as Snoop Dogg is cool. To be able to thank all your fans, all the people supported us. . . . it’s great.”
These relentless musicians are pushing hard to get to the next level. They’ve released their fourth major album “Straight Outta Humboldt” on the Kottonmouth King’s label Suburban Noize and graduated to some big time distribution. 2006 found the duo performing more than 150 shows in support of their album and new label.
After their tour finished with Tech N9ne, Potluck plans to return to the studio to work on a “supergroup” of ganja-loving musicians. Dubbed the Kannibis Kartel, the project consists of the Kottonmouth Kings, Potluck and Cypress Hill rhyming about their favorite substance. Potluck promises that the record will be released early in 2008.
Tonight’s Snoop Dogg show only has two acts on the bill – one a global superstar whose impact on popular culture will be felt for generations – the other a hungry pair of hard touring musicians, Humboldt’s finest. Many will go to hear Snoop Dogg, but expect Potluck to shine on the stage and give everything they’ve got to this hometo
Nov. 2nd, 2007 @ 10:02 pm
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| » Drinking for the children: Wine and Ale Gala benefits preschool |
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Drinking for the children: Wine and Ale Gala benefits preschool
Times Standard 11/1/07
On Saturday November third the Woodside Preschool hosts their 34th annual Wine and Ale Tasting Gala. The event is a traditional seasonal fundraiser for a local non-profit parent cooperative preschool and offers a tantalizing evening.
Coinciding with Eureka’s Arts Alive, the event will showcase local brewers and vintners. In this case visitors will get a chance to sample more than ten different artisan brews and wine. Keeping the event local, the organizers promise tasty regional finger food – chocolates, Henry’s Olives and Cypress Grove cheese to balance out the flavors of the beverage.
Silent auctions and a “Dutch Lottery” offer a chance to come home from the food and drink gala with some goodies. Local businesses have donated gifts and gift certificates for the event – don’t miss your chance to win!
Musical guests Brian Powell and Matt Brunner from Wrangletown will keep toes tapping with their bluegrass shimmy.
The Woodside Preschool is the oldest preschool operating in Eureka with a dedicated core of parent volunteers. The school is run by a hired director, who is also a teacher, and a board of directors made up of parents. Much of the classroom work is done by parent volunteers. The school is intended to encourage parent participation to build a solid and healthy foundation for young people and strong community relations.
The school maintains a teacher-student ratio of 1:5; thanks to their healthy dose of volunteers, and is able to encourage student-centered learning opportunities.
Tickets are available at the door for $25, and available pre-sale for $20. For tickets call 445-9132. This event is only for people over twenty-one years of age.
The Wine and Ale Tasting Gala is an enjoyable and regional-friendly event. The Woodside Preschool is a worthy cause. Activate your taste buds, quaff some great drinks and support this Gala with your presence.
Nov. 2nd, 2007 @ 10:00 pm
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| » Homo Expo preview |
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'Homo Expo' breaks down stereotypes, race and gender
Maxwell Schnurer/For the Times-Standard
Article Launched: 10/04/2007 04:30:30 AM PDT
Much of the televised presentation of gays and lesbians focuses on assimilation and cheap stereotypes. The Humboldt State University Theatre Department offers a counterweight in the form of tonight's "Homo Expo: a Queer Theatre Extravaganza."
While the issues presented are more complex than your average sitcom, the four monologues and a play presented also offer a solid range of humor coupled with insightful observations about sexuality and the intricacies of modern queer identity.
The selections are intentional discussion points chosen by the director Jean O'Hara, also a teacher at Humboldt State. O'Hara said she chose the monologues from modern queer writers to help showcase a more diverse series of representations.
"I'm tired of the image of the gay man who is an alcoholic and suicidal. That perception of the gay community that it is 'a hard life to be gay' -- that's not the feeling I get from the queer community. It's not a hard life, it's an amazing life. It's beautiful. It's so nice to be outside the social norms that confine straight people."
O'Hara said the monologues were the most difficult because "a.) I have a lot of new actors and doing a monologue is
much more challenging and b.) I've had to figure out how these monologues relate to each other. I've intertwined them, usually there is a break, but . . . I have to show how these characters connect and relate."
Taking some risks might make this theater piece more important. O'Hara stresses the value of everyone viewing the performances. Because the show is based on personal monologues from living queer writers -- some black, some bisexual, some Asian, some Jewish, some transgender -- they cover a lot of ground.
"This is good for folks who are not necessarily in the queer community -- putting aside their misconceptions, their narrow view of what it means to be gay, or a drag queen for instance," O'Hara said.
The "Homo Expo" is an attempt to remedy the mostly token inclusion of queer culture into mainstream culture by explicitly showing some different images. Famed trans-activist/author Kate Bornstein's play "Hidden: A Gender," is directed by O'Hara to become a circus in order to explicitly reframe the perception that queer folk are seen as circus freaks.
Denise Uyuhara's "Hello (Sex) Kitty: Mad Asian Bitch on Wheels," one of the show's monologues, offers a rare public discussion of bisexuality. O'Hara said she had to seek out this play in order to find a representation of bisexuality.
"It was really hard to find a theater piece that dealt with it, but I found one."
Implicit in all of the pieces in the show is an understanding that each person's identity is unique. O'Hara raises the question of the intersecting nature of identities: "It is different to be queer and African-American. What challenges do you face?" The director's choice to include three queer artists of color is an attempt to help audiences understand the experience of queers who are also people of color.
The actors are Humboldt State Students who have been working on their performances for more than a month. This has been a real education for the students who have been asked to draw on their own life experiences to help present characters that aren't characterizations. O'Hara described motivating students to create nuanced performances saying they often "feel invisible for other reasons -- that is the challenge with actors -- how does your human story connect with their human story."
The subject matter in the monologues and the play in the "Homo Expo" are valuable questions about the human experience. Family, sexuality, race, class and gender are all up for grabs every night that the show runs.
In the battle for representation of queer culture, most of what you'll see on television will affirm stereotypes and encourage a simplistic understanding of queer life. In our local community, a rebel director and a band of courageous actors will reframe the discussion, taking a leap of faith that audiences will appreciate -- the presentation of dense, complex queerness. Accept their invitation and come see this show.
"Homo Expo: A Queer Extravaganza" runs Oct. 4 through 6 and 11 through 13 at 7:30 p.m. in HSU's Gist Hall Theatre. The show is suggested for mature audiences and costs $10 ($8 for students and seniors).
Maxwell Schnurer is a frequent contributor to Northern Lights. Contact him at northernlights@times-standard.com
If you go:
What: "Homo Expo: A Queer Extravaganza"
Where: HSU's Gist Hall Theatre
When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday Oct. 4 through Sunday Oct. 6 and Oct. 11 through 13
Oct. 4th, 2007 @ 12:56 pm
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| » letter to the editor on the Eureka Zoo |
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I'm a critic of the zoo. tomorrow night the rich people in my area will get together to get drunk at the zoo. Seems bad for animals and the people. So I wrote a letter to the editor that was published in Thursday October 4's Times Standard. Here is my letter
On Friday, Oct. 5, Humboldt's elite will gather for a Zootini, a black-tie party at the Sequoia Park Zoo with drinks and gourmet food at a cost of $100 per person. An event created for rich people to get drunk around kidnapped animals seems inherently cruel and in terrible taste.
The Sequoia Park Zoo is one of the smallest in North America, and offers a shallow view of a few captive animals taken out of their habitats and thrust into a public venue. There are dozens of wonderful cruelty-free alternatives for families to experience the natural world in this area that the zoo can be an easy skip. Consider hiking the Samoa Dunes or visiting the Natural History Museum as easy alternatives.
And there are lots of great local environmental causes that could use the money that is going to the zoo. To all the donors who are putting on your tuxedos and gowns to have a cocktail to cruelty: stop, and consider sharing your money with another cause. The Sequoia Park Zoo has been open for 100 years, and I believe that is long enough for a cruel and a counter-educational institution to exist.
Maxwell Schnurer
Eureka
Oct. 4th, 2007 @ 12:54 pm
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| » Article on Toots and the maytals |
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Ah a player like Toots comes through and I gotta write about him. Ska, roots music and soul. Here is my article for the ol' times standard.
Visit the soul church with Toots and the Maytals
Maxwell Schnurer/For the Times-Standard
Article Launched: 10/04/2007 04:27:19 AM PDT
Before the advent of television traveling revival preachers were the epitome of entertainment. A good revival preacher had that perfect combination of folksy wisdom, heartfelt thunder and of course was able to perform a good show night after night.
Years after television swept through the nation, you could still find good preachers, almost anachronisms, holding court under tents saving souls and performing their hearts out.
Toots Hibbert and the Maytals are like those holdover preachers -- they are touring hard in 2007 despite having formed in 1962. They are still bringing electric performances to stages and exposing audiences to the sacred music of roots reggae that kept audiences spell-bound for years.
Toots and the Maytals have outlasted almost all of the other contemporary founders of reggae music. Along with Bob Marley, Toots and his gospel-tinged vocal work first found public acceptance as part of Clement 'Coxsone' Dodd's Studio One label. Along with Raleigh Gordon and Jerry Matthias, Fredrick "Toots" Hibbert made smooth and successful soul music.
The evolution of the sound to uptempo ska meant that the band had to jump to producer extraordinaire Prince Buster. With Buster, the band
helped to articulate the roots elements of ska and together they produced hot tunes like "Dog War." A quick stint with Byron Lee gave the Maytals a serious hit with "Bam Bam" in 1966.
As fame rushed in Toots was busted for cannabis (he still claims his innocence) and was incarcerated for 18 months.
Returning to the stage after his time in jail, Toots seemed to embody the new consciousness of righteousness sweeping Jamaica. Many artists were embracing Rastafarianism, and Toots and crew found a means of expressing their anger in their hit "54-46 (that's my number)" a stunning ska song that gave Toots a chance to proclaim his innocence to the entire world.
Many credit Toots with popularizing the term reggae, having recorded the first song -- "do the reggay" -- that used the expression. In Toot's articulation it meant "raggedy everyday things." Whatever you called it, Jamaican music evolved to create downbeat reggae in the early 1970s and the Maytals were right in the thick of things once again.
"Pressure drop" is one of the most famous contributions of this era, which finds a place on the soundtrack to "The Harder they Come." It is one of the great vocal tracks of all time -- Toots explodes with the squeals and grunts -- as if he wants more from his voice than it can physically give him.
The 1973 epic album "Funky Kingston" finds the band in epic form leaning on their gospel foundations and ska upbringing to create a fully expressive song of ghetto funk. From the prickly guitar on "Time tough" to the sizzling breakdowns on "Funky Kingston," the album gave Toots and the Maytals global superstar status.
Like Bob Marley before him, Toots got an international recording contract from Island Records in 1975 and he took his band on the road and toured the world. He never slowed down -- pausing only briefly to record albums. Pass the Pipe was recorded in 1978, Just like that recorded in 1980 and Knock Out in 1982.
Each album created a series of regional or national hits, but the stress of performances and recording caused the band to break up in the middle of the 1980s. Toots continued to perform and record, including a fantastic tribute album of Memphis soul label Stax-Volt recorded in 1988.
In the '90s Toots reformed the Maytals with a mix of original Maytal members and a few global players. Carl Harvey is a guitarist who himself led the Canadian funk revolution with his Toronto eight-person crew Crack of Dawn. Both Paul Douglas (drums) and crack bass player Jackie Jackson played with Toots since the 1970s. These days Toots is harmonizing and sharing the vocal duties with his daughter Leba Hibbert. The band that will back him on Friday is an evolution of years of performance and should make Eureka shine.
Come to reggae church and get a dose of the veteran musicians, a living history lesson and deeply motivational boogie that comes with any show by Toots and the Maytals.
Maxwell Schnurer is a frequent contributor to Northern Lights. Contact him at northernlights@times-standard.com
Oct. 4th, 2007 @ 12:53 pm
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| » Twista and Dr. Israel articles |
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Hey folks -- I wrote two short essays for the Times Standard. One article on high-speed Chicago emcee Twista, and one on Dr. Israel and his Dreadtone International Soundsystem.
The times standard has some pop-up ads on these pages, so have your browser on defend!
May. 10th, 2007 @ 02:08 pm
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