52. Geto Boys - The Foundation (2005)

For some reason my vinyl copy of The Foundation seems to be called War & Peace, although it seems to be officially called The Foundation, so there you go.
For those who don't know Geto Boys are a seminal Texas bred hip hop crew, widely considered to be the first exponents of what became known as the dirty south style of deep, funky and hardcore hip hop. In the early days of the the late 80's they were admired by artists like Tupac, Jay-Z, Notorious BIG, Outkast, and whole swathes of southern rappers who continue to use producer J. Prince to add some deep laidback southern soul bounce to their grooves. They also began Rap-A-Lot records, the label that now releases stuff by the likes of Trae, Z-Ro and chopped and screwed versions of Texas ghetto faves.
Geto Boys also have in Scarface your favorite rappers favorite rapper, who has an ability to rap both fast and slow at the same time, whilst lyrically he can be heartfelt, violent, intelligent & vulnerable, often in the space of one verse, like all the best deep soul vocalists. The other members are Willie D (pimp persona, argumentative, controversial, political) and Bushwick Bill (unhinged, melancholy, issues with women). As a team they come across as three competing individuals and personalities, not afraid to explore inner demons, crime, misogyny, violence in a way that seems real to who they are, where they are, quite often there may be three opposing view on a single track, quite often they seem unreasonable or offensive, you probably won't agree with the things they say. However they are never less than honest, and have an underlying passion to reveal hypocrisy in politics and life around them, an attempt to reflect the black ghetto experience in Texas, using the blackest deadpan humor, deliberately designed to alienate those who don't understand and got left behind with the classic Mind Playing Tricks On Me. If NWA were The Temptations, in your face, upbeat, exitable; then Geto Boys are James Carr at the dark end of the street, obsession, torture, paranoia.




The Foundation was a return of sorts after an extended period of solo joints. Scarface had a very successful run of records throughout the 00's. This one is made up of a handful of posse cuts Declaration of War, When It Gets Gangsta, 1, 2 the 3, What?, Real Nigga Shit, that all essentially plough a deep vein of barrelhouse moog and piano funk whilst containing OTT threats of violence to pretender rappers, gangsters and just about everybody, the body count on these tracks could rival all four series of The Wire, and reminds  of how Geto Boys are not straight up reality rappers, but also originators of horrorcore, larger than life, hyperreal.



So that's 50% of the album. One of the highlights is Yes Yes Y'all a bar room banger and lead single which Bushwick kills with the best verse on the album rapped in tandem with Scarface over the phone, he just don't give a fuck. Obviously I totally disagree with the misogyny and homophobia, but there's something about Bill.

Well this is Chuck Dawg (will you ever love another bitch?) 
Fuck nah! (What's your position on a snitch homey?) 
Fuck laws! (They say the Beatles was the biggest) 
Nigga fuck Paul, and the rest of y'all! 
I'm the little motherfucker with the big dick swingin 
Nuts still hangin, got hoes singin the blues 
Geto Boys in this bitch still bangin 
And ain't shit changin (uh-uh) ain't shit changin 
Don't like faggots, hate politicians 
Can't stand snitches, know the Feds listen 
So I, send the whole world a fuck you note 
Schumaker's got a desk job, fuck you hoe! (Aww nah!) 




We Boogie presents the three MC's different accounts of a night in that favorite hang out of southern rappers, the strip club. Scarface remains sober, with no interest in the girls, he's strictly a family man doing business, making money. Willie D likes to pimp, and plays a intimidating game, always ready to stomp any motherfucker looking at his wild turkey sideways, and the predictably more unpredictable Bill is out of control in the backstage area, utterly pissed and stoned, about to have intercourse in public with a woman he describes as a snake concealing drugs.



  I Tried is a rap ballad about loss and regret, where Face mourns his friends wife's death, Bill contemplates suicide, considers anonymity, and deliberates on the challenges of being a dwarf, along with looking back at the time he shot his own eye out (immortalized on the cover of We Can't Be Stopped). Willie D attempts a eulogy to his mother and still manages to contain the lines, Faster than a crackhead can pawn yo' shit, Willie D'll put a foot in you bitch. On this track Bill hints upon his new born again christian status, later expanded upon on Leanin' On Ya.


The album ends on a trio of solo efforts, two of which are album highlights and the other is Bill's frankly obsessive, murderous and insane Dirty Bitch. Face's G-Code is aimed at police snitches, detailing the criminal code, which most likely keeps horrible murderers and rapists free, but is espoused by the likes of Scarface in a, we will deal with our own problems, don't trust the racist police kind of way. You won't agree, but can't argue with the ferocity and flow in which Face gives his lessons. Anyway who am I to say what it is like to be  a black man from the Texan ghetto, how would you feel?






Willie D's solo shot Nothin to Show gives out some old OG advice about saving money, and is as mature a statement you could expect from these elder statesmen of hip hop, he even suggests a life insurance policy.

Fuck the fame, I want the dough 'cause when times get drasticYou can't take a fuckin' ego to the bank and cash itI'm not impressed with your big house and expensive whipIf you can't pay cash, you can't afford the shit

The modern day Geto Boys remain an important hip hop act, with important things to say about their corner of the world, it's up to you whether to listen. I recommend Willie D's Twitter page to keep up with Geto Boy news.

53. The Books - Lost and Safe (2005)

I thought that I might have liked this record more in 2005 than I do now, however having listened back to it, it remains an entrancing and enjoyable listen. There is a lot about this record that I want to dislike; the slightly smug cleverness of it, the middle class American indie stench, the fact that it's so well put together and obsessively arranged that there should be no room left for human feeling.
Disappointingly, it's really good. 

The Books are the NYC duo of Nick Zammuto and Paul de Jong, they do what has been described as folktronica, although that's a pretty poor description. It's a kind of understated, polite balladry, a bit Paul Simon like in tone, talk singing, over seemingly very clever lyrics (they're both very highly educated chaps you know), which are actually meaningless, and a tad pretentious (an under rated quality in music). This, their 3rd release put these minor key spoken word melodies to esoteric samples taken from second hand record finds, mostly spoken word poets (Jabberwocky & Betjemin are included), artists, field recordings, often played alongside Zammuto sing talking the samples as they play. De Jong plays cello adding a Nick Drakeish feel to the songs. Percussion is sampled clicks and pops, often used as punctuation to enhance the spoken word.
This album came during the peak of the US indie revival aided by All Tomorrows Parties festivals, and The Books performed at there to ecstatic crowds, Lost and Safe was also used frequently as a warm up tape between acts. Live The Books could perform a perfect rendition of the records, timed alongside videos created for each track. Seen once this was mighty impressive, seen twice I was left feeling a little sterile and cold.
The indie summer now seems like a time of prosperity, and I doubt that there remains a thirst for this type of record. Echos of Boards of Canada, Herbert, Beck and The Avalanches can be heard in the unusual sample references, whilst the wordplay and eccentric concepts remind of Brian Eno's early stuff. The way that such an unassuming record which reveals it's melodies and secrets which each successive listen, could be so popular, is down the good taste of the mid 00's ATP generation led by groups such as Animal Collective who's own songs ebb and flow and build in a similar manner to The Books.

54. MIA - Kala (2007)

Kala

It's tempting to make a case for MIA as being the first genuine 21st century pop star. Eclectic pop in an increasingly eclectic world, both urban and cosmopolitan, both political and detached; mentored by Justine Frischman of Elastica and sneaking in references to The Fall, Jonathan Richman and The Pixies, whilst ostensibly producing a modern dance pop feasting on African and Asian street rhythms.
It's easy to overlook how successful MIA's  formula has been, as she's not obviously all over UK journals, however her music has been massive in practically ever other corner of the world, especially among the US hip hop community, where her rave influenced electro street festival sound is basically what we now hear in the pop charts.

Mathangi Arulpragasam (for it is her) was born in Hounslow, to parents of Sri Lankan Tamil descent. Spending her childhood in Sri Lanka she witnessed the violence of a military dictatorship, including the burning of a school. Her father Arular (the name of the debut album), was a activist against the dictatorship. MIA then spent time living with her mother in various places in flight from the anti Tamil government, in London and Los Angeles, Crenshaw. She absorbed a envious amount of culture on her travels including punk, golden era hip hop (UMC's, PE), UK hip hop (London Possee, Silver Bullet) and 'Ardkore rave cira 91-92.

MIA has probably been the most effective artist at putting politics into music since, oh, I don't know....Rage against the machine or Huggy Bear. This is because she cleverly makes the songs good on a number of levels, i.e. they still stand up even if you completely ignore the message, ironically, don't look to closely to the message because they may not withstand too close scrutiny. However this is Pop, enjoyment must come first, and besides, no political pop star has ever stood (or should have to withstand) intense scrutiny (only if the scrutiny is aimed at having a good song), Bob Dylan, The Clash, Bob Marley, Public Enemy...whoever!
I think you can hear Justine Elastica's laconic drawl in MIA's delivery, al la, 'make a cup of tea, and put a record on'.

MIA has inserted the politics of asylum seeking, refugee status, terrorism, the plight of the Tamil's, the Iraq/Afghanistan war into her pop mix, and she is never afraid to take a risk. Kala was her second effort building on the fine first disc. Birdflu preceded the album, the virus as a metaphor for asylum seekers, carnival drums, Adam & the Ants and Missy Elliot collide.




Kala is her mother's name. Despite visa difficulties (the US imposed sanctions due to MIA's outspokenness), Kala was recorded in India, the UK, Trinidad, Jamaica, Liberia, Australia and Japan!
No wonder the album has the feel of a global rave, with global subject matter. Boyz, the second single asks 'how many start a war?', this went top 10.

       
Jimmy manages to be a Bollywood tale both about friendship and genocide.




Paper Planes is the highlight of the Album, and a massive US hit, embraced by both Indie and hip hop audiences, and remains one of the biggest selling songs of the digital era, a queue of artists wanting guest spots didn't harm things either (Jay-Z & UGK).


Paper Planes is perhaps the best track to date by MIA, and although more hip hop than carnival in comparison to other tracks, does transpose the hip hop 'black capitalist' persona of a Jay-Z, to immigrants  and refugees, and delivers taunting lines to would be border patrols, referencing her visa problems. MIA has now signed to Def Jam, let's hope she can keep her persona, politics and pop, without going too hip hop on us.

Richard Youngs vids

Life On A Beam

Sonar In My Soul

Summers Edge II


OTHER STATIONS

The Pastels - Truck, Train, Tractor

Felt - Primitive Painters

Galaxie 500 - Blue Thunder

Low -Immune

Pink Floyd - Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun

Skullflower - Solar Anus

55. Richard Youngs - The Naive Shaman (2005)

Richard Youngs has been a constant presence on the UK DIY underground since the early 90's, despite having stayed well below the radar of all but the most committed of exploratory listeners. This album from 2005, provided a way into Youngs world, being readily available on Jagjaguwar records, accessible, beautiful, and coming at a time when people were kinda interested in this stuff.

Youngs comes from Cambridge but has based himself in Glasgow since the release of Advent in 1990. His music embraces improvisation, psychedelics, folk, prog, electonica and pop, and he often cites Pink Floyd or traditional folk as influences. Also mentioned are artists as disparate as Pet Shop Boys, New Order, Pastels and Galaxie 500, along with the improvisers and noise makers within the UK underground circle who often also share a background in traditional prog and pop.

I often think of Youngs as a UK Arthur Russell, eshewing the spotlight with his zen like aura, existing to create music as elemental as stone or water, striving to provide a effect similar to sitting by a waterfall or looking at a rainbow. Youngs often improvises lyrics, choosing lines and words not for their meaning, but for their sound when repeated, or their double meaning, or their oneatopoeic effect.

There are literally hundreds of RY records/tapes/cd-r's, many collaborations, many tiny editions on his own No Fans records, Jagjaguwar release mainly solo discs.

The Naive Shaman came at a time when the popularity of the new weird America was at the peak, so that UK heads looking for a British equivalent to Sunburnt, Wolf Eyes, MV & EE, Acid Mothers etc.. had their ready made equivalent who had in fact been doing stuff similar in DIY attitude for yonks, and had been a major influence on all the US stuff, in approach and sound.

This album then was and is a perfect entry point into Youngs world, containing 5 tracks over 30+ mins, and not a wasted second. Life on a Beam starts with a typical Youngs trope of mantric chanting and overlayed vocals, words chosen for how they sound sung out loud, 'on a beam, on a beam, on a beam'. Illuminating Land then follows, a hushed, static piece of electronic burbles and guitar twangs building tension. Sonar in my Soul is 10mins of a hypnotic spacemen 3ish loop made of bass and a dripping noise, Youngs choosing his lines well, 'ocean on a roll', 'spectre of sunrise', 'I am the spier' singing in a high tenor, some Fripp like guitar shredding notches up the immersion factor at the end. Once it was Autumn, has Youngs looping his elemental mantras as effectively as any electronic processor. Finally, Summers Edge II is 16mins of beauteous bloops and clonks with Alex Neilssons free percussion rattling away, whilst Youngs mantras are carved into the sound reminding listeners that this music is all about that voice as an instrument sounding like hedgerows, hills, nooks and gorges, and as the musics becomes more cacophonous and cluttered nothing is able to break Youngs out of his reverie, and he sings on unflustered, like a monolith, beaten by a storm.

A visual story of Grime

56. V/A - Run The Road (2005) / Aim High Vol. 2 (2005)

Both of these releases came at the tail end of the first Grime wave,  Run the Road being the first available Grime comp in the US, acting as both a showcase of the new scene and as a consoladation of the scene to date.
Grime had been fermenting in areas of east London (ends) at this point for about five years post So Solid, forming organically from pirate radio stations such as Kiss FM & Rinse FM from various strands of Garage 2-step, Dancehall, Hip-hop and Jungle influences.
After years of UK hip-hop leaning heavily on US styles, Grime was the breaking point where the UK could finally match US hip-hop, with a style not derivative and with it's own production style, rhyme flows and subject matter.





Of course Jungle always had MC's, but the lyrics were always limited to bigidy-bigidy big up's to the DJ and nonsense fast chat, unfortunately Jamaican dancehall DJ's were much better at fast chat, and as Jungle became a D&B metronomic metal beast devoid of funk (Sir D'Voidoffunk), and thrill seeker urban types gravitated toward the smoother, Puff/Missy influenced bling and space of Garage. MC's voices could be heard and nonsensical gibbering just wouldn't cut the mustard anymore.

Thankfully then the nascent Grime MC's stepped up and developed original lyrics and flows, largely based on Dancehall and the dynasty/tribal images of late 90's hip-hop like Wu-Tang. Grime came in crews such as Pay-as-u-go-cartel, and Roll Deep, where each member had to have a recognisable style of their own, thus increasing competition.

This change in MC style also had a knock on effect of encouraging producers to minimise their sound further, creating sparse backings that often just changed rhythms every 16 bars, and had a cold synthy feel often making little sense without MC's battling aggressively over the backing. Produced by names like Wiley, Target, Terror Danjah, Jammer. Rarely mentioned as an influence on the Grime production sound but it can be heard, is the ice cold digital hip hop sound  created by the Rza for late 90's Wu-Tang under the moniker Bobby Digital, this can't of gone unnoticed by Wiley when he created the Eskimo sound.

The often violent slang, stories and descriptions of east London contained within these tracks were previously unheard outside of 2-tone, punk perhaps, but possibly ever before in music, although clearly a new language to many these were well established tropes and slanguage in these communities.

Run the Road and Aim High are as good a Grime comp as is available of the 1st wave Grime at it's peak, and the Aim High also contains a DVD showing many of the MC's freestyling, mucking about with expensive cars etc.

Classic tunes on these comps include, 'Cock Back' a Terror Danjah posse cut full of brooding aggression, and UK gun centric metaphors abound. Riko & Target's - Chosen One, is one of the best Grime tunes, and a UK no.1 that never was, Riko betrays a heavy dancehall influence and on the Aim High DVD comes across as a modern day Brian Harvey albeit with better taste in music, he even has a silly ponytail and can probably take 8 E's in one night! Target from Pay-as-u-go-cartel backs Riko with a fiery thrusting bounce, producing a everyday pressure tale with a positive, outward looking vibe, 'Don't strive for peace of mind, just keep an open one'.

Females are well represented in Grime and one time hopeful Lady Sovereign does 'Ch-Ching' which is as good as anything Bow-wow-wow did, and has plenty of sass and teenage attitude, shame she tried to crack the US, and got wrangled in record company politics and production sheen. No Lay however is as hardcore as they come, her name itself an arms length threat, like the US Boss, this is perhaps the most uncompromising grime gets, never mind female. Wileys Out Onez riddim rides a chopped and synthesised violin on Aim High allowing Crazy titch to spit mad anger over it, not long prior to his incarceration for murder, and this as he was being touted as a pin up amongst the grime scene, and the first nail in the coffin of Grime pt.1.

So Sure from Aim High explores an underdeveloped aspect of Grime, the Grime soul tune; Sadie & Kano sing a not corny at all duet, and Kano sounds both vunerablke, confident and in a first flush of love (fact fans: Sadie is Shola Ama's daughter).

Kano contributes perhaps the second best tune on these comps with P's & Q's, a force of MC control and UK advice for those who stray beyond their 'ends', or how to behave within your 'ends'. Other moments worth mentioning include Bruza's take on British cockney Grime styles (best heard on compilations), and Destruction VIP, the posee cut featuring the maddest spluttered verse from D Double E and future Grime wilderness hopefuls who kept Grime alive in the lean years, Durrty Goodz & Trim.