206UP has been off it’s regularly scheduled programming for a minute while we gear up to release our Top 15 Seattle Hip-Hop Albums of the last five years (2009-14). It’s coming soon, I promise — just need to collect the last few envelopes of cash from these thirsty rappers. You’d never believe how hard it is to extract payola these days what with our every financial move being monitored and recorded for perpetuity.

I’m totally fucking kidding, by the way. (Or am I? …)

Anyway, the state of the world is … Well, I really have no words other than to say I can’t remember the last time I’ve felt such a range of emotions just from observing the 24-hour news cycle. There is so much pain and anger and risible sentiments of all types, it’s hard to muster the energy — or the desire — to celebrate anything. Spekulation’s Seattle-centric anthem “Home Of The Mighty” feels like the right song at the right time. It’s a poignant encapsulation of all the good and the bad, the dark and the light, that our fair city — and this country’s urban centers in general — are capable of producing. Last weekend, my wife and I watched The Birdcage, which was one of those familiar acts of celebration and lamentation we find ourselves participating in whenever a pop culture icon passes. We laughed our assess off, nearly to the point of tears, and it was interesting to consider where those fissures in composure were originating. The images in the video for “Home Of The Mighty” wrests similar feedback: alternating pangs of exuberance and regret over what the Town has wrought. You’d have to be an android not to feel it too.