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Hip-Hop hits the ‘Shoot (Again)

Bumbershoot-2009-wideIt is with great regret that I inform you (friends, strangers, fam-damily) that I will be unable to attend this year’s edition of the Bumbershoot music festival. My presence is required out of town. (I’ll be in the Big Apple, hopefully catching Mos Def on 9/12 at Governor’s Island — gotta get those tickets now while they’re still available!)

It’s a damn shame, too, because it’s another great year for hip-hop at the ‘Shoot. I was just checking out the lineup and lamenting the fact that I’m gonna miss it. Anyway, here’s a brief summary of the hip-hop performances that I won’t be catching this year, along with a few of my thoughts on the matter…

Dyno Jamz (Sat, 12:30 pm, EMP Sky Church) – Uhh, I have no idea who they are. An “eight-man hip-hop ensemble?” Winner of the “EMP Sound Off! battle of the bands competition”? Guess I need to do some homework. I do know one thing, however…they have a really wack sounding name.

Wale (Sat, 5:45 pm, Fisher Green Stage) – It’s everyone’s new favorite emcee! You can’t miss Wale, yo! I have his mixtapes in constant rotation on my iPod. Lyrically, he’s incomparable, but the honest truth is that his flow is only so-so. Doesn’t really matter, though, he shows more personality in half a verse than most rappers do on their entire albums. Plus his production is always top-notch.

De La Soul (Sat, 9:30 pm, Fisher Green Stage) – One of my top three favorite groups of all-time. What else can I say? You claim to love hip-hop? Then loving De La with all your mind, body, and soul is a requirement. Miss this show and you’re fakin’ it.

Dyme Def (Sun, 2:15 pm, Fisher Green Stage) – Got mad love for these local rap heroes. I could see these dudes blowing up nationally at some point. Brainstorm competed in the nationals at the Red Bull Big Tune beat battle last year. Their full-length debut, Space Music, was a break-through for Seattle hip-hop in that it was maybe the first legitimate mainstream-flavored (read: “commercial”) album to ever come out of our fair city.

Swollen Members (Sun, 5:00 pm, Rockstar Stage) – I heard they got hip-hop in Canada, too. This duo hails from our northerly neighbour, British Columbia. Other than that, I don’t know much about ’em. I do remember the joint, “Breathe,” they did with Nelly Furtado (also Canadian), which got my ass moving once or twice. When they perform live, do they do it in a theatre? (Canada jokes are funny, eh?)

Common Market (Sun, 5:45 pm, Fisher Green Stage) – You’ll see a lot of love for CM on this blog. RA Scion and DJ Sabzi are helping set the standard for Seattle hip-hop. Complex rhymes meet beautiful boom-bap. RA’s great on-stage, as well.

D. Black and Spaceman (Sun, 8:00 pm, EMP Sky Church) – D. Black is Seattle’s version of Biggie Smalls, natural and engaging on the mic; a true diamond from the South End. Spaceman is the eccentric court jester of Sportn’ Life. Together on stage they’re sure to get your hands up like the SPD. (Can’t wait for Black’s sophomore full-length, Ali’Yah, dropping 9.15.09. Honestly, I’m not a big fan of Spaceman.)

Macklemore (Mon, 12:30 pm, Fisher Green Stage) – Like Grynch, this cat’s an unlikely beast on the mic. I was definitely sleeping on Macklemore until I spent some honest time listening to The Language of My World. Conscious, introspective, and funny, the album’s a sly charmer. I’ve never seen him live. Next time, I guess.

The Knux (Mon, 1:30 pm, Samsung Mobile Mainstage) – I bought The Knux’s album, Remind Me in 3 Days, based solely on a glowing Rolling Stone review. I was a little disappointed because they spend too much time in rock/dance/techno territory for my taste. The track “FIRE (Put it in the Air),” was one of my favorite songs from ’08, though. I bet this crew is dope live.

The Black Eyed Peas (Mon, 3:00 pm, Samsung Mobile Mainstage) – Ugh. Yuck. Blecchh. Avoid at all costs! I wish the three original members of the crew would hop in the DeLorean and go back to 1998. Their debut, Behind the Front, was legitimate hip-hop. After they added Fergie and annoying pop sensibilities in 2003, it was “goodbye” backpackers and “hello” sell-out city. How disappointing.

Champagne Champagne (Mon, 4:45 pm, EMP Sky Church) – I’ve been meaning to check out their full-length debut, but can’t bring myself to spend the $10 on what might amount to mostly just a bunch of glamour-hop flash geared toward the hipster set. Emcee Pearl Dragon is an underground favorite of mine. I think Pearl’s powers as a solo emcee would reflect more of a pure hip-hop spirit, but who am I to criticize his endeavors as part of this collective? In any case, I’ve heard their live set kicks major skinny-jeaned ass!

I guess that about covers it. Bumbershoot is still over a month away, so you’ve got plenty of time to learn all the lyrics before you go. If you see will.i.am, please tell him that I’m very disappointed in the direction he’s taken the group. (I’m sure he’ll appreciate the constructive criticism.)

Peace!

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Sometimes Hip-Hop Needs Cliff’s Notes

We all know Jay-Z’s a lyrical genius, but damn, bet you didn’t know he goes this complex on his sh*t! (After you read this, come back and tell me what you thought of it…)

Which got me to thinking: Have you ever tried to actually listen to a Common Market track the whole way through and understand what RA Scion is really talking about? It’s damn near impossible. I’ve tried numerous times and I usually end up losing track of what he’s saying. I just start zoning out to a point where the beat and the sound of RA’s voice blend together into one. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it would be helpful if all of CM’s albums came with Cliff’s Notes so us fans could understand exactly what the f*ck it is he’s saying.

The fact that RA’s rhymes are so dense is only evidence of just how much of a genius he is, but he also makes it impossible for fans to rhyme along at shows. (If it weren’t for the call-and-response of “Every Last One of Us,” we’d be stuck with just the head-nodding.) I think RA gets this, because for a minute he was posting notes along with lyrics on his blog, Six Minutes to Sunrise, generously letting us in to the backstage of his brain. Here’s his “lyrics to go” for “Trouble Is.” Helpful, yes, but still mostly confounding.

It’s all love, though, RA. If it weren’t for you (and other artists like you), I wouldn’t have anything to show those folks who say hip-hop music isn’t intelligent.

Do work, CM!

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VIDEO: “Escaping Arkham” (Common Market)

Not sure how I missed this video, I’m definitely a little late on it. It’s Common Market’s “Escaping Arkham” off of The Winter’s End EP, filmed on Wall Street of all places!

The scenery has a special place in my heart (being a veteran Wall Street-er of sorts — though not in the Financial Industry, thankfully!). For a place infested by so much greed and dishonesty, it sure looks beautiful through the lens of director Zia Mohajerjasbi don’t you think?

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REVIEW: Chemistry EP (Grynch)

FrontGrynch’s still young career has been one of slow progression. On his debut album, This is What I do, the Ballard emcee unsuspectingly blazed onto the 206 hip-hop scene with an undeniable flow and knack for making solid, party-rocking hip-hop that sounded great bumped from your car on a hot summer day.

In subsequent releases including his latest EP, Chemistry, Grynch has taken a few steps forward in the complexity of his rhymes, but still not much has changed. His flow is still solid, his rhymes even more effortless and natural, and the beats are still big and sound great with the volume turned up loud. Grynch’s music is accessible West Coast hip-hop that should appeal to virtually everyone. So why do I still feel mostly underwhelmed?

Probably because the subject matter of Grynch’s rhymes remain fairly one-dimensional. He’s got the braggadocio down pat, which is always important in hip-hop. Emcees spend roughly 35% of their time listing the reasons why they are so dope. Grynch continues to follow this tradition on Chemistry.

He also remains focused on rhyming about his struggle in the game and the challenges he faces coming up. Again, it’s important subject matter, but the problem here is that Grynch is two full albums and two EPs in, and he’s still telling us about it. We’ve been knowing about the struggle, dude. It’s a little early to say it’s getting tired, but I often found myself tuning out the lyrics in favor of just listening to the beats.

And the beats, as on Grynch’s past releases, remain top-notch. They’re loud and full, and they sound great on headphones with good bass response. Standouts include the title track, which is an absolute Grade-A banger featuring One Be Lo and “A Dream Undeferred” the emcee’s altered take on the Langston Hughes poem.

Chemistry feels like a big release because it features the likes of One Be Lo and Seattle hip-hop royalty RA Scion and Geologic (and their cameos don’t disappoint). Unfortunately, however, Grynch just hasn’t taken that big step forward lyrically. He can rock a party better than most and the fact that he generally sounds incredible doing it allows him to get away with the repetition in his lyrics. Eventually, however, Grynch needs to show us more in order to stay relevant.Back

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