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STATE OF EMERGENCY
billcosby.com
Most people will know Bill Cosby from The Cosby Show or Fat Albert, but did you know that early in his entertainment career, that he released a music album called Silver Throat: Bill Cosby Sings? He also plays drums and bass... so it shouldn't surprise anyone to know that he's the person behind State of Emergency.
Before we continue, let me be clear in one thing: Bill Cosby does not sing on this album. Most of the singing is done by Jace the Great, with some help from Cedric Miller and Brother Haz. It's not clear on the music writing credits, most of the songs are credited to W.H. Cosby Jr (Bill Cosby), William Patterson, Cedric Miller, Jamal Gary (Jace?) and Hassan McMillan (Brother Haz?).
My favorite song off the album is "Dads Behind the Glass", with its refrain "I wish my daddy was home/tired of sitting here all alone/Mommy's not here she's working two jobs". The song also features samples from Bill Cosby and Friends' performing "Ursalina".
Some of the song's message, I can see Cosby writing. Like the constant "Why?" question, or "In a Perfect World", or "Runnin'". But songs like "Where Did I Go Wrong?", about being a Blood gangster, with being the son of a Muslim, I can't see Cosby writing this... but I can feel it's Brother Haz's contribution to this song.
Even if Cosby have little to do with this album, he's involving and lending his name to the project - and for most people, that's good enough. He believes in the project enough to do talk about it and promote it, and I think that's awesome. Though, I would've pegged him as a Jazz guy, considering his love for jazz music, but it's refreshing to see him working in the hip-hop music industry.
State of Emergency is available now at BillCosby.com. There's a variety of packages, but I recommend getting the CD and book (New York times bestseller Come On People: On the Path from Victims to Victors by Bill Cosby and Alvin F. Poussaint) combo.
powerhousebooks.com
Having spent all of my holiday reading on and off KRS-One's The Gospel of Hip Hop, I came to the conclusion that, like the Holy Bible, understanding of its message does not come overnight... but through years of practice and study.
If you love hip hop and embrace all of its kulture and lifestyle, then I say this is a wonderful book for your library shelf. This 800+ page hardcover, gold embossed cover, words of wisdom, is well worth its price of $24.95. I have bought more expensive books for less content and value, so take it from me, this is a good deal. Plus, I noticed that your order of The Gospel of Hip Hop via Powerhouse Books will come autographed by KRS-One.
So, this book does not necessary require you to read front-to-back, but you can't just skip around either - considering that it makes sense to read "The First Understanding" vs "The Eighteenth Understanding". What KRS One, who, in the book, refers to himself as the teacha, tries and break down some of the components that makes hip hop - in particular: graffiti art, DJ, emcees, b-boy, and free styles.
The book isn't necessary all about the hip hop culture, but also faith, religion, and, most of all, love. Love to stop the violence, and love to help others in need. I'll give you evidence, this past Thanksgiving, KRS-One practiced his teaching by serving meals to thousands of New York's homeless at the Bowery Mission:
My favorite chapter from The Gospel of Hip Hop is the Fourth Understanding: The H-LAW. What the H-LAW is an acronym for Health, Love, Awareness and Wealth. For anyone, a healthy body & mind also translate to peace and positive attitude. There's an interesting bit in the section that describes that not all food is life-giving, that everything edible is not food. What follows Health, Love and Wealth, seems pretty obvious. Love is not lust, while Wealth doesn't always mean riches in the monetary sense. The Awareness part, that seems more like Knowledge. KRS-One gives you an example of a normal person and an electrician, who looks at a room with very different perspective. For instance, the electrician, with his knowledge of wiring knows a little more than the average person.I am participating in The Bowery Mission's Thanksgiving food drive and event because I myself was once homeless, walking these very streets, and spending time with these wonderful people at The Bowery Mission. I depended on them to survive. I am showing up for Thanksgiving this year to not only lend a hand, but hope that I am may inspire others in the Hip Hop community to consider their role towards helping the homeless, and join me by helping those in your community that need help during this holiday season.
I chose the Bowery Mission because it epitomizes the spirit of true human resources, love, care and compassion. I have stayed at many shelters were you are called "the client" and the administration made you feel like a prisoner in a system. At the Bowery Mission you feel at home. Homelessness is a pandemic, and most people do not realize the severity of the situation. You may be homeless one day yourself. I urge the Hip Hop nation to live up to the true nature of our culture and give.- KRS-One
Again, let me be clear: the understanding of all of The Gospel of Hip Hop's teaching and written words does not come overnight. In some ways, this book will require multiple reading. Below, I leave you with a small teaching from the book, which you can apply in any situation:
Disobedience, stubbornness, suspicion, criticism, fear, doubt and/or arrogance toward your teacher only hinder YOUR learning. We must not unnecessarily criticize each other; we must question and always acknowledge our collective development as a young nation.
THE PEACE
hipfolkinc.com ♥ myspace.com
The impossible to search for The Peace, a band out of Vermont, plays what they bill themselves as "hip hop folk" - a combination of their inspiration of music from Dave Matthews and KRS One. At least that's what they describe themselves, personally, in my opinion, I don't believe The Peace to be hip hop (or even folk). They seem like a jam band, their influence is closer to funk and improvisation progressive rock.
The most hip-hop/rappish song on the album is "Heaven", but based on Bobby Kendes' singing style (which actually sounds so much like Dave Matthews), it's not really a hardcore rap song. I did enjoy hearing Kurt Cobain's name drop in that song. And speaking of name-dropping, there's a ton of that on "Rookie And The Vets".
As their name suggest, this album is about zen, harmony, and peace. Songs like "This Is Life" and "Goin To Yoga" are great theme for the album - but some song like, "Racing The Devil", seems conflicting. The thing I remember about the Devil song is that the f-word is censored.
My favorite song on the album is "Seven", I think mostly because I enjoyed the Spanish and can pick out "siete", "por favor" and "callate". Not sure about the last word, I could've sworn he said 'shut up' in the song.
If you live in New York, The Peace is spending some time there. I know they played a few dates prior to this writing. Their next show is at Arlene's Grocery (which is famously not a grocery store) on December 13th. The Peace's self-titled debut can be bought via hipfolkinc.com. If you don't mind a milder Spin Doctors, you'll enjoy this. If you were looking to Notorious BIG-type, I would avoid.
12/08/2009 21:00:02 ♥ vu (
) ♥weheartmusic.com♥twitter.com/weheartmusic♥news.weheartmusic.com
I dislike spending huge amounts of time in the bathroom. My daily purpose there is to get clean, and nothing else. My bathroom routine involves splashing cold water on my face, brushing my teeth, and hopping into the shower with some hypoallergenic soap. It usually takes no longer than 20 minutes for me to finish.
Now it's getting near my birthday/Christmas, I've been getting many gift sets with bath items in them - and no, I don't smell, so I'm not going to take it as a hint. I do love getting presents (see my earlier posts on T-shirts and the like), but...
I don't use shower gels or body scrubs or bath bombs or body lotions or anything else that comes in one of those sets. EVER.
Bath sets are to me what socks and jumpers are to everyone else at Christmas.
I have tried to use them before, but they just delay my shower/bath, and turn what should be a 5 minute event into a 30 minute process. After managing to open the damn bottle with wet hands, lathering it all over my body, and finally managing to wash ALL of it off, I've wasted valuable time that I could've spent doing something else.
It doesn't help matters that my boiler is on the fritz, and hot water only comes out at random intervals. In between using the weird expensive shower gel that I got as a gift from my mother's French friend and washing it off, my water supply goes from scalding hot to nothing to absolutely freezing in a matter of minutes.
It's a rule of thumb for me that I try to avoid being hurt by my wonky boiler for as long as possible. But the longer I spend in the shower, the more chances I have of being burned by the hot water. Yay me. >.>
My skin has also become increasingly sensitive in the past couple of years. This means that 9 times out of 10, whenever I try to use a nice-looking shower gel or body scrub that I got from a friend for a Christmas/birthday gift, I'll end up with a massive itchy rash.
Even the body lotions that come with them eventually make me want to tear my own skin off with the reactions they cause.
...I've given up.
I love the shapes of the delicately-wrapped bottles and tubes of lotions and gels that I get every Christmas, but they never get used, and will sit in the corner of my room, gathering dust.
[...If you want a free bath set, here's your chance! I've got about 10 in a pile in the corner of my room. They've obviously never been used, and probably never will be. Most of them are also perfectly safe to use until 2020 or something.]
If you're really stuck on what to get me as a cheap gift, some tubs of E45 cream will make me ecstatic.
Originally published at rammi.glomp.me. You can comment here or there.
I know I really, really, really like something when I start buying merchandise. I especially know I'm starting to get addicted to a service when I want to wear T-shirts advertising them. I've bought band T-shirts in the past, but never an actual T-shirt for an internet service.
I mean, the top item on my birthday wishlist for this year is this:
I'm starting to think I'm spending way too much time on Twitter. But what better way to show off my obsession than by getting a T-shirt?
Last year, when I plurked obsessively, I would've killed for a Plurk T-shirt, and would've worn it everywhere I went.
...Actually, now that you think about it, although I don't plurk much any more, I still want one.
You listening, A-Team? I know you love me really, with the pictures I've been photoshopping onto your screenshots and the awkward poses I've been unearthing from disused folders.
![[Not my T-shirt. Although I want it. So badly.]](http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3036/2689827133_ebfb06c27e.jpg)
Look how pretty it is! Sure you don't want to make a sweet innocent ickle girl happy for her birthday in exactly a weeks' time? *pleading face*
[OK, I may be laying it on a little thick, but shh.]
Originally published at rammi.glomp.me. You can comment here or there.
Hello, and welcome to my first non-post of December. It's times like these when I forget why I thought it was a good idea to sign up for NaBloPoMo for another month. I mean, I have enough inspiration to keep me ticking over for one month, but two is pushing the limit. Definitely not trying this again in January.* I've done more writing in the past month than I have in the past 5 years.
Considering I did absolutely nothing today but cry for my sore muscles, there is absolutely nothing to blog about.
Blerg.
* Well, I say that now, but some craziness at the end of December will probably mean I end up clicking the "Add Blog" link and regret it for the rest of the month.
Originally published at rammi.glomp.me. You can comment here or there.
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 Miles Benjamin Turf Club, St Paul (11/13/09)photo by Brody |
He even came over to our house to celebrate with me and some other die hard fans.
Chatting with him after with threw his gear in my trunk, he talked about playing guitar since he was about 13. Now 27, Miles born in Pasadena spent a lot of time in L.A. early on his life. I didn't ask him about any of his past experiences or musical changes. From what I've read he had some early drug addictions and some friends from TV on the Radio picked him up and got him back on his feet.
Lately MBAR has been on a tear with his sophomore release "Summer of Fear". He's played plenty of shows with TV on the Radio and Grizzly Bear, but now he's doing it on his own. Daytrotter sessions, a full headlining national tour, and even an mini solo leg.
The folk scene is growing and the competition is extremely tough, but Miles may be the new Bob Dylan. I certainly found out he's a huge Dylan fan. After his show we jammed the night away to Dylan, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, and plenty more. Unfortunately he broke a string when he was starting to play some of his newer tracks.
In his actually set he played an Otis Redding cover. Keep and eye on this extremely talented artist. The sky is the limit for Miles.
12/06/2009 17:11:16 ♥ brody
♥ myspace.com/milesbenjaminanthonyrobinson
As you can see, a special guest star showed up at the end of the set to end it on a bang. Since I didn't attend the event, I can tell you that it looked like a lot of wild energy and fun... I've seen the dude before, he's wonderfully mesmerizing to watch. If I had half his energy, I would explode.
Opening up Mallman were The Magic Castles (myspace) and The Alpha Centauri (official/myspace).
All photos below are from Erik Hess.
12/06/2009 17:11:16 ♥ vu () ♥ mallman.com
♥ myspace.com/markmallman
♥ twitter.com/markmallman
Brush Up on Your Tech
MegoMars suggests a refresher on tech basics, and challenges you to complete all the certification quizzes too.
Remember IRC?
A look back at the halcyon days when mfn would sign into Hotmail and then wander off to meet people on mIRC.
Remember Libraries?
An amazing photo gallery of a past when people found information and recreation between the pages of a book and the dividers of a card catalog. Shared by Tall Marketing.
Tech Support
Suggestions? If you have suggestions for posts, photos, or Voxers to spotlight on the Technology page, send me a message.
I generally dislike strenuous physical exercise, and always have done so. I never learnt how to ride a bike, and - shh - have forgotten how to use a skipping rope. [Neither am I the type to run up and down hills every day, but I have to, otherwise I'll end up being late to everything I go to, but I digress.]
I'm also the owner of a gym subscription, but like most people, have difficulties in actually using it every week. There's just too many things to fit into a Sunday.
Despite all of this, I am good at running... When I want to. Note the "when I want to". At school sports days, I never saw the point of "running just to get to the other side of the field", and would nearly always come dead last. But when running for a bus or any other form of public transport, things are different. I once chased a bus for half a mile in high heels, because it was the last bus of the night and I had no other option.
Although I rarely do any physical exercise, I'm not fat. I eat a normal, balanced diet. I weigh a perfectly normal weight for my height. And all without wasting years of my life at the gym. I have a slight muffin top, but that can easily be fixed with a few more sit-ups.
So when someone who runs a lot makes me feel shitty because I actually feel pain after walking a distance they run every day, all I have to say in response to them is... SCREW YOU.
I may not like physical exercise, but when I do manage to do it, I work hard until I can barely walk the day after, because it makes me feel good eventually. But this event only happens occasionally, because with the endorphins comes the pain. My muscles will always cramp up after doing any form of exercise, and my stamina will never be all that great.
According to people like you, I'm 'unfit'. But to be honest with you, I don't think I care any more. I don't spend hours calorie-counting and making sure I work off all the food I've just eaten, and still manage to stay around the same weight and size. I couldn't be happier with the way I look. A UK size 12 may be big in your eyes, but it's perfect for me. At least I don't have to starve myself for it.
So take your pilates and your spinning and your morning runs and stuff them in the face of someone who gives a shit.
Because - guess what? - that's just not me.
...Now, I'm going to go and have an (almost) midnight snack, because all of this "typing in a fit of rage" thing has probably sucked out many, many calories. And we wouldn't want that to happen, would we? ;)
Originally published at rammi.glomp.me. You can comment here or there.
Last night, I mentioned feeling guilty for not making deadlines. Today, I still feel guilty, but for another reason.
My mum phoned me a few hours ago with news about my aunt (through marriage to my mum's brother). The news: My aunt's mother died a few days ago, at the age of 91. My first reaction was, "Um. OK. What do you want me to do about it?"
The fact that my aunt's mother was still alive/had existed at some point in my life was news to me. Apparently, I met her once, when I was a toddler, in a meeting that I obviously don't recall. I emphathise with my aunt, who has just lost her mother. I'm sorry for my uncle, who has just lost his mother-in-law. And of course I'm upset for the cousins that I've never met, who have just lost their grandmother. A little bit of the same sadness I would feel if anyone I knew lost a member of their family. But whatever I'm feeling, it's not grief, or even sadness. This is where the guilt comes in.
My aunt's mother was not related to me in any shape or form. I had only met her once. I bet she was an amazing woman who lived a long and happy life, but in theory, she was a complete stranger to me. So why do I feel so guilty about not managing to have any feelings about her death?
EDIT: I know it sounded really callous when I wrote this blog post out, so here's a a brief reason of why I feel the way I feel: I just don't know my family.
I don't talk to, and have no way (and no desire) of keeping in contact with my relations at all. I have no siblings, have only talked briefly with two of my first cousins on my mother's side, have never met/don't remember meeting the other two, and have never met my father's side of the family due to some stuff that happened after his death two weeks before my birth (I know, it can get complicated. Does it help that I was born on 14th December?). Oh, and I dislike the few relations I have met.
I've had more conversations with my mum's first cousin's daughter than I've had with any of my first cousins.
It may not help either that there's a massive language barrier between most of my relations. Although I'm fluent in Thai, I don't like speaking it to people I don't know well, and I can't understand their attempts at English. My immediate family circle consists of my grandmother, my mother and myself. In effect, this means that within two decades, I'll have no family at all. Go me!
Originally published at rammi.glomp.me. You can comment here or there.
Also, I am back on reviewing music as I have stopped going out to see live bands. I am still not accepting new music as I still have to clear out what I've already been sent/requested. Apologies to any promises that I may have made.
sarahelizabethfoster.com ♥ myspace
Sarah Elizabeth Foster's EP, Gardening From the Ground Up Part 1 from Studio Sarah Records, is the first submission I've received for a 2010 release. Generally around this time, I get a ton of Christmas music offers (which, hey, I will be doing a roundup next week!).
Foster actually has a degree in music, singing French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, and, of course English. While this EP is only in English, it does showcase her classically singing abilities. My favorite song is actually the title-track, "Gardening From the Ground Up". There's something about this love song, from rain drops to the up-beat jazzy tempo, that I really like. This is in contrast to the opening song, "Wake Up", for a song that's about waking up, it sounds like "take it easy" evening song.
While people will automatically associate Foster to 60s girl singers, I think her vocal styles, would actually lends itself really well to modern indiepop music. I'm certainly interested in hearing what part two sounds like. If you live in New York, Foster will be playing tomorrow, December 4th at Pete's Candy Store in Brooklyn.
FERAL CHILDREN
myspace.com/feralchildrenseattle
Feral Children is a "backwoods" band from Seattle, Washington. Their self-titled EP was a free released on Sarathan Records, while their forth-coming album, Brand New Blood, will be available digitally December 8th, while a physical release on January 19th, 2010.
As their name suggest, their music seems, I don't know, wild. Like "grizzly bear", "panda bear, "deerhunter" and "animal collective" wild, and this isn't surprising, considering Scott Colburn (Animal Collective's Feels producer) is their producer on the Feral Children album. Compared to previous bands I mentioned, Feral Children seems more melodic and less experimental. I'm not sure who produced their EP (I rarely get liner notes for digital submissions), but they certainly have that collective-like influence.
I did give the EP a few listens, and not entirely impressed with the singer (is it Bill Cole?). His vocals is very rough, voice cracking comes to mind on tracks like "Saint". While this may possibly be the greatest song done live, listening to it on headphones made me cringe.
Who knows, maybe their album will be much better than the self-titled EP. It is, after all, their first release, I'm sure they'll improve over time. Information on the free downloads, head over to Sarathan Records.
MOJORISING
mojorisingband.com ♥ myspace
I keep mis-reading this band as Major/ising, so I'm not sure if other people might have the same problem reading the name (it's OK people misread W♥M as "we love music" all the time...)
Mojorising recently moved from Los Angeles from Australia. So prices for their EP at $12 on the merch page might seem high, until you realize it's in AUS dollars.
My impression is that this duo makes some really funky music, but with classic rock attitudes (think Jamiroquai). The funk soul translate well on a few of their songs, "She Woke Up To Me" and "Sooth Me And Use Me". The later is very dancey, I suspect it will play well to a live audience. Incidentally if you are interested in hearing the first song, it's available as a free download.
The band is playing a few dates in California:
- Dec 20 2009 THE MINT Los Angeles
Jan 10 2010 EL CID Los Angeles
SEA OF BEES
seaofbees.com ♥ myspace
Lara dismissed Julie Baenziger, aka Sea of Bees, as being too "CocoRosie/Joanna Newsom", and really - what's wrong with that ? As expected, Baenziger's vocal style is that of a small cute child. And also cute is the title of the EP, called Bee Eee Pee. This is a collection of four songs and one intermission song.
All of the songs are pretty minimalistic, usually with just acoustic and Baenziger singing. The stand-out track for me is "Willis", because it does feature a melodic backing music (vs just acoustic alone). Also, the inclusion of the random intro is nice - it explained that this particular recording happens to be the third take.
Julie is doing some winter dates:
- Dec 4 2009 Fox & Goose Sacramento, California
Dec 15 2009 Sacramento, California
Jan 26 2010 Matadero Huesca, Huesca
Jan 30 2010 Tanned Tin Festival Castelo, Castellón
Feb 10 2010 TBA w/ Mountain Man, Chelsea Wolfe and Dead Western Sacramento, California
PS, That's all I can manage today. Check out Ryan as he's retweeting on twitter/weheartmusic. You can see some of the tweets on the right-side of this page. The account is kept active by live blogging by myself, Ceji, and Ryan. Not just a robot account!
12/03/2009 22:55:52 ♥ vu () ♥weheartmusic.com♥twitter.com/weheartmusic♥news.weheartmusic.com
I'd forgotten how good it feels when I meet a deadline on time. The relief, the "thank God it's over" feeling, and the warm fuzziness I get inside... This lasts until I'm hit with another deadline.
For some reason, I find it hard to work at a computer. There's too many distractions floating around on my screen, and before I know it, I've wasted several hours watching videos when I should be writing transcripts. Sometimes, I'll deliver things hours late, sometimes even days. But whatever I am late for, it makes me feel extremely guilty. Especially if I'm supposed to be getting paid for it, and there's no other person that can do it.
The guilt I feel when I hand in something late has become such a frequent part of my life that it had started to feel normal. Get told to do something by a certain date, miss that date completely, spend time freaking out because it's late, finally managing to do it, and freaking out again because it doesn't reflect well with my employers.
Today, when I actually did something on time, the feelings of happiness it gave me reminded me that the guilt I usually feel when I miss a deadline isn't normal.
Which makes the guilt I'm going to feel tomorrow for missing another deadline all the worse.
Originally published at rammi.glomp.me. You can comment here or there.
Links from my Friends and Family
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