Dr. Octagon

The Return of Dr. Octagon

(OCD International, 2006)

Sporadically surfacing, Keith Thornton (a.k.a. Kool Keith) releases an album with a bizarre title or concept, receives his praise and then soon after disappears for a time. The impetus for the Dr. Octagon character, only one of Thornton’s many guises which also includes the Black Elvis, may well be somehow tied to a traumatic childhood experience – and that conjecture is really just as crazy as the character. Dr. Octagon himself is a less than savory sort, but oddly enough on his second recorded effort decides to include a track about the environment being destroyed and an explanation of how human beings are very similar to ants. Regardless of the eco-friendly subject matter being broached, Doc Oc is accompanied by production from three German minds that make up One Watt Sun. The raps lean against robotic, eighties beats that occasionally incorporate a bit of strings or a dusty jazz sample. Musical setting aside, Doc Oc continues unleashing his share of surprising and warped lyrics. He mocks those who aim to emulate Al Green or Tracy Chapman, then shifts focus and begins a short narrative about obtaining a truck to make some obscure delivery. The Return of Dr. Octagon is everything that one might expect from the mind of Kool Keith and also probably a bit more than what is expected from most hip-hop that currently passes for creative.

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Daedelus

Exquisite Corpse

(Mush Records, 2005)

On the second album baring his moniker, Daedelus dishes out only five tracks without the assistance of a guest.  But those five tracks of the producer all alone are easily entertaining enough to warrant purchasing this album.  Anyway, from the release of “The Weather” LP and “Of Snowdonia” Daedelus has shown his considerable talents repeatedly.  Here he continues.  It’s just not as consistent.  The first of only five solo tracks we are lucky enough to hear is easily one of the most pleasurable on the album.  “Dearly Departed”, while the music is close to awe inspiring, sports a somewhat sub-par female vocal sample.  The second of the solo tracks most clearly states why Daedelus is worth listening to.  Every aspect of this song is how Daedelus seems to define himself:  from the electro-glitch production to the eastern theme, which so commonly ends up benefiting with its’ pairing with hip-hop.  The remaining solo efforts aren’t bad but can’t really maintain my interest.  The six-minute “The Crippled Hand” is an example of the producer becoming a bit too self-absorbed. Aside from the instrumentals, there are almost too many guests to get through.  MF Doom shows up early on a track perfectly suited to his style although a bit short.  In his allotted time he’s able to get off the line “He don’t eat gelatin/hot or cold ham”.  What?  Prefuse 73 makes an appearance as well as Cyne, who has been showing up on a number of compilations similar to this one.  On “Welcome Home”, Mike Ladd turns in another track, consistent with his solo work; moderately interesting.  An acoustic guitar on “Thanatopis” closes the album.  Our guest on this one, Hrishikesh Hirway, helps Daedelus close out what ended up almost being an average affair with a chocolate magic shell coating.

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It’s funny reading descriptions of Alexander Trocchi’s final novel, Cain’s Book. For the most part, the writer, a heroin devotee, is couched in terms of existential uncaring and set in a line with Albert Camus and any number of other beats.

What separate’s Trocchi from his American brethren is admittedly his uncaring about pretty much everything apart from how to get high. But in Cain’s Book, that flippant perspective on life is related in some of the most poetic language possible. Granted, the subject matter and the resultant physical toll is apparent at times as Trocchi’s prose moves in and out of this flowery language. But the writer does maintain a rather concerted tone throughout the entirety of the work.

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The range with which Spike Lee is able to tell a story is pretty generally startling. That being said, his work during the eighties and the first half of the nineties all carry with it a similarity mostly due to subject matter – an afrocentricity that the director alone represents in Hollywood. Setting his work in various parts of New York work to unify Lee’s efforts. And for basically that reason alone, Summer of Sam (1999) makes sense within the director’s other efforts.

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There’re a few different questions people ask each other when first meeting: Where are you from, what kind of music do you listen to and what kind of movies do you like. There’s obviously a pompous answer for each as well as one designed to make the speaker sound as intelligent or well informed as possible. In the realm of film, saying something like “I watch movies that keep me on the edge of my seat,” not only fails to denote what kind of movies you like, but unwittingly makes the speaker sound like a lame advertisement.

Either way, Inception, directed by the omni-obtuse Christopher Nolan, seems to be made for just that sort of person.

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Common

Be

(Geffen Records, 2005)

Can we just pretend that Common never made Electric Circus? Ok? Done.  Let’s just pretend that instead of the futuristic soul of that album Be is the follow up to the 2000 release of Like Water for Chocolate.  This latest installment of Common’s ever-growing library of records offers up no real surprises.  Well, there is actually a song about getting head, which I haven’t heard from this man since 1992’s Can I Borrow a Dollar?.  But there are a number of RnB inspired loops that make me cringe, expected lyrical content about being a good person and triumphing amidst adverse situations.  When I listen to an album by Common I know that I’ll enjoy his raps, or at least how he delivers them (his delivery is on par with that of Guru), but I’m always weary of the beats.  And on this album Kanye West is credited as a songwriter on every track.  That simply scares me.  And the album bears out my fear.  The bad beats are horrific (“Go!”, “Faithful”, “They Say”) occasionally due to guest singers like John Legend.  I have no room for updated soul in my hip-hop.  Good beats on here though do get real funky.  “Chi-City”, “The Food” and “Real People” all boast top tier production from West and solid raps from Common.  Be is pretty much a middle of the road album by this man but, at least there’s still room for Mr. Lonnie ‘Pops’ Lynn to get a track on here.

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JA MUSISC x Rap

Those within the hip hop community – performers, promoters and the like – don’t generally make a big deal about where the genre came from beyond name checking DJ Kool Herc or Mr. James Brown. But Herc was born in Kingston during the ’50s. So, while folks can figure anyone from Kraftwerk to Gil Scott-Heron influencing the music that today constitutes hip hop, JA related stuff is an inseparable part of the culture.

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man’sbestfriend

The New Human is Illegal

(Morr Music, 2004)

This isn’t the future of hip-hop. It already was the future. I believe that new things cease being new after a time. This is the case with Sole, who happens to also be man’sbestfriend. He still well may be the most important emcee in the country, founding Anticon and creating Bottle of Humans. Each new release of his does not need to be heralded as the new water-mark by which hip-hop be judged. He does continues to lead the way, regardless of the way being the path that he has already tread upon. He blurts out, “Pain is life,” on “Idol Victim”, and that one line probably best explains not only this release, but a general outlook expressed on every release by this man. The lyrics on this slab tend to begin examining a sprawling topic, but end in personal exploration. The track titles on The New Human is Illegal portray an already well-documented opposition to the general consensus of the country (“Ode to Clean Air”, “How to be Rich and Powerful”, “Dream about Afghanistan or Oakland”). The production too comes across as subversive, but in another way. The lo-fi smashed down sound that helped initially set Sole apart from the masses is accentuated on this release. The listener expects a certain amount of underground sound, but Sole further refines his tunes (“Numb”). The slab is solid. And if you already own everything else this man has released, there’s no good reason not snag this one. Maybe this isn’t the best way to familiarize yourself with him, but it’s still better than ninety-seven percent of the music out there.

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This Flying Lotus video has been making the rounds. And yes, it's as good as it should be. But with the wealth of LA based producer talent, it's worth wondering who the next huge figure will be to emerge.

RJD2

Dead Ringer

(Def Jux, 2002)

The hip-hop community has never considered Ohio to be a major hot spot, however, of late there seems to be a good reason for that to change.  Between Cincinnati and Columbus over the last half a decade or so, quality records have been pouring out of the area.  With acts like The Five Dees, Blueprint, Illogic, Hi-Tek (of course) and now RJD2 Ohio can now boast of a scene that can exist independently of the major markets in the country.  Taking note of the insurgence of talent Def Jux owner El-P has released the album “Dead Ringer” by Columbus resident RJD2. 

The record (not his first though, I’m sure there a bunch of mix tapes out there, like “Your Face or Your Kneecaps”) featuring sixteen tracks is not just another dj album.  RJD2’s work doesn’t boast the same frantic drumming as the Dj Shadow records, but remains pretty relaxed all the way through.  Fellow Columbus res Blueprint (owner of Columbus label Weightless Recordings) is featured on the track “Final Frontier” and Cage appears on the track “June”.  So, it’s not all instrumental funk samples. On “Ghostwriter” a nice acoustic guitar sample begins and propels the song as various female “oohs” and “wooohs” are pulled in and out of the mix.  “Shot in the Dark”, boasting a nice beat, comments upon the coppers being too gung-ho, with assorted film samples of cops and suspects mixed up in a chase.  The whole deal is solid, not a throw-away-track to be seen. They’re not all classics, but at-least each track is above par. Hopefully he can reproduce the standard that he has created for himself while still changing up the game.  Appearing at this past summer’s corporate sponsored Bonnaroo Festival (two separate sets) RJD2 will most assuredly be heard from again.

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