Come on homie we major.

- Holy Moly: Holy cow HollertronixVoilatronix was fun. I danced like a drunken middle eastern boy… probably because I was an extremely drunken half-middle eastern boy, but whatever. Shit was so fun, though. Spankrock’s one-song set was so necessary. The skipping Serato during Spank’s set was not necessary, but I think I was the only one that noticed. He killed it. Lowbudget killed it. The B-more dudes killed it, too. I killed it the most by dancing with almost every girl I’ve ever known in Philly. Fun times.

- Recent Keyword Activity: So, this is how someone found my site: by googling “What does dipset mean ebonics.” Awesome.

- RIP Bob Moog: Genuine RIP wishes go out to Mr. Bob Moog.

- Late Registration: Don’t Believe the Hate: Quite a few people are hating on Kanye’s new record and it’s pretty annoying. Sure, he’s probably not a dude you’d really want to hang out with, but this record is pretty fucking flawless as far as I’m concerned. But, beyond the mindless hate (can you believe that there are seriously people who want to criticize Kanye’s newly expressed pro-homo stance?!) you’ll find extremely interesting readings like the dude noz’s criticism who says the following about the record on a messagaeboard:

i think it's just too overwhelming. in production and in content he just tries to do too much and loses me. i found myself feeling like "ok... when is he going to start rapping again?" way too much….i honestly believe that the best hip hop productions are exercises in minimalism, because they allow they allow a good rapper to take charge of the track. and (perhaps to to compensate for his failures as a rapper?) kanye strives for the opposite. he has some potential as a writer and has improved in the flow department, but you have to listen really hard to notice. he needs to give himself room to breathe. the complexity of his drum programming also comes into play here….i think kanye's process (and andre, mos def, and whatever "post rap" stars) is flawed in assuming that a great hip hop record is one that also subscribes to the traditional goals of musicality. sure, there are overlaps (organized noize comes to mind), but suceeding on one front doesn't automatically go hand and hand with the other.

Frankly, I love noz’s reading of the record. It’s extremely well-thought out, energetic, articulate, and completely understandable. Yet and still, I disagree with it pretty strongly. Certainly, you get the feeling that Kanye wanted the album to be sonically “overwhelming”—almost every track is extremely full with instrumentation, percussion, or dramatic/anthematic crooning, but to me, it works. It is quite apparent to me that Kanye wanted to prove himself to be a “musician” with this album with intense tracks like “Major” and “Gone” which are anything but “exercises in minimalism.” “Major” pounds with a crowded fury of horns that plunge in and out while the hard stability of the percussion in “Gone” are juxtaposed with the impatient, ever-changing string of loops that weave through the song. So, while I can certainly understand noz’s reading here (and furthermore, I have a great deal of respect for this reading), I just can’t find myself to agree that the music is somehow unsuccessful. Surely, I’d be annoyed if this album inspired rap to suddenly start “subscribing to the traditional goals of musicality,” but (a) I really don’t see that happening and (b) as a rap album that attempts to “subscribe to the traditional goals of musicality” (which are, for the most part, typically rock&roll goals), I’d say that this album is very successful in reaching these goals in a lurid and passionate way. I will concede that this album seems to feel more “important” than it probably is (and perhaps should be), but I think the album is great.

- Knives and Slaps and Basketball: Even if you don’t like basketball and don’t know who David Harrison is (frankly, I don’t), go read this.

-e