To paraphrase my man Maineack Tubman: gobble gobble,
bitches! Hopefully this glorious seasonal celebration of genocide
doesn’t throw you off your stuffing game, and hopefully that statement
won’t encourage any more of that awesome racist hate mail I’ve gotten
from the local minutemen (and I ain’t talking ’bout Mike Watt);
this guy was definitely trying to Tase me. Also, while I’m at
it: I forgive you, Dog the Bounty Hunter. Sincerely, Scum Nigger
Without a Soul.
That said, let me cross this brief conflict of interest off my
clipboard: I can’t front like Cancer Rising are not having their
CD-release partay on Sunday, November 25, at Chop Suey, or that Dyme
Def, heavy 206 bands the Girls and the Valley,
Massive Monkees‘ own djblesOne, and your host
Barfly won’t be there.
So I won’t. This is to mark the
release of CR’s new self-titled album, which features production from
djblesOne, Mr. Hill, and Tiles
One.
Chuuch.
I messed up last week—I forgot to plug the Zulu Radio
Live show that went down November 17, which would’ve been a good
time to review my man King Khazm‘s new joint, Khazm & the
Pearl Street Associates. The album features Khazm—winner of
the Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Hiphop and cofounder of 206
Zulu—along with lifelong Beacon Hill reps Mad Krew and
Cyphalliance presenting a smorgasbord of 206 underground with
features from Gabriel Teodros, Alpha P,
Cyphalliance, Language Arts, El Dia, Sista
Hailstorm, Julie C, Khanfidence, and Inkubiz,
among plenty others. There’s even some Japanese verses from
Zeton, Delta, and K-Lee (word to “Long Island
Wildin'”!). Khazm’s own husky flow is stronger, more emotive, and
more versatile than many ’round here know how to muster, and his dusty,
string-heavy productions are the aural equivalent of foggy Metro
windows on a rainy weekday. Unfortunately, a lot of the music is
undermined by the poor production. This is definitely more an
underground tape than an official solo record, though, so in some
circles that’s a virtue. Whatever the case, if you’re a connoisseur of
the names I’ve mentioned or down ‘n’ dirty 206 underground in general,
this tape is for you. Also, don’t miss Khazm, Gabe T,
Sean Malik, and WD4D playing the best of local and
national hiphop on Zulu Radio, every Saturday from 10:00 p.m.
till midnight
on KBCS 91.3 FM.
Lastly: RIP Donda West, Kanye‘s mother. My
heart goes out to you, Ye—anyone who’s followed your career knows
what an inspiration and constant touchstone your mom was in your music,
from your earliest demos all the way up to Graduation. I know
that losing my mother was the hardest shit I ever went through. So from
one momma’s boy to another (and having been through that, I still
wouldn’t presume to know
what you must be going
through)—
God bless, bro. 