Thursday, August 30, 2007

Comments

I've changed the settings so anyone can comment. At SDTW we encourage commenting of all types whether they are good, bad, hateful, salty, or just plain ignorant. There are no wrong comments.

Let it begin...

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Oldies But Goodies


Above: Rocksteady sans Bebop


Now that I have Unite's Blog to deal with for reggae uploads I had to go to the vaults and find some dusty rocksteady jumpers to dust off and post.

Well I suppose that's only half true since I got these on cd and not vinyl, but you get the idea.

These are all Trojan releases from a comp, but each could easily stand on their original LPs as certified bangers.


The Slickers "Johnny Too Bad" mp3

I know nothing of The Slickers, but I do know Dennis Brown covered this tune and it's been on steady rotation ever since I heard it.


Dave & Ansel Collins "Double Barrel" mp3

This tune has been sampled in so many hip-hop/battle records that I didn't even know it was a full song.

Ken Boothe "Ain't No Sunshine" mp3

I've always loved this Bill Withers tune and I thought that know one could top Horace Andy's cover, but this Boothe cut is a really close contender.

Devil's Advocate

Sensationalism in the media has never been more prevalent then it is now.

Case and point:



Mr. Vick


Everyone and their mother has chosen to use their pathetic "15 Minutes" to bash Michael Vick in the media almost every minute of every day since the story broke.

Now I fully believe that Michael Vick is a bad person for what he admitted to doing in the dog fighting case against him. I love dogs just like most people and would never want an animal of any kind to be put through pain, BUT....

I do have a problem with not being able to turn on my TV, computer, or radio without hearing from someone about what they "think" about Michael Vick.

First off let us look at this in context to other crimes committed by famous athletes as a way to gauge the severity of the crime and why it "has" to be discussed all the live long day.




Rae Carruth could easily be the worst athlete criminal of all time, but I clearly remember how fast this story fell from the headlines. Rae Rae essentially "assassinated" his pregnant girlfriend in a planned two-car drive-by. The woman who was pregnant at the time was shot four times and eventually died a month later. The baby boy was born prematurely because of her injuries and now has cerebral palsy.

But if you asked any of these sign waiving animal right activists "Who Rae Carruth is? They would most likely shrug their shoulders.

Why? Because Americans are stupid and sheepish.




Jayson Williams is another athlete criminal and although his crime was unintentional he still is a grade A moron. Jayson shot a hired limousine driver to death while "twirling" a shotgun. He faces retrial for possibly "attempting" to cover up the accident and delaying the arrival of medical help that may or may not have saved the driver's life.

Neither of these cases could hold a candle up to Vick's media blitz and yet in my opinion are far worse acts of violence. I think people keep talking about Vick negatively and daily because on a subconscious level it makes them feel good about themselves. People can forget their own shortcomings by honestly convincing themselves "At least I'm not a dog killer."

The media loves feeding this idea and people don't mind getting a little undeserved "morality" boost from it either.

Again what Michael Vick did was totally wrong, but I don't think it means that public needs to keep collectively patting themselves on the back for not being dog killers. You're SUPPOSED to not kill dogs.

My prediction is Vick is going to do anywhere from a year to 2 1/2 years in a pretty core prison and may serve less with good behavior. He may have a harder time then most prisoners being that he is famous, wealthy, and an informant. Regardless if it was a condition of his plea bargain Vick may be going into the big house already labeled as a snitch and that is no fun.

When he gets out and his suspension is up and he decides to return to the NFL the media blitz will resurface and if he plays well MOST of this case will be forgotten and all the people that were on the fence will be buying #7's jerseys and saying shit like "Well, I mean he paid his dues."

Don't believe me?

How often do you ever hear about the following today: Ray Lewis's murder case, Jason Kidd's domestic violence, Darryl Strawberry's coke woes? Okay maybe not Darryl's.

None of these athletes are spoken about negatively even though all of their crimes could easily be brought up in sports media.

Who's the most talked about sports criminal of all time?

Pete Rose

Why? Because he gambled on baseball games. Are you kidding me?

It just doesn't make any sense.

That's my 2 cents.

True School

I started thinking about how fresh o.g Nintendo game covers were from back in the day. I can only speak for myself of course, but Nintendo pretty much ran the block growing up in the 80's. I can vividly remember wasting away summer days inside my house with my friends drinking soda and eating otter pops all while trying to beat Contra without using the "30 Lives" cheat = up, down, up, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, Select, Start.

How in God's name do I remember that? It's probably fair to say that almost every guy ages 20 - 35 remember that code too. I compiled some covers of games that I remembered off the top of my head and came across a few that I had forgotten about.

This isn't anywhere near a "Top Ten" because that would be some serious shit. I couldn't just throw out a couple of covers and say it was a "Top Ten." A post like that would take some serious deliberation.

Some honorable mentions that aren't pictured below would be:

- Super Dodgeball
- Kid Nikki *sort of obscure
- Super Spike Volleyball
- RC Pro Am
- Super Mario 3 *don't act like you didn't shit your pants when that game dropped
- Tecmo Bowl
- Zelda
- Skate or Die 2 * only the half pipe mini game though
- RBI Baseball



T&C Wood and Water Race

I could "son" anyone on the skate part, but my surfing skills were pretty weak. Remember Thrilla Gorilla? Classic



In many ways River City Ransom was like a pioneer to Grand Theft Auto. I mean you ran around stomping people out that were in different gangs using chains, brass knuckles, bats, knives, and pretty much terrorized the entire city until you got your hiena back. Am I wrong here?




O.G Triple O.G Ninja shit. We played this joint for hours and never got bored. It was one player for f*ck's sake and you were totally content watching your buddy play while you waited although deep down you know you were hoping that he was going to fall into a spike pit on his last life.




Ducktales? The game? I watched the cartoon and played the hell out of this game. Scrooge McDuck, Launch Pad McQuack, Huey, Dooey, and Louie, and don't forget Ms. Beasley. My brain is like a bear trap right now.




Along the same lines as RCR, but Double Dragon was more on some martial arts I secretly could run away from home and train to be a karate badass type deal. It also had one of the first player vs. player fighting mini games ever too.




Castlevania was a staple to any decent gamer's collection. How many games could post an "invisible" stair case, flame bombs, giant bats, and allow you to fight Frankenstein and Igor all in one?



California Games caused a lot of ruckus in my neighborhood. It was made up of mini games like skate half pipe, frisbee, hackey sack, roller-skating, surfing, and bmx. The only good games were bmx and surfing. Sometimes I'd f*ck with the hackey sack, but only when I was really bored.




I liked "Ice Hockey" too, but Blades of Steel was more realistic. Why don't more people like hockey I wonder? Baseball is the lamest shit ever, but somehow a sport that is played on ICE where you're allowed to FIGHT someone and everyone is riding on sharpened BLADES is somehow overlooked.




This wasn't a super popular game, but you had a hand cannon and a bionic grappling hook arm. I will repeat that a bionic grappling hook arm. That is all you need to know about BC.




I didn't play this much, but how good is that cover? Back in the 80's things were a lot more in your face and no one gave a $hit about being "pc." I mean they could've made games like "Reggie's Fried Chicken Frenzy" or "Chin's Crazy Driver" and nobody would have batted an eye.




Battle Toads was pretty decent. Nothing special.




I am surprised no one has made this into some lame "street wear" tee yet. This game actually sucked if my memory serves me right and it was basically killed by the hype and anticipation of being able to play a Simpsons game and when you finally got it home it was just a big mess. Cool cover though.




This one was a Double Dragon rip-off and it played like such.




And last but not least 720. Now this game was pretty epic as far as o.g skate games were concerned. It was better in the arcade, but anything skate back then was pretty off the hook.

Leave comments of some of your favorite NES games if you'd like.

Mark Morrison



I can honestly say that this song is better then anything you will hear on the radio today.

Perfection.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Doing Work



Put in some work yesterday running around the city with photographer Jordan Nicholson.

Jordan came through to help me shoot a little thing or two that you might see in the near future.

You can view some of his work HERE

Thanks to The Blogfather a.k.a Pubs for the hook up.



Ghostface



Lenox lent us a helping hand by mean mugging me the whole damn day. He later told his mother that I was cussing in the house. Damn kids.

Souljah Boy



Wait till the middle of the clip for the dudes dressed in pink.

I can't even hate on the song. It's simple, dumb, and flawless.

Monday, August 27, 2007

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Hipster Scum



Ed* They could have taken it further but overall this is easily the best description of hipsters to date.

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Dia De Los Mensos



Tonight is the opening night for Menso's first solo show.

So get your butt up or down to Versus and show some love.

The first time I met this kid was at some sort of underground hip-hop show out in Carlsbad of all places. He was writing for the now defunct Bashers crew back then. We ended up going to one the first Rancho Santa Fe mansion parties made famous by the Real World San Diego episode and we jst never stopped hanging since then.

Shortly after that he just ended up living on our couch in downtown SD with Icepick AFF and the both of them got me to start writing. That summer was easily the best time of life. Menso was then made an official member of the world famous Seventh Letter Crew and after a couple run ins with the pigs, his car getting stolen, numerous racking/bombing missions, he ended up getting his shit organized and now works at Heritage Tattoo Studio in Temecula and does comissioned pieces on a weekly basis.

It's been a long road for him.

I'm proud of how far he has come.

Keep it up.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Malibu



And as a special little Friday treat the good folks at "television" decided to bring back American Gladiators. Do you remember how epic that show was? It defined the early 90's. Just check this clip Nick sent me.

Suck Your Mutha



I read about this happening, but they just released a clip of it all on youtube.

Basically, Norris Man gets all hyphy and full of himself and Sizzla tells him to get off the stage and that's when Norris Man tells him to "suck his mutha" which in Jamaica is probably the most offensive thing you can say to someone. As soon as he says that the "entourages" (plural) start going at it with Norris Man in the middle of the pile.

The best part is you see Capleton rush out in his gold Byzantine jump suit trying to break it all up. Get em' King Shango.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Patton Oswalt



Patton Oswalt has been a stand-up comedian for over 20 years, but this is only his second album to date and it's a banger.

Here are 4 tracks from his new album "Werewolves and Lollipops" for you to download and all of them are really funny.

You can buy the whole album here: "Werewolves and Lollipops"

Patton Oswalt "Clean Filth" mp3

Patton Oswalt "The Miracle of Child Birth" mp3

Patton Oswalt "You Are Allowed 20 Birthday Parties" mp3

Patton Oswalt "The Dukes of Hazzard" mp3

Photo Splash


BC a.k.a Besea a.k.a Bcee (BTM)



Hews piece at night



Lenox sippin' on purple stuff at Goods

Sunday, August 19, 2007

The Prelude...



Prince Far I had gone almost unnoticed in the Jamaican music scene until he recorded "Heavy Manners" with producer Joe Gibbs.


Utilizing the rhythm from Naggo Morris' "Su Su Pon Rasta," the producer spun a deeply dubby sound, the bass line as heavy as a rhinoceros and just as dangerous. Over this fierce, dread backing, Prince Far I sarcastically addressed the trenchant of laws enacted by the government to stem the tide of violence that had covered the island.

"Heavy Manners" immediately elicited an outcry of rabid support from Rastafarians and ghetto youth who were living under virtual martial law, and of outrage from those who saw no other solution.

(the above taken from Reggaetrain.com)

This was how I came to find this term.

The album titled "Under Heavy Manners" became a cult hit both in Jamaica and abroad in the UK. The album garnered a critical fan base by not only West Indian immigrants, but with the skinhead youth of the time.

The following tracks are some of my favorites from the "Heavy Manners Anthology" 2-disc set on Trojan Records

Prince Far I "Hold The Fort" mp3

Prince Far I "Head of the Buccaneer" mp3

Prince Far I "Skinhead" mp3

Prince Far I "Deck of Life" mp3

Prince Far I "Heavy Manners" mp3

Slob 187 Crab 187



Fast forward to 7 minutes in and listen to Space Ghost. I remember watching this in my freshman year of high school. The documentary is pretty boring, but when this dude came on I just kept rewinding his part over and over.

Quote:

"That's like deer with a broken leg trying to take on a wild crocodile, n-word."

Amazing

Blah Blah Blah



Not much going on at the moment. That should change come next Wednesday.

Diggin In The Links:

Uncle Kracker gets arrested

Ed* Nick Nolte, James Brown, and Wacko make room in best mug shot category...I mean look at that thing

Trade your rocket launcher for $50 dollar sneakers

Super Cat tosses promoter

Lost Diplo mix from 2003

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Mr. Me Too



I will go out on a limb and say that "Hell Hath No Fury" is one of the better rap albums of the last few years. I know this contradicts my previous statements about being apathetic towards the genre for the last year or so, but that doesn't mean I don't still enjoy a good album when one comes along.

I don't remember when I heard this, but I do remember that my good friend Cappy was the one that put me onto it and that it serves as a perfect example of a what a remix SHOULD sound like.

I have no idea who made this remix or where it comes from, but I do know it's better then the Neptunes version.

Thanks Cappy

Clipse "Mr. Me Too (? Remix)" mp3

Beef (I lost count)



Here's the trailer from Beef IV.

How many of these are they going to make?

I find the current concept of "beef" intolerable. The word itself has lost all of its potency. When models and rap video women record diss tracks then I believe it is safe to say that "beef" has officially reached its tipping point.

What's with the TK cameo? Are they serious with that? Who did he even have beef with?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't you have to be relevant in rap before you can beef with someone?

Whoa



I'm not a huge street art fanatic. I like some of it, but I find a lot of it to be lazy and boring.

This clip however is one of those "whoa" moments. This is something that is beyond my ability and beyond the ability of most folks I know.

Big.


Really Visvim? As if nobody was going to notice that you took a Wally and mixed it with a Dick's Sporting Goods clearance bin shoe.

Really?

This thing is uglier then Rosie O'Donnell's underwear bulge.

Monday, August 13, 2007

I Need Drugs



I forget what year this song dropped but I remember I'd put it on and who ever was in the room would think it was the LL version and they'd start singing it and then Necro would come in talking about 8balls and $hit and I would laugh every time.

Looking back on Necro and Non-Phixion now I realize that they were doing a lot of off the wall stuff that kind of works well even today. I mean yeah they would talk about being on dust and black helicopters coming to get them etc, but I mean who hasn't been dusted out of there head and thought that?

Right? OOOOiiiiinnnnkkkkkk



A Grey Whistle Test with Clint Eastwood and General Saint? I couldn't believe it.

Classic rub-a-dub style!

RRRRRRiiiggggggghhhtttttt!!!

OOOOOiiiiinnnnnnkkkkkkk!!!

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Ballardega Nights

I'm trying to explore Seattle in it's entirety so I bypassed the usual stay at home and draw or go to the War Room routine and got my butt out to Ballard for some good ol' fashion drinkin.



Conned the bartender into taking a flick for me



Nothing but riff raff



Helping Nick get up one sticker at a time



First outline of Tobias' viking rib cage jammie



Rack em' up Huff

Sub-note: Huff Man beat me by one measly shot



Nuff said




My picks were as follows:

1.) The Clash "Guns of Brixton"
2.) James Brown "Man's World"
3.) Talking Heads = Huff Mania's choice

Sub-Note: Tobias played Judas Priest and then last call hit and it cut off the song prematurely.

Don't ever cut off a Priest song at a bar. It's a good way to get a free eye jammie.

Ranking Dread




I first heard Ranking Dread on old mix I did with Tribe of Kings. I was at Rashi's house and he threw on "Superstar" on and I was instantly obsessed with Ranking Dread (no batty).

Ranking Dread burst onto the scene in 1980 having come up on Ray Symbolic Sound System before moving to the UK where he held the mic down for Outernational Sound.

Later that year he released a full length LP "Lots of Loving" which was co-produced by Sugar Minott.

The rest of his catalogue is scattered out on 7 inches with the exception of "Ranking Dread in Dub" and "2 Dread Inna Babylon."

Greensleeves decided to re-issue 6 tunes plus dub versions for each cut and throw them together with some really good linear notes and original photos.


The end result is one of the better re-issue albums I've heard in a long time.


Ranking Dread "Fattie Boom Boom" mp3


Ranking Dread "Love A Dub" mp3


Ranking Dread "Shut Me Mouth" mp3


Ranking Dread "If Nanny Was Here" mp3


Ranking Dread "My Mammy" mp3


Ranking Dread "Jean Green" mp3

All of these tunes were produced and mixed by Ranking Dread except for "Jean Green" which was done by Henry "Junjo" Lawes.

While "Fattie Boom Boom" is probably the biggest of these tunes my favorite is "Shut Me Mouth" which is a version of
Dennis Brown's "Breaking Down The Barriers."

Download and enjoy.

Friday, August 10, 2007

Winner's Circle


Above: Hand jiving gradient fade

I've always been a supporter of local brands and shops versus buying on-line from out of towners.

Case and point the Winner's Circle (Seattle) just dropped some new shop tees that are rather crispy and I'd much rather wear these then some snoring
"I Heart Some City I Don't Live In" tee that basically makes you look like a pickle headed jock rider.

Support your own city folks.


Above: Black on black

Head down to the shop:

Winners Circle
500 E. Pine St
Seattle W.A. 98134
206-860-6879

Blah Blog

Pump Up The Jam



Quite possibly the best song ever put to record.

This song is dedicated to Pinche Vince.

Have a good Friday!

Scum!

Thursday, August 9, 2007

Horace Andy



I'm starting to get hyped for this Saturday's :
Sly and Robbie w/ Horace Andy Show

The show is $20 pre-sale.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007



Found this when I was back in SD.

Chaka Demus "Bad Bad Chaka" mp3

on the "Ducks" Riddim


Chaka demus "Worldwide Trouble" mp3

I don't know much about these tunes other then they're produced by
King Jammy and it's one of the few solo Chaka full lengths.

Enjoy!

Monday, August 6, 2007

Nerd $hit

Jedi Fight

Please do yourself a favor and watch the clip from this link. It's like COPS mixed with Star Wars mixed with a frat party. So good.

Via C-Murdaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Saturday, August 4, 2007

Chuck E. Cheese B-Day


Chuck E. Cheese has really been trying to appeal to the "art" crowd in their new ad campaign


Lenox turned the big one years old in June and I'm such a slacker I didn't get to posting these or Benny's B-Day pics until now.

At any rate we did what any good red blooded American parents do for their children and we took him to Chuck E Cheese. The creepy thing is that 24 years ago I was at Chuck E. Cheese mashing pizza to my face and throwing skee balls like I owned the joint.



I remember the rides being a lot bigger back in the day



Benny and Angie rolled through and got hyphy




And look what they bought for Lenox....P Rod's!!!

Ed* I'm told Steve went and picked these out and got him a pair of cool guy jeans too



Chuckyyyyyyyyyyyy



Lenox decided to cut me off from the drinks half way through




Who does this $hit to cars? I guess if I was 16, still a virgin, and "hella" good at Halo 2, I'd probably do this to my car too.