PART II

Talls also does something during his tracks, and does it quite well, that is a trait of many of my favorite emcees’, in which he takes a topic like cereal or TV (Continental Breakfast or The Charlie Sheen Theme respectively) and uses characteristics of these subjects to tell a story.  Listening to him rap and actually make sense about the early 90’s TV show “Small Wonder” and Soleil Moon Frye of Punkie Brewster is nothing short of a “small wonder” (get it?..lame).  Continental Breakfast’s are both delicious and usually consist of a wide range of products.  In easily my favorite song on the CD, (and quite possibly one of my favorite songs about food period), Talls and lyrical companion, emcee Parker Edison, do exactly that- offer a delicious song while vividly tackling an assortment of breakfast topics. They rip through hooks about Rice Krispies, Back to the Future toys, and how much of an ass hole Captain Crunch really is.  When they perform this song live- they make it even more exciting by throwing small boxes of breakfast cereal at the crowd (ingenious!).  So when I had a bit of time to sit down with both of the emcees, it was no surprise that our discussions ultimately led to why 2% milk doesn’t ever hold a fight to whole milk.

(INTERVIEW TOMORROW)

Part 1 in a 3 part series about San Diego Based Alternative Hip Hop group- The Bully Blinders

CITY OF DIRT is exactly how it sounds. It’s an album that’s a bit rough around the edges. It’s not very polished- and has a dirty kind of texture to the soul/horn samples and vocals that produce the tracks. The mixing isn’t completely done well (at times it’s even difficult to hear what Emcee Mike Talls is actually saying) and the imagery he uses is dark and grimy. However, it is all of these characteristics that make CITY OF DIRT and the BULLY BLINDERS (Talls and producer/bassist Chad Tuthill) such a memorable experience.  Unpolished and gritty, Talls weaves lively stories together, each with their own feeling and message.  Usually when I listen through an LP, most of the tracks just meld together leaving nothing that truly stands out. However each track on CITY OF DIRT has something that remains with the listener.  Although he tackles topics that are usual food for thought for any underground emcee (life on the road, the education system, striving to get by), he does so in a way that is both unique to his style and very lyrically exciting.

(more tomorrow)

that’s about it. Happy New Years folks. I’d like to end the year with a video from one of my new favorite (SD LOCALS!) groups- Bully Blinders- They just released their debut album- we’ll do an interview with em’ early next year, but for now- enjoy everything that was good about 2 decades ago with their “Charlie Sheen Theme”

I recently stumbled across a group called “Rock-afire Explosion”.  From what i can tell it’s this guy Aaron Fetcher who programs animatronics (Chuck-e-Cheese type of robot/puppet animals).  He has a site (poorly made though) where people can bid on what popular songs you want him to choreograph with his “team” of animals.  it’s creepy but hilarious all at once. Disney needs to get on this (the log ride would get a much needed up lift)

Anyways check out his bidding site at:  http://www.starsof.com/fans/

His version of Usher’s Love in the Club (take special note of where the Young Jeezy rap verse comes in)

Get a real hamster. Or give me onehundred dollars and i’ll buy you one.

Biz Markie… If only i watched this instead of that stupid purple dinosaur.