K-Rap

October 23, 2006... An inneresting letter in Now this week about the reaction of Canadian rapper k-os to a review of his most recent album got me surfing. While the original review was generally positive, the reviewer did write that the album might strengthen the case that k-os is "a crossover pop artist disguised as a true-school b-boy." According to Torontoist, k-os' response, via his Myspace page, was to suggest that racism was at work and that the reviewer (?) should "eat a dick." Wow. Harsh.

This k-os fellow has been on my radar for a few weeks now. It all started when I borrowed a copy of K'Naan's CD, The Dusty Foot Philosopher, from the public library. I liked it immediately. K'Naan, another Canadian rapper, spent the first nine years of his life in Somalia, before fleeing that former country's civil war, and memories of the war feature prominently in his songs. As should be clear by now, I am a sucker for a song with a message. The fact that K'Naan has an unconventional voice, that he sometimes sings in Somali, and that he works some unusual influences and melodies into his music, appeal, too.

K'Naan - Soobax

I felt compelled to surf around to see what else I could find out about this K'Naan fellah. And that's where k-os rejoins the story...

k-os - B-Boy Stance

You see, speculation is that the "religious entertainer" k-os criticizes for wanting to be "a life saver" in "B-Boy Stance" is K'Naan. Certainly, K'Naan "took cameras to Africa for pictures to rhyme over," as k-os sneers in his song: the video for "Soobax" was filmed among Somalian exiles in Kenya...

Between his whole music-reviewers-can-eat-a-dick thing and his attacks on K'Naan, this k-os fellah sure comes across as a loose cannon. Anyway, I know which one I'd rather listen to.

K'Naan - Hoobaale

The one thing I can't figure out, though, is why so many Canadian rappers have stage names with the letter K in them. I mean, we got a K'Naan, a k-os. Heck, we even got us a rapper named SauerKrauts. What's up with that shit?

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Baby's First Loop

October 15, 2006... Spent a bit of time on the weekend trying to create a mash-up of K'Naan and SNFU using Audacity--all to no avail. Came up with this instead. I'm particularly fond of the hi-hat part.

Spin B - Pop Song for Vegetarians to Sing

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North of Dixie

October 14, 2006... After going through a period this spring where I stopped posting, I really enjoyed getting back into the swing of things in the summer and early autumn. But, as you may have noticed, I've disappeared over the past two weeks. In truth, I've been scarce ever since mid-September. I was able to continue posting for a while, but stopped reading and listening to what other bloggers were posting.

Quite simply, I am overextended. Between a frequently stressful, but occasionally rewarding full-time job, regular meditation practice, helping to organize and playing for a 0-and-4 hockey team, serving on the Board of an organization that is in a desperate fight to save its most high-profile program, weekly meetings of the cryptic crossword mafia, and caring for various crusty ingrates, I haven't had much time left lately to explore the blogosphere or to add my pollution to it.

With that in mind, I'm gonna keep the description and background research related to today's record to a minimum. This may or may not become the pattern in the future.

Datura Seeds was an Indianapolis-based group featuring Paul Mahern, ex of the Zero Boys, on vocals and guitar. The band's 1989 LP, Who Do You Want It to Be?, is power-pop at its most powerful.

Particularly inneresting are the lyrics on "S & P '69," which is listed as "Salt & Pepper '69" on other Datura Seeds releases. Really though, the lyrics are thoughtful throughout. You can take the Boy out of punk, I guess, but not the punk out of the Boy.

Datura Seeds - S & P '69

Datura Seeds - Dale Carnegie

Datura Seeds - Sideswalk

The songs on Who Do You Want It to Be? are varied and thought-filled and there is nary a weak one among them. Some have a vaguely "southern" feel to them, in the way that every REM song of the time had a vaguely "southern" feel to it. Dixie creeps well north of the Mason-Dixon line in the midwest, to these ears. Then again, to these ears, a guy from Nottingham sounds like a guy from Yorkshire ... so don't be a-scared by my perception of Datura Seed's "southerness."

Shockingly, Who Do You Want It to Be? is still available, on vinyl, from Toxic Shock, the label that released it 17 years ago. You'd better hurry up and place your order, though, because unless I read the website wrong, there's only one copy left.

*****

P.S. For those of you, both of you, who found the story of my troubles with "Iris" interesting, here's an update: it's a bummer working with someone who is jealous of your modest successes and actively wants you to fail, who would rather revel in your discomfort than try to help you solve a problem. 'Nuff said about that.

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Papa Don't Take No Mess

October 1, 2006... Happy Flowers, consisting of Mr. Horribly Charred Infant on vocals and Mr. Anus on guitar, released a handful of records in the late '80s and early '90s. The Happy Flowers' "thing" was noisy sub-heavy-metal guitar with lyrics about childhood traumas ... delivered in the voice of an adult pretending to be a traumatized child. It's a funny concept and appropos given my experiences of late.

Happy Flowers - Why Didn't You Tell Me You Were Bringing Home A Baby?

Bewilderingly, I find myself employed as a department manager in a small office. In August, I agreed to share an employee's labour with another department: I'd get her assistance for five days, they'd get her assistance for five days.

Late in the month, a colleague in the other department asked me if "Sharon" would be available in the next week. Given that I'd had Sharon's assistance for a grand total of one hour at that point, and given that the other department had had her assistance for five days minus one hour, I said no. I was uncharacteristically firm about it. So much so, that the colleague and her supervisor both remarked about it... Yet, the next week, my colleague asked Sharon directly for help!

I was livid. But I slept on it over night, hoping the steam between my ears would dissipate.

The next morning, full of dread, I pulled my colleague aside and tried to articulate why what she had done bothered me: we'd settled the issue of Sharon's availability the previous week, yet "Iris" decided to ignore my decision and ask Sharon for help nonetheless. She had put me in the position of having to fight for Something to which I was entitled.

Iris was unrepentant. It was good for me to learn how to assert myself, she said. And, when I replied that it wasn't her job to teach me that lesson, she said that I didn't have "the collaborative spirit." That was pretty much the end of the conversation, aside from her asking, as I walked by, "Do I have to ask your permission to talk to Sharon, too?"

I let both her supervisor and mine know what had transpired.

Iris stopped speaking to me. Instead, it seemed, she began to lavish attention on the only other boy in the office. Twice she even made a point of loudly bringing him sweets...

On Friday, Iris spoke one or two complete sentences to me when she didn't absolutely have to. She even offered me some Pocky... I hope we can work things out 'cause she's pretty neat. But papa don't take no mess.

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