Noise du Jour: “Comedy Tragedy History” by Akala
Posted by Qais Fulton
It is incredibly rare for a rap artist to be so unabashedly literary in their music, displaying a keen intellect, and thus putting himself at risk of derision of his peers. Not being one to buckle under the wholly depressing and incomprehensible pressure from the rap world to adopt a thuggish image, Akala calls out his cohorts in his songs for their glorification of poverty, violence, and rampant willful ignorance. Akala’s rhymes can be a bit self-aggrandizing at times, but considering he stands above his peers as an example of how to do it right, you really can’t blame him. Next stop, Globe Theater.
Categories: Noise du Jour
Posted at 1:01 pm on February 7, 2008
12 Comments -
Not to mention sampling Siouxsie and the Cure. Akala is one classy motherfucker.
Comment by chesh — February 7, 2008 @ 1:35 pm
i suppose i can no longer say that i hate ALL rap and hip-hop.
Comment by zanbowser — February 7, 2008 @ 4:55 pm
Couldn’t make out anything he said.
Comment by Evil Jim — February 7, 2008 @ 5:42 pm
crazy. i’ve been reading this blog and following it for maybe 2 months now? and am enjoying it very much. and then suddenly this appears…
my brother did the artwork for that album, and also made his video.
it’s a small world!
Comment by offtandiscord — February 7, 2008 @ 6:25 pm
Thanks, Qais. I hadn’t heard any of Akala yet. I’m enjoying it.
In response to your comment about it being “rare for a rap artist to be so unabashedly literary in their music, displaying a keen intellect”: I’ve gotta say that every genre of music is generally represented by SHIT in the mainstream. There is plenty of amazingly brilliant, creative hip-hop out there. And these rappers, MCs and DJs don’t worry about “derision from their peers” because their peers aren’t retarded. I’m sure Akala isn’t hanging around with the likes of 50 Cent, Fat Joe, or their money-grubbing, vacuous “gangsta” friends. Of course, there is the argument that these douche-nozzles are actually marketing geniuses. I still hate them and call them stupid– depends on your perspective, I guess.
I don’t mean to sound argumentative. I know where you’re coming from. It’s frustrating that most of the hip hop out there that gets play is shit. The fact is, though, that there’s even more stuff out there that doesn’t get much play and it’s mind-blowing! This is because they are all competing to get their message out and occasionally be heard over loud-mouth “Wack MC’s”. Heh-heh. Wack MC’s… Heh-heh.
I’ve heard as many, if not more, obscure literary references in the past 20 years of hip hop then I’ve heard in the last 20 years of just about any other genre (although I can’t speak for Country – I haven’t given that enough of a chance yet).
Here are some excellent, albeit unsolicited, hip-hop recommendations. You may have already heard of most of them. I don’t want to be *that guy* (but I am):
Aesop Rock (“Labor Days” is a tight album all the way through– I’ve always had a tough time not putting more than one of the tracks on mix cd’s – No Regrets and 9-5ers Anthem are particularly excellent)
Mr Lif (best live hip hop act I can think of – this guy can debate anyone’s ass under the table while making it rhyme)
Immortal Technique — “It’s like MK-ULTRA, controlling your brain Suggestive thinking, causing your perspective to change”
Kool Keith (Dr Octagon, Black Elvis), if you like your hip hop absurd and saturated with bizarre references to Philip K Dick, space doo-doo pistols, moose bumps and chimpanzee acne
Del tha Funkee Homosapien and his Hieroglyphics Crew
Jedi Mind Tricks (“Servants in Heaven Kings in Hell” seems to be their masterpiece so far – not only are the lyrics at times profound and their references the envy of every hipster, but the music takes that Wu Tang style to a new level)
Saul Williams – although most of the above tend to be concerned with social justice, this guy is pre AND post-occupied with it. He tends to annoy a lot of hip hop fans with his seemingly over-intellectual word-play (some consider to be more of a “Spoken Word” artist, but what the fuck does that really mean anyway), but I likes ‘em.
Latyrx (Lyrics Born and Lateef) — “We believe in maximum effect, absolutely every single facet of the gem [Including] but [not limited to the] Pursuit of truth [which has been] unduly [Smoothed over] made soothing [to those] Who have been doing the polluting”
Ohmega Watts, Jurassic 5, blah blah blah blah….
In the mainstream, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, and the Roots are pretty thinky from time to time. You can’t argue with the masterfulness of their music and production.
Sorry — I’m probably a little too sensitive when it comes to hip hop. Can you tell I’m trying to avoid getting any real work done right now?
Comment by uncle ass — February 8, 2008 @ 12:04 am
Oh my god, you turned zanbowser! And they said it couldn’t be done. Ha!
And Ass, get back to work, lives hang in the balance!
Comment by Ross Rosenberg — February 8, 2008 @ 10:32 am
@Uncle Ass: No you make a good point. There are a lot of incredibly literary and positive rappers, and I’m hip to that scene (although I wasn’t familiar with Immortal Technique and I’ll give them a spin). The problem is that they aren’t the majority, the majority are people that glorify violence and stupidity, and those people are the ones that get the most airtime.
It’s undeniable that the majority of society regards hip-hop culture as rife with violent thugs, because that’s the image they see anytime it’s brought up.
‘Peers’ might’ve been a poor choice of words on my part, but 50 Cent and Kool Keith are both a part of the hip-hop world, different aspects of it certainly but they still both create within a specific genre.
My point is simply that it’s refreshing to hear this kind of thing, and to come across hip-hop artists you haven’t heard before that try to be a positive influence is a fantastic, but admittedly surprising, experience.
Comment by Qais Fulton — February 8, 2008 @ 2:51 pm
Agreed — it is nice to hear intelligent, positive hip hop (although be careful with Immortal Technique — he ain’t so positive, but he is intelligent). Thrilling, actually. I know that was the point you were trying to make — like I said, I’m sensitive about it. I’ve seen far more kick ass artists than shitty ones, believe it or not. It’s not hip hop’s fault that record labels see shit (so called “hip pop”) as more lucrative.
If these guys are peers in the sense that they all are a part of the hip hop world, the good ones don’t seem to care what the dumb ones think (aside from bemoaning the damage that they do with their stupidity). As MC Sarah Jones wrote in “Your Revolution” (written in response to misogynistic overtones in popular rap — ironically, the FCC condemned her lyrics as “patently offensive”) “Your revolution makes me wonder, Where could we go, If we could drop the empty pursuit of props and the ego, We’d revolt back to our roots”
Okay. I’m done for realsies — work time.
Comment by uncle ass — February 8, 2008 @ 9:32 pm
Thanks for this… Really good stuff, there. Also, imeem seems to be working out pretty well.
Comment by Damien — February 10, 2008 @ 2:12 am
cool clip,
uncle ass knows the score.
I personally go back and forth on Jedi Mind Tricks. Their beats and rhymes ride that real fine line between genius and corny ( “I stay one step above you like a pharmacist”, “For my people that walk the streets with stolen heat, like Promethius.” ) Glad to know someone else rocks Mind Tricks.
Comment by Tubatic — February 10, 2008 @ 12:34 pm
Agreed Tubatic — methinks the JMT pumps out those albums a little too fast sometimes… “…like Mark David Chapman with a Salinger book”
Comment by uncle ass — February 10, 2008 @ 7:00 pm
Thanks for this.
Really good stuff there
Comment by komik — February 22, 2008 @ 1:59 am