The Art Of High Fidelity (Or: My List Of Favourite Rappers)

I couldn't sleep last night. I was in bed reading for a couple hours after I wanted to be asleep, and then I put the book away (High Fidelity by Nick Hornby) and tried to fall asleep for what seemed like eternity. My thought tree always sways kinda crazy at these times. At one point I was thinking about the rappers that I like and which ones exactly I frequently return to on my iPod. Then when I got to work today, I went through the Hip Hop artists on my iPod and constructed a (definitive?) list of my favourite rappers. Mind you, I am a fan of a lot of them. My iPod has 432 separate recording artists rappers listed in the Artists category.

I've divided the list into two. One category for those I've been listening to since I started listening to rap in the 90s (The All Time Favourites) and one for rappers I discovered or who only dropped after 2000 (The New School). I'll link each name to a YouTube video and beside the name I'll include my favourite album, mixtape or song of theirs that you should check for.

The All Time Favourites (alphabetically)

• Big L - Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous (album)
• Big Punisher - Capital Punishment (album)
• Canibus - Rip The Jacker (album)
• Chino XL - Here To Save You All (album)
• Eminem - The Slim Shady EP (extended play)
• Jadakiss - Kiss The Game Goodbye (album)
• Jay-Z - Reasonable Doubt (album)
• Nas - Illmatic (album)
• The Notorious B.I.G. - Ready To Die (album)
• R.A. The Rugged Man - Die, Rugged Man, Die (album)
• Ras Kass - Soul On Ice (album)
• Royce Da 5'9" - Death Is Certain (album)

The New School (also alphabetically)

• AC - This Is AC Pt. 2 (Staten Lives) (mixtape)
• BadNewz - Falling Down (mixtape)
• The Catalyst - Fuck The Radio Vol. 1 (mixtape)
• Copywrite - The High Exhaulted (album)
• Dr. Becket (aka Doctor Becket / Docta Bec) - Creativity / Bad Muthafucka (vinyl single)
• Emilio Rojas - Recession Proof (mixtape)
• Jay Electronica - Act I: Eternal Sunshine (The Pledge) (mixtape)
• Joell Ortiz - The Brick: Bodega Chronicles (album)
• Rhyme Asylum - State Of Lunacy (album)
• Theology 3 - Featuring No Features (mixtape)

It almost undermines just how many different artists I really like. There are so many, some had to miss out. I could easily list double the amount of artists whose entire discographies should be owned by fans. Would be good to get some reaction from rap fans regarding this list.

I just realised that the book I'm currently reading (High Fidelity, which was made into a movie starring the awesome John Cusack) makes a lot of sense being mentioned in this blog post. It's about a 30-something guy who owns a music store and makes lists (both in and out of his head) constantly. Wouldn't be the worst thing to happen in real life, either.

30 Years And Almost 3 Months

^ That's how long it took me to purchase my first television. Ever. I don't remember ever laying down any actual money for a TV. There was always a spare or two lying around when I needed one (probably a pretty natural occurrence back in the old standard definition days). I've purchased 1080p-capable PC LCD screens in the past, which I've then used for gaming and HD-DVDs. The biggest screen I have is 24" though. Hardly even counts.

Today I splashed out on a 50" Samsung plasma, which I chose over an LCD/LED due to price and... well, price mostly. Also the fact that I'm getting a free Blu-Ray home theatre system through the current Samsung promotion. In real terms this means about $2500 value for less than $1200 of actual money (including extended warranty and delivery). It pays to shop around sometimes. Maybe I just taught myself a lesson?



Anyway, this is supposed to just be the TV that will tide me over for a little while and allow me to watch the World Cup in high definition. It'll probably end up in my bedroom one day as the spare HDTV. I'm pretty crazy about video games, movies and a number of carefully-selected television shows, so I could pay thousands for a proper HDTV quite easily. Of course by easily I really mean if I had the money.

Advertisement Critique #328

Earlier today, on my way to Esoteric Bookshop in Murrumbeena, I noticed a TAC advertisement on the side of the freeway. It read simply: Motorcyclists have 38 times the risk of serious injury. I found the advertisement online. Check it out.

Compared to what? 38 times the risk of injury compared to what? Trapeze artists? Toddlers on trampolines?

OK, so I realise they are talking about recklessly driving vehicles, probably cars. What about trucks? How much safer than motorcycles are trucks? Where did they pull the ratio from and why can't they even complete the sentence?

I guess your average human wouldn't have time to read "Motorcyclists have 38 times the risk of injury, compared to the driver of a regular automobile, if an accident occurs while driving over the speed limit on this very freeway" while whizzing past the ad, doing about 100km/h on Eastlink. It'd make me happy to see though.

Securrity!

Yesterday afternoon I realised my credit card wasn't where it should have been (in the bin in my wallet). I remembered that I had eaten at Nando's the night before, so during my first work break yesterday I walked over to the restaurant and stood in line, hoping it was still there. When I was asked for my order I recounted my story to the girl at the counter. She promptly pulled out my credit card from behind the counter, held it up to me and asked if it was mine. I said yes. She handed it to me.

Now... I'm thinking that even if it wasn't mine I probably could have gotten away with saying yes. Being that online purchases don't even require a PIN or a signature, anyone with someone else's credit card would be able to spend like they just won the lottery.

Anyway, that is beside the point. What the hell, Nando's girl? Couldn't you at least have asked for my name first? If it were up to me, anyone in possession of a lost or forgotten credit card would have to ask to see photo ID before handing it to a stranger. Does anyone care about anyone's personal security or privacy anymore? Yep, slight overreaction there, I know. I use my credit card almost daily though. I wouldn't want to have to have it cancelled because of someone not having the sense they should have (is that too much 'have' for one sentence?).

Listless

1. I feel like I haven't written a list in a while.
2. I deleted the contents of my Notepad application while updating my smartphone last night.

These are a few of my favourite things. With random links.

1. Hip Hop
2. Spaghetti Bolognese
3. Nike
4. Beanies
5. Video Games
6. Girls
7. Prawns
8. Smoking
9. Slurpees
10. Films
11. T-Shirts
12. Photography
13. Internet
14. Bacon
15. Johnny Depp
16. Rapping
17. Technology
18. Nando's
19. Stand Up Comedy
20. Writing
21. Conspiracy Theories

IKEALDI

I'm a 30 year old male. I don't spend a lot of time looking around when I want to buy something. I never really did, though it has lessened again because of the internet. I made the decision to buy a contoured pillow sometime last week, as discussed in the post below this one. Then at some point during the week I received a recommendation about parts of IKEA's bedroom range. Jumped on the net, did some pillow research and decided on the IKEA 365+ FAST side/back sleeper. This $49.99 pillow was chosen because it was the most expensive. I didn't even really look at the benefits of this pillow compared to any of their other contoured pillows, save for choosing the firm over the soft version. There may be some hints at how to market to males in my age range in there somewhere.

There are IKEA products scattered throughout my current apartment. Both myself and my housemate have MALM drawers in our respective bedrooms. Then there's the bookshelves, bedside tables and dining table. Probably more that I don't know of. I like the look of a lot of the furniture at IKEA, actually. Their products are cheap yet durable, common yet elegant. In fact, I believe I could easily fill a household with items purchased from just IKEA and one other store: ALDI.


ALDI is a store I rarely visited before 2008, which is when I lived on the same street as the store in Melbourne's CBD. I do remember checking out one of the stores when I was over in Germany for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. I figure the stores are largely the same throughout the world (over 10 countries so far from what I can tell). Cheap, no nonsense groceries. The fruit is always fresh. The meat and poultry always contains little fat and tastes great. I can't think of anywhere that I've seen beer and wine cheaper, either. Even the electronic products they sell are decent enough (especially for the price).

I don't care about the whole idea of buying Australian to support Australians. I care about the best deal for me, right now, on my budget. I think a lot of Australian companies can learn something from that.

Fryday

Contoured pillows. One of the first things I thought about when I woke up this morning. I lived with lower back pain for quite a few years. It kicked off when I was 17 or so. At some point I had to get rid of my soft mattress and I purchased a firm futon to rest on. It definitely helped me sleep better. Lately though, I've been waking with neck and upper back pain. At some point it occurred to me that I never cared about the pillows I was sleeping on. I always used whatever was around the house. We spend approximately a third of our lives sleeping though. Surely $50 for a pillow isn't much? Even $100. Then again, we spend thousands on televisions, and there's no way we spend more time in front of the TV then we do sleeping. At least I hope none of us (us being the human race as a whole) fit that category. Maybe our priorities are all messed up. Maybe we'd all be happier and healthier if we splashed out for a soft king-size Eiderdown pillow?

One Ought Not To Think

The above is a random image I came across today while checking out my Google Reader feeds at work. It was the catalyst to whatever happens in this post from hereon in. I enjoy the ongoing battle between thinking and not thinking. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. That probably depends on your personality though. If you're a positive soul then more thinking will likely lead to greater success and happiness. If you're suffering from depression, though, then more thinking may lead to a deeper feeling of sadness/loneliness/anger.

Then there's the whole issue of the mindless masses. The sheep. They definitely think. They think they need to work 40 hours a week. They think they need the big house and the nice car. They think marriage and kids is the ultimate goal of life (though less increasingly these days, thankfully).

What about stopping to think about what is really going on in the world? Who is really in control? Are they moving society in a positive direction? Exactly how brainwashed are we?

It's easier just not thinking sometimes.

Below are the lyrics of a song by Canibus, my personal favourite rapper of all time. I posted this as a Facebook note a couple years back so I conveniently stole my own prior work to save some time.



This one is relatively short, I won't say much about it//
What's the point if you're still gonna doubt it//
History is a weapon being used against us//
Humanity has been abused before but few remember//
Human hybrid Hubble iris double-sided//
Untouchable when it comes to rhyming but I struggle in private//
’One Ought Not To Think’, in other words stop thinking//
Humankind is now on the brink of extinction//
The eagle has landed, Wernher von Braun handpicked//
The evil bastard called Magnum Innominandum//
These Ice Age quotes oppose Helios//
Confusing the most yet I find it remedial//
Turn the radio and TV off, think for a second//
Technology is a blessing but it's also a weapon//
A weapon of mass destruction giving global instructions//
Teaching us how to hate but does it in a way that we love it//
Take my beloved rap music, erase the beat//
Consumers act like they're afraid of intelligent speech//
The rhymes are imagined in theory then itemised into a query//
It takes more than your ears to hear me//
Meditate, you will see it clearly//
Elevate to a level where your judgment isn't impaired dearly//
Before the New World Order right around the corner//
One day soon they gonna lock down the borders//
I ain't an activist, I can't do shit//
I'd rather be a pacifist with a full clip//
Keep saying your prayers, they won't care//
God won't hear, do something, you won't dare//
It’s happened before, it'll happen again//
It’s happening over there, it'll spread here my friend//
’One Ought Not To Think’, in other words stop thinking//
Mankind is now on the brink of extinction//
Lost wisdom from the Lost Kingdom//
Humankind is now on the brink of extinction



I'm not sure what other people take from that verse, but it's a favourite of mine. You don't have to think the same as I do though. Anyway, I was trying to think of something to leave you with and I must have sent some kind of plea out into the universe, because I came across this:

Think about that.

Appy Polly Logies

This post is going to start with an attempt at remembering what I had written in the post I lost (which I briefly discussed in the post below). I was saying something about how I failed myself within the first two weeks of starting my blog. Well, kinda.

I promised myself I would post from work every night. I kept this going pretty well, but I missed both Monday and Tuesday of this week. I was only at work on Tuesday, so that means I'm safe for Monday's lack of posting. Then again, I took last Thursday off and still posted. So I'm even. Right right right?

I've been thinking of getting the following poster framed for my bedroom wall.

My bedroom seems to have conformed to a black and white theme almost entirely by accident. Apart from the bright orange blanket, of course, but you can blame Melbourne's current weather for that.

Stanley Kubrick is probably my favourite director of all time. I mean, who else could have made me change my mind about hating on Tom Cruise? Yeah. Exactly. I've got most of his films on DVD, going as far back as The Killing from 1956. I also own a few on HD-DVD (the high-definition video format that should have won), though I missed a couple of the reissues. I'll buy them all again upon the inevitable release of the Blu-Ray boxset.

That's all I've got for today. Be safe.

Not Cool

I had a whole post typed on my HTC Desire, ready to upload. Then I got an error while trying to select a test image and the application I'm using crashed.

Test number two for the Blogaway application, available now on Android Market (for free!).

Of Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling...

This probably doesn't come as a shock or surprise from someone who wants a career as a writer, but a major pet peeve of mine is incorrect spelling, grammar and punctuation. It's everywhere. I mean, it was everywhere before the internet was widely used. These days most text (that isn't purchased) contains some kind of error, somewhere. Maybe even in my own writing (shock horror!). You know the type of mistakes I'm talking about. There's the there/their/they're type of mistake. There's the 'putting an apostrophe before any word that ends in s' mistake. Then there's general misuse of commas, hyphens and the rest.

I have a good friend who is dyslexic and even though I correct her, she gets an automatic pass because it's not her fault. Maybe everyone else is lazy, or stupid. Or maybe the teachers are at fault? Maybe the bad spellers are great at something I have no idea about. Maybe mathematicians look down at those of us who have only ever attempted high-school level maths. Maybe, just maybe, nobody cares anymore? Kids these days are shortening every single word they can. They typ lik dis on Facebk. Maybe text messages are to blame... the 140 character limit.

I feel I've overanalysed this enough already. The image below explains how I feel pretty well.

The Irony

It's a little ironic that the one night I don't find time to post on here is the same night I've taken off from work. I work the afternoon/evening shift, which suits my preferred sleep cycle perfectly. Most of my life I've been more of a night writer (Knight Rider?). I've probably been more of a night everything actually. Sleeping during the day is entirely too pleasurable for me to refuse.

I had a picture I took a couple of years ago all lined up to post (in my head) and I can't find it where it should be.

I'm instead going to have to leave you with a random image related to something I've mentioned tonight:

Back The Fuck Up

The image above made me laugh out loud. It's almost downright poignant in its unpoignancy*. Stolen from Certified Bullshit Technician, a Tumblr blog I follow for all my random and funny image and video needs.

I'm a user of a lot of Google programs, both on my PC and my smartphone, though there is one in particular that has helped me reduce the amount of time I spend on the internet. I'm of course talking about Google Reader, the web-based aggregator of site feeds. To put it in simple terms, it allows you to place internet website addresses (usually blogs) into folders you make up yourself. These folders are automatically updated as soon as one of the websites listed is updated, and you will see a notification showing you the number of unviewed pages/blog posts. You can then easily click to view the articles you are interested in. Reader also gives you the opportunity to share blog posts to a list of "People following you" and view articles shared by "People you follow". You can even leave comments and discuss the content of the articles with your contacts immediately below the shared posts. It's all so very easy to use and has greatly reduced the time it takes for me to do my necessary daily surfing. There's literally no need for me to type out URLs anymore. I've been using Google Reader for quite some time now and I don't see that ever changing; especially when my PC is finally running Chrome OS.


* It is downright ridiculous that unpoignancy isn't a recognised word. Not at Dictionary.com it isn't, at least.

Write Lists & Listen To Music

I've always been a big fan of collecting music. Back when I was a kid, my sister and I were allowed a cassingle each per week for a period of time. Every week we'd discuss our choices to make sure we both liked both songs we were getting. Our musical tastes were still all over the place, although I only distinctly remember two cassingles we purchased; Black Box's remake of Fantasy and Riff's White Men Can't Jump. It was around that time that I started becoming more and more exposed to rap music. Artists like MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice were big in Australia and R&B groups often featured a rhyme in their tracks. When an older friend of mine played me N.W.A.'s 100 Miles And Runnin' EP it was the start of the end for me.

If you haven't figured it out already, I'm a Hip Hop head and have been listening to it more than any other genre of music since I was about 12 (back in 1992). The first CD I ever purchased, before I even owned a personal CD player, was Dr. Dre's The Chronic. My CD collection has now jumped to somewhere between 450 and 500 pieces. It got very big very quickly when I discovered eBay a few years back and I've also recently started to build a collection which isn't centred around Hip Hop and R&B. It's gotten to the point that I can never remember whether or not I own an album anymore. A couple of times I even bought a CD I already owned.

A couple of years ago I came across a great website, Rate Your Music, which allows you to list your music collection in any way you can think of. My main list, CD Albums & EPs, is a running list of all the CDs I own (though it hasn't been updated for a number of months now). Another list I made is called My 11 favourite albums (and 1 favourite EP) of all time, in chronological order (which is sure to cause some kind of controversy). They are just two examples of what you can do with Rate Your Music. If a release you own isn't in the database, you can send the team a request and a picture of the release's cover and they will add it in for you and give you the credit for the listing. I definitely recommend the service, especially if you're a music lover and a fan of writing lists (another thing I like to do). Check it out.

Perspective

I'm currently living through one of those situations in life that we all think will never happen to us. There's gonna be a need for me to deal with some negative shit going forward. One of the things I prefer to dwell on during times like these is the perspective it brings. All of a sudden all the other pressing issues in my life have been reduced to nothing. I've stopped worrying about when I'm going to finally attempt to start my dream career. Finding a new place to live can wait. Trying to save money for a ridiculously large HDTV seems unimportant. Tonight's dinner is just gonna have to be whatever's lying around. I think it's great though (in a really, really fucked up way). The more you experience, the more you realise how little you really need to be happy. Or at least as happy as is possible for each of us.

So what do we want? A job we're passionate about? A chance to be creative? Family and friends? Nando's and a large Slurpee? What about the future? A house (or another house)? A partner? Children? Power and status? Money?

One day at a time I guess. Shoot for the Slurpee to start with so it feels as though you've accomplished something when you undoubtedly pass a 7-Eleven at some point in the next week. Then work your way towards your biggest goals or your most time-consuming goals. I think that's what I'm gonna have to do. I have the added perspective now though. I wish I didn't, but shit happens so I'm rolling with it. I'm gonna turn this into a positive situation in the long run.

Pretty Pictures

I've been reading blogs since before they were called blogs. I'm also aware that writing for the web is different than writing for any other medium. You need to grab people's attention as quick as possible. That goes for pictures and videos too. Apparently they need to be all over blogs, and I do see the appeal, but I'm more interested in producing slabs of text for everyone to read. I was thinking about this today and figured I might as well figure it out by writing it out.

Take this post for example. What type of imagery would suit? Would it make anyone want to read the words? Does any of that even matter? I could post links to other sites if that helps spice things up. You know, I could link you to a video on YouTube or a song on MySpace. Maybe my Twitter or Facebook profile? What about other slabs of text? I'd be happier linking one person to an interesting author or a well-written poem than I would linking 500 to the latest Lady Gaga video. Not that I have anything against Gaga. Well not as yet anyway... I'm still gathering evidence.

Here's an artist's impression of part of a sacred peyote ceremony. Just because.

Welcome To Writing Theory

I had to do it. I had to start my own blog.

Not because it's cool. Not because everyone is doing it. It's because writing is directly related to my future happiness. At least, it's supposed to be. I've been interested in writing since primary school, something like twenty years ago, where I had stories I had written printed in the local paper. In my teens I wrote poetry, most of it centred around (unrequited) love. The poetry developed into writing rhymes/raps in my late teens, which coincided with assignments, essays and research projects during my Psychology degree. In my fourth year of studying Psychology I decided that counselling wasn't for me so I changed my mind about becoming a psychologist. After all, it would have taken a minimum of another two years before I would have even been provisionally accredited. The Psychology degrees already conferred on me did help me land jobs helping people, though. And I love the knowledge gained from studying. That's enough for me.

Anyway, years later, at the tender young (?) age of 28, I was given an opportunity to try copywriting for a company I was working for (which will remain unnamed for reasons that will remain unexplained). I jumped at the chance, got my wish and began tinkering with the idea of a career that was completely natural to me. What's that? Creative writing daily? Wait... you want to pay me for that? Wow. Why did it take me so long? Before that point I never once thought of combining my love of writing with the undeniable fact that I may need to work 40 hours a week for the next 40 years of my life.

I spent the rest of 2008 and 2009 writing flyers/blog posts/articles for a variety of online and offline businesses and websites. I've continued this into 2010, though full-time work (and not the natural kind) seems to be getting in the way of the writing dream. So I decided yesterday to remedy this by submitting a test post to my very own blog (from work) and to attempt to continue this daily from now on. Yesterday's entry was a blog post I wrote over a year ago (sometime around Barack Obama's inauguration). Today's entry is a short intro to my love of writing and the reason for this blog.

I'm not going to waste any time describing myself and my interests just yet. The idea is that the posts will do that themselves. Topics will vary from day to day, as will my mood. Join me for the ride.

Thank you and welcome to the world of my writing.

Hip Hop Is...

Hip Hop is Flavor Flav's clock. Kanye's shades. LL Cool J's bald head. Questlove's afro. Hip Hop is blasting M.O.P. after a fight with your girl because the beautiful music will calm the savage beast in you. Hip Hop is staying up all night, refreshing your internet browser and waiting for that next Lil' Wayne leak. Rolling up to St. Kilda Sea Baths in baggy jeans, stunna shades and baseball caps, because you and your crew also deserve a Corona at sunset.


Hip Hop is all about image. The popularity of clothing lines rising and falling throughout the years. My Adidas. Kangol. Dickies, Chuck Taylors, Raiders caps and Starter jackets. Cross Colours. FUBU, Ecko Unlimited and Enyce. Hip Hop is having your own personal style, as long as it fits in with current trends. Not wearing dress shoes to clubs. A white tee for every occasion.






Hip Hop is underground, mainstream and everything in-between. Old and new school. Old school rappers reinventing themselves - but don't call it a comeback. Brand Nubian. Melle Mel. Even Ultramagnetic MC's (but at least Jay-Z is aging gracefully). Hip Hop is older fans hating on younger fans, as if it's their fault that it's not like it used to be. Skilled emcees making more money ghostwriting for mainstream stars, or dumbing their lyrics down to appeal to a wider fanbase. Hop Hop is MC Ren training Eazy-E to spit the rhymes others wrote for him - and nobody caring.


Hip Hop is metaphores, similes, alliteration and adlibs. Somewhere along the way, Hip Hop became whispering your delivery and using auto-tune on your voice. Hip Hop is war. Beef and diss tracks. BDP vs. Juice Crew. Common vs. Ice Cube. LL Cool J vs. everybody - and Canibus studying his background, reading the book that he wrote, researching the footnotes about how he used to sniff coke.




Hip Hop is rappers and their own record labels, with a ratio that must be damn near 1:1 by now. MARKETING. Youtube. Myspace. Facebook. Blogs. Hip Hop is the internet.


Hip Hop is DJ's and break loops. Grand Wizard Theodore scratching. Doug E. Fresh beatboxing. Graffiti and breakdancing. Freestyling. Producing, mixing and mastering. Ebonics and slang. Classic cuts on vinyl. MP3 promos and iTunes bonus tracks. Hip Hop is sped-up (and slowed-down) soul samples. Jacking Impeach The President, Nautilus or More Bounce To The Ounce for the millionth time. Hip Hop is mixtapes, mix CD's and iPod playlists.

Hip Hop is remixes and posse cuts. The legend of the lost versions of Scenario. Masta Ace making it onto The Symphony by being in the right place at the right time. Busta Rhymes outshining everyone. Da Graveyard - Big L featuring Eazy-E, Big Punisher, Scott La Rock, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Jam Master Jay, Proof, Pimp C, 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G. and many others.

Wild Style. Style Wars. Breakin. Beat Street. Boyz N The Hood.

Hip Hop is conscious. Alternative. Gangsta. Hyphy. Grime. Hardcore, horrorcore and nerdcore. Hip Hop is pushing back release dates. Sample clearance, with original versions of tracks leaking years later. Hip Hop is parental advisory stickers. Explicit lyrics. 40's and blunts. Sex, violence and drugs. Hip Hop is artists allowing their dignity to fly out the window. Hip Hop is the fans that buy it.

Hip Hop is politics. Reciting N.W.A. lyrics in the face of the law. Sean Bell and Amadou Diallo. Hip Hop is hate. Love. Knowledge. Hip Hop is power. Hip Hop is wanting to be somebody. Diamond rings and things. Hip Hop is not just music, it's the soundtrack to an uncertain future. Hip Hop is not just words, it's poetry. Freedom of speech. Hip Hop is change. Hip Hop is opportunity. Hip Hop runs the free world.