Stussy - J Dilla Documentary Prt3 (of 3) from Stussy on Vimeo.
----3----
Stussy - J Dilla Documentary Prt 2 (of 3) from Stussy on Vimeo.
----2---
Stussy - J Dilla Documentary Prt 1 (of 3) from Stussy on Vimeo.
----1----.....DONUT
Sunday, February 28, 2010
John Zorn. Steve Reich. John Cage. Terry Riley. Anthony Braxton. John Coltrane. Sun Ra. Rashied Ali. These men made music. In the sense that music is an art form and the form is manipulated by the content. Essentially taken the theory of music and putting it to use. The above composers and musicains pushed the limits of contemporary music and have only received a small amount of credit for their work, considering what has happened in music upon each of the artist releases. Whether it was "phasing", "alternate composition", minimalism, fee jazz, or space, these men have created music that some claim to be to intelligent and cannot grasp, while some regard to their work as remarkable advancement in music. Call it theory, call it chaos, call it noise, call it inaccessible, I call it music in the purest sense.
Saultan of Swat
Its been a mere 120plus days since the New York Yankees brought the world series back to the Bronx. Since then, Cashman and co in the Yankees front office made some ever so slight, but not without drama, lineup moves that have again placed the Yanks in position to make a confident playoff run in 2010.
With Damon and Matsui gone, without much love lost for both, Damon in Detroit and Matsui in LAA, the Yanks signed Curtis Granderson from Detroit, Randy Winn from SF, to fill in the gaps in the outfield, Chad Jesus Montero in place of the Melk-man, Chad Guadin, Xavier Nady and Javier Vasquez to beef up the relief rotation. The way things are looking the Yanks are in good shape. The core team looks happy in early stages of the Grapefruit League and Garadi's wearing #28 for this season. I like what the Yankees are doing with there farm system too. An Archbishop Moeller grad will be fighting for a spot on rotation, 6-11 Andrew Brackman, and Boone Logan and Chad Gaudin have been resurected in pinstripes to work out some kicks.
I am just itching for the Boys of Summer to be back in action. March 3rd is the first spring training game and the Pitching has already been decided: March 3 vs. PIT Chad Gaudin, Sergio Mitre, Alfredo Aceves
March 4 at PHI CC Sabathia
March 5 vs. TB Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain
March 6 vs. TOR A.J. Burnett
March 7 at MIN Mitre, Gaudin (Andy Pettitte to throw simulated game)
March 8 vs. PHI (SS) Javier Vazquez
March 8 at PIT (SS) Alfredo Aceves
March 9 vs. PIT CC Sabathia
March 10 at DET Chamberlain, Hughes
March 11 vs. ATL Burnett
March 12 at WAS Pettitte
March 13 vs. BAL (SS) Vazquez
I am starting a fantasy league this season and still have a few spots remaining if anyone is interested. Just email me for more info.
other teams to watch for:
Seattle Mariners- with Cliff Lee and a all star defense they may be a formidable opponent out of the AL west
Cincinnati Reds: small team with big hopes. I think if the Reds come out with a animal in a corner mentality they could put up a lot of wins. o and Alrodis Chapman anyone?
D-Town Tigers-Always a scrappy team with a few good arms and some base knockers. not so much power but real ball. Johnny Damon and a legend manager Jimmy Leyland.
Friday, February 19, 2010
CONCERNING GOD: THAT WHICH IS IN ITSELF, AND IS CONCEIVED THROUGH ITSELF.
Guten Tag,
Its been a few days since the last post and there has been a lot going on these days in apt 209. Lets see the olympics have started, not without proper drama, NBA All-Star weekend, Tigers press conference, Nick Faust hit 20,000 rating on RYM, Erin Abeln celebrated her birthday, CPAC in Washington DC, OBAMAnomics, Big Papa T is coming down to hang, job hunting, black history month, free jazz and academics. Crazy week.
I want to comment on the distinction between human realities. I have been at a crossroads as of late on what we perceive and how it varies from person to person. Yeah, it may seem apparent that we, as humans, see different social and cultural scenarios with a common reality because we all preceive, but what happens between witness and thought is where I want to examine. Without diving to historical limits, there are a couple notable arguments in this field from Hume and Locke. Hume points that what we see in the external is merely a mental representation of what we think we see. The issues here is where do the representations come from? and how is it so that we just happen to see common things, such as, colors, shapes and words? John Locke accounts for these questions in his argument that there is only the external and because we have innate ideas of things in the external they exist. While these philosophers make valid points, I can only be so critical from a human aspect.
I have recent been exposed to these thoughts and have been trying apply them in the real world with varied success. There are many examples in recent events that I could draw on, music seems like the most interesting to me. Music is a higher form of cognitive style and by style I understand to be a product of taste and taste is acquired through study of the cultures past and present so style is a triumph of what we ultimately perceive in the external. This translates over nicely to what I want to say about music and human perception.
Peoples taste in music seems to me the most interesting part of meeting someone because it says so much about their style. Ok, for example you meet someone that says they are into "everything really" but if you were to play some Coltrane they wouldn't understand because there knowledge only goes so far as their iTunes playlist with Britney Spears, Kid Cudi, 30 Seconds to Mars, one or two Outkast hits and Contemp. Country. Where as someone who is steeped in musical study and seeks to find the source behind the music we hear. I do not mean even to go as far as musical theory studies, but just the search for the movement behind o lets say current pop music. One will almost be lead to understand that different generations had various musical thresholds. In the fifties, stars like Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly reigned supreme in the pop charts while the threshold was pushed by hard bop jazz, with Ornette Coleman and Miles Davis. Why is there a small minority of humans that want to examine our beliefs in musical taste?
I would have to say that this where reality differs from one person to another. It is in the variance between witness, or in this case hearing, and thought make their impression and a persons real style is shown. The way a person hears a tune can make all the difference, whether said person is an active listener or passive. There is a different opinion about a given song for every person in the world. This is my point about human perception exactly. How can we say we see the same thing when it clearly varies so much in even musical taste? We can even consider the artist as an example. An artists content could be the same as others, Funk/Pop/Rap, but the form in which they present it in is as different as seeds on a bun.
John Zorn is a prime example of exactly this. As a musical composer as well as music digest-er of sorts, Zorn has made an impression on me that is the reason for this entirely too long of an entry. more to come...
Its been a few days since the last post and there has been a lot going on these days in apt 209. Lets see the olympics have started, not without proper drama, NBA All-Star weekend, Tigers press conference, Nick Faust hit 20,000 rating on RYM, Erin Abeln celebrated her birthday, CPAC in Washington DC, OBAMAnomics, Big Papa T is coming down to hang, job hunting, black history month, free jazz and academics. Crazy week.
I want to comment on the distinction between human realities. I have been at a crossroads as of late on what we perceive and how it varies from person to person. Yeah, it may seem apparent that we, as humans, see different social and cultural scenarios with a common reality because we all preceive, but what happens between witness and thought is where I want to examine. Without diving to historical limits, there are a couple notable arguments in this field from Hume and Locke. Hume points that what we see in the external is merely a mental representation of what we think we see. The issues here is where do the representations come from? and how is it so that we just happen to see common things, such as, colors, shapes and words? John Locke accounts for these questions in his argument that there is only the external and because we have innate ideas of things in the external they exist. While these philosophers make valid points, I can only be so critical from a human aspect.
I have recent been exposed to these thoughts and have been trying apply them in the real world with varied success. There are many examples in recent events that I could draw on, music seems like the most interesting to me. Music is a higher form of cognitive style and by style I understand to be a product of taste and taste is acquired through study of the cultures past and present so style is a triumph of what we ultimately perceive in the external. This translates over nicely to what I want to say about music and human perception.
Peoples taste in music seems to me the most interesting part of meeting someone because it says so much about their style. Ok, for example you meet someone that says they are into "everything really" but if you were to play some Coltrane they wouldn't understand because there knowledge only goes so far as their iTunes playlist with Britney Spears, Kid Cudi, 30 Seconds to Mars, one or two Outkast hits and Contemp. Country. Where as someone who is steeped in musical study and seeks to find the source behind the music we hear. I do not mean even to go as far as musical theory studies, but just the search for the movement behind o lets say current pop music. One will almost be lead to understand that different generations had various musical thresholds. In the fifties, stars like Chuck Berry and Buddy Holly reigned supreme in the pop charts while the threshold was pushed by hard bop jazz, with Ornette Coleman and Miles Davis. Why is there a small minority of humans that want to examine our beliefs in musical taste?
I would have to say that this where reality differs from one person to another. It is in the variance between witness, or in this case hearing, and thought make their impression and a persons real style is shown. The way a person hears a tune can make all the difference, whether said person is an active listener or passive. There is a different opinion about a given song for every person in the world. This is my point about human perception exactly. How can we say we see the same thing when it clearly varies so much in even musical taste? We can even consider the artist as an example. An artists content could be the same as others, Funk/Pop/Rap, but the form in which they present it in is as different as seeds on a bun.
John Zorn is a prime example of exactly this. As a musical composer as well as music digest-er of sorts, Zorn has made an impression on me that is the reason for this entirely too long of an entry. more to come...
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Jay Dee RIP
To honor black history month and the contributions that blacks have given us, this entry will be dedicated to the legendary J Dilla(James Dewitt Yancey). For those you who don't know Jay Dee reigning from Detroit Michigan a producer of hip hop and musical ambassador of sorts. He was an inspiration to thousands of young diggers out there, myself included, with hits like Donuts and production of some the most classic mid 90's rap. He died in 2003 after a battle with Lupus, he was 29. His distinct style of beat production, musical knowledge, and formal training made him one a force to be reckoned with in the Hip hop industry. He famously utilized, in ways that had never really been explored prior to his debut album Welcome to Detroit, such artist such as, The Escorts, The Isley Brothers, Zapp etc. and appeared on albums with Common, DJ Premier, among others. There are some good biograph
ies out there celebrating his life more eloquently then I can. J-Dilla Foundation and Stussy, have both created a memorandum for Dee. I have been listening to Slum Village a lot too. Mostly for the production aspect by Jay. The ryhmes are ok, but its all about production in hip hop. It can elevate mediocare rapper(Kanye, Common, Talib Kweli, Guru from Gang Starr, Kool Kieth) to unexpected succes soley based on the music behind and the final package of a song/album. J Dilla was the epitome of creating the elusive total package that evades so many rappers today.Forever blasting Donuts...
04-lightworking by stelo02-sniper-elite-feat-mf-doom by stelo
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Monday, February 8, 2010
WELL, THE WAY THEY MAKE SHOWS IS, THEY MAKE ONE SHOW. THAT SHOW'S CALLED A PILOT. THEN THEY SHOW THAT SHOW TO THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE SHOWS, AND ON THE ST
Got hooked on HypeMachine so hard yesterday. This leads to some commentary to my current thoughts on technology. With the recent release of Apple's iPad, being an owner of a blog and new thoughts on digital music these days have lead me to new sources. I can see that I cannot escape the grips of the future. I have succumbed by creating a widget for my blog which is connected to my hypemachine account, which is updated everytime I use hypem, which is updated by fellow bloggers, which is endlessly updated. The recent influx of media into my world has lead my to not so much waste time on the internet but rather increase my knowledge of my peers on the web and their thoughts. People have their own constructs for time management. I get updates on the blogs I follow, mostly music sites, whose main objective is upload the mainstream and obscurities out there, and some artsy blogs too. So point being next time you are feeling like you are wasting time on the net, dont think that, well maybe if you are youtubeing cats in a box or something dumb, because our futures rely on us taking advantage of the, for now, free to roam internet. So lose shit out there cyber space.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
The Big One XLIV
Uper Bowl 44 is now 7 seven hours away, here on the east coast, and I really could care less for the outcome. Football season becomes mundane after awhile, the week long debate about Dwight Freeney's ankle, Drew Brees and his off shot relationship with Payton Manning, the entire Manning family history with New Orleans and bold predictions by ESPN's analysts (former pros making empirical guesses) well someone has got to win. I think I am rolling with the pres this time and picking the Saints from Na-leans. I like when presidents pick the big games. Clinton famously picked the team from California to win the 1995 Super Bowl when the 49ers and the Chargers faced off and Reagan doing his thing. And who really cares about Jared from Subway pick this year or randoms on youtube? I am here for the grub...
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Howard Zinn Macabre
Howard Zinn, famously known for his People's History of the United States, gave, according to some, a 'real' historical account of the last o now 608 years of American history. I was not terribly impressed, yet in the 80's it was all the rage because of Zinn's street vernacular and working man common sensibility. Well he has now since died, this past month, and his last writing on Obama's presidency is, for a historically liberal mind, interesting to say the least.
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20100201/forum/6#zinn/
Howard Zinn
Historian
I' ve been searching hard for a highlight. The only thing that comes close is some of Obama's rhetoric; I don't see any kind of a highlight in his actions and policies.
As far as disappointments, I wasn't terribly disappointed because I didn't expect that much. I expected him to be a traditional Democratic president. On foreign policy, that's hardly any different from a Republican--as nationalist, expansionist, imperial and warlike. So in that sense, there's no expectation and no disappointment. On domestic policy, traditionally Democratic presidents are more reformist, closer to the labor movement, more willing to pass legislation on behalf of ordinary people--and that's been true of Obama. But Democratic reforms have also been limited, cautious. Obama's no exception. On healthcare, for example, he starts out with a compromise, and when you start out with a compromise, you end with a compromise of a compromise, which is where we are now.
I thought that in the area of constitutional rights he would be better than he has been. That's the greatest disappointment, because Obama went to Harvard Law School and is presumably dedicated to constitutional rights. But he becomes president, and he's not making any significant step away from Bush policies. Sure, he keeps talking about closing Guantánamo, but he still treats the prisoners there as "suspected terrorists." They have not been tried and have not been found guilty. So when Obama proposes taking people out of Guantánamo and putting them into other prisons, he's not advancing the cause of constitutional rights very far. And then he's gone into court arguing for preventive detention, and he's continued the policy of sending suspects to countries where they very well may be tortured.
I think people are dazzled by Obama's rhetoric, and that people ought to begin to understand that Obama is going to be a mediocre president--which means, in our time, a dangerous president--unless there is some national movement to push him in a better direction.
Ahh here is some other stuff-----------------------------
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