Filed under: Current Events, Music, Paul | Tags: 88-Keys, Adele, Atmosphere, Best of 2008, Colin Munroe, Esperanza Spalding, Incognito, Jazz Liberatorz, Jazzanova, Kay, Stacy Epps, The Foreign Exchange, Wale, Zo!
Orginally I had this amazing idea to post my favorite albums of 2008. When I started, I began to reminisce over this year and all of its musical disappointments and mediocrity (Common, T.I., John Legend, Robin Thicke, Gym Class Heroes, Common, Common…Common). However, after a closer examination, I realized that there was a truly solid collection of great music that came out. Looking at incredible releases from Erykah Badu, Lil’ Wayne, Dwele, Nas, N.E.R.D., The Roots (as always), Q-Tip, and Al “Don’t Call It A Comeback” Green, 2008 was a solid year. But, generally speaking, these are names and releases that most people are aware of. So as this post was literally written and awaiting publication, I began to look at other “Best of 2008” lists and realized that every list was basically the same. I’m sorry but I just don’t get down like that. Deciding to not play in the mainstream, I figured I would rewrite the post and drop the “other” best of 2008. So I went back and looked at the musical masterpieces that flew under the radar of 2008. This is for the artists that said “motherf*** the wagon come join the band…” Download/Buy/Listen/Enjoy.
-Kay/Nicolay/Zo!/Phonte-Time:Line, Zo! and Tigallo Love The 80’s, Leave It All Behind
Apparently collabos were hot in the Justus League this year and we should all be thankful. The connection of Dutch producer Nicolay and rapper Kay dropped first with Time:Line in February, which was a great beginning to the collective of albums. It is my belief that Nicolay solely makes beats that transcend genres and just scream “NOT HIP-HOP!” and that’s why they are so powerful. On the other end Houston-rapper Kay brings a very solid flow to the tandem. The album is particularly feature heavy, which usually is not a good look. However, the album showcases many “underground” artists that deserve serious shine. Of particular interest is S1 of The Strange Fruit Project, an amazingly dope hip-hop act out of Houston.
Filed under: Current Events, Music | Tags: Christmas, Donny Hathaway, Flo Rida, Trey Songz
From the entire Ethos staff, we would like to wish everyone a happy holidays. Sit back, relax, eat good food, enjoy family and friends and watch 24 straight hours of “A Christmas Story” Expect more from us in the new year (maybe…). In the mean time, enjoy the rich sounds of the holiday season:
Trey Songz and Flo Rida go extra hard on this one…(pause)
wait….
wait…
wait for it…
and…
Just kidding…We would never let you “dash through the snow with Flo Rida and Trey, whip on 24′s…” Enjoy:
Quite possibly the greatest Christmas song ever…Donny (30th Anniversary of his death…Jan. 13th)
Filed under: Current Events, Eric, Middle East, Politics | Tags: al-Jazeera, al-Zeidi, Bush, Obama, Shoe throwing
I know it’s about a week old by now, but I thought it would be worth having in the ETHOS archives:
His name is Muntadar al-Zeidi and he is my hero.
Out with the old, in with the new is what they say I guess. Check out this long-ish sober (scary) assessment of what the new has to offer us from al-Jazeera English (yeah, al-Jazeera – contrary to popular belief they actually have some of the best coverage of U.S. politics and Middle East policy. Oh yeah, and they are also your one stop source for the latest Osama Bin Laden video).
The second part of the segment – a debate between Black Agenda Report’s Glen Ford and some activist preacher – can be found here.
Over and out,
Eric
Filed under: Books, Eric, Race | Tags: April 4th 1968, Martin Luther King, Michael Eric Dyson
Editors Note: This is a review I did over the summer that was withheld due to a conflict of interests relating to the employment situation of one of our bloggers. I am publishing it now because it has been several months, and I doubt Dyson would give a shit about a scathing review of one of his books on a blog as irrelevant as this one. But, if you are reading this Dr. Rev. Mr. MC Dyson PhD (or whatever it is you call your bespectacled self), if you don’t like the harsh reviews, start writing better books. Translation: If you can’t stand the heat, get out the kitchen.
April 4, 1968: Martin Luther King Jr’s Death and How it Changed America
Michael Eric Dyson
Basic Civitas Books, 2008
270 pages, $25
I intended to write this review sooner, but my principles interfered; in a word, I refuse to pay for books that I expect to be worth far less than the cover price. So, given the fact that professor, ordained minister, and self-proclaimed activist/public intellectual Michael Eric Dyson’s latest waste of paper book, April 4, 1968: Martin Luther King Jr’s Death and How it Changed America, was checked out of the University of Pennsylvania’s library until about a week ago, I couldn’t get around to reading and commenting on it until now. Despite not paying a cent for this cute little mess—aside from Penn’s $50,000 tuition which includes library privileges (imagine that!)—after reading it, I still felt compelled to go back to the library and demand a refund of the time I had just wasted. But alas, the library has yet to invest in a time travel device—I can only urge them to look into it.
Many will recognize the date April 4th, 1968 as the day Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated while standing on the balcony outside of his room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis. The year 2008 thus marks the 40th year since King’s tragic death. On this somber anniversary, Dyson’s deceptively short 270-page volume is an “effort to grapple with King’s death—in [Dyson’s] own mind, and in the life of the nation.” With ten chapters sandwiched between a short prologue and a lengthy afterword, this book is divided into three parts, each with a somewhat distinct area of inquiry. Part one explores how King understood his own mortality and dealt with the looming threat of his death as he rose to prominence in lockstep with the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement. Part two is an examination of the state of black America in the post-King, post-Civil Rights, post-Voting Rights Amendment years. Finally, part three is a look at black leadership since King’s death—namely, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and Barack Obama. Unfortunately, Dyson’s book delivers very little that could be considered new or particularly insightful, and where it strays from the beaten path it arrives at several conceptual and methodological cul-de-sacs.
Filed under: Uncategorized, Videos | Tags: Freaks of the Beat, Penn Is A Dream Killer, The Pharcyde
“They say [Ethos] is dead, I’m here to resurrect me…”~Common/Paul
No Ethos is not dead, but as overly ambitious college kids, we get busy. The Ethos staff has most likely written around 1,250 pages (seriously…) in a few short years, so sometimes we forget about the important stuff…like the procrastination machine that is this blog. Don’t fret loyal followers. We will be back in about a week or so with the Top Ten Albums of 2008. Should be mildly amusing, in the sarcastic, dark humorish Ethos way you’ve all come to love.
In the mean time just watch this video of Penn’s dopest dance group Freaks of the Beat do one of the greatest things that I have ever seen…it should hold you over for a while.
Song: The Pharcyde’s “Drop”
Merry Christmas
Happy Hanukkah
Happy/Merry/Feliz Kwanzaa (cuz I really celebrate kwanzaa…smh)
Happy Holidays
Filed under: Music, Paul | Tags: Christian Scott, Esperanza Spalding, Jazz, Robert Glasper, Soil & "Pimp" Sessions
This thing that we have come to understand as jazz has encompassed a variety of subgenres that have surfaced throughout musical history. Many of these outgrowths were important to the sustainment of one of America’s earliest forms of music. We can take a particular look at the musical path of the original jazz pioneers to understand the evolution of the art form. Adapting and fusing funk, jazz, electric, and rock sounds allowed for Miles Davis’ original love to sustain popularity over the fast-paced cultural explosion and expansion that is American history.
Because of this we gained the smooth jazz styling of George Benson, the funk-fueled sounds of Donald Byrd, and the jazz-inspired hip-hop skills of Digable Planets. What has been relatively absent in the present, particularly in the pop arena, are the older sounds of Hard Bop, Swing and Modal jazz. These sounds made famous by musical geniuses such as Count Basie, Duke Ellington and John Coltrane have, in many ways, been removed from a younger audience. What can be seen and heard, however, is the emergence of a new crop of young artists that I believe will fuse the sounds of today to resurrect the sounds of old, whilst maintaining their stylistic roots. (Sidenote: Sooooo yeah…all the artists are defintely not black…but I just really love that song…and I’m black so I can do whatever I want…)
I’ve done a good bit of gushing about the 27-year old pianist already on the blog and don’t expect me to stop anytime soon. From jazz classics (Blue Skies/Irving Berlin) to hip-hop classics (Stakes Is High/De La Soul) Glasper does it all. What is so impressive about his style is that it never strays from the cool jazz styling, a sound made popular by artists such as Bill Evans and Vince Guaraldi. Despite the onslaught of “smooth jazz” fusions, ranging from “A Smooth Sax Tribute to Marvin Gaye” to “A Smooth Jazz Tribute to Amy Winehouse” (seriously what idiot is financing these absurd projects…stop it.), Glasper keeps the music sophisticated and yet relevant. For many jazz fans his sound is akin to the percussive and simplistic playing style of jazz pianist and Pittsburgh-native (Shout Outs to the 412/724!!!!) Ahmad Jamal.
If I could have one thing in the entire world it would be a Robert Glasper J Dilla Tribute…seriously I would never listen to a single record again if that ish came out…
Filed under: Music, Paul, Videos | Tags: Black Star, Jazz, Mos Def, Robert Glasper, Thieves In The Night
So….because we here at Ethos are a phenomenally lazy group (or just prefer to enjoy our summers) we have been dropping the ball. We probably won’t step our collective post games up until the fall (although I have a few posts collecting dust). While this makes no sense considering we will be overloaded with work in our junior years, we just like dope distractions like writing for Ethos…or Facebooking. To break the monotony of the Ethos silence I figured I would post this video of the Robert Glasper Experiment. First off Robert Glasper is probably my favorite modern jazz artist. Along with characters like Esperanza Spalding (opened for The Roots), Pimp & “Soil” Sessions (they’re from Japan-a place that still loves and respects jazz and hip-hop), and many other younger jazz artists, he is really bringing back a great musical genre. I recently bought one of his albums (if you know me you understand how extraordinary that truly is…)
For those that were there with me or happened to catch the concert at another venue, Glasper recently toured with Common and Q-Tip. He was the guy on the keys playing jazz guitarist Joe Pass’ cover of John Coltrane’s “Giant Steps”…which in turn was sampled by J Dilla for Q-Tip’s “Let’s Ride” (most people at the concert were confused as to what he was doing…but as a musical nerd and a huge fan of all three songs, I went through what some like to call multiple eargasms). With Glasper added to my list of musical mancrushes that I have gushed over, I’ll move on to the Robert Glasper Experiment. This musical mind trust consists of jazz artists Derrick Hodge, Chris Dave, and Casey Benjamin, and implores the talents of artists such as Mos Def, Bilal and Q-Tip. The group fuses hip-hop with jazz stylings, reminiscent of Illadelph Halflife. They do random shows all the time and if there is a god I will catch one.
This particular video is one of my all-time favorites…I almost broke down completely after hearing this live instrumental of Black Star’s “Thieves in the Night” (understanding this song is like understanding a part of me…) with the Mos Def ad libs. This is music folks…pay attention.
p.s. expect a post soon about those newer jazz artists I mentioned earlier…in the mean time google/imeem/myspace…or buy those names immediately.
p.s.s. To understand my love of Robert Glasper check out this cut of off his 2007 album In My Element…entitled “J Dillalude”…wooooooow.
Filed under: Music, Paul, Videos | Tags: Glastonbury, Jay-Z, Noel Gallagher, Oasis
“If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. If you start to break it then people aren’t going to go. I’m sorry, but Jay-Z? No chance. Glastonbury has a tradition of guitar music…I don’t know about it. But I’m not having Hip-Hop at Glastonbury. It’s wrong.” ~Noel Gallagher of Oasis
Looks like Jay has been taking classes with Wayne at the Guitar Hero School for Rock&Roll
This weekend Jay-Z headlined the legendary Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, much to the dismay of many diehard fans of the event. One of these haters came in the form of Oasis band member/clown Noel Gallagher. While Gallagher’s distaste with Jay-Z’s top billing is understood, it shows that he does not actually know the history of his beloved event and that he is a world-class douche.
Some artwork from my brother:
The Obamamobile heads to Washington
(Artwork courtesy of Danny Augenbraun, click image to enlarge)
Considering that it has been nearly a month since Obama became the presumptive Democratic nominee and at least some of the unrestrained euphoria has worn off among his supporters/fans, I figured I would take this time to do a quick recap of some of the recent developments in his campaign. It is hardly a secret that since the late 70s and early 80s the Democrats have embraced a national strategy that attempts to appeal to the same constituencies that the Republicans have been able to ride to electoral success for the last 25+ years. This, in turn, gives the Republican Party an enormous amount of leverage in setting the terms of debate in the run up to elections and also produces the inevitable rightward shift taken by every Democratic candidate over that same time period. Moreover, it should come as no surprise that the Dems are every bit as beholden to the same set of corporate interests as the Republicans which largely explains their unwillingness to reject a national strategy based on constituencies constructed by the Republicans and to attempt to create and appeal to an alternative constituency–namely one organized around a program that can be of immediate benefit to the working class.
But, without further adieu, let us take a trip back to the not so distant past:
Filed under: Current Events, Election 2008, Paul, Videos | Tags: Democratic Primary, Souja Boy, The Real World, white people
As a critic of most things, I find myself shaking my head a whole lot. Thusly, I would like to introduce my first installment of the Shaking My Head Awards more commonly known as the SMH’s (get it lol, lmao, gtg…smh?). This post is actually inspired by Melissa Harris-Lacewell’s “John Brown Awards”, which coincidentally put her on the list…well done. These individuals and entities have been awarded an SMH not because I hate them or dislike them, but simply because they have recently made me shake my head in disappointment and/or utter disbelief. Sometimes I laugh afterwards and sometimes I die a little bit afterwards. Either way I applaud you all for the incomprehensible moments of absolute bewilderment that you all have provided me; leaving me to just…shake my head.
Melissa Harris-Lacewell
As noted your “John Brown Awards” are given to “white me who are down for the cause.” So far, so good. After all there’s nothing wrong with giving out awards to deserving individuals. However, giving John Edwards a “John Brown award” is like giving Ward Connerly, the “Nat Turner Award” around his work for racial uplift and commitment to the Left. Now I do appreciate the fact that you started the piece noting that it was “unauthorized” and “likely to be rejected and denounced” which takes away any anger I would have held. That does not however negate the fact that you did this…I suppose that I am no better than you either considering I am responding, albeit facetiously. But I still have to shake my head on this one Professor.
