My Teeth Feel Weird

You know that weird feeling you get in your teeth when you've drank a lot of orange juice or pepsi? I have that right now- also, I'm in the middle of making a mixtape and noticed that I've already put about 4 Shad songs on it, and I'm not even done with side A. And this was supposed to be a one-track-per-artist mix. You know why I'm breaking the rules? Because SHAD IS FRIGGIN' GREAT. It makes me wonder why hardly anyone seems to have been exposed to this greatness, too- he has all the talent to claim the 'best rapper of the 00s' title, and then some.



I know that's a hefty claim, but I can back it up. Having now fully heard his '05 debut When This Is Over and his '07 follow-up The Old Prince, I can come up with a bunch of reasons why you have to big up this guy.

THE LYRICS.

"I'm the biggest thing out of Canada since Pamela's double D's" (I Get Down)

"But if they treat you like a substitute teacher,
it's probably because you got no class." (Out Of Love)

"Like why's a brother need a dentist?
It's expensive and my gums'll bleed.
They do everytime when he scrubs em clean,
And every year they try to bump the fee,
Plus he'll prolly recommend braces - there you go,
That's another G!
Well, thanks a lot, doc, but listen,
I can brush my teeth all on my own
So you ain't gonna hustle me!" (The Old Prince Still Lives At Home)

"Cats say 'you the illest',
I'm like 'nah, B, nah, B'..
Well, okay, probably,
But that's just only 'cause I rap like it's my hobby,
Not a jobby-job, all sloppy and off-key." (I Don't Like To)

"Yo, it's hard to be.
Man, it's hard to just be..
Especially with this artistry, it's hard to be
Black and not be a hard MC, or R&B,
And that's cool if that's you but
What if all you are is me?" (What We All Want)

..I mean, come on. And he doesn't compromise his flow to accomate this sort of stuff, either. Check out these tunes:

The Old Prince Still Lives At Home I Don't Like To Brother (Watching)

It's just rare to come across an imaginative and clever rapper who isn't cocky, preachy, or getting comfortable with their own talent. Shad is securing his reputation by building on his successes and never getting too far up his own arse. Holla.

Friday the 13th

It was on Friday the 13th that I was struck down the flu. I was feeling pretty sorry for myself until I saw that someone had been stuck down by a bus on the street, leaving a big red bloodstain on the road. I knew then I probably wasn't having the worst day ever. Regardless, I've been making a meal out of this illness, complaining to everybody about how life is horrible. Being quarantined at home has had one nice side-effect though- I've been able to sift through countless records that I've bought that I've hardly, or even never, listened to.


MUY DIVERTIDO!
MARC RIBOT Y LOS CUBANOS POSTIZOS

Guitar warrior Marc Ribot conquers every genre he ventures into- country balladry, noise punk, tribal futurism- and here he charges, electroacoustic held aloft, into Cuban music. This album is actually the second by this particular ensemble, the first album being a tribute to the late Cuban composer Arsenio Rodriguez. This second volume is, as the title suggests, very entertaining. The pieces are penned by a wider variation of composers, as well as some original tunes by Ribot.

The playing here is energetic, passionate, and while remaining faithful to the original pieces, it somehow redefines them, as is Ribot's signature style- expect searing, amp-exploding guitar licks, spacy organ solos reminiscient of Sun Ra's 60s NYC recordings, all which give a new and exuberant edge to these already-beautiful latin tunes. Forgive me if I sound completely obsequious here, but it really is great.

Enjoy.