THE BALL DONE GOT DROPPED.

My bad on the lack of posting recently. I've become rather sidetracked by keeping up with my world cup schedule among a host of other things that have occupied my life recently. Moreover, the arrival of the Madbury Club has held me captivated and taken up all my Internet viewing hours over the past week or so. Phil and the crew deserve massive credit there, never have my eye balls felt so tired and appeared so red, all as a result of these young men taking over near enough every aspect of the game.

So basically, the posting this weekend and coming week will be onwards on upwards. As per usual there was a lack of photo taking during the past few weeks of excursions so we're just going to have to hope my words paint the perfect picture....and, before you tune out for the rest of the week fear not! I'm sure there's some visuals I can find for your viewing please.

Excurions included two art exhibitions, one being my boys end of year exhibition at his Art Uni down in Peckham, Camberwell. The other was an exhibiton of that boy's brother who finished Uni last year. That one was down at the ever interesting Brick Lane, East Side!!! (sorry i couldn't resist.)

I actually did a lot more during those two weeks as well as play football near enough everyday but in all honesty, I've re-visted this post and am writing this in a week or so later than the original post so...i've forgotten most things.
My bad.


Peesh.

(bumping Midnight Marauders)

SAY NO TO MALARIA

As i mentioned at the beginning of this humble blog, i recently went exploring in what Europeans came to define as South America. This included exposure to all types of undesirable diseases and animals in the wilderness of Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. I'm not usually one to get bitten easily but when (pause to appreciate Nas verse on 'Verbal Intercourse' bangin out of the speakers)....but when Malaria is the disease in question, i aint taking no chances. I mean can you blame me, these annoying insects could be carrying all types of nasty diseases.

If one wants to go about avoiding such nastyness then they must part-take in a course of Doxycycline capsules, or Malarone if they were born in to wealth. The newspaper cuttings at my local travel clinic were enough to scare my punkass in to buying a whole bunch of Doxy for my short stint in the jungles of Ecuador. Not to mention the seemingly sweet little nurse who clearly held the belief that it was her job to scare the living Muhammad (lol) out of me. Insistent that the majority of people who travelled to South America, Africa or South East Asia contracted Malaria she appeared to lack a sense of humour and basic social skills.....'what a solemn ass bitch,' were my thoughts. I went back a week before my trip to collect some things and she turned out to be a lot nicer, probably got some.
.

As i was sadly not born in to wealth, i would have to be taking these things for 4 whole weeks after arriving home, something which i proved to suck at doing.

My course started out like most things in life, filled with avid enthusiasm, i became actually excited to take a capsule each evening. However the novelty of swallowing a capsule filled with toxic tasting powder (no innuendo or homo) soon wore off and upon my arrival home I quickly forgot about the whole thing. Though the novelty side effect of strange magical dreams and nightmares definately did not wear off! I just took my last capsule and although I'm glad to be rid of the annoying packages clogging up my beside table for weeks, it just occurred to me the enjoyment throughout the night Doxy has been providing me. Just the other day i had a dream filled with stories of murder and escape. These things have my adrenaline pumping in my sleep as i enact certain stories in my mind. Then comes one of the best parts if the dream happens to be a nightmare, that part right before you wake up, when you realise it's all a dream and you're not actually running from anybody or lost in a strange place. That's the point where you can really enjoy the dream and pay attention to detail. I know I'm sounding real crack-headish right now. However since arriving at a new level of consciousness you become sure that this predicament can not last much longer and you start to awaken, pissed off at yourself for having started to work things out.

I wish i could remember some of the things i dreamt of while away in strange beds and hammocks and whilst in the comfort of my own bed. I'm pretty sure most of the dreams included whatever environment and whoever the people around me were at the time.

I've never had dreams so real and exhilarating. But all i can say is ahh well, because I've come to the end of my relationship with Doxycyline.....it's been fun.

L-BOOGIE AND ATCQ TO PERFORM AT ROCK THE BELLS

The line-up list below isn't lying folks! You read right, Lauryn Hill is going to be performing at Rock the Bells (yeah that thing i was so close to making last year). She's back from a long, long leave of absence although she has been making some small waves on the underground with various performances here and there. One of those performances being on Def Poetry Jam where she set conspiracy theorists alight with her vicious attack on 'the system.'
Hill is alleged to be performing a set featuring songs from the classic Miseducation of Lauryn Hill among other work including tracks with the Fugees.
Another surprise is the inclusion of A Tribe Called Quest who will be performing their legendary Midnight Marauders, if your not familiar with that album then sorry you're just not familiar with Hip Hop.



Dates: 8/21/10 - Nos Events Centre, San Bernadino, CA
8/22/10 - Shoreline Amphitheatre, San Francisco CA
8/28/10 - Governor's Island, New York NY
8/29/10 - Merriweather Post Pavillion, Washington DC

THE ALCHEMIST

Not the Alchemist people may have been expecting, thinking of the other one has just given me an idea for a post, soon come.
No the title of this post refers to the book i copped a few posts back along with a promise to come back with some form of a review. Well i finished the book with relative ease, the fact that it has been translated makes for simpler language than Paulo Coelho originally intended. Therefore it's an easy enough read that anyone should be able to get through it in a few days being only 160 somethin' pages.
One of the main criticisms the book receives from online reviews is that it is a failed attempt at a fable-like tale. The setting, characters and nature of the novel all resonate a philosophical, fable, meaning of life type feel. However, Coehlo manages to address some deep topics without sounding too cliché. The book deals with themes such as chasing one's destiny, the universe, dreams and all manner of metaphysical happenings, similar to that shit you might expect in a Rakim lp. The biblical type setting in southern Spain and the deserts of Arabia heighten the sense of mystery and supernatural throughout the book. Yes at times how the morals and goals in the book are presented does appear simple. Though i think those that criticise the author are failing to relate certain aspects of each lesson learnt by our protagonist to their own lives. When reading only at the surface level it is easy to think 'yeah, yeah, chase your dreams, never give up all that crap we're fed by celebrities etc..' However it is the smaller, less obvious quotes and events that prove more insightful. It was most likely these inspirational features of the book that drove Will Smith and many others to bang on about this book so much. It's a simple tale, but it's lessons are timeless and should not be taken for granted.
Our protagonist, Santiago, is someone we can all relate to in that he toils over questions in life familiar to all of us. Love, work and life play center stage in his mind. A shepard from humble beginnings he wants to see the world but his heart becomes curious at the thought of there being more out there for him, a destiny, a treasure.
Ultimately this is an enchanting novel that has developed a mighty following all over the globe.....so why don't you go see what all the fuss is about!


This is not a proper review and although i could unload a million of those 'inspirational quotes' on you, I'm not going to. I would highly recommend checking the book out, although i would also suggest that you check out Will Smith's (youtube) rants on the book as a supplement before you read so you know just what to expect and get out of the book. What's more it's cool to see someone who really took the lessons of the book to heart and applied them to his own life......who are we to say it didn't work for him!

SONS OF CUBA

Director: Andrew Lang

I've been meaning to write a post about this doc/film for a while now. Ever since i saw the PBS documentary that this feature length film derived from i was pretty sure it would turn out to be a must see.
Cuba has dominated Olympic boxing for well over 20 years now, a fact that is no coincidence. Boxing is to Cuba as football is to Brazil, Boxing rings are to Cuba as Basketball courts are to inner-city America. The country has developed a passion for the sport only equalled by the passion they have for their leader, Fidel 'Commandante' Castro. The success of Cuba's Olympic Boxers is due in part to the fact that professional sports are deemed out the question in the land of socialism. Therefore what, for many Cuban boxers, would be a life of fame and fortune in the United States, turns out to be a life of very modest wealth and pride for ones country in Cuba.
The film follows the lives of three young boys as they train for eight greuling months at the prestigious Havana Boxing Academy in the hope of being selected to compete at Cuba's National U12's Boxing Championships.
The two stand-out characters in the film for me were Cristian (pictured above) a bright eyed kid, clearly the pride and joy of the academy and Santos (second from the left below). Crisitan seems suprisingly mature, despite the tears he conducts himself very sincerely with regard to training and seems to view Boxing as his duty in life as opposed to his passion. Santos is rather the opposite, much smaller than the other children (though with no less the talent) he struggles to keep up with the tough training regime which includes his greatest annoyance, dieting. However, despite such contrasting characters it's easy to see a little bit of us in each of these characters. The work ethic and heart of Cristian and the cheekyness of little Santos. Very early in the film you'll find yourself rooting for the boys already, as they win you over with that childhood charm that seems only to be heightened by them being children of the revolution.


The film deals with a variety of issues that you might come to expect of a film set in a socialist country that deals with abject poverty on a daily basis. Poverty is of course a main theme in regards to each child's family. Even so in the case of Santos and Cristian both of whom share the fact that their fathers were once championship boxers, (Cristian's an olympic gold medalist) this counts for nothing in the present. A present which involves a country's people living from food provided to them by their government. Socialism plays another pivotal role in the film and the young boy's lives. Scenes of propoganda and socialist chants are slightly uneasy. It is left up to the viewer whether the ideals and philosophy being presented to the children are in truth being presented, or forced upon them.
The theme that most stood out to me however was never actually addressed in the film, the theme of race. Cuba's most prominent figures including Fidel Castro and Ernesto 'Che' Guevera, have in the past made some fairly bigotted remarks despite Cuba's huge Mulatto and Black population. As someone with an interest in society and race relations I identified almost instantly that, 99% of, if not all of the young children at the academy, were black. White children were only spotted when the children attended school during the day. This begs the question, are Cuba's black children being led down a path of sports whilst Cuba's lighter population are nudged towards education. After all Che Guevara did make the comment that White people are more 'forward thinking' than their Black peers. This is a little off topic and the film in question is no where near aimed at addressing the subject. Therefore it would be unfair to make judgments based on the small amount of footage that relates to such a topic. Although one thing i will point out is that, (from a coloured perspective, yellow in this case) at points in the film, there does seem to be a certain amount of sidetracking going on. The young black boys (as well as the millions of other black boys all over Cuba) feel as though they are doing what is best for their country. They display such adoration for their leader that at times it seems as though they are being side-tracked from education and other sociological issues within the country. In a way ( i hate to put it like this) like a house slave (slavery days in the U.S, keep up!) conveying love and affection - through blind stupidy - at the master that enslaves them.


Though lets get off that topic as i am in no way comparing Cuba to modern day slavery nor am i suggesting that the boys in the Academy are all black for a reason. Cuba has the best literacy rates in the world. What Castro has done for that country is nothing short of amazing and i sincerely believe that if America and all her bitch ass minions were not enacting this trades embargo on Cuba, it would be one of the strongest economies in the world.
All in all, this is a heart warming, thought-provoking Film that Arthouse fans especially, will love.
At a time when the country is in slight disarray at the future of it's politics and beloved 'Commandante,' Lang manages to focus the plight of 3 young boys trying to do what so many have done before them. Will they make it?

A must see for all fans of; Boxing, Cuba, Latin America, Sociology, Arthouse films
To catch up with where the boys are now (once you've seen the film you will want to be doing this) check www.sonsofcuba.com/blog/

See below for some familiar faces:

MASH RANT.

So i got a little heated after a visit to Mash Oxford St. American readers you may not completely understand my pain so you may have to take the L on this one but here's a small piece i wrote a while back regarding my views on those who dwell at Mash. Don't take this to negatively though, Mash has got some real peoples.

Boredom = note/rant....Mash

Mash has actually got some nice clothes but the people that work in there are startin to piss me off, actin like some kind of fashion elitists with that 'shit hop' they bang out of their boom boxes and jeans that hug their D's like nobody's business. I don't wanna see the outline of heads pressed up against high tension denim.
I could sit in there all day and laugh at the nobs upstairs who stand there doing their best to look cool as you pass them by to reach the stairs. With their HUGE space boot trainers that look like something Kanye West rocks, that alone says enough.
These guys can feel free to dress and act in such a manner, but why relate it to hip hop? I mean really why? They barely even like the music but they'll sit there and steal all fashion, style and essense from it. To be quite honest if you wanna really take it back, the kids that like hip hop in the first place aint got the money to be dressing like these fruit loops (remember those fruit loop polos though...tasty shit). Therefore the fact that they try and market all these stores and sets of clothing as being geared towards the hip hop generation is a joke.
Askin me 'can i help you,' ' nah man i'm broke' is what they got.
I have two items from mash and lord knows i saved a while for those and was near dead broke after i got em.
Just to paint a quick picture of the guys im talkin about here, they're the type that will buy theee NICEST skateboard, theee NICEST headphones, theee NICEST bike, theee NICEST boom box etc....and they don't even do/use any of that shit!!!!
That just wanna stand there with the whole look as if they can skate. Art students (not you sag) breadin off hip hop culture coz they think it's cool and funky without knowing a damn thing about it.
SMH i felt like testing the two fools upstairs as they proceeded to look down upon everyone who walked through the door. Hip Hop 101 for the lil douche bags.
Sizing you up as you browse the store, (see phonte 'last day/day after,' browsers piss me off too but i wanted to be the perpetrator for a change) checking out your nikes, your lrg geans and your 'only new york' tee. Bitch i wear these nikes coz i like em, not coz im trynna recreate the colourful 80's and pretend like i was in to De La Soul and a Tribe Called Quest!!! (although i was). I wear these jeans coz they're a nice colour and i respect Lrg's movement and intentions not because they hug my balls like they're giving CPR. And (yeah piss off you can start a sentence with 'and' i saw it in 'finding forrester' (good flick by the way go watch) and yeah that was a bracket within a bracket) i wear this tee because i like the style, colour and what it represents. Plus it's from a small company started by a young designer in New York (support small designers! lol) representing real grass roots hip hop.

It's fine though if you wanna wear the same clothes as New Yorkers such as your supreme hats, vans, checkered shirts and listen to your frat boy rappers like asher roth, Wale and all the others that i don't have the heart to know of (B.O.B is progressively becoming involved in this group). Just know that alotta new yorkers wear them clothes for a very different reason to you. Don't ever go laughing at the boy in the saggy white tee, saggy jeans and old pair of plain air forces on, coz he spawned what you're wearing right now......ha ha he basically created you, he fathered your whole style, he owns you. He's probably got more knowledge than you too. Look at the designers and creators of the clothes you wear dirk heads - look at their musical tastes and lifestyles - and find out they weren't made with YOU, in mind.
Asher Roth may be the future of rap music, but he aint the future of hip hop (that culture you keep bitin off).

Session over, boredom expired.

SLEEP.

You know one of those times when friends have clearly either out-stayed their welcome, or are taking advantage of their welcome just a lil bit too much? This was one of those times. 2am, i got shit to do tomorrow, not really anything important, a gap year is assuring my life is decidedly un-important right now, but i got shit i wanna do! Now when someone turns the computer on at 2am, you know they're gonna be there for a good while. And when that same person took a prolonged nap at 6pm, you know damn well they could be squinting at that screen all night. Music, basketball, all shit you don't wanna be hearing when your trying to sleep. That being said, the light on and a squeaky chair aint too desirable neither.

But you know what, it's joey and she's a cutie pie so we'll let her get away with it.

Peace.

(that Wild Style joint was done at the age of like 13 and i still to this day don't have the heart to finish it....re-decorating needs to come soon).

SCRATCH OFF THE RUST, REVEAL THE SHINE!

Haven't done some sketching in a while now. I think my final year of High School (last year) proved to be a worthy dose to cover me for the next few years. However i decided to pick up a pencil a couple days back and just free hand some simple lettering. I'm more of an intricate artist really, i like drawing detailed pencil joints that are either detailed through shading or imagery. Paint aint really my thing to be honest and neither is that abstract type bullshit. Anyway maybe i'll up some of my High school pieces at some point. Rulers and color appear to be my enemy. I often feel color just ruins a beautifully detailed pencil drawing and rulers.....well there's no explaination for that one. Although thinking about getting a tad more serious in the game i'm gonna fast have to start using em. More joints on the way, of better quality i promise.

THE MADBURY CLUB

I've fast become a loyal reader of a senhor Phillip T. Annand's blog of late. I like what he represents and how he goes about his business. He is the creator of The Award Tour clothing line and all around fashionista entrepreneur. What i like most about Phil is that he has knowledge of the history his style represents. There's far to many 'hipsters' walking the streets nowdays with; vintage jordans, colorful clothing and all kinds of Hip Hop orientated styles, without knowing a damn thing about Hip Hop culture or paying any kind of credit to the elders who paved the way. Above all that though, my man just has an infectious writing style that manages to captivate you in to reading posts dating back to 06.
So on his latest entry (check him out on hypebeast also) he has called for everyone to pass on this video, which i will no doubt do. In part for all the reasons stated above and in another completely different part, to distract from the horribly layed out post below this one.....that shit just wouldn't work out.

The Madbury Club! from The Madbury Club on Vimeo.

Peace, peoples.


.

THE GRAMMATIC EXPLOSION

Nasir bin Olu Dara, visque Allah....From Nasty to Esco to the cult icon that he is fast becoming today, that guy Nas from Queensbridge Projects has had me hooked. So hooked in fact that, as i write this with Illmatic blasting out of my stereo, i continue to let it do so despite the skips and jumps, a result of years worth of collective scratches and marks on that there classic CD. Illmatic provided so many quotables, many of which are only becoming fully appreciate today. However I'm sure you've all heard the whole Illmatic goatness talk and have read first hand just how much this album means to so many people so....What I've decided to do is put together a collective of some of the dope Illmatic articles and breakdowns I've come across over the years. Normally i wouldn't want the to fall under the label of just another copy n paste blogger, but to be quite frank, you've this all before. Me giving my personal stan biased review of Illmatic and Nas in general would only cause irritation. So instead why not see some dope interviews, inside information and rare pics on the man and album...

Without further ado here are some links to everything Illmatic:

(click to enlarge images)

This one comes courtesy of those over at thimk blog
who are just straight buggin out with their relentless uploading of all Hip Hop related magazine's back issues. Good shit, keep up the good work guys and props for this one.


In one of Hip Hop's greatest years a magazine named Ego Trip ran an article introducing that ill emcee straight outta Q.B. I like the way they approached the whole situation,unlike many 'Urban' magazines now days Ego were able to give casual interviews asking questions that you actually wanted to know the answers to. Too many interviews today are conducted with the same boring questions that give the artist no choice but to answer in a certain way (of course they're not going to say the fans won't like it or they didn't enjoy working with so and so..). However, with interviewers that make use of the same slang and four letter words as the artists themselves, you just know you're about to read some shit. Reading an interview like this is like watching Nas converse with another Q.B resident as he keeps the language and topic strictly local. This insiders perspective and nitty gritty style interviews is something Hip Hop mags of today are most def missing.

XXL ran a 15th anniversary special on Illmatic featuring Hi-Res classic images and words from some familiar names giving their take on the undisputed classic and the emcee behind it. Enjoy.









And finally after this onslaught of scanned images, i present to you, probably one of the best break-downs of Illmatic I've ever seen. Courtesy of Dan Love over at ohword blog here is his own 'Deconstucting of Illmatic'.

Oh and if ya'll are thinking 'Oh Snap!' He didn't even include the obvious Source 5 mic review.
That's right Timmy I didn't. And there's a very good reason why. That review is perhaps the most read, most easily accessible Source review in history. Google is your friend, and if you're that desperate I'm sure as a friend he will be willing to show you (fairly swiftly i might add) just exactly where to find that review.

Peace ya'll.