Thoughts From The Rap Nest
vol022-010 double digits
Thoughts
I am noticing a weird phenomenon regarding new releases. There will be the online chatter when a new album drops. There is real excitement for a day or two then it fades. Maybe this is just a product of the 24-hour news cycle world we live in. Maybe it isn’t weird, but I think it says something about the person and their relationship to music and how they consume it. What it says is hard too pinpoint but I think it is important and completely ridiculous at the same time. I, like many, find my enjoyment of an album is tied to whether it is a physical or digital release. I know this sounds crazy, shout out to Id Obelus as we were discussing this while talking about the new Aceyalone album that dropped last week. Are these listeners who listen to albums in physical formats stubborn, unwilling to adapt, grow and change? Are they doing it for altruistic reasons in a hope to maintain a semblance of the culture they grew up in and love? These are thing that for some reason I think about and even more insanely care about. Like, why should I care about how people consume music, isn’t the bigger picture that people are listening to it and it is more accessible then ever before. But does this cheapen its artistic value or its cultural importance?
I know lots of listeners who will wait until they own the release to consume it. People in this category have their preference in format whether it be vinyl, cd or cassette. They say they want to be able be engaged with the release and deliberately put it on and sit down with it. I think time is important to to these types listeners. I almost always fall into this category. I will wait sometimes a year plus to hear an album after the digital is out waiting for the physical to come in the mail to listen for the first time.
Maybe we are not meant to hear every release or have unlimited access to every release at our fingerprints. In the old days if you ever bought a dud of an album and that happened, you spent a lot of time with it regardless because you invested in it and wanted some sort of return. I know people in that era that would sell it almost immediate after to a used record store to try and recoup some of their loss. I doubled down and pretty much forced myself to like the record or I shelved it and revisited it a later date when the album made more sense and clicked.
I have Spotify and I find myself listening to music that I own in various formats and not even checking out an album until I own it. I don’t think I am alone in this approach, but it defies logic. I have been actively trying to break this habit. I am trying to have a healthier less obsessive relationship with rap music. For every healthy adjustment I make I relapse two-fold. I think about it more as I age, and the shelves get fuller. I built a new shelf the other day to accommodates some tapes I needed to move to clear up some other shelf space for some books I had to move to make space for some records that were on the floor. I have some pipe dream that someone will love this collection I have as much as I do when my time on this earth passes but unless that is in the next 15 or so years and Rove gets it, then it will likely be broken up or worst-case scenario end up in a land fill. I am trying to check out new music that is only released digitally. I find I go to the albums I have on order first to listen to them. I am the worst digital music cataloguer as well. Honestly it seems like such a chore to organize probably because I am not the most tech savvy person. I think it mostly has to do with the fact that it does not excite me.
I think when you own a physical copy of a release you are invested in the music in a different way. It is hard to pinpoint exactly what the investment is. I have been buying physical rap releases for 33 years and i don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. There is just some weird connection to the music when you have to put it on the turntable or the cd drive or in the tape deck and have to press play. I don’t mean that in snooty I am better than you kind of way but in a ritualistic sense. I am not one for religion and spirituality but I would guess this would be similar in some sort of fashion. So i guess in that sense it makes sense. All that being said, there is nothing better than listening to rap music on vinyl on the turntable on the deck in the summer with your best homies unless of course you are listening to a cassette in your Walkman while walking your dogs.
Another super dope single from Pip Skid dropped called Cop Chopper feat Gully & Skratch Bastid. I can’t wait for this album. It is not up on the P&C bandcamp yet but it was on the stream flows (spotify) today.
Shout out the the homie the Wordburglar who sent this note and magnet in the mail this week.
Record 1
Buck 65 & Tachichi - Flash Grenade
This is one of the biggest surprise releases in 2022 as I like most everyone else thought we had heard the last of Buck 65 in the underground rap world. He is back with a vengeance and has a super good substack called Vertices I am sure you are all up on already. I don’t know for sure but I think we have Tachichi to thank for pulling this together. Again this is pure rap speculation and I could reach out to the homie Tachichi to confirm but where is the fun in that. I am sure someone will hit me up to correct or confirm thoughts. The homie Rove captured it perfect as he said in the Third Verse chat Wednesday “It’s like they each pull each other towards their style, and meet in the middle” This is a perfect description of this album. Both artists are legendary OG’s in their own right. The jam for me and I know a few others have mentioned to me for them as well is the first track Collision Course. The album features 8 tracks and two instrumentals and is the perfect single vinyl release! Shouts to the homie Rhek on the art and layout. I especially like the record labels! Also shouts to Black Buffalo for putting the one out!
Record 2
Spoken Nerd & Juan Cosby - Grapes
I was unfamiliar with Juan Cosby until the homie Mc Homeless put him on one of his Homeless House instagram live streams sometime during the pandemic. I honestly am super good with dates but the pandemic years have really messed with that. I was really impressed with their production during the stream and I have had Juan Cosby on my radar ever since. I was familiar with Spoken Nerd from their Fake Four record, I Need A Friend Like You, having previously picked that up. The record is great front to back with the standout tracks being Circle Of Fake Friends feat Mc Homeless, Delicate Flower, and Tales From Dorkside feat Darko The Super. I have had the record for a minute now but wanted to bring some attention to it as it may have fallen under the radar a bit during the pandemic. There are still a few vinyl copies available from the homies at Audio Recon.
Top 5
Buck 65 & Tachichi - Flash Grenade
sign one - The Mighty Highs & Lowly Lows
Ol’ Gorilla Bones - Revenge Vol. 1
Paulie Think - Dunny’s Tamales
Gruf & Yy - Mental Health Day
Classic Material
Four Eyed Mortalz featuring: dj esp & awol one Permanent Paradise 12”
It is no secret that Permanent Paradise is my favourite Awol One track of all time and that Awol One is my favourite rapper of all time. Now as you imagined this is not necessarily about this song but this is about this specific copy of this 12”. We were on the Ottawa stop of the 2002 DSU Canada Tour. It was Awol One, Circus, Busdriver, Ayentee, soso, Factor, Knowskills, M.Phasis, Kay The Aquanaut and myself in what is surely the most insane routed tour of all time. Anyways we had played an early show at the Babylon club. Shout out to the homie Scott Da Ros who drove from Halifax to the show. I did not know him at he time, as I learned years later he was there and I have yet to actually meet him in person which is super crazy to me. Anyways the show was super dope and i this we had to drive to Calgary like right after which is like a 35 hour straight drive which I believe we did straight which is completely insane. Like i said the most insane routed tour.
Anyways, we were hanging out in a parking lot loading up to make the drive after the show. We had two rental mini vans that had unlimited km’s on them but when we returned them after two weeks the rental company was super pissed as we put like 15,000 km on each of them. Awol had put his record bag by the rear tire of the van he was in. The driver of the van backed up the van and rolled up on Awol’s record bag. He immediately yelled at the driver to stop which he did. Awol grabed his bag and took took out the the first record which was the Permanent Paradise 12”. It was obvious he hear was in his throat as he pulled out the record. The spine was bent and pushed over. He pulled outage vinyl and immediately frisbeed it across the street. I don’t remember what he said. It was really quiet though. He also threw the record jacket. He then pulled out the next record and it was fine and the next after that and all good as well. Just the one record was damaged. I went and picked up the record and the jacket. I put the recon back in the jacket and asked Awol if he wanted it he said no. I asked him if I could have it it and he said I could. The record was broken. You could not play the vocal versions of Permanent Paradise or Motormouth on the B side but other then that it was playable. I didn't care about that as I already owned the record. I just grabbed it a a memento from the tour. Awol and I have laughed about it a couple times over the years as it cold have been a whole lot worse. That was one of the best times of my entire life. It is one of my favourite records in my collection.
Closing Ramblings
I have two new shirts up at Stylesmakefights.ca One for my radio Show You Know The Rules designed by the homie Aiden Searle and the other formy dj crew The Stone Cold Party Rockers with the homie Rove designed by the homie Awol One. Also the homies at Audio Recon have some dope new shirts too
I host two weekly radio shows Third Verse on CFCR 90.5 fm in Saskatoon Saskatchewan every Wednesday 9 -10:30pm CST and You Know The Rules on UMFM 101.5 in Winnipeg Manitoba every Sunday Night 10-11pm They are pretty great and you should check em out.
Also i got some cool shirts, poster and hats in the Ugsmag Shop if you want that fly shit.
**legal disclaimer all records and songs were run through the RAP NEST 5000 SUPER ANALYTIC COMPTROLLER MACHINE that is certified by the I.A.A.R.R.A (International Association of Analytical Rap Recordings Analysis) in layman’s terms, it means the machine is never wrong.
Catch you next week with more thoughts from the rap nest.
Peace
-chaps
Great write up G.
Love this one! Also brought back some memories I forgot ❤️🔊