Monday, March 31, 2008

Mutant Sandwhich



I bought this sub in Decatur, Illinois after a day or so of eating nothing but chips and candy bars on my greyhound bus trip. I told the Subway girls to put everything healthy that they had on it, all of their veggies. There was so much shit on it that they were unable to close it, so they just put another foot long on top and smushed it down to make one mega sandwich that was too big to eat.



Jasson and Mike always argueing about what they're gonna do when they Bin Laden blow up.

"We need to get fine bitches and fat rides"

"No, what we need to do is put our money in savings bonds"

"No! What we need to do is put our songs on WGCI"

Don't Ever Fucking Question That!



I saw Love in the Time of Cholera yesterday afternoon, which is an adaptation of a book of the same name by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, which also happens to my favorite book of all time and, I am fully convinced, a collection of the most beautiful words ever committed to paper. My copy, which is old and yellow and used to belong to my mother when she was young, is too personal for me to loan out. I was so moved by the story that I scrawled love poems of my own in all its margins.

For someone who hasn't read this book, I don't know how the movie will fly. They pulled scenes and conversations and narrations verbatim from the book; Marquez's words are the most beautiful thing about the film, and it's awesome how some things I rushed past while reading here really come to life. Some of the acting is bad, however: Particularly John Leguizamo's painful rendition of Fermina Daza's father. For anyone who has not read this, it's a very complicated story about love that makes you feel like you are in the grasp of a boa constrictor and love that sets you free, sex that helps you find love and sex that helps you escape from love. But it finds its focal point in a lifelong love not realized until the couple is in their '70s, which is very romantic on paper but in film requires a sort of icky old people sex scene that made me cringe.

I think for the first time I realized the soul of Marquez's story, though I have thought I'd found it before and was wrong: Every love is an illusion. It simply depends on which illusions we choose to commit to.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Haaaaahahahahahahahahhaa.

That is all I have to say.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

American Scream

On Wednesday, March 19, don't miss Don De Grazia and others read at Columbia College's Story week. When I was 15 years old, De Grazia came to my high school and did a workshop with me and 6 other students. He had just published his awesome novel, American Skin, abroad, but it'd be a couple years before an American publisher would have the guts to pick it up, so it wasn't till I was 18 that I got to read the thing in full and realize how fully rad the man is. American Skin is sort of like a much softer core American History X (it's about skin heads, but not the racist kind -- which is a distinction very important to some kids here in Chicago though I've never heard of it elsewhere) told with the same coming-of-age narrative style as Hairstyles of the Damned, which means that he landmarks it with songs and specifically Chicago cultural geography. If you live in Chicago, you should read it if simply to reminisce about those days when Belmont and Clark was the local Mecca for homeless punks, who would line the streets and alleyways and wait for the youth work vans to deliver brown bag meals a couple times daily. Does anyone else ever wonder what ever happened to all those homeless punks? Did they shape up and get jobs that earn enough wages to move to Bridgeport and Pilsen communal living spaces, or are they just relocated to other cities, where punk culture still thrives? Maybe De Grazia knows.


Weds. March 19

2:30 PM
Panel: New American Voices, Poverty & Privilege
with Junot Diaz, Drown; ZZ Packer, Drinking Coffee Elsewhere;
Colin Channer, Waiting in Vain; Alexis Pride, Where the River Ends;
Don De Grazia, American Skin
Host: Ian Jack, columnist, The Guardian,
author, and former editor, Granta
Harold Washington Library
Cindy Pritzker Auditorium
400 S. State St., Chicago

6:00 PM
Full-Time Faculty Reading
With Don De Grazia, American Skin; Alexis J. Pride, Where the River Ends; and Betty Shiflett, award-winning short story writer
Host: Eric May
Columbia College Chicago
Film Row Cinema, 8th Floor
1104 S. Wabash, Chicago

Monday, March 10, 2008

Fake Ass Records

The latest installment in an ongoing conversation about the sort of abstract rewards for white people that come from pretending to be American Indian, or a person of any color, for that matter.

The most amazing part of this is the sense of self-martyrdom Seltzer invokes. She was giving "a voice to people who people don't listen to," because gang bangers, drug dealers and Native Americans couldn't possibly write their own books about poverty, or the miscegenation of black and Native culture, or rough urban life. Please see Sherman Alexie, Leslie Marmon Silko, Paula Gunn Allen, Winona LaDuke, Wendy Rose, et al.

Revolutionary but Gaming

If you can sort through the writing, there's a lot of interesting info here about some Muslim video games. I think the writer makes a pretty basic point here: These Islamic games flip the narrative of pretty standard American war games, though many would like to charge them as being more inventively twisted in nature. The piece kind of goes nowhere beyond that, however, which is disappointing.

I never play war video games, so if you do, and you'd like to share yr deeper insights, I'd love to hear them.

And thanks to Hec for the link.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

More The Roots

Back with their second video in like a week. This time, instead of kidnapping and smacking up crackers, The Roots have decided to make what looks to be a tribute to The Office, Illadelph style. Welcome back Dice Raw, playing Kevin, obviously. And Peedie does a good Jim, trying to holla at Pam at the front desk.



Michael and Toby.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Buraka Som Sistema, Part II

This video is way more badass than the one I previously posted featuring M.I.A., who clearly copped her dance moves from the thickass girl featured here.

Tired of Using a Product Not Right for You?

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Third World Ambassador



Kuduro is a regional style of music from Angola which essentially sprang from African producers trying their hands at techno and house, though these doods are making music currently out of Portugal. The Fader's John McDonnell tells you everything you need to know here.

From what I can tell, this is just a collabo with M.I.A. and Buraka Som Sistema has no plans to join her label. If you visit their myspace, some of their production is actually a lot more interesting, and gives you a better feel for what kuduro is.

Youtube and Sigur Ros

This friday, March 7th, Youtube will devote it's entire front page to Sigur Ros. This is good and bad news. Good news for fans, like me, for obvious reasons. Bad news because people who visit the internet website youtube.com tend to be bottom of the barrell types, the lowest of the low, also like me.

The groups documentary, "Heima", will be shown in it's entirety. Other than that I'm not sure what a front page dedication consists of.

Their lyrics aren't Icelandic, they claim that it's all "gibberish" (I never knew that) and their interviews aren't very exciting..



I have a soft spot for their dream-like music videos, which aren't very exciting either. I also jump at any oppurtunity to post up my not-so-gangster music while trying to pass it off as "news", as to avoid receiving anymore "warning" e-mails from fellow RBC staff (kidding).







Re-supply Gang

Would be a harder name than Re-Up.

"Fuck the re-up, son. This is the RE-SUPPLY." -- Detective Lester Freamon, HBO's The Wire



Seriously, these guys kind of suck as rappers, especially compared to Malice and Pusha. Do you think they're just the actual drug dealers that fund the Clipse's rapscepades, and the mixtapes are how they get paid back?

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Supreme Mathematics


+

=


Finally, a moment of appreciation for the fact that Luda always keeps his situation clean cut enough to justify bringing him home for dinner.

Today May Be The Day!!!!!!!!

So if folks don't know today Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont vote for the nominee of the Democratic Party. If Hillary wins Texas and Ohio she lives for another day, and questions start swirling Obama on if he can close the deal. If Obama wins either Texas or Ohio its a done deal he will be the nominee of the Democrats. But I was feeling all down this morning because all the polls show Hilllary ahead and gaining momentum.

In all fairness it has been a tough week for Obama, the Somali garb photo came out

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The Rezko trail has arrived and Obama is foolishly still refusing to take hard questioning on his relationship with Rezko. Obama cut a press conference short after only 8 questions on Rezko when the best thing that someone like Obama could do; a candidate who is slangin hope and change, is to have a two hour question and answer period the way McCain did about the New York Times Lobbyist story with the caveat that afterwards he will take no more questions. It would give the impression to voters that hes down to be transperent but also willing to stand up to the press and it would change the narrative of the press being soft on Obama. If Obama followed the McCain strategy regarding Rezko he would innoculate himself against the false accusation that he is unwilling to take tough questioning regarding his friendship with Rezko.

Theres is also NAFTA Gate, which places Obama chief economic advisor telling the Canadian government that Obama's Anti NAFTA stance is just rhetoric for the Dem primary.

But by far the most insidious event of this week is the the continued smear campaign that Obama is a Muslim Manchurian Canidate , which entered a new phase when Hillary spoke to the issue on 60 minutes. When asked if she thought Barack was a Muslim she responded that "there nothing to base that on, as far as I know". Such a statement implies that there is maybe something we don't know, when Hillary could've denounced and rejected the rumor as she had Obama do regarding Farrakhan's support.



So yeah tough week for Obama but then i saw this video on Jack and Jills blog and I was inspired so much so that I was in tears (I know so emoooo!!!!). But theres nothing like hearing from the organizers on the ground to make you start feeling like everything will be okay.


Monday, March 3, 2008

I'm switching to Boost mobile...



My friend Josh put this up on his blog and I thought it was dope.

It's funny cause its true!!

THE REVOLUTION WILL BE CO OPTED!!!!

In all out effort for street wear companies to do whatever it takes to bite, steal, and co-opt any sort of anti establishment movement or culture, Puma and RBC is proud to present the Suede Lo with black fist etched in for good measure.

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I joke; RBC has nothing to do with latest travesty of Black Liberation Co-option Street wear. And I mean come on, all over print fists. When can we let the all over print go the way of polka dots. Oh wait kids in Wicker park still rock polka dots like they have black cousin name Kwame but I’m digressing.

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The shoes are coming out to commemorate Tommie Smith who in 1968 along with John Carlos pump there fist in protest of the US policies toward African Americans. Ironically Tommie and John wore no shoes at the ceremony to symbolize the poverty of black America. Not so ironically one must assume Tommie nor John will receive any of the profits made from the shoes. But still since "we have come so far" Puma decided to make a shoe with black fist print all over in honor of this moment in history. At a certain point one has to be like what the fuck is with this shit. It’s one thing when a indie company like Creative Recs or Supra does some shit like this but let’s not dilutes ourselves. Puma is a multinational corporation that made 766 million for their old rich white exceptive board last year, they could give flying fuck about Black liberation or the history of it unless it somehow fattens there pockets first. If they gave a fuck they would sponsor free school programs(that’s right a majority of Africa does not have a public school system) in Africa instead of soccer teams, and would pay for after school programs in America instead some bougie back to Africa Fela Kuti Revival that ignores the fact that the man died from AIDS.
Yeah I’m bitter , very bitter. Power to People!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
P.S. Again all over prints are way too played out , holla!!!!!!!!

Sunday, March 2, 2008