AniManga: Darker Than Black

This post is for my Otaku's and Anime addicts. I just finished this series Darker than Black and if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. 

An uncharted area called Hell's gate appears in Tokyo and all the stars disappear and are replaced by artificial stars.  During this time people started gaining superhuman abilities. These humans are known as Contractors. They are cold blooded murderers, smothering unnecessary emotions with logic and rationale.

Contractors are given the name because of an involuntary compulsion to "pay the price" each time their power is used, which can range from eating particular foods and completing meaningless tasks, to self-harm and having their bodies change in peculiar ways. Various nations and organizations around the world train and utilize Contractors as spies and assassins, resulting in violent battles for valuable objects and information.

The story revolves around a Chinese contractor codenamed Hei who has the ability to use electricity. He undertakes various espionage and assassination missions in Tokyo under the direction of a secret organization known as the Syndicate. 

The show is fast paced and has enough action and betrayals to make you wanna watch the sequel. I posted a clip below of Hei fighting another powerful contractor named Wei. Check it out and if you like it, tell a friend to tell a friend.

New Muzik

Happy Holidays People,

In the festive spirit of the Yule tide season I come bearing gifts. New Muzik from industry veterans and fresh faces. I call new muzik songs that have a strong beat, good lyrics, catchy chorus and  the artists image and appearance is congruent to whatever he's relaying in the song. 

First up is Pace Won. He was a member of the group "Outsidaz,” back in the 90's which included members Eminem and Bizarre before they created D12. He also did collabo’s with Flipmode Squad and the Fugees. He’s back with a hot track with Mr. Green and Rival called “My Song.”

Next is Murs and 9^th Wonder with a melodic Ode to Hip-Hop called “I used to love her again." 9th is one of the go to producers for hit records. Murs is a conscious rapper and part of groups Living Legends and Mystik Journeymen. 

Followed by Saigon, dropping conscious poems with depth on his track "Together Dear Black America." Saigon has been around for awhile steadily building a buzz over the years but due to label problems has yet to release his long anticipated album "The Greatest story never told."  Perhaps on the strength of this track and other buzz worthy singles the album will be released in the new year.

Finally Drag-On former member of heavyweight label the Ruff Ryders, along with The Lox, DMX, Eve, and Cassidy. Drag took a brief hiatus from the game after dropping his last project in 2004 and now is back bringing the heat for the winter. The track "Swine Flu" featuring Jadakiss and Trish Barnes is a return to 90's Hip-Hop with hard rhymes, beats, and delivery. Enjoy!

Canadian Hip-Hop

This post is dedicated to spitters coming from the cold. Canadian Hip-Hip started in the eighties and gradually expanded taking influences from the U.S. and Europe. 

The first Canadian rappers I heard were  Kardinal Offishall and Choclair back in the nineties. Since then I've met Maestro Wes and numerous artists from all over the country at the Midem conferences in Cannes, France. Most of the acts being represented were R & B but there were a few Hip-Hop acts that inspired me to look'em up.

Below I posted music from the Rascalz, Swollen Members, K-OS, and Rochester a.k.a Juice all talented artists coming from the cold.

Electronic Pick Pockets

Technology is moving at a frightening speed and to keep up thieves and criminals must find new and innovative ways to steal. Back in the day when you would ride the subway or bus you had to watch out for pick-pockets. Now you have to worry about electronic pick-pockets, guys that steal all your credit card information without ever taking it out of your wallet. Check out the clip below. 

Conscious Rap

I consider Conscious Rap, music made to illicit change in ones social situation, city, state or surrounding environment. Its considered a underground, sub-genre of hip hop that focuses on social issues. It is not necessarily political, but it does discuss social issues and conflicts. Themes of conscious hip hop include religion, economy,stopping violence, Black, Latino, and Asian American cultural advancement.

Grandmaster Flash's "The Message" was one of the first successful political and conscious hip hop tracks, describing the poverty, violence, and dead-end lives of the black youth of the time. Hip-Hop was once full of groups that delivered a strong message without sounding preachy. 

Groups like A Tribe Called Quest, and Blackstar (Mos Def and Talib Kweli) had mainstream success while promoting a positive message about education and change received less media attention as Hip-Hop became mainstream. 

This post is a tribute to artists and groups who have used their freedom of expression to educate and enlighten others. Below are Immortal Technique, Visionaries, The Roots, Sage Francis, and Paris check 'em out.

Wiki Leaks

For those of you who haven't been following the news. Wikileaks and its founder Julian Assange have been under global attack. WikiLeaks is a non-profit media organization dedicated to bringing important news and information to the public. They provide an innovative, secure and anonymous way for independent sources around the world to leak information to journalists. 

They publish material of ethical, political and historical significance while keeping the identity of the sources anonymous, thus providing a universal way for revealing suppressed and censored social injustice.

WikiLeaks released a classified US military video depicting the indiscriminate slaying of over a dozen people in the Iraqi suburb of New Baghdad -- including two Reuters news staff. Reuters has been trying to obtain the video through the Freedom of Information Act, without success since the time of the attack. 

The video, shot from an Apache helicopter gun-sight, clearly shows the unprovoked slaying of a wounded Reuters employee and his rescuers. Two young children involved in the rescue were also seriously wounded.

This video and the Wikileak of the Afghanistan War Logs over the summer has made the US contact its ally countries and attempt to shutdown and block the website. Here is a link to the video on youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rXPrfnU3G0  do to its sensitive nature I can't post it below. 

Read more about Wikileaks and what YOU can do to insure information stays free by clicking on the link and taking action.

Album Reviews

Since there's allot of new albums being released and I'm an opinionated bastard I thought it only fitting I did an album review post. If you're familiar with my previous posts you know how I grade music. If you're unfamiliar here's the scoop. I rate in a five star system 5 being the highest 1 the lowest.  

The elements of a good album are production, dope rhymes, delivery, and overall message. That's four points and the last is a combination of the minor details. For example, If the album has to many interludes, to many features and not enough solo tracks, or if the artists image and music aren't congruent then the album loses value. With that said lets get it in. 

Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy **** (4.5)

Say what you want about Kanye and his ridiculously tight jeans, but that is one talented dude. His 5th album shows artistic range mixing elements of Hip-Hop, funk, soul, and jazz with industry heavyweights like Jay-Z, RZA, Rick Ross, Pusha -T, and many others. I've been listening to Kanye's albums since the "College Dropout" and I gotta say this is one of his best.  

Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday *** (3.5)

There's been allot of hype over Nicki Minaj and anticipation for this album release. After a thorough listen I feel some of the tracks like Roman's Revenge" ft. Eminem and "Massive Attack." While others are heavily dance music influenced with allot of synthesizer,  auto-tune and not my taste. 

For a first album this is definitely a worthy offering and if you're a Nicky fan support your artist and buy a copy. While you're at it go buy a copy of Home Street Home by Misstrezz. She's coming from Europe but I would put her in the ring with any MC.

Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon vol:2 Mr. Rager ** (2)

The first song I heard from  Kid Cudi was his single smash "Day 'n' Nite" which reached the top five of the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts. Since then he has moved away from his Hip-Hop roots to the hard rock genre. The majority of the album is rock and dance influenced, which is nothing like the first Man on the Moon. 

I can't say if the album is good or bad cuz this is just MY opinion. What I can say is Kid Cudi doesn't display enough of his rhyme skills on this album. If you're looking for Hip-Hop this isn't it, if you want to hear Kid Cudi as a rocker go buy a copy. 

Hardcore Hip-Hop

I've been listening to mixtapes lately cuz i'm not feeling allot of peoples albums. There's always five or six dope tracks and the rest are just fillers. I miss the days of Hardcore Hip-Hop! When I use the term "hardcore," I mean a hard beat, hard rhymes and hard delivery like classic tunes "Ante-Up," by M.O.P. or "Slam,"by Onyx.

Below are songs "60 second Assassins" DJ Kay Slay ft. Busta Rhymes, Layzie Bone, Jaz-O, and Twista. "Uncommon Valor" by Jedi Mind Tricks ft. RA The Rugged Man, "Ego Trippin," from Tech N9ne, and "Perception" by my homie NLZ. A MC and producer whose been making hardcore tracks for a minute. He produced the song "Young and Hungry" off my last album Sinister Ambitionz.  

Check out the tunes below and if you want to know more about the artists, click on their name. 

Mix of Flavors

This post is a mix of flavors, first it's the return of Sir Mix a Lot. A old school rapper / producer from Seattle, Washington who reached iconic status with his 1992 hit single "baby got back." In 1986, Sir Mix-a-Lot and his DJ, Nasty Nes founded the Nastymix record label. His first hit released in 1987, was the single "Posse on Broadway," whose title referred to a street in Seattle's Capitol Hill district. 

Over the years he's released 6 albums the two most notable were Seminar and Mack Daddy. Sir Mix-a-lot has new tunes in 2010, he just released a new single titled "Cars" which I posted below. Along with a few of his older hits and new music from artists, Statik Selektah & Termanology featuring Xzibit and Cassidy.

Birth Control Lotion

For you people in the often considered fabled monogamous relationship. There's a new medical breakthrough that's going to make the need for condoms obsolete. 

Birth control lotion – contraception for women that’s not a pill, patch, but a gel. Women apply a small amount daily, rubbed anywhere on the body, like arms, legs, shoulders or abdomen. Similar to the contraceptive patch, the birth control "lotion" is said to release hormones directly into the skin. 

It has shown equal effectiveness as both patch and pill without the side effects of sickness, weight gain, or a muted sense of sexual desire. This is from a statement made by the manufacturer. If you want to know more check out the video below.

Gone but not forgotten

This post is a tribute to some of the many talented artists the industry has lost through the years. Gone but not forgotten O.D.B. (Old Dirty Bastard), J-Dilla, Big Pun, Jam Master Jay, Big L, Stack Bundles, Party Artie (aka P80), all lost talents who went before there time. Their legacy is immortalized by the memories of those left behind, and in the music below.

The New Breed

There's a whole New Breed of MC's hungry for recognition. The industry goes through phases every couple of years like fashion trends. There was the DMX, 50 Cent hardcore Hip-Hop era then it went to the Kanye West, Mickey Facts  pink clothes, tight jean wearing, stuff animal on the backpack phase. Now the winds of change are blowing it back towards the hardcore. 

Below are rappers Vado, Skyzoo, Black Milk, Q-Unique, and Ras Kass. They each have a different sound and style but the one thing the have in common is they're all spittin gangsta sh*t.

Artistic Vision

There are few photographers who make pictures like David La Chapelle. He has won numerous awards and is the Hollywood go to guy when it comes to taking unique shots covering themes of life. He likes to use bizarre imagery to show death, lust, love, hate and every emotion in between. 

LaChapelle has four published books of his photographs, including LaChapelle Land, Hotel LaChapelle, Heaven to Hell, and Artists and Prostitutes. All four books contain vivid portraits of celebrities such as Marilyn Manson, Michael Jackson Naomi Campbell,  David Bowie,  Björk, Shakira,  Courtney Love, Lil' Kim,  Cher, Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, Hugh Hefner, Madonna, P!nk, Rihanna,  and recently Lady Gaga. I posted some of the photos I found entertaining below.

Madd Science

I can't discredit or validate the information in this clip. I posted it cuz it caught my attention like watching an accident on the highway. 

Allow me to introduce Dr. Robert Gallo, the man accredited by the Dept. of Defense as being the creator of the AIDS virus. The video is done (Micheal Moore) documentary style, presented by researcher and scientist Dr.Leonard Horowitz. He has more clips detailing the actual creation process on his youtube page.  Check out the compelling video clip below.

3rd Coast Rappers

Most people talk about the East and West Coast and don't acknowledge the 3rd Coast...the South. I've spent some time in Texas and lived in Alabama, North Carolina and South Carolina. At the bottom of Texas is the gulf of Mexico and they throw some wild parties there during the summer. In Galveston, Texas (The Bay Area) the have a annual Mardi Gras festival similar to New Orleans, where girls strip for beads.

I'm not a big fan of southern Hip-Hop but there are some artists out there who can spit. Below are a few 3rd Coast (southern artists) Ludacris, Chamillionaire, Outkast, Bun B, and Scarface who all have tunes on my MP3 player.

New Muzik

There's allot of new music out right now...most of its garbage, lets be real. In between the piles of audio trash I found a few joints that had the key components of what I call "New Muzik." The song has a strong beat, good lyrics, catchy chorus and most importantly. The artists image and appearance is congruent to whatever he's relaying in the song. 

In simple terms, making the subject matter believable. An example is, if you got a rapper saying he's pushing mad weight and did three felony bids in the song. BUT when you see them in clips or in magazines there image and demeanor is that of a school kid with no record. The music isn't believable and usually you can hear it.

With that said here is some new music from new and established artists worth checking out. Wiz Khalifa, Redman, Global, Mysonne, and Hopsin.

Alwayz Therro Magazine

Whats Poppin My Hip-Hop Hooligans,
 
Below is the link to my interview in "Alwayz Therro Magazine." The #1 Digital Magazine that specializes in the latest urban culture, news, style, fashion and lifestyle. 

The article talks about my history making music, new projects, and other ventures  in art outside of the music industry. Click the link "Tyger Vinum brings more than music to the industry" read the article and if you like the magazine, subscribe and tell a friend to tell a friend. 


Peace

M.C. Escher Art

Out of the brain of a truly talented artist came spiraling staircases and intricate illustrations that baffled the mind and sparked the imagination. These are just a few words used to describe the work of world famous graphic artist M.C. Escher. 

Maurits Cornelis Escher (17 June 1898 – 27 March 1972) is most famous for his impossible structures, such as Ascending and Descending, Relativity, and his Transformation Prints (Metamorphosis I, Metamorphosis II) which is how I became familiar with his work. 

The first illustration of Escher's I saw was Relativity   when I was a kid. At the time I was dumbfounded to how a person could make such intricate three-dimensional structures on paper. Here it is almost twenty years later and I still haven't figured out the secret. I posted a few pieces of his work below, take a look. 

 Two Faces

Moebius

  
Snakes

Stars  

Waterfall

 

  
Circle Limit III 

AniManga: Monster

This is for all my anime addicts. I’ve been watching this series “Monster” that’s amazing! Monster is a warped and twisted, psychological, suspense, drama that follows the life of a doctor who accused of murder. He saved the life of a nine year old boy who he finds out later was being groomed by the government to be the next Hitler or Anti-Christ. 

Similar to the movie “The Fugitive,” the doctor is constantly being chased by the police and secret government agencies. The boy is trying to find his twin and the doctor is trying to stop the boy. The show has numerous sub-plots and is a cross between Die Hard, The Fugitive, and Alfred Hitchcock all mixed together. I posted a short clip below check it out.

Top 5 DJ's (dead or alive)

Someone asked me a question the other day. "Who was my all time favorite DJ...dead or alive?" I didn’t have an answer at the time. I don’t really like lists, BUT for the sake of conversation I posted my top five dead or alive DJ’s. When I say DJ I mean a person who spins and can scratch on the turntables, not producers with the title DJ in their name...like DJ Quik or DJ Green Lantern. 

I’ll do a top five dead or alive post about MC's at a later date. Below in no particular order are DJ Premiere, DJ Screw, Tony Touch, DJ Clue,  and DJ Jazzy Jeff. Check out how Jazzy Jeff breaks down the record live at the House of Blues. If you don’t like my five DJ’s post a comment with a list of your own.

Reggaeton

People can say what they want about Reggaeton (Latin Reggae) but its a musical genre that’s here to stay. Like hip-hop and dancehall its a sub-culture of music that critiques dubbed a "fad" that would disappear within five years. I first got familiar with its unique sound in the mid 90's from listening to Tony Touch aka Tony Toca. 

He had two mixtapes “The Peacemaker volume 1 and 2 that featured an artist named Tego Calderone. This dudes style was off the chain! He reminded me a of a Latin version of Shabba Ranks. Since then numerous artists have appeared on the scene and Reggeaton has hit the mainstream.

Reggaeton originally started in Panama and migrated to Puerto Rico and around the world. It blends West-Indian music influences of reggae and dancehall with those of Latin America, such as bomba, plena, salsa, latin pop and bachata as well as hip hop, R&B, and electronica.  Reggaeton combines all these flavors with rapping or singing in Spanish. Below are artists Daddy Yankee, Ivy Queen, Tego Calderone, Nina Sky and Don Omar a few artists from the genre I think are dope. Check ‘em out.

Neo-Expressionism Art

Jean Michele Basquiat  (December 22, 1960 – August 12, 1988) was an artist in many genres including graffiti, music (DJ, punk band, mc) and fashion. He is also the first African American international superstar. He dated celebrities like Madonna and Blondie but was most famous for his Neo-Expressionist paintings. He died at age 27 from a heroine overdose.

I didn’t learn about Basquiat until the mid 90’s when the girl I was dating (who was a painting major) told me about him. I was impressed he made it into the art history books and checked out some of his work. He had a unique style that used multi-layers of color mixed with obscure phrases. I liked it instantly and although my art was developed independently I saw similarities in our styles. I posted a few pieces of his work below and if you want to know more about him click on his name or go to www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/basquiat. 

                                            Palms Springs Jump 

                                                             Two Crabs

                                                         In Italian 

                                                                   ErNok 

                                                           Onion Gum 

                                           Portrait of Jean Kallin

Meet the Jetsons

If you’ve never heard of the Jetsons its okay cuz the show is older than dinosaurs. The Jetsons were a family who lived in the future and would go to work, school and shop using Jetpacks. This was a revolutionary concept at the time cuz it depicted humans flying as the next step in technology.

We’ve now reached that point...in steps the Martian Jetpack. The Martin Jetpack is the world’s first Jetpack made for commercial use. Unlike the Jetpacks you see in the movies which use strings and other devices to assist with flying, this actually works. It consists of a gasoline engine driving twin ducted fans which produce sufficient thrust to lift the aircraft and a pilot in vertical takeoff and landing, enabling sustained flight. I posted a clip below, take a look cuz this is your future too.

Here is another Jetpack. This one is cooler cuz it's faster and looks similar to the ones worn in Japanese Anime. This is a powerful Jetpack that reaches speeds up to 300kph and has wings like a jet plane. Its completely developed and functioning but do to its many applicable military uses will most likely not be available commercially for another decade. Check it out!

U.K. Hip-Hop

The UK Hip-Hop scene also known as Brit-Hop has been growing with the same speed as the US since the 80's. Although old school Brit-Hop emulated the US sound, by the 90's they veered off in their own direction. Experimenting with different sounds and flavors that produced sub-genres of music like Grime, Drum and Bass, and U.K.Garage. I've been to the U.K. numerous times and know cats that can spit with some of the best American MC's. They get busy over there and the big labels like Bad Boy, Def Jam and Interscope know it. That's why since the last few years they've been trolling the UK for talent.

Below are MC's Dizzee Rascal, Wiley, Klashnekoff and Sway. All from different parts of the U.K. and each with a different flavor. I linked their artist pages to the names if you want to know more about them.

Freestyle Monstas

Frestylin is defined as raps performed with no previously composed lyrics. The most commonly used slang term is "spittin off the top of the dome."  Originally, in the 1980s, the term ‘freestyle’ referred to a pre-written rap verse that was not on any particular subject matter, but instead was written for the purpose of demonstrating skill. Since the early ‘90s onwards, with the popularization of improvisational rapping from groups/artists such as Freestyle Fellowship and Souls of Mischief. The term "freestyle" has become used as a  term for rap lyrics which are improvised on the spot.

Below are a some MC's who I call freestyle monsta's, meaning they can spit ridiculous verses off the top of the dome...nothing written. There's allot of catz who claim it, but only a few could do it. Supernatural, Juice, and Big L (R.I.P) are three MC's who could spit verses so effortlessly it sounds like they're written. Check the clips.

New Movies

For the homebodies who like to stay indoors here is a few movies that I recommend watching. Inception (sci-fi/action), Clash of the Titans (fantasy/action), Knight and Day (comedy/action), The Expendables (action) and Salt (mystery/action). I've seen all of them on the list and depending on how you feel about spoilers, I posted trailers below. 

Inception

The Expendables

Knight and Day

Clash of the Titans

Salt

Female MC's

Hip-Hop has changed allot over the years and one of the most noticeable changes is the disappearance of female MC's. Back in the 90's there were allot more female MC's with talent in the game. Now there seems to be only one or two with real talent and allot of copycats of those two being promoted by their label. 

Artists like Queen Latifah, Bahamadia, MC Lyte, Rah Digga, Sonya Blade, Heather B, Lil Kim, and Lady of Rage are just a few artists that used to spit fiya. Below I put a few tracks from these emcees as a tribute to the dying genre. Don't get it twisted there's allot of female talent out there, but major labels seem to have lost their interest. This could be for many reasons but I'm assuming it has more to do with album sales than talent. 

Check out the clips below and if u like the tunes, tell a friend to tell a friend.