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Thursday, August 12, 2004

Hughes photo by Carl Van Vechten.

It's a special day here at the Hut; it's TALKATIVE DAY!
Ya'll need to leave me some comments. Here's what I'd suggest: as this is the next to last post in the acapella collection, why don'tcha tell me what you've liked and what you didn't like. Or tell me how much you love me. Or hate me. Or why you come here or how long you've been reading or what you'd like to see highlighted or how you like my new format for giving info on the music. Or something, eh?
As it stands, one out of 355 of you who visited left a message.
Feedback. I need feedback.

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glisten: Acap' CD 12

23: Langston Hughes - "The Weary Blues"

Adam - This girl I knew said that in high school, the only material she'd use to jill off to was Dylan Thomas and Langston Hughes spoken word. I'm not sure I can get down with that vibe, but this is a good listen.

Spencer - You can't have the blues, play the blues, or sing the blues, but please do not talk about the blues. The blues are not to be talked about. Please do not talk about the blues.

Kevin - The obvious connection is to hiphop. I've always thought poetry made more sense read out loud. The author's inflections make it mean so much more. I'm somehow reminded of last weekend when I saw Rich Jenson (former Sub Pop A&R, current head of Clear Cut Publishing) do a reading. Langston screams less than Rich did, however.

I agree with Kevin; Langston has a nice rhythm. It's always interesting to hear poets recite their own work. Hughes is one that I really was into in college and I'd sort of lost touch with until I found a CD of him performing. Hughes will be headlining the "Blue" CD that'll start next week. Couldn't resist.

Buy "Voices of Black America" from Naxos Audiobooks.
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Listen to scratchy audio of Ossie Davis reading excerpts from Hughes' short fiction pieces.
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Explore Yale University's impressive Langston Hughes centenary celebration and listen to "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" as an added bonus.
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Find a few books to start with at this Hughes reference and resource site.
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Learn a bit more about the Harlem Renaissance.

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24: Joe Lee - "Corn Grinding Song"

Spencer - All I can think is that Joe Lee is a terrible Indian name.

I don't know about that.

Adam - Despite being from the Midwest, I've never ground corn, nor would I ever want to after hearing what may be a musical interpretation of it.

I don't know about that.

Kevin - Makes me wonder what a mix of vocal songs without actual words would sound like. Sometimes lyrics are a distraction. Enya, for example! Enya's lyrics are usually terrible, but I am a huge Enya fan.

I don't know about that.

Just kidding Enya's okay; I like Boadicea in particular. "Ready or Not" ya'll!


Buy "Navajo Songs" from Amazon.
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Visit the official site of the Navajo Nation.
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Research the "index of Native American music resources on the Internet".
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Explore the Library of Congress' online collection of Omaha Indian music.
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Listen to excerpts from these Kiowa Indian songs.

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spiffy

Here's a good idea: Nuclear Elephant is hosting a site where people can report their spending habits AFTER downloading material. So if you bought anything based on what you found here, get on over there and tell 'em Tofu sent ya.
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The misanthrope left the house over the weekend to take a peek in at PS 1's weekend party. The DJ's was bumpin' and the crowd was rockin' but I think I already told ya'll that I ain't the one for that sort of interchange. I get uncomfortable in crowds. So here's our boy wandering around the museum proper, looking for some inspiration. Not a whole lot to be found; most of the art was by turns either too clever (a room of stereos with each cued up to deliver bursts of sound and speech was drowned out by the din of the crowd), inscrutable (gloves covered in fishhooks? shirts of nails? a leather upholstered hoe? this stuff was old news by 1937, folks) or trippy (lots and lots of pop-op; I didn't know that was back in vogue).

Then I wandered into a dark room that was filled with a series of ceiling height, transparent canvas screens in the shape of a cross. The cross was hollow and you were invited to step into the center to a circular sofa, but the room was overfilled with people. Cast onto three of the screens (the "points" of the cross, so to speak) were three different films, each somewhat synched to the others. Each film followed the mundanities of it's subject: a young professional woman in one, a man performing his job painting a helicopter, a young black man wandering around a desolate urban landscape... hold up! Who's that young black man? Fuck if it don't look like Andre 3K! And fuck if it ain't!

So we watch these people stumble from one place to another, exploring what is mostly a sad and sterile world... but the moment changes as we see each of them slip into their own private world. The woman starts playing handball and the echoes of the hits and her groans and grunts of action sound positively orgiastic; the guy with the helicopter launches into an impromptu but expert tap dance and 'Dre starts spitting "?" with machinegun quickness. Everything is staccatto and vibrant and ALIVE. Then the tape restarts and the films are shuffled about and a new one is put in and the monotony begins again only to be shattered by unstoppable human intensity.

The piece was Doug Aitken's "Interiors" and I recommend that all the NY hipsters hustle out to see it. Very very impressive and neat shit for the hiphopster art fiends 'mongst you.

Also, "Spottieottiedopaliscious" is probably Outkast's best song on their best album.

Go 'head and marinate on that for awhile.
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More bitchin' WIKI info, this time with a ton of audio tracks. Visit Ambience for the Masses, fulfilling a big musicbloggin' need. Great stuff.
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Yet again, Waxy provides a link, I just pass it on: This astonishing video for Qua's "Devil Eyes" is certainly something special but so is the music; I've been running this in the background virtually all night. This is what I hoped Mogwai would sound like when I first heard about them (no dis to Mogwai intended; I like most of what I've heard from them but it doesn't have the intensity of THIS).

I'd love to get the album but surprise surprise: no US release.

I MUST get "Devil Eyes", I'm loving this track to death. Any of my Aussie or Kiwi pals wanna hook me up with a drop? Trac?

In the meantime, the downloads on the artist page listed above are VERY rewarding, primo Aphex-style stuff. Go check them all out.
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Couldn't let the opportunity pass to thank the mysterious Cali, a sweet buddy from over at Monkeyfilter (and apparently, this blog) who was so kind as to actually SEND ME A BIRTHDAY PRESENT. Is that nutty or what?

Anyway, I'm now the proud owner of that neat "Hikky Burr" CD that's been getting so much musicblog press and Cali is the proud owner of my deep love and appreciation. Can I get anything for you?

Here's hoping this becomes a habit. Ya'll can feel free to pick me up stuff on my wantlist up there. I'm not proud.
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God, I've accumulated so much new music lately. How much? So much I'll write a special post on the fifty or so new albums I've acquired in the past two weeks along with a long overdue update to the musicblog posts over to your right. Plus if I'm feeling up to it, I might tell you a bit more about my stance on a lot of the legal talk that's been blown up by that morning news interview. And I'll likely offer that new CD tomorrow as well.

But first I need to chill on the OCD front.