I've got tons of stuff here that I've set to only be available to my friends and family so if you know me, and you're not on Multiply yet, sign up now so you can see it.
Posted by Michael on Jan 25, '10 9:30 AM for everyone
Why I downloaded streamed it: I was pumping some iron the other day and in a workout-to-rap mood, but I was a little tired of everything relatively new. Eminem, 50 Cent, Kanye, et. al. Yawn. I briefly entertained some sort of internet radio (Rhapsody hip-hop-station or Pandora) but I've found for working out I'm most motivated (or distracted) with music I know. So I decided to go old…as old as I can remember. A quick search on the Rhapsody app on my phone brought me right back to 1984.
Rhapsody's review: With his classic debut album, (and the first full-length released by Def Jam), hip-hop pioneer LL Cool J became a full-blown rap superstar. Backed by chunky '80s beats courtesy of ultra-producer Rick Rubin, Uncle L comes through with timeless mega-hits such as "I Can't Live Without My Radio" and "Rock The Bells."
My take: It was over 25 years ago and I remember it like it was, well, 25 years ago. I walked down into the basement of my friend Mel's home and there on the floor he sat with a pile of LPs. I don't remember all of them. One was a Whodini record and one was LL Cool J's Radio. Before listening to any I knew this was something different just by the pictures on the artists on the album covers. To this point my record collection consisted largely of groups like The Police, Rush, Genesis, The Cars.
Then Mel dropped the needle on Radio and I was blown away. There are probably only a handful of times in life where you hear music that sounds like absolutely nothing you've ever heard before and this is perhaps the only one I remember. I couldn't say "this sounds sort of like…" because there was nothing in my personal listening history that resembled this in any way. It wasn't a cappella but there wasn't any traditional instrumentation. No guitars. No piano. The background "music" was funky drum beats and the noises a record made when you "accidentally" scratched it. There was no singing. But it wasn't speaking. It was just over-the-top different. And I liked it.
That week Mel was dating a girl named Yyvette (or maybe he previously had) so the lyrics of "Dear Yvette" instantly became part of our vernacular. Too shy to hit the dance floor of the teen alcohol-free dance clubs Mel would drag me to, "You Can't Dance" was adopted as a personal anthem. "I Can't Live Without My Radio"…"Rock the Bells"…"I Need a Beat". Classic. Classic. Classic.
I don't recall whether I was allowed to borrow the LP to make a copy on cassette, or we made a copy right there. But that cassette was played often and represents my first rap / hip-hop album. Besides being an iconic album for myself, Radio was also the first album released by Def Jam records and was one of the first records produced by legend Rick Rubin who subsequently and successfully worked with everyone. In 2007, for example, Rubin won the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical for his work with The Dixie Chicks, Justin Timberlake, Red Hot Chili Peppers, U2, Green Day, and Johnny Cash.
The album was released pre-video-era, or at least pre-hip-hop video era but I did find some footage of 18 year-old LL doing "I Can't Live Without My Radio" on Soul Train. Also discovered a VHI Hip Hop Honors tribute with "Rock the Bells" performed by the Roots, Eminem and DJ Jazzy Jeff in the role of Cut Creator. Enjoy [below].
As an addendum, it was the early 90s and after having a few drinks during happy hour I grabbed some food at the McDonald's in Union Square. While paying there was all of a sudden some massive hysteria and yelling…"oh my god. LL Cool J". His limo pulled up in front and as I'm leaving, there he is, walking in, relatively alone. (This was apparently before it was en vogue for rappers to shoot other rappers.) With no inhibitions as a result of happy hour I pretty much walked up him, said something stupid but complimentary, and held up my right hand for a chest level bro handshake…which he returned. That was Cool.
11 is a luxury football table for discerning lovers of the world’s favourite game. After a full year of careful planning and development it has now gone into limited production.
11’s sweeping curves reflect the beauty and grandeur of today’s modern stadiums, while its atmospheric lighting and chromed metal players capture the excitement and drama of a classic sporting encounter.
Each individually numbered table is meticulously hand-finished to the very highest standards by skilled European craftsmen.
This award-winning design was first showcased at the Milan Furniture Fair in 2008. After attracting much critical and public acclaim, it has now been developed for limited production.
Posted by Michael on Nov 18, '09 11:39 AM for everyone
Over the years I've shared a few foosball tables, my favorite still being the $73K table where you can have the faces of the dudes (or dude-ettes) customized by sending in photos of your friends and family.
This one, at a mere $30K, takes the cake in terms of gaudiness. Perhaps it would be must have if I were pimping out my home for an episode of Mtv Cribs. If by chance you were thinking of picking one of these up for me for the holidays, I don't want to seem ungrateful, but perhaps you can save the money and get me the $73K table next year? The wood would go better in my basement than the gold.
More pictures, including a less gaudy white and aluminum version, on their web-site.
Posted by Michael on Aug 5, '09 5:55 PM for everyone
I think even Tug McGraw would have trouble believing in the Mets season at this point. I'm still holding out some hope for some amazin' magic but it gets tougher with each injury. In all my years of being a baseball fan...make that sports fan...I don't recall any single season so mired with injuries. For those not intimately familiar, below is the opening day starting line-up for the Mets and key pitchers. (middle relievers omitted)
Postition Players Jose Reyes (ss) Ryan Church (rf) Carlos Beltran (cf) David Wright (3b) Carlos Delgado (1b) Daniel Murphy (lf) Brian Schneider / Ramon Castro (c) Luis Castillo (2b)
Starters Johan Santana Mike Pelfrey Oliver Perez John Maine Livan Hernandez
Closer and Setup Franciso Rodriguez JJ Putz
Most baseball fans know of Reyes, Beltran, and Delgado. These 3 along with Wright are the "core." Those 3 have also been on the disabled list for a few months each. Most teams without 3 of their key 4 would pretty much be out of it, but most Mets fans were pleased with how well the replacements have filled in...at least for a while. What's been mind-bogglling is how the injuries just keep coming.
With Delgado out, Daniel Murphy moved to first and old-timer Gary Sheffield took over in left. While he performed better than expected (leads the Mets in HR) his 40 year-old body couldn't hold up and he was put on DL for a while. He came off the DL Sunday, but this afternoon pulled his hamstring.
Short outfielders the Mets brought up 20 year-old phenom Fernando Martinez. Well, he tore his meniscus, had surgery during all-star break and is out 'til at least September (or season).
On the pitching side of things Putz has been out most of the year. John Maine has been on DL most of season. Perez was out for a while, came back for 2 or 3 starts, but is "injured" again. With the Mets short starters, they brought up Fernando Nieve. Who? I don't know, but he did great as a fill-in going 3 -3 with a 2.95 ERA in 7 starts. But then this fill-in got hurt. Torn quad. Maybe back in September.
Last week brought up another young prospect Jonathan Niese. Guy was rocking in Triple A. On July 25th, first Mets start (excluding some early season spot starts) he gives up 1 run in 7 innings against Houston. On August 5th, today, he leaves game in 2nd inning after pulling hamstring. Besides recent injuries to Sheffield and Niese, Luis Castillo didn't start because he sprained his ankle yesterday. Sliding into a base? No. Diving for a catch? No. He slipped and fell into the dugout after grounding out.
Right now the formidable Mets line-up looks like
Angel Pagan (cf) Alex Cora (2b) David "hasn't seen a fast ball for 2 months" Wright (3b) Daniel Murphy (1b) Jeff Francoeur (rf) (via trade of Ryan Church) Cory "who?" Sullivan (rf) Brian Schneider / Omir Santos (c) Alex "who?" Berroa (ss)
The Mets disabled list has about as many players as their 25 man roster.
Posted by Michael on Nov 30, '07 12:05 PM for everyone
"Is Facebook Overrated?," from last week's Time Magazine, is a rare article on social networking that I enjoyed reading.
Anita Hamilton suggests that "Social networks are a lot like nightclubs, and Friendster was the place to be in 2004 and '05, before MySpace came along and stole its mojo. In short, Friendster got boring."
That's exactly what we've been saying for years as it pertains to sites like Friendster, err Myspace...oh wait, what's hip today? Oh yeah, Facebook.
Later Hamilton quotes venture capitalist Jim Timmins of Pagemill Partners who says ""How do you serve up ads in such a fashion that your young, hip audiences aren't turned off by it?" Despite considering myself a pundit that is constantly proselytizing that social networking isn't just for "young, hip audiences" I applaud when a publication as credible and mainstream as Time reminds everyone that Mypace and Facebook are. It highlights how Multiply is different. As I wrote in Ironing Out the Wrinkles, Multiply is for everyone.
There was one inconsistency. Hamilton starts out by providing everyday examples of social networking that include "[boring] a neighbor with pictures from your kid's birthday party" and then writes that the "genius of social-networking websites such as MySpace and Facebook lies in their ability to capture the essence of these informal exchanges." But really, how many "young, hip" people are sharing their kid's photos in virtual nightclubs?
Multiply is ideal...the most ideal... application for sharing things like kids photos and there's nothing hip about that. Thank goodness. A lack of hipness and mojo is why we can never lose our hipness and mojo and that's a pretty exciting thing to think about.
Posted by Michael on Nov 9, '07 4:57 PM for everyone
Why I downloaded it: One day when rounding up my library with some old school hip-hop - specifically looking for Licensed to Ill - I noticed an album from the Beastie Boys that I had never heard of. The review (next paragraph) piqued my interest.
Rhapsody's review: Playing The In Sound From Way Out! to unsuspecting Beasties haters has been a popular parlor game since its release in 1996. Now comes an excellent and similarly groovy sequel, and it's just as likely to wrong-foot those few friends you still have who continue to disparage the Boys' talents. As jazz funk albums go, this probably isn't going to excite or offend serious jazzheads too much, but for the less educated among us it's a fun diversion from the Beasties' normal canon, and you can never have enough Hammond organ in your life.
My take: Ever been dragged by Hersh and Matar to a slightly off the beaten path - say west of Gramercy Park in NYC- lounge? That's the vibe given off by this instrumental and non-stereotypical-Beastie Boys album. Kind of funky. Somewhat jazzy. A good compliment to a martini. It's the type of music that'll provide a good, hip backdrop but won't distract from conversation. Tunes to "mix up" in a cocktail party playlist.
Posted by Michael on Oct 2, '07 10:37 AM for everyone
With the Mets collapse occurring gradually over the course of month, I wasn't stunned by the way the season ended. More crushing would be losing a playoff series, or perhaps a situation such as Phillies fans would've endured had the Phillies been eliminated on the last day after their momentous comeback.
I did focus on avoiding media coverage and generally ignoring the situation, and I didn't get really upset until I accidentally noticed the front-cover of the Post on the train. My reaction was "oh gosh, poor Charlie." While my almost two year-old son, who can slur the word "Mezzz" and recognize "ball" when it's on t.v, is fortunately too young to comprehend what happened, I couldn't help but think of the future misery he's going to face being a Mets fan.
Posted by Michael on Sep 28, '07 5:12 PM for everyone
For the last few years the fine folks at Ziff Davis have been suggesting to me that their annual DigitalLife expo would be a great place to show off Multiply. The event takes place at the Javitz Center and there's a wide array of companies showing off their digital (or digital-related) goods...everything including PCs, video-games, bluetooth car kits, mp3 players, cell-phones. You name it.
Multiply did not have a booth but I was offered a "VIP" pass to check out the show. Reluctantly I spent a couple hours checking out all these things that bore me.
I was most surprised at the the presence of video games. About 1/2 the floor space (and 75% of the wattage) was probably for video games. Besides lots of gaming companies, even companies like Dell and Microsoft had large gaming venues in addition to their regular venues.
I did acquire lots of good swag although I didn't embarrass myself for it. (At one point I saw a huge crowd gathering around one booth with loud hip-hop emanating...the company - a free internet phone service - was giving away t-shirts to anyway that danced to the hip-hop.)
Posted by Michael on Sep 26, '07 12:41 PM for everyone
In the past I've used my personal blog for discussions about Multiply. My latest, Ironing out the Wrinkles, was posted on our staff blog. Please check it out. Thanks.
Posted by Michael on Sep 19, '07 10:56 AM for everyone
On August 30th, after the Mets got swept by the Phillies and had their division lead shrink from 6 games to 2, I posted The Mets make me sick. After that post the Mets went 9 and 2 including winning 5 of 6 from the Braves, the Phillies went back to playing at their level, and the Mets division lead went right back up to 6 1/2 games.
With the Phillies coming into Shea for 3 games, the Mets could've easily ended the season by winning two or three games. Not. They got swept AGAIN and have proceeded to lose 2 more games (5 straight) while the Phillies won two more (5 straight) and now their division lead is a paltry 1 1/2 games.
My wife, with more neutral objectivity, suggested that perhaps I need to post again. Given what happened after the Mets first sweep I remained calm after the last sweep but in retrospect, if my first "make me sick" post had some kind of karmic affect I am perhaps a couple days late with this. But here goes.
The Mets make me really sick. How could they not win a game against the fakester Phillies? Worse, to give up 21 runs in two games against the Nationals - the lowest scoring team in the league - is simply pathetic. Blowing 4 run leads two games in a row? I don't know if I can watch another game this year.
(Watching the AL East standings also doesn't help. So, fwiw, the Red Sox are making me sick too. )
Posted by Michael on Sep 18, '07 4:03 PM for everyone
Category:
Books
Genre:
Sports
Author:
Eric Bronson
The title of the book caught my eye when perusing the Philosophy section at Barnes and Noble one day. Based on the flap I thought it would be a fun light read combining an avid interest of mine (baseball) with a more cursory interest (philosophy). The book was actually a little deeper than expected, although the format of the book - a series of independent essays - made it fairly digestible. The essays, in most cases grouped in pairs with each taking an opposing view of a philosophical argument, were all by different writers, and the 4-star rating is an average. Some of the essays were more though-provoking or interesting than others. Overall, it's a great escape for the serious fan from the idiocy of Baseball Tonight.
I figure the best way to more specifically highlight the subject matter would be to just list the table of contents:
Inning 1 Hometown Heroes
Top of the First 1. "There's No Place Like Home!"
Bottom of the First 2. Minnesota's "Homer Hanky Jurisprudence": Contraction, Ethics, and the Twins
Inning 2 You Gotta Believe!
Top of the Second 3. Should Cubs Fans Be Committed? What Bleacher Bums Have to Teach Us about the Nature of Faith
Bottom of the Second 4. Taking One for the Team: Baseball and Sacrifice
Inning 3 The Umpire's New Clothes
Top of the Third 5. There Are No Ties at First Base
Bottom of the Third 6. Taking Umpiring Seriously: How Philosophy Can Help Umpires Make the Right Calls
Inning 4 Fair or Foul?
Top of the Fourth 7. Baseball, Cheating, and Tradition: Would Kant Cork His Bat? Bottom of the Fourth 8. There's No Lying in Baseball (Wink, Wink)
Inning 5 Baseball and America
Top of the Fifth 9. Democracy and Dissent: Why America Needs Reggie Jackson
Bottom of the Fifth 10. Baseball and the Search for an American Moral Identity
Inning 6 Where Have You Gone, Jackie Robinson?
Top of the Sixth 11. The Negro Leagues and the Contradictions of Social Darwinism
Bottom of the Sixth 12. We're American Too: The Negro Leagues and the Philosophy of Resistance
Inning 7 The Japanese National Pastime?
Top of the Seventh 13. The Zen of Hitting
Bottom of the Seventh 14. Japanese Baseball and Its Warrior Ways?
Inning 8 Behind in the Count
Top of the Eighth 15. The Numbers Game: What Fans Should Know about the Stats They Love Bottom of the Eighth 16. Women Playing Hardball
Inning 9 Under Pressure
Top of the Ninth 17. Walking Barry Bonds: The Ethics of the Intentional Walk
Bottom of the Ninth 18. Socrates at the Ballpark
Post-Game Press Conference 19. Baseball and Ethics: Should Pete Rose Be in the Hall of Fame? Yes No 20. Baseball and Political Philosophy: Does A-Rod Deserve So Much Money? Yes No 21. Baseball and Metaphysics: Does Superstition Help Performance? Yes No 22. Baseball and Legal Philosophy: Should Steroids Be Banned? Yes No 23. Baseball and Aesthetics: What's the Best Baseball Movie? The Natural (1984) It Happens Every Spring (1949) 24. Baseball and Education: Were Baseball Players Better Role Models Then or Now? Then Now
Posted by Michael on Sep 18, '07 1:16 PM for everyone
(This blog entry was automatically generated by Multiply's Wish-list Cross-posting feature.)
Below are items recently added to my Amazon wish-list. If you are familiar with anything below and have any comments or alternate suggestions, please leave a reply.
Posted by Michael on Aug 30, '07 5:49 PM for everyone
Four days ago the Mets had a 6 game lead over the Phillies going into an important 4 game series against them. Going into the series, as a pessimist (synonymous with Mets fan), I'm just hoping the Mets win one out of the four and escape with a 4 game lead. Winning more than one would be gravy.
Monday night the Mets were blown out 9-2. Fine. Mets lead: 5 games.
Tuesday night Glavine pitched 7 shut-out innings and the Mets have a 2-0 lead. In the 8th they bring in Feliciano who gives up a home run to the first batter. A walk, throwing error on a steal, and an infield-roller that David Wright and Paul LoDuca watch stay fair it's 2-2. A nice Ryan Howard 2 run homer in the 10th wins the game. Mets lead: 4 games.
Wednesday, the Mets are down 3-2 in the 9th. They've got one out and runners on first and third. A fly-ball from tying the game. Just please no double-play. Shawn (weak-grounder-my-specialty) Green at the plate. Weak grounder to short. Maybe too weak to be a double-play? Rollins to Iguchi...Iguchi to...no throw...Mets tie it...nope...Marlon Anderson ran into Iguchi...interference called...batter out..double-play...game over. What just happened? Mets lead 3 games.
Today. Thankfully it was a day game so I didn't have to watch it. When I remembered there was a day game I checked and the Mets were already losing 8-5 in the 6th. Just to see how bad they'll lose I checked about an hour later. The Mets scored 5 runs in the 8th...now up 10-8! Mets bring in Billy Wagner - all star closer. How about giving up a homer? Burrell homers, thanks. 10-9. In the Phillies bottom of the 9th, 2 singles, three stolen bases, an intentional walk, and another single later..game over 11-10 Phillies. Mets division lead 2 games.
Earlier in the week in Marc's post Save = meaningless stat Sambu wrote "The save is one of the least effective stats at evaluating a players value to his team." and Marc wrote "[closers are] the most overrated position in baseball. The rest of the team has to do its job for 8 innings for the closer to even get in the game. Then he has to get three outs." I don't know. The whole dynamic of a game changes knowing you've got someone capable of getting a few outs or not. Just having a reliable closer provides this huge intimidation factor that absolutely affects the opponent's offense for more innings than just the closer's. "We have to score this inning because if we don't we'll see Rivera" adds pressure that both makes the setup man and other scrub relievers better. The converse is true too. When there's no confidence in the bullpen, the starters feel like they can't give up a run and the offense presses more in tight games.
I've digressed.
I'm not sure I'll be able to watch another Met game this season. Right now they make me sick.
Posted by Michael on Aug 3, '07 5:42 PM for everyone
Why I downloaded it: It was 170 days ago that I purchased Police tickets for tonight. Can't believe it's here. Anyway, figured I should dedicate this weekly rhap to The Police but since I've owned all their music for years (LP, cassettes, and CDs) there's no reason for me to download any of it. So I downloaded something related.
Rhapsody's review: [None]
My take: Reggatta Mondatta - A Reggae Tribute to the Police. This is the type of stuff Rhapsody is great for. I'd never buy something so obscure, at least not at the album level and probably not at the individual song level. But reggae covers of classic Police songs by the likes Ziggy Marley, Shinehead, and Steel Pulse are certainly fun diversions (as are most covers of great songs in alternate musical styles than the originals).
The Police's music, especially their early stuff, was very reggae influenced so many of the covers work well. Many don't though, and a few border on painful. Check it out if you're a Police fan, a reggae fan, or if you're looking for a couple songs to round out your next pool party's playlist and you want a little familiarity with some island flair.
About the Weekly Rhap: Anyone that follows my Multiply knows that I'm a huge proponent of Rhapsody (and other unlimited music subscription services). The model has changed the way I consume music as much as the DVR changed the way I watch tv. What I love most about it is that I can check out any new album or artist on a whim risk free, and by check out I don't mean a 30-second preview. I can put the whole album on my MP3 player and listen 20 times. Sometimes I get too busy and don't check out new stuff as often as I should, so I'm going to try to briefly review an album a week to ensure I don't miss anything. If you have any suggestions for albums I should listen to, let me know!
Posted by Michael on Jul 27, '07 11:16 AM for everyone
Why I downloaded it: Rhapsody promotes new releases on their home page. It was a no-brainer to check out this album from (most of) the group that created the best rock album of the late 80's - Appetite For Destruction.
Rhapsody's review: We know they're experienced -- between the five members and uber-producer Brendan O'Brien, Velvet Revolver have logged over a century in the biz. Thus, it's overcoming the STP meets GnR tag that is VR's greatest challenge, and they do a fine job with Libertad. Although each member gets his time to show off, the group sounds more comfortable binding together. Tightly composed, upbeat, carnal and suave with the huge riffs you'd expect, songs like "She Mine" and "Mary Mary" are fitting for a cruise down the Sunset Strip -- or at least for a quality session of air guitar.
My take: Guns N' Roses minus Axl Rose plus Scott Weiland (ex-lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots) times second album together equals Good Rock Album.
But not quite a great rock album. It's better than their debut Contraband and more of the songs have a GnR sound to them. It's just not revolutionary or exciting while sounding more like late 80's, early 90's rock than something released in 2007. That's not a horrible thing if you like late 80's rock or more specifically Guns N' Roses or Stone Temple Pilots, and it's worth a free download or stream if you do.
About the Weekly Rhap: Anyone that follows my Multiply knows that I'm a huge proponent of Rhapsody (and other unlimited music subscription services). The model has changed the way I consume music as much as the DVR changed the way I watch tv. What I love most about it is that I can check out any new album or artist on a whim risk free, and by check out I don't mean a 30-second preview. I can put the whole album on my MP3 player and listen 20 times. Sometimes I get too busy and don't check out new stuff as often as I should, so I'm going to try to briefly review an album a week to ensure I don't miss anything. If you have any suggestions for albums I should listen to, let me know!
Posted by Michael on Jul 20, '07 2:55 PM for everyone
Why I downloaded it: There was a 2 page story in the May issue of GQ that discussed how ridiculously popular this band is in the UK. Shortly after that I read a review of the album in Bass Player magazine's "BP Recommends" section. (Great example of the effect of repetitive coverage, with the secondary coverage prompting my checking out the album.)
Rhapsody's review: The Arctic Monkeys' 2006 debut was a massive hit in their native Britain and even broke the U.S. Top 40. The excitement of the new is gone for this follow-up, but the Arctic Monkeys prove they weren't a flash in the pan. Here, their guitar sound is streamlined, putting even more of a spotlight on Alex Turner's cheeky teenage narratives. The feel of the AMs sets them apart more than their sound does. They don't ape the Beatles, the Smiths or the Jam, but update their quintessentially English approach, showing that poor, provincial yobs can see right through their "betters."
My take: You ever try on a pair of shoes and they fit but aren't necessarily comfortable? But you figure after a while you'll wear them in. Music used to be like that. You'd shell out your allowance and buy a CD after hearing one or two songs on the radio, or you sacrifice beer money to buy the fifth album from a favorite group on the day it comes out. After listening for the first time you're like "eh." But because you just shelled out the bucks and you can't just go to the store and get a new CD you listen to it again and again and again. Eventually you know all the songs and lyrics and you think it's great!
For better or for worse, those days are gone with digital music and especially subscription music. If I download an album because I like a couple a songs and the rest of the album doesn't appeal I just delete the songs I don't care for. Or if I try something by someone I never heard of before and the first couple tracks don't appeal, I don't even bother with the rest. I just listen to something else.
After listening to Favourite Worst Nightmare for the first time, I listened to it a second time. And a third. And it's still getting heavy rotation. Like a rare pair of shoes, it was comfortable the first time I put it on and it became a favourite very quickly. Rhapsody classifies the genre as Indie Rock but if I had to describe it I'd say it's a cross between punk and pop rock, with a subtle 80's new wave influence. Heck maybe that's what Indie Rock is? I don't know. What I do know is that this album was enjoyable from the get go and if you like groups as diverse as The Clash, Green Day, No Doubt, Maroon 5, White Stripes, or Depeche Mode - or in other words - if you like music - you'll probably dig this album too.
About the Weekly Rhap: Anyone that follows my Multiply knows that I'm a huge proponent of Rhapsody (and other unlimited music subscription services). The model has changed the way I consume music as much as the DVR changed the way I watch tv. What I love most about it is that I can check out any new album or artist on a whim risk free, and by check out I don't mean a 30-second preview. I can put the whole album on my MP3 player and listen 20 times. Sometimes I get too busy and don't check out new stuff as often as I should, so I'm going to try to briefly review an album a week to ensure I don't miss anything. If you have any suggestions for albums I should listen to, let me know!
Posted by Michael on Jul 6, '07 12:46 PM for everyone
Why I downloaded it: Over a year ago Time Magazine briefly reviewed Lady Sovereign's debut album, Vertically Challenged, as one of 5 CDS You Should Not Miss. I downloaded it and it was a pretty good listen. More recently I read that she's currently opening for Gwen Stefani and that Jay-Z signed her for his label.
Rhapsody's review: One day, while taking a break from his busy schedule of (still) not(officially) dating Beyonce, Jay-Z looked at the Def Jam roster and realized what was missing was a pint-sized female rap prodigy. So faster than you can say "retired," Jay recruited the motor-mouthed, Cockney slang-slinging emcee Lady Sovereign. Public Warning, her rollicking Def Jam debut, is so good that it's easier to list what doesn't work: "Those Were the Days" is kind of boring. That's it. The moral of the story? As usual, Hova knows best.
My take: A unique combination of the female braggadocio of a Missy Eliot, the pitch of an MC Lyte, and the lyrics and ability to alter flow of an Eminem. With so much rap sounding the same and talking about the same things, it's great to hear something that's not only unique sounding, but very good. A must listen for any hip-hop fan.
About the Weekly Rhap: Anyone that follows my Multiply knows that I'm a huge proponent of Rhapsody (and other unlimited music subscription services). The model has changed the way I consume music as much as the DVR changed the way I watch tv. What I love most about it is that I can check out any new album or artist on a whim risk free, and by check out I don't mean a 30-second preview. I can put the whole album on my MP3 player and listen 20 times. Sometimes I get too busy and don't check out new stuff as often as I should, so I'm going to try to briefly review an album a week to ensure I don't miss anything. If you have any suggestions, let me know!
