Eine Kleine Nachtmusik

Friends

- New Jay, produced by Timbaland: "Ain't I" (with DJ Clue drops. Ugh.)

- New Talib, produced by Kanye West: "Momma Can You Hear Me"
I'm feelin' the Talib. Fairly standard content, but a well-executed rap song. I am less enthused about the Jay, although it, too, is a fairly workmanlike rap song. This isn't blowing any minds, right?

Also, audio streams of some Donald Byrd joints hip-hop fans will recognize. Blue Note is putting out an entire album's worth of originals that have been flipped by your favorite rappers.

- Donald Byrd, "Think Twice" - WMP, Real

- Donald Byrd, "Wind Parade" - WMP, Real

A Victory for Human Decency

Eat it, motherfucker.

This feels good. Of course, nothing will ever top this:

Why, as a New York-based paper, are we not backing Rudolph Giuliani? Why not choose the man we endorsed for re-election in 1997 after a first term in which he showed that a dirty, dangerous, supposedly ungovernable city could become clean, safe and orderly? What about the man who stood fast on Sept. 11, when others, including President Bush, went AWOL?

That man is not running for president.

The real Mr. Giuliani, whom many New Yorkers came to know and mistrust, is a narrow, obsessively secretive, vindictive man who saw no need to limit police power. Racial polarization was as much a legacy of his tenure as the rebirth of Times Square.

Mr. Giuliani's arrogance and bad judgment are breathtaking. When he claims fiscal prudence, we remember how he ran through surpluses without a thought to the inevitable downturn and bequeathed huge deficits to his successor. He fired Police Commissioner William Bratton, the architect of the drop in crime, because he couldn't share the limelight. He later gave the job to Bernard Kerik, who has now been indicted on fraud and corruption charges.

The Rudolph Giuliani of 2008 first shamelessly turned the horror of 9/11 into a lucrative business, with a secret client list, then exploited his city's and the country's nightmare to promote his presidential campaign.

Reading the Times ether Giuliani in such a concise, withering fashion was among the most politically cathartic moments I can recall in years. But that said, seeing him now limp out of the race is pretty similar. Much ails this country, and the appeal of mainstream Republicanism--replete with its failed economic ideals, broken foreign policy, and absent compassion for other humans--continues to elude my comprehension. However for one day, we can all rejoice that a sinister, vindictive man who has cravenly exploited tragedy has been repudiated as unelectable.

Guess Who's Biz-ack

Why does anyone else even show up? Now if only he would have flexed and slapped Kelly Tilghman's kufi off...

Music for a Monday: Get the Eff Out My Inbox

As you could likely imagine, I've had a lot of email to sort through during this protracted blog dereliction. Shall we?

First...hottest shit of the year so far is Torae's Daily Conversation:



Da Young Veteran flows nicely. And he's got some verses that make you nod in satisfaction. Plus, major dap for anyone who shoots a video using his own Toyota Camry or whatever that non-rented car is. Sadly, Torae doesn't escape all hip-hop conventions: "Whether I'm broke or as rich as a Jew." *sigh*

Second...everyone's favorite Kanye weed carrier finally got himself a video:



I don't revile GLC the way that some others do. Is he a great rapper? Absolutely not. Does he have some kind of swagger, a little style? Yessir.

Third...my favorite rappers right now are Ghostface, Jay Electronica, and Naledge from Kidz in the Hall. That KitH Detention mixtape was nice, and any new track that pays homage to Masta Ace gets a premium slot on my iPod. Peep the new track, along with an interview from way back that Bol conducted.

- Kidz in the Hall, "Driving Down the Block"

Fourth...this British rap group GTA shot me a note about their debut track, an ode to individuality. Thoughts?

- GTA, "Wanna Be Myself"

Fifth...another up-and-comer: Rob Grimes, from the West Coast, on a track with 50. Nothing like a Virginia Tech reference when threatening people. Keep better company, dunny!

- 50 Cent ft. Rob Grimes, "You Ain't Crazy"

Sixth...peep game: Urban Music

Seventh...and unrelated: thank God that the Super Bowl is the next football game that will be shown on television. I couldn't handle another endless torrent of Joe Jackson shilling for Taco Bell.

- Joe Jackson, "One More Time"

The Token Apology Post

For the record: I could make it. I do make it. I left, but I came back.

So you see, what happened was...uh...

I was traveling for work for three weeks. And they were intense--12- and 15-hour days, evenings with coworkers, weekends spent learning a new city (because I gots to go back). It was rough. But on the plus side, I did discover Hello Boss, my new favorite packaged-good coffee drink (distributed by these people), and Liquid Salvation. Ask for the flask, mf'ers!

Anyway, yeah. Sorry to have pulled a Patrick Ewing and written checks with my mouth that my Knicks schedule and energy level couldn't cash. It wont happen again (for a while).

NFL Notes

It just ain't January without something like this.

- Thank God Monday Morning QB has been posted. For a while on Saturday, I assumed Peter King would die from excitement, what with his boyfriend and deity Brett Favre living to suck up more headlines for at least another week. If Favre were traded to the Boston Red Sox on the same day that Terrell Owens died, do you think King's head would explode as candy and rainbows and horsies poured forth?

- Volek, Nanee, Turner (Michael and Norv)--this is who beat Peyton Manning? Old habits die hard, I guess. And don't blame the refs; they did their job. Cromartie's interception return was invalidated and that phantom pass interference call in the fourth quarter provided some hope for the Colts. Don't weep for Peyton, either. He now has more time to film even more commercials. You know, because he won't be playing again until September.

- Eli Manning is inspiration for mentally challenged people across the world.

- Jessica Simpson had as much to do with the Cowboys-Giants game as I did. And she deserved as much media coverage as I received.

- It was cute that Norv Turner and Tom Coughlin both paid homage to Lloyd Carr as they attempted to run out the clock in their respective games. That's just classy, from coach to coach.

- Rooting for the Chargers would have been much easier on Sunday were Philip Rivers not so annoying, and were he not in possession of such an odd resemblance when wearing a helmet to Ryan Leaf.

- Jokes aside, I think that the Colts had a legitimate shot at beating the Patriots, even on the road. But now the Pats should just start picking out rings.

Blame It on the Media

Welcome back.

(N.B: I have not yet seen the second episode of the fifth season of The Wire. I am away from my OnDemand and have not yet properly scoured the internets. Deal with it.)

Heretofore, the only negative words I had for The Wire were that Bubbles didn't interest me. And even those were mitigated and qualified: I appreciated the character when he was playing a role in other plot lines--keep working those lids, Bubs. But I did not experience any sort of distinct sympathy or excitement when watching the character's life unfold. Maybe that rendered me Giuliani-like in my disdain for the homeless, but I've been to plenty of Yankees games, too, so if nothing else, it made me a Presidential candidate.

That isn't my point, though, and I haven't ever lusted for, let alone married, a cousin.

Anyway...Bubbles doesn't do much for me. Yes, he is a sad sack, and he is a drug addict for whom there is an endless reservoir of adversity, both self-inflicted and systemic. So what though? On the surface, that's sad, of course. But sad is not new. I think Bubbles ultimately fails to make an impact as meaningful as those of other characters because the homeless addict is among the least original characters on the show. Of the many defeated people who populate the Baltimore of The Wire, Bubs just doesn't stand out.

I fear that Bubs may no longer find such ignominious singularity, however.

When I first read that this new season of The Wire would be fueled by David Simon's raging enmity for the mainstream media, I was excited. Fuck yes! I thought to myself. Finally, there will be a definitive skewering of an industry that long ago chose to violate the public's trust and sellout while creating a synthetic, misleading reality. The pissed off liberal in me who reads the newspaper foolishly hoping to stumble upon an array of graphics distilling the opportunity costs of this Iraq farce, or the folly of permanent tax cuts for the rich--that person would be vindicated. And the whole world, or at least those fortunate enough to have HBO and care about The Wire, would share in my righteous indignation. Even better, the messages would be masterfully crafted by the man who had created one of the greatest works of popular culture and culture history in, uh, history. It was gonna be glorious.

But you know what? I don't think it actually will be. I think it will be frustrating and obvious. I think that even though CNN continues to broadcast lowest-common-denominator pseudo-intellectual tripe and The New York Times continues to write dishonest and fawning fake news, lots of people know this. Maybe not some folks in the parts of the country untouched by Pinkberry, but there are many people who see the media's warts. And honestly, I think lots of the people who know this are the same ones with whom I regularly have masturbatory conversations about the media's failures. These are the same people who already watch The Wire. Season 5 suddenly feels like it's going to be a vigorous circle jerk ().

This hit me while watching Augustus Haynes spew his angry-man barbs and lament the failings of today's journalist. How many of us haven't already grown weary of the media's petty rhythms and compromises? The seemingly happy participation of newsmen and newswomen in the collective dumbing down of American culture? I know that there are nine more hours for this angle to find a unique niche, but it appears to be off to an inauspicious start. And this disappoints me just as Bubbles does. I find it titillating in some way, but it isn't as engaging or challenging as the corner or the precinct or the docks. It feels easy, almost, even if it is meticulous in detail and unflinching in mission.

I hope that I come back to this post in a month and shake my head for having demonstrated so little faith and so much alarmism. I hope.

Ricky Williams Ain't Got Shit on Me

We both just re-upped for '08

Did you think I had retired? That Kwis List was up for a while, no?

Well, all returns to normal this week. First, shouts to Kwis. Thanks to him for holding down SB while I took some time off for the holidays. I saw a lot of movies--There Will Be Blood, which was among the best movies I can remember; Charlie Wilson's War, which I liked but found to be almost too proficient; Sweeney Todd, which I thought was alright but not all that great; and Walk Hard, which cemented the sad sense that the adult-male-absurdist-comedy genre may have jumped the shark when Wedding Crashers came out; I hosted guests for the holidays; I kept it gully with my sister; I listened to a lot of late-year rap releases (Lupe, I see you!); and I watched a lot of sports on television. This week, we'll get into all of it. What you can expect, beginning Monday night:

- The Wire returns (!)
- Lloyd Carr retires (!!)
- I finally unveil a true top-albums-of-the-year post
- We discuss politics and make fun of Hillary Clinton and the entire Republican field
- We check in on the NBA
- We get Music for a Monday going again
- We enjoy (endure?) a series of disjointed posts as I empty out what feels like a month's worth of random thoughts

It should be good. So happy New Year. Let's get it.