Silent Cinema - Sleepytime On Bourbon

Silent Cinema - Sleepytime On Bourbon from Triumviral Productions on Vimeo.

I got the opportunity to work with a band whose music you can learn by heart. Silent Cinema is a band that bleeds New Orleans through brass and guitars to form a carnival of psychedelic indie folk rock. It was some of the best times of my life being behind the camera, and being behind the computer screen editing. I teamed up with Trevor Darling and Jerry McLaughlin to direct, edit, and produce a video for "Sleepytime On Bourbon." This is not the first time I've grown to love a song repeatedly being played back on a set. But something about this song was extra special.

The lyrics metaphor a girl as the city of New Orleans. So we followed a girl in a red dress through a birthday adventure in the Wonderland that is New Orleans. Using guerilla tactics, we exploited the majestic backdrops of St. Louis Cathederal, Jackson Square, The French Market, The Mississippi River, and Pravda on Decatur.

I want to say we used the streets of New Orleans as characters rather than the setting,
; the obvious literal Bourbon Street option purposely omitted. But Aristotle already chiseled out the rules for distinction between characters and setting in The Poetics.


Shooting Silent Cinema live at The Circle Bar, the heartspot of cool music in New Orleans.

I co-directed with Jerry McLaughlin and Trevor Darling, and the vibe of the set felt almost holy. Maybe it was the buddha statue. We just had a very different way of working that promoted unity and high morale. My co-directors and I had a mission to focus on, and each of our input was equally valued. Through that teamwork, we spun off and formed an alliance called Triumviral Productions. I'm happy being able to work on music videos as a central medium. It's a smoothie of manipulated imagery to a song made up of blended ideas from a team of creative bright thinkers.

" It was dope taking in all the positivity from the people who liked the work on Sleepytime. But in the words of a Justice-sample flipped by Swizz Beats for Jay-Z, it's "on to the next one." Special thanks to Andrew Larimer and Benjamin Reese for helping us stepping our game up. And thanks to Philip James and Sarah Sparacino for seeing me on the streets, and being the subject of my Spike Jonze-esque birthday party shots.

Jindal Makes Me Frown

Bobby Jindal is a horrible governor and the enemy of art. Piuyush "Cutsman" Jindal has been threatening another wave of budget cuts to UNO, this particular round would affect the Fine Arts program. Google "Bobby Jindal Art" and you'll see Bobby Jindal has a history of not giving a shit about funding art. I can get into the reasons why cutting art comes back to bite you in the ass. But for now, just know that the UNO Jazz Funeral/Protest had 400-600 pissed off students.



Does he even have any appreciation for art?



Oh! Well of course he likes those blue dog paintings. He made George Rodrigue the "artist laureate." Nice gesture. He may appreciate art, but you wouldn't know it from his politics.



Here's a man that is using his position as governor of Louisiana as a stepping stone to a 2012 Presidential run. How the hell do you get Bobby from Piuyush? What a sell out! He gave up the name his mother gave him for the most basic, generic American name. He abandoned his heritage, and changed his name to be accepted by the mainstream. But I get it, he wouldn't of ever won Louisiana if he didn't change his name to Bobby.





There's a dangerous chance he's after the Whitehouse. In his mind, we don't need volcano monitoring for a volcano that erupts 26 days later. What else is he going to decide we don't need? We don't need Asteroid Monitoring for an Extinction-sized Armageddon asteroid making impact with Earth in 8 weeks. The safety net of our government would be considered overspending.

4

I do what I can to fight your influence over others.

Das Racist

Let's bring things to the more light-hearted end of the hip-hop spectrum. I didn't have the funds to play paparazzi at South by Southwest. But I managed to discover some cool music, from the comfort of my own home as I looked after the big homie Grandpa. "Das Racist", what a name right?



MP3: “Ek Shaneesh” (via conscienceofsound.net)

Peep the exotic ethic-flavored drums. There's kind of a serious tone to the instrumental, but the raps are just authentically silly. They take the beats seriously, but they don't take them selves seriously. I didn't really analyze the music at first. Too distracted by my own headknocking.



MTV Iggy: Explaining Das Racist To Your Mom

But after going to that link sent to me by MTV Iggy, I read their dope little comic about two music nerds discussing what their name might means. Suddenly, Das Racist" all makes sense. It's a perfect band name for the vibe of their records.



Reminds me of LMFAO with a lot more rhythm and pop culture social commentary. This song can open debates. There's plenty of lyrical content that's deeper than when it first meets the ear. But even on the surface, it's a slick concept song. These dudes are spitting on beats.



It's two in the morning' and you and your friends are just stoned. They get you to drive them through the drive thru at Taco Bell. You look at your friend like WTF cause he ordered a "PH2" and a Crunch Wrap Supreme. It feels like a relatively new thing that two of healthiest restaurant chains have joined forces. Pizza Slut and Taco Hell together is a "luxury" found in consumer country America.


Some people need to curb their enthusiasm.

Canibus - Watch Who U Beef Wit

Canibus will go down in history as the man who took the last stand for real spitting in hip-hop. LL Cool J featured him in a song, and tried to diss him on the slick, and Canibus was like "FUCK THAT!", and snapped back at him with the jaws of a great white shark. He showed the world that there is no reason to honor any unwritten rules in hip-hop. Legendary status in the game is nothing more than a paper tiger. Anybody who's ever watched a BEEF series DVD knows that "Second Round K.O." didn't just shake up the status quo of hip-hop, he gave an earthquake to the whole game. Alongside Jay-Z vs. Nas, KRS vs. MC Shan, and Ja Rule vs. 50 Cent; the Canibus/LL Cool J saga is revered as one of the best rivalries in hip-hop. And uhh… oh yeah, Canibus won!



It can be agreed that Canibus knows a thing or two about beef. Take two versions of this song "Watch Who You Beef Wit", from 1999, when Canibus was still in his prime on Universal Records:



This one is the album version, from Canibus's 2000 B.C.. Not bad. This is the most recent version, with lyrics reworked to a beat that is obviously inspired by Dr. Dre's 1999 album, 2001. The dark keys is reminiscent of "The Watcher". The whole vibe of this song is menacing, and takes itself a little too seriously, when compared to the original.



Now this is the original and if you ask me, it's a bonafied classic. You'll find this one on the soundtrack to 1999's White Boys. The liner notes say that it was produced by Canibus himself. If you go to the comments section on YouTube, past the part where I say, "This is the best version of this song. The album version doesn't have shit on this gangsta ass beat.", you'll see see some dumbass complaining about this version being too upbeat. True, this version is noticeably more upbeat. But in my opinion, it does the song much greater justice. It sounds like a leftover track from Dr. Dre's 1993 sessions for The Chronic. "Somethin' I can sit back and roll a fat-ass chronic blunt to." This version, is also very nicely decorated. I love the beeper noises at the beginning before the organs come in, and the crazy echoing screaming sample at the end always has me chuckling a little bit.

In the mythology of hip-hop, Canibus has earned his place in the pantheon. He's never had much commercial success. But he will always have the respect of the true hip-hop heads. Like Van Gogh, he was misunderstood during his time on Earth
But years later, there will be a revival of appreciation for his work.





Me vs. You

Nas - Affirmative Action (St. Denis Style Remix)

So I'm taking French II, right? And we got these projects where we have to make a presentation about some aspect of French culture before the class. We have people doing projects on paintings, movies, clothing, Marie Antoinette, and music. I wanted to do music, and someone else is speaking on Daft Punk. Maybe I should do mine on something hip-hop? Sounds good. I know a lot about hip-hop. But French hip-hop? This is all I know.... 

"Affirmative Action" is originally from Nas's 1996 album, It Was Written. "Affirmative Action" was the mafioso themed introduction to first line-up of the New York-based supergroup known as The Firm. This here is a bit of an international remix. They scrapped Cormega and Foxy's lackluster performances, leaving only Nas and AZ's epic verses with the addition of the duo known as Suprême NTM. NTM stands for "Nique Ta Mere", which according to Yahoo! Babelfish translates to "Screw Your Mother." This is an official remix, the only version of this song to have a music video. 

   

I have no idea WTF these French rappers are talking about, but I know that they are going hard as hell. I can hear the intensity of their voices. I see them in their beanies and heavycoats, perfectly pulling off the hand gestures. Even when they are waving around those glow sticks, they pull it off. They look like they're in the right place, in front of the projects, and in midst of a big ass cypher with Nas and AZ. Back then, AZ and Nas were yin and yang as the voices of the American streets. These guys from Suprême NTM looked, and sounded like their French counterparts.

I am really digging the style of this video. I noticed that it's very reminscent of 1995's "La Haine". "La Haine" is a French film, directed by Matthieu Kassovitz. In a nutshell, it's a day in the lives of three street kids living in the French projects. It was championed in the United States by Jodie Foster, of all people. I finally saw it, and it became one of my favorite movies.

 

Anyways, there are uncanny similarities between the urban winter gear of the characters in the film, and the people of "Affirmative Action." "La Haine" and "Affirmative Action" are obviously both black an white. And they have plenty of shots of the projects to go around.  My first thought was that the music video was definitely inspired by "La Haine." But "La Haine" was art imitating life. So was "Affirmative Action" for that matter, but I get the impression from paying attention to NTM that the lifestyle that they lead is similar to that of the three main characters in "La Haine." Maybe "La Haine" just realistically depicted the common reality for so many kids from the street. 

 

Whatever the case, these are two works of media arts that illustrate hard times in '95 and '96. The international remix of "Affirmative Action" and "La Haine are both testament to the fact that there are ghettos on both sides of Atlantic Ocean. 

Rocawear & Jay-Z's Impact on American Fashion

As far as my style goes, I wear what I like. From an existentialist point of view, my style would best be described as urban-conservative. That means hip-hop inspired, but staying away from brand names, loud colors, or excessive baggyness. There was a time in my life, however, where I wanted to bestraight thug. If it was in the ads of XXL Magazine, I bought it. You could catch me sporting anything from Ecko Unlimited, Sean John, Southpole, and Rocawear. I had a strong preference for Rocawear.

This is from the 8th grade yearbook, in 2002-2003, where I was voted funniest. I'm a rocking the hardcore, black denim Rocawear jacket, and accessorizing with a ridiculous mean-mug. The mean mug is an ironic contrast to the "Funniest! Ha Ha!" next to my picture.

I got it as a Christmas gift from my grandma, when she took me shopping at Burlington Coat Factory. The jacket is as warm as it gets. I love the khaki Rocawear logo on the back. It matched my khaki school pants, and let everybody know that, I'm something like Young Hov, "the best rapper alive."

"Still smokin' that La, La, La/

Beanie Sigel Desert Eagle the .45/

It's the Roc, baby sing our lullaby."

From Jay-Z's "La La La (Excuse Me Again)", Bad Boys II Soundtrack, 2002.

Rap was very cliqueish back then. Kanye West spit a verse here and there, but was ultimately still just a producer behind the boards. He had no influence on the fashion. Like Memphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel, we were all wearing gang gear for the Rocafella army.

Come to high school, I feel I have to be an individual. I don't want to be in uniform with any classification of people. I'm shunning the brand names, and going for shit that's classic. But yet, I still let the music I listen to inspire the way I dress.

Here's my Reasonable Doubt t-shirt I got for 6 dollars from Hot Topic. In middle school, people still used to buy the albums that were hot at the time. Now in high school, P2P downloading is what's up. Kids like me were part of a renaissance of our favorite rappers roots, going to through all of their classic albums. Here I am, supporting Jay-Z the artist, but I'm not an advertisement for Rocawear.

"OK I'm gettin weeded now I know I'm contradicting myself/

Look I don't need that now/

It just once in a blue moon when there's nothin to do and/

The tension gets too thick for my sober mind to cut through."

From Jay-Z's "Feelin' It", Reasonable Doubt, 1996.

Recently, I had an epiphany when I realized I've been having most of the shirts in my closet since high school. There was a voice in my head that said "This is 2010 motherfucker, it's time to upgrade". I went to the mall with $100 on a hunt for t-shirts for the spring and the summer My curiousity led me to Macy's, and I was stunned when I found this badass tee on sale for $10.

Just wow. Forget being militantly anti-name brand. This is college. If the logo is subtle, or if the clothes have a message, I'll wear whatever. But I never thought I'd ever wear Rocawear again. I love this new bold artistic direction, reflective of the major themes of Jay-Z's body of work. This shirt visually renders the explicit lyrics of rap music, and puts it into context.

"Blame Reagan for making me into a monster/

Blame Oliver North and Iran-Contra/

I ran contraband that they sponsored/

Before this rhymin stuff we was in concert."

From Jay-Z's "Blue Magic", American Gangster, 2007.

He's been hanging out with Kanye a lot, who's now a mega star that made it big while colorfully defying the conventions of hip-hop fashion. Jay-Z is bigger than the game. He's a trend setter. We've watched the evolution of Jay-Z's style in music over the years. While other rappers and urban clothing lines conform to the status quo of the times, Jay-Z has always been in pursuit of what can be called groundbreaking. The Jiggaman will remain a superpower of pop culture for years to come. It's definitely a good look to make shirts with a deeper message...

^ Any rappers come to mind?