fakebook.

(Joshua Masayoshi Huff)

It's midterms out west and back east--sorry, everyone. I'm putting together a post of all the JJ mixes--and there are some that have never been put out that are being included. Soon, everyone. Soon.


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First up: Slate says that the troop surge in Iraq is not a success. A few days ago, bsto said that he predicted (correctly) (and in the formative days of the JJ Collective) that the troop surge was necessary and would ultimately prove successful. Your response, bsto?


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Next: A Moroccan man is being jailed for three years for starting a fake facebook profile for a member of the Saudi royal family. I am/used to be friends with so many awesome fake people on facebook--Kool Aid Man, Quail Man, Thierry Henry (multiple versions, actually) and Joan Jett...so I find this kind of sad. Facebook was closing all of these profiles down--isn't that enough?

On one hand, in the case of the Moroccan man, it is a quasi case of impersonation, fraud and/or identity theft. On the other--it's facebook. I guess I would be really upset if there was a fake Joshua Masayoshi Huff (and for awhile, I freaked out because there was another Joshua Huff from Hawaii on facebook and thought that someone was pretending to be me), but I don't think I'd want anyone to go to jail for making a fake facebook me unless they used it to damage my reputation (or have I done this enough on my own already?).

Regardless, I have a solution: I am friends with almost every Joshua Huff on facebook. No joke. And since I friended all of them, they all started friending each other. I cannot take credit for this idea--it was my friend, in fact, jtam, who I stole this idea from. It's kind of weird to have another Joshua Huff wish you a happy birthday (it's happened each of the last two years) and strange to see status updates saying "Joshua Huff is getting ready for bible study"...because, no, I'm not--I'm sitting at my desk eating whipped cream out of the aerosol can watching Sportscenter.

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Anyway. Thoughts on either? I believe we've got a lot to discuss here.

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Oh, and did anyone see Oregon's wretched basketball jersey's against UCLA this weekend? These wouldn't have been that bad if the sequins were yellow..But black on black? Yeesh.

Hip-Hop Hypocrisy

I spent much of this past last week listening to classics. Real classics. Specifically, it was Dre’s Chronic and 2001 as well as Nas’s It Was Written and Stillmatic. They’re albums that everyone knows, but with all the other music out there, they can get lost when we consider what to listen to on that day’s journey.

Anyway, my grand epiphany had to do with the subject matter of these albums. Dre’s OG rhetoric, Nas’s back-to-the-hood-life nostalgia, each with grandiose notions of black nationalism and the rejection of mainstream society—all this I compared with the recent stuff.

I was thinking about Lupe. About how a mainstream rapper could put out an ironic single called “Dumb It Down” and expect it to sell.

I realized that we might well be knee deep in an entirely new form of hip-hop without even knowing it. I think the middle-class non-ghetto-familiar consumer has finally turned the corner on hard hard hardcore gangsta rap. That demographic is both privy to and sick of the gross hypocrisy and bullshit in a game filled with supposed reality.

If you ask me, I’d say what pushed it over the top was the bling age, when Lil John and co. hijacked gangsta rap and replaced any semblance of meaning with out and out bs. We could get wayyy into this, but that’s not what I want to write about right now.

I wanted to get into that hypocrisy. It comes in many, many different shapes and sizes, but there’s always been one form of rap game hypocrisy that’s always interested me. That would be when rappers say, ON THE EFFING TRACK, that they’re dumbing down the lyrics so that the record will sell better.

They deserve to be outed. Nothing pisses me off worse than when some entertainer has the nerve to insult his/her very audience. And it’s my opinion that the following instances of crapola are a crime against hip-hop and all its supporters.

Of course, the biggest irony is that by choosing record sales over the development of the art form, these rappers are holding back the movement and in effect chopping their own legs off.

Here’s just a couple examples from Jay-Z and Nas.

"Prelude"--Jay-Z

The game's fucked up
Nigga's beats is bangin,
nigga your hooks did it
Your lyrics didn't and your gangster look did it
So I would write it if y'all could get it
Bein intricate'll get you wood critics
On the internet, they like you should spit it
I'm like you should buy it, nigga that's good business.


Moment of Clarity"--Jay-Z

I dumb down for my audience
And double my dollars
They criticize me for it
Yet they all yell "Holla"
Ifskills sold, truth be told,
I'd probably be
lyrically,
Talib Kweli
Truthfully,
I wanna rhyme like Common Sense
But I did five mil
I ain't been rhymin' like Common since.


That one might be the most famous, and it received a hilarious response by Talib.


"Ghetto show" --Talib Kweli

If lyrics sold then truth be told
I'd probably be
just as rich and famous as Jay-Z
Truthfully I wanna rhyme like Common Sense
next best thing I do a record with Common Sense."

What's interesting about Nas's hypocrisy is that it's laced with super complex red herrings.

"Let There Be Light"--Nas

I can't sound smart because you'll run away
They say I ain't hungry no more and I don't talk about yay
Like there's no other way for an ex hustler, cake getter,
Ex rich splitter to touch ya
I beg to differ
When your fours years in the game we can have a conversation
Eight years in the game I'll invite you on vacation
Ten years in the game
After I've enjoyed my fame,
only then I'll let you pick my brain
Niggas


"Halftime"--nas

Back in eighty-three I was an MC sparking
But I was too scared to grab the mic's in the park and
kick my little raps cause I thought niggaz wouldn't understand
And now in every jam I'm the fuckin man
I rap in front of more niggaz than in the slave ships
I used to watch C.H.I.P.S., now I load glock clips
I got to have it, I miss Mr. Magic
Versatile, my style switches like a faggot
But not bisexual, I'm an intellectual
Of rap, I'm a professional and that's no question, yo
These are the lyrics of the man, you can't near it, understand.


Ok that covers but a tiny sphere of this hypocrisy. Man.

robot rock.

(Joshua Masayoshi Huff)


I know I promised this yesterday, but things came up. This is less of a normal bike mix--it builds less, but I like the theme it has--sort of a slow electro theme (hence the name). The transitions aren't the tightest, but they're among the best I feel like I've done. Here it is, though:

jhuff's "electroslow"

Outhud "Dear President Bush--There are 1,000 words for sh*t and only one for music. F You, Outhud"
LCD Soundsystem "Get Innocuous"
Daft Punk "Voyager"
Mylo "Muscle Cars"
Daft Punk "Robot Rock"
Justice "D.A.N.C.E (Alan Braxe Remix)"
Gui Boratto "Beautiful Life"
Underworld "Rez"
A-Trak "Hustlin' Hustler"
Halcali "Candy Hearts"
Team Facelift "No Love"
Phoenix "North"
The Field "A Paw In My Face"


DJ iTunes: I use Sony's Acid as well. I have Ableton but haven't gotten to figuring it out yet--and Acid is good for on-the-fly mixes. You should put up a mix! We really want to hear other people's stuff!

----

And, supposedly, "it is what it is" is the line I say more than any other...Interestingly enough, here's a story about that exact line's relevance in modern sports.





Cheers!

--

This just in: Fidel Castro has resigned as President of Cuba.

Of course, this appears to be a positive on the surface--but now, the country is going to have instability, political upheaval and infighting. Obviously, he wasn't a great leader by any stretch, but he hasn't shaking things up too much for quite some time.

It's all relative. It always is.

there will be blood.

(Joshua Masayoshi Huff)

Radiohead have announced their 2008 international tour--the strange thing, though, is that it doesn't feature very many North American dates. In fact, they only have 8 dates--and two each in the states of Florida and Texas.

WHAT?

They're overlooking Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, New York and Seattle, among others. The positive is that their US dates fall when I probably wouldn't be able to attend anyway--so my dream of seeing Radiohead live is still alive.

But at this point, I don't even know how I feel about seeing Radiohead live. This tour is full hypocrisy. On the "Kid A" tour, Radiohead made venues take down their corporate signage--the band were heavily into Naomi Klein's "No Logo" at the time. They released no videos for the album, and instead went with 40 second "blips". It's marketing was anti-marketing and anti-consumerism.

One would have thought that they would have taken a similar stance on this upcoming tour, especially because they let fans pay whatever they wanted for "In Rainbows"--including $0.00. This approach was ground-breaking (even if the music wasn't) and kept that world's most relevant band...well, the world's most relevant band.

Earlier, Thom had been talking about not doing a big tour because doing so would force them to play at huge arenas, creating gridlock and as well as a huge carbon footprint. The band said that though they loved playing in Washington's Gorge, having people drive all that way would really harm the environment--something the band is very serious about (Thom and Jonny played "Friends of the Earth" gigs a few years back).

And, now, they not only play gigs out in the middle of nowhere (how is the DC date at the Nissan Pavilion in VA?), but they're having Live Nation (Clear Channel, essentially) promote and staff the tour.

Yes, you heard right--Clear Channel, the company who is the very definition of corporate greed in music. This fact means that tickets will be at least $100. It puts us all in a bind, as Pitchfork wrote--ethics or Radiohead? The band are clearly in the twilight of their career, and this may mean that this is one of our last opportunities to see them. How can you go from incredibly far left to extremely far right? Do they have to feed their kids?

As much as I love Radiohead, I just don't know much I care about them anymore--not after this.

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Arsenal v ManU in the FA Cup tomorrow. No idea what time it's on, but, as bsto put it, it's going to be a huge momentum match, especially for the league.

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Check back Monday--I've got a mix done. It's not a bikemix, but I definitely think it's worth coming back for to grab.


Have a great Friday...or what remains of it.

JJ RECORDS MIX 3

Yes it's been a while since we've updated. I'm sorry that I dislocated my shoulder three times this past week.

There's much to catch up on, especially the official JJ 2008 Election kickoff posts, how Arsenal extended its lead to five points at the top of the premiership, why US Soccer should have lost to Mexico, what the Shaq and Gasol deals mean to the Bulls and Chicago sports in general, and examples of hip-hop songs that piss me off to no end.

But in the meantime, I leave you with a brand new transportation mix. This one has many ups and downs (more a walking mix than a bike mix, hence it's not "bike3") and is interspersed with comedic interludes by the late great Richard Jeni. It's a bit experimental at times, and not as upbeat as Jhuff's or my first one, but I think it's a solid 30 minutes of music.

Here's some linkage.

Song Sequence:

The Grind Date--DeLaSoul
Rock Co.Kane-- " ft. MF Doom
Backstage Girl--DJ Shadow
Richard Jeni
Disco Infiltrator--LCD Soundsystem
Sunday Bloody Sunday (crazy azz remix)--[?]
Human Orchestra--Rahzel
Hellfire--Cunninglynguists
Things Go Better--Soul Position
What You Thought Hops--Typical Cats
Daydreaming--Lupe Fiasco
To All Of You--RjD2
Brown Sugar--D'Angelo
Richard Jeni
Dirty Harry--Gorillaz
Dirty Harry (Chinese New Years Version)-- "
Don't Forget The Bass--Del Tha Funkee Homosapien
Award Tour--A Tribe Called Quest
I Can--Nas
Fred Robster--Richard Jeni
Hell Yeah-Pimp The System--Dead Prez
Hell Yeah-Pimp The System Remix-- "
Hell Yeah Rock Remix (Hidden)-- "
Richard Jeni


As always, post queries and comments in the comments.

bubblegum spectacular!

(Joshua Masayoshi Huff)

If you know anything about me, you know I have a really soft spot for pop--in any shape or form. I've been on a pop kick lately, and I wanted to call your attention to some songs that were huge pop hits--and that are actually quite dirty (and awesome) lyrically.

This entry is meant to do two things: remind you of great songs and make you smile with the lyrics of songs marketed to humans under the age of 12. The fact that all of these CDs can be found in the Huff household not only amuses me--it astounds me. My mom hates rap, but mom, this is probably a lot worse--especially because you can make out all of the words. At least rap had the worst bits taken out on the radio.

-----
Jordan Knight "Give it to You"



I mean, no good pop song is a good pop song without sexual innuendo, and the opening lines to the song are inoffensively offensive enough.

The pre-chorus is where things start to get weird:
"It's creepin' around in your head
Me holdin' you down in my bed
You don't have to say a word
I'm convinced you want this"

So Jordan was bitten by the "I'm incredibly awesome" bug (he sings, later on "I'm the place to be/and soon, you'll see")

THEN! "Anyone can make you sweat/But I can keep you wet"

NEXT!

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5ive "When the Lights Go Out"



5ive was put together by the same geniuses behind the Spice Girls...they never quite made it here in the states, but this song was pretty big among the Disney Channel set.

The hook?
"Baby when the lights go out every single word
Could not express the love and tenderness
I'll show you what its all about babe
I swear you will succumb to me
So baby come to me
When the lights go out"

Like all teenagers, 5ive could only express "love and tenderness" without the lights on...and, of course, "every single word" could not express these feelings. Of course.

----------
Spice Girls "2 Become 1"



This song embarrassed me to no end. In fourth grade, two girls used to sing it in class, and I always blushed, because, somehow, I was acutely aware of the fact that the song was overtly sexual.

And, to be honest, to this day, I cannot figure out if the title refers to actual intercourse OR about conception.

Interestingly, in the album version of this song, Victoria/Posh sings

"Any deal that we endeavour,
Boys and girls feel good together,
Take it or leave it, take it or leave it"

in the video version, she sings:

"Once again if we endeavor,
Love will bring us back together,
Take it or leave it, take it or leave it"

For some reason, this was deemed inappropriate, while Emma/Baby singing "Are you as good as I remember baby/Get it on, get it on" is perfectly fine...as is "Be a little bit wiser, baby, put it on, put it on" (fine, this line promotes safe sex--however, it's a lot more explicit than "boys and girls feel good together")


This song is immense, especially the string outro.

-------
Jennifer Paige "Crush"



"If you see something in my eye let's not overanalyze/
Don't go too deep with it baby
So let it be what it'll be
Don't make a fuss and go crazy over you and me
Here's what I'll do
I'll play loose
Not like we have a date with destiny"

Mean enough, right?

Wrong.

"It's just a little crush
Not like I faint every time we touch
It's just some little thing
Not like everything I do
Depends on you"

Ouch.

"Say the word forevermore
That's not what I'm looking for
All I can commit to is maybe"

Well, I guess you can't ever call her clingy.

----
Last up is my personal favorite song of the bunch...Soul Decision's "Faded"



Trevor Guthrie makes it absolutely clear what he wants.

"When I get you all alone
I'm going to move in nice and close
Ain't nobody gonna interupt my game
Ever since you've been hangin round
I've been trying to figure out
What i can say to you to get some play"

it gets better.

"Could we do what we did last night again?
Baby you and i be better friends
Dont you think its time we went a bit further oh yeah
Every night when we say good bye
How can i help looking in your eyes
Wondering why you and I haven't hit it can we get it"

and...the hook:

"I'm kinda faded but I feel alright
Thinkin about makin my move tonight
I cant pretend that your only my friend when your holding my body tight
'Cuz i like the way you're making me move/I like the way you're making me wait
At the end of the night when I make up your mind you'll be coming on home with me"


(the rapper even manages to call the band indecision..and not soul decision.)

The best part? On the album version, instead of "When I get you all alone/I'm going to move in nice and close", the lines "when I get you all alone/I'm gonna take off all your clothes" is sung.

Brilliant.

I still can't get over how well written this song is--it's got such a great vibe. And singing "I'm kind of faded but I feel alright" while trying to tell a girl how much you like her...and trying to persuade her to sleep with you? Mr. Guthrie must have a lot of game/self-confidence/be full of stupidity if he thinks his approach will actually work.

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Not to say that all of their stuff is so borderline naughty...take "Oooh It's Kind of Crazy", for example.



I actually went and bought this song on amazon.com after hearing it just now. What a tune--the opening is eerily reminiscent of Kajagoogoo's "Too Shy"

And I'd be lying if I said this wasn't my seventh-grade dream--to wake up, play N64, and see scores of girls outside of my window, screaming and yelling and wanting to hang out with me for no good reason at all.

This music video is seventh grade. It just is.

(and does the song REALLY open with the line " If you want my love help me heal the pain in my eyes"? Wow.)
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I'll leave you with the song that's currently refusing to leave my brain: Halcali's "Tandem"



At first, the song seems absolutely terrible, and that doesn't change: it remains absolutely terrible. It's off-pitch and off-beat...but for some reason, I just can't stop listening to it. It's the equivalent of an audio car crash, I guess--you know it's terrible to look (or watch/listen), but you just have to...and once you do, you can't turn away.

Even if you really want to. There are a ton of references to other Japanese pop culture phenomenons (Utada Hikaru's "Automatic", for instance), but even if you don't pick up on them, I guarantee that you'll watch this video at least 24 times.

Pop music (regardless of country of origin) is like Pringles: once you pop, the fun don't stop.

transportation track

(Joshua Masayoshi Huff)

For those of you loyal readers checking in on Friday, here it is:

jheeze's second bike mix.

It seems the most successful/commented posts are the transportation tracks/bike mixes that bsto and I do.

There isn't really a constant theme--though it's meant to build a bit. Latyrx definitely gets the ride going, and Jens and Belle and Sebastian keep you bouncing along. You should hit the electronic/instrumental stuff mid-ride at your cruising pace (no lyrics to think about), and Lyrics Born will get you back on track if you start to drift off a bit. Then, the rest of the mix sort of eases you home--nothing that hits too hard or too fast.


Hopefully this one catches your fancy. The beauty? No unzipping needed. Just click the link and you're set to go.




jheeze's newest bike mix
Latyrx "The Wreckoning"
Jens Lekman "Sipping on Sweet Nectar"
Belle and Sebastian "The Boy With the Arab Strap"
Manitoba "People Eating Fruit"
LCD Soundsystem "Yeah (Crass Mix)"
Daft Punk (Medley) "Aerodynamic/Veridis Quo/Superheroes"
Alan Braxe "Intro"
Lyrics Born "I'm Just Raw"
Do Make Say Think "The End of Music"
The Radio Dept. "Pulling Our Weight"
DJ Cam "Summermadness"
Scott Walker "On Your Own Again"
Gemini ft. Lupe Fiasco "We On"
The Depreciation Guild "Sky Ghosts"



be on the look-out...bsto is working on one as well.