MetaFilter posts tagged with awol

The Is The Life: the most important period of hip hop you never knew existed (NSFW audio throughout)

mediocre — Sat, 17 May 2008 09:05:38 -0800

The year is 1989, the world of hip hop in mainstream America is dominated by the street hard, in your face West Coast Gangsta Rap genre headed by NWA. And an army of increasingly forgettable imitators as well as genuine ingenuity coming from the opposite coast The pop music market is dominated by the sugary sweet vaguely hip-hopish pop of The New Kids On The Block. And on the corner Crendshaw and Exposition in South Central Los Angeles a group of kids at a health food store called The Good Life Health Food And Resource Center take a weekly Open Mike and turn it into an ongoing hip hop workshop where lyrical prowess, performance, and positivity instead of battling and trash talking was encouraged. In fact, swearing was strictly disallowed at The Good Life. The Good Life's Thursday Night Open Mike nights became increasingly popular, and quickly reached legendary status in the incredibly insulated and incestuous scene of underground hip in early 1990's Los Angeles. Pre-internet, this was music that you only heard if you were at the show, or you bought the home made tape from some kid out of a backpack on his way to tag up a traincar. Many green MC's had their moment in the sun, performed and wowed crowds and were never heard from again. Some took the momentum of their Good Life performances and decided to make hip hop their career, their life. But what was clear was that something special was happening, hip hop was being expanded into a cerebral dense form of art that retained street cred without distancing themselves from the hardcore hip hopper and B-Boy crowds. First, Afterlife Recordz a sort of co-op CD-R label run by independant MC's started releasing CD's of their founding members Chillin Villain Empire, Rifleman AKA Ellay Khule (pronounced L.A. Cool), Riddlore?, Of Mexican Descent, Busdriver, who himself has gone on to be a certified indie rap star having recently commented "There are no more backpackers, it's all hipsters now. I just came from doing three shows and there were no hip-hoppers anywhere-- I mean, it was great though, I didn't know that my kind of stuff would bring those people out. So I was surprised." The pinnacle of The Good Life Scene on record was the now-legendary compilation Beneath The Surface. Believed by many to be the single greatest hip hop compilation ever, every track was produced by OMID and perfectly captured the apex of an artistic experiment at the height of pre-millenium tension and Armageddon obsession. Utilizing samples from high profile prog rock groups like Emerson Lake & Palmer on "Night And Day" and virtual unknowns like Swedish organist Bo Hansson and his 1972 audio soundtrack to book version Lord Of The Rings If you spend more then 5 hours a week in record stores, chances are you will recognize loops from this album and smile at how clever OMID was. The centerpiece of the album was a 9 minute epic track where every MC took the form of a different animal, all ending with one of the craziest and longest verses every laid down on wax by Circus of the Shapeshifters crew, the track called Farmers Market Of The Beast has become an underground ark of the covenant stone of sorts, stare too long into it and you're face will melt from the unbridled imagination. Eventually The Good Life Open Mike night evolved into Project Blowed started in 1994 by Aceyalone, and Abstract Rude a similar weekly workshop for MC's. But unlike Good Life's vibe of positivity, rehearsed performance, and strict adherence to language standards, Blowed was known for freestyles, battles, and foul language. Some have said that Project Blowed has turned battle rapping into mildly rhythmic standup comedy, but the impact of Blowed cannot be understated. Many mainstream who need no introduction like Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg and even non-rappers like Lenny Kravitz. Project Blowed is popularly known for a compilation CD released in 1994, a release of the backpacker variety, currently out of print. And a 10th Anniversary Compilation Good Life alumnus who went on to be Project Blowed superstars like AWOL One and his affilliated friends/graffiti crew mates the Krylon infused spray of brainsalad that is Circus and The Shapeshifters created a scene, a sound, and a movement that as Of Mexican Descent member 2Mex says in quotes that was just as if not more important than G-Funk, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony style symbiotic rap groups, even Grunge or other related acts. But because this was pre-internet, and the fact that radio, newspapers, and major labels simply didn't care about this music, it went by unnoticed, forgotten. Even to this day, many likely classic releases are lost forever because they were simply made on a four track deck, handed out at shows and never digitized and spread to the internet once Napster rendered the term "Backpacker" obsolete. This Is The Life is the story of The Good Life cafe, and the magic that you, I, and everyone else missed. The footage is scattershot, because most poor folk back then didn't have video cameras. The interviews are insightful and inspiring, and it reminds you that hip hop comes from cement and the heart, not diamonds and rims. This Is The Life is currently making the festival circuits, and hopefully should be seeing DVD release soon. Keep your eyes peeled to the websites for release dates and showings in your area.

Al Columbia is in your house right now

ibeji — Tue, 29 May 2007 06:13:51 -0800

Al Columbia has finally updated his site . Previously, there had been ominous hinting at a more fleshed-out web experience, but no follow-up. Rumors of a documentary by Kevin Belli have been in the air for years, but nothing has been announced beyond this (scroll down). In March, the Fantagraphics blog brought more news of the documentary's progress and hints of publishing Columbia's sketchbooks. Columbia himself confirmed the Fantagraphics book at the beginning of April in an Inkstuds interview (audio), describing it as a large-format collection of most of his unpublished work from the last ten years. Promises, promises. His contribution to Mome 7 and 8 seem to be a bit more concrete. If you've been waiting on A.C. all these years, you'll want to hear that interview: he brings you song (his own Percival Cook), much nervous laughter, meandering descriptions, and dream revelations (at age 12, a dream of having sex with Felix the Cat). [more inside]

Sir! No Sir!

leapingsheep — Tue, 16 May 2006 05:07:38 -0800

Sir! No Sir! The Vietnam GI Antiwar movement. (49 minute video)

Parsing the Coverup

digaman — Tue, 15 Mar 2005 06:22:36 -0800

If the same journalistic standards applied to CBS by the independent Rathergate panel had been applied to the Pentagon Papers, they never would have seen the light of day, says James Goodale, former vice chairman of the New York Times.

Media

semmi — Mon, 17 Jan 2005 10:26:05 -0800

To set the record straight: While the country was busy with CBS and Rather's mistake, the story of Bush going AWOL was lost.

Why Bush Left Texas

y2karl — Wed, 15 Sep 2004 10:09:58 -0800

Why Bush Left Texas Growing evidence suggests that George W. Bush abruptly left his Texas Air National Guard unit in 1972 for substantive reasons pertaining to his inability to continue piloting a fighter jet. A months-long investigation, which includes examination of hundreds of government-released documents, interviews with former Guard members and officials, military experts and Bush associates, points toward the conclusion that Bush's personal behavior was causing alarm among his superior officers and would ultimately lead to his fleeing the state to avoid a physical exam he might have had difficulty passing... If it is demonstrated that profound behavioral problems marred Bush's wartime performance and even cut short his service, it could seriously challenge Bush's essential appeal as a military steward and guardian of societal values. It could also explain the incomplete, contradictory and shifting explanations provided by the Bush camp for the President's striking invisibility from the military during the final two years of his six-year military obligation... There's that elephant in the living room again.

George Bushes's military record: critical analysis

Postroad — Wed, 08 Sep 2004 10:19:43 -0800

George Bushes's Military record: a critical analysis This pdf file is about as definitive a look as we are likely to get on the Bush military record. Clearly most post4ers/readers of Metafilter do not support Bush, but having some clear-cut evidence at hand to use in arguments against those who attack the Kerry militaryrecord, this will give the Bushites reason to move on to other topics

DESERTER

Postroad — Wed, 30 Jun 2004 13:06:44 -0800

DESERTER An examination of the Bush military files within the context of US Statutory Law, Department of Defense regulations, and Air Force policies and procedures of that era lead to a single conclusion: George W. Bush was considered a deserter by the United States Air Force.

The stand

acrobat — Wed, 05 May 2004 07:57:58 -0800

Camilo Mejia is the first US soldier serving in Iraq to run away and proclaim himself a conscientious objector. The Pentagon says another 600 people have done the same, and for the same reasons: they find this war immoral and illegal.

Oh Canada

homunculus — Tue, 20 Apr 2004 13:13:58 -0800

Jeremy Hinzman and Brandon Hughey are soldiers who went AWOL and fled to Canada. They share their stories on their websites. [Via Plastic.]

owillis — Wed, 04 Oct 2000 07:17:34 -0800

George W. Bush "suspended" from Texas Air National Guard. He repeatedly says he was discharged "honorably", but some government documents seem to say otherwise