All posts by Eric Tullis
Eric Tullis ·
20 Mar 2010, 1:25 PM ·
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So far, I’ve had two cab drivers tell me that if it weren’t for their kindness, I’d be spending hours trying to hail a taxi. Apparently, being a black guy in Austin has its limitations and even I, a non-threatening African-American-out-of-towner, wasn’t immune to the cabbie-cold-shoulder. But gimme a break! There’s plenty of undesirables in this town for cabbies to be worrying about rather than targeting me—the black guy walking around town looking for a ride, wearing a badge with his name and face on it, the city he lives in, and the newspaper that’s he’s representing. I wonder what would have happened if I would have been dressed like a guy like Nardwuar the Human Serviette. Do Austin cabbies like those sort of characters instead?
Armed with his usual bag of musical artifacts, music savant, Nardwuar had just left Spin’s private party at Stubb’s where security denied him access to interview Courtney Love after her band, Hole, performed in front of a couple of thousand people. It could have been the second time he talked to her on-camera since 1994, when he sat down backstage with her and the late, Kurt Cobain for a spiky, yet informative interview after a Vancouver, Canada, Nirvana show. Nonetheless, he shared other details with me about his recent interview with Snoop Dogg, delighted about the part when Snoop showed him how and why to microwave a joint—apparently it seals in the smell. Doot Doo!! (as Nardwuar would say).
Had he stayed with the group that I was with, consisting of Peter Rosenberg, The Kid Daytona, and some other folks, he’d have chowed down with us on some unbelievable Mexican food at Las Casuelas and then headed down the road to Scoot Inn where the NY-based, hip hop label Duck Down Records was celebrating its 15th anniversary. There couldn’t have been a more perfect place other than SXSW to mark hip hop’s longest running independent label. The Duck Down 15 Year Anniversary SXSW show at Scoot Inn was the official gathering of rap heads in Austin. The magnanimous DJ Evil Dee provided consecutive, throwback gems between sets of new Duck Down signees, Promise and Team Facelift, as well as Rustee Juxx, Pharoahe Monche, Smif-n-Wessun and Torae. Without introduction, Boot Camp Click’s Sean Price hit the stage wearing a “FUCK RAP” t-shirt for a brief, roughneck set, despite obvious issues with his set list and most importantly the fatigue of having just flown in from New York where, on the previous day, he sat by his wife’s side as she gave birth to their daughter. None of this made Price any less hostile or focused, and as always, he used his signature, appalling punchlines to insult every rapper in the industry and everyone in the crowd.
Outside of Karma Lounge, a kid who was waiting in line kept on shouting, “I slept with a Baldwin brother. Will that get me in?” I’m not quite sure if that worked out for him, but that’s the last I heard of the outside world before walking in just in time to hear Breakestra at the apex of “Getcho Soul Together”. Here’s where any self-respecting funk lover wishes that he or she could breakdance or at least bang on a drum kit in the same crazed rhapsody that Josh “Wallet” Cohen does. Mixmaster Wolf is a shoe-in for being the most bad-ass vocalists in this genre, but featured guest Afrodyete seared through a gospelly, juiced-up version of “It’s My Thing (You Can’t Tell Me Who to Sock It To)” as if Marva Whitney herself was in the audience givin’ out grades. The only act rivaling this show was going on down at Austin Music Hall where I presume Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings were also throwing down a similar workout.
Flosstradamus’ DJ set at Emo’s Jr. featured an amped-up Kid Sister, who’s flawless glamour is both candy girl and Cover Girl, but just not enough to make-up for failing vocal chords—strained from doing multiple shows over the past few days. That was one factor I hadn’t considered when I repeatedly postponed catching her other shows. Oh well.
As I strolled along a side road that led to I-35, passing by cars lined up in the late-night traffic jam, my feet began to hurt from all of the walking I’d done that evening. The thought of finding a cab driver that who didn’t think that I was going to rob and murder him began to give me a headache. I eventually found a willing cab driver, but the headache still exists and my feet still hurt. Life as a shorty shouldn’t be so ruff. Doot Doo!!
SXSW10 Duck Down Records, Kid Sister, Sean Price
Eric Tullis ·
19 Mar 2010, 2:23 PM ·
1 Comment
My official SXSW initiation came with having a stranger find and return my Blackberry to me after picking it up it in the middle of 4th Street, severely injuring my big-toe after tripping over a pole-stump and later holding a brief conversation with Madlib about his two-inch wide, gold, arm-bands that he inherited from his grandmother. “It’s for protection,” he said before following J-Rocc’s DJ set at the cozy Stones Throw showcase. “She was on that voodoo-shit. All grandmothers look out for their grandkids.” I couldn’t have agreed more. So, waking up today and thinking, “Wow, today, maybe I should ask all of the musicians that I run into about their grandmothers,” didn’t seem like a bad idea. Until, that is, I realized that it was a bad idea. Continue reading »
SXSW10
Eric Tullis ·
4 Mar 2010, 12:27 PM ·
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For those still trying to make sense of Little Brother’s announcement that Leftback will be the duo’s final LP, the Khrysis-produced lead single “Curtain Call”—released this week via, err, MySpace and available for download here—should debrief you, if not relieve you. The exit doesn’t seem to rattle Phonte and Pooh here, both of whom sound satisfied with the precedent they set for newer rap acts like J. Cole, Wale, Pac Div and Jay Electronica, to name a few. “You mad wit’ me/ tough tittie/ get a training bra,” spouts Phonte, foreseeing the disappointment that many of us going to be harboring when we wake up the day after Leftback’s release and realize that there are no more Little Brother albums. Much like LB’s career, “Curtain Call” is an elegant, but short showcase of the the husky fellas’ honest rap offerings, delivered on top of one of Khrysis’ gentler concoctions—a perfect fit for a denouement as heartfelt and funky as this one.
New Music Little Brother
Eric Tullis ·
14 Feb 2010, 4:33 PM ·
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Lovely face?
Over the years, we’ve relied on The Foreign Exchange’s lead singer and one-half of Little Brother, Phonte Coleman, to offer helpful anecdotes on the casualties and celebrations of love and relationships. So, who better to provide us with five songs that would surely get us dumped on Valentine’s Day than Coleman himself? After the jump, he provides the tracks, and I provide the commentary.
Disclaimer, though: Neither of us accept responsibility for any of your V-Day disasters. And, if you need a quick fix, The Foreign Exchange plays tonight at Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro. Continue reading »
Interviews and Long Cuts, Reflections
Eric Tullis ·
1 Feb 2010, 5:34 PM ·
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Grammy Family (From Phonte Coleman's Twitter: www.twitter.com/phontigallo)
Given our (sometimes controversial) familiarity with Phonte Coleman and Nicolay Rook’s run over the past year as they supported their second LP as The Foreign Exchange, Leave It All Behind, we’re, of course, a tad disappointed that North Carolina’s newest R&B resource didn’t walk away with this year’s Grammy in the Urban/Alternative Performance category for the song “Daykeeper,” a joint effort with D.C. vocalist Muhsinah. Rather, neo-soul benefeciary India.Arie won the award for a song called “Pearls”—a tougher-than-tofu number dedicated to caring about people and the rainbow and stuff, which doesn’t sound too different from the other 30 songs she’s made over the years about such ethical quandaries. Oh, well…
Sure, while the Grammy Award remains the highest mark of musical achievement in the land, listeners should at least take comfort in the fact that you can’t put much stock in a process that can nominate a sketch from Saturday Night Live (“I’m on a Boat”) as Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. So, what have we learned from tonight’s events other than the fact that Quentin Tarantino snorts 5 Hour Energy Drinks? Even if FE didn’t walk away with the award, they did walk away with some awesome memories and photos with some of their musical heroes—Quincy Jones, Charlie Wilson, Ludacris, Roberta Flack and, of course, Bishop Don Magic Juan. With a third Foreign Exchange album coming out later this year, the FE “Grammy Family” pledges that they’ll be returning to the Staples Center for another go. Sounds like a plan.
News flashes Grammy Awards, Phonte, The Foreign Exchange
Eric Tullis ·
28 Jan 2010, 1:11 PM ·
2 Comments
“It’s fuckin’ over” were just a few of the words Phonte Coleman had to offer last week on his Gordon Gartrell Radio podcast, using a 12-minute segment of the show to thank fans for supporting Little Brother over the years and explain to listeners that, yes, the LB saga has reached its end: The duo’s next album, LeftBack, will be their last. Continue reading »
New Music Little Brother
Eric Tullis ·
13 Jan 2010, 12:05 PM ·
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Following Michael Jackson’s death in June 2009, BET aired a show called Michael Jackson: 10 Things You Didn’t Know. In it, The Roots drummer Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson made viewers privy to some comical trivia about the history of the King of
Not a Raekwon tribute...
Pop’s song “Bad.” According to ?uestlove, “Bad” was originally slated to be a duet that featured another member of music royalty—Prince. Prince declined the offer. Apparently, the opening line—“your butt is mine”—wasn’t too appealing to Prince. At a dinner, Prince told Mike, “You ain’t singing this line to me, and I sure ain’t singing this line to you.” Shortly thereafter, “Bad” was MJ’s No. 1 hit.
Unfortunately, that’s about the extent of my Prince knowledge. I’m on MJ’s team. But thanks to Rapper Big Pooh’s The Purple Tape project, I’m able to brush-up on some Prince history. Produced entirely by Detroit’s Black Milk, The Purple Tape (available here, at the big guy’s Bandcamp) captures Pooh rapping above Black Milk’s reinterpretation of close to a dozen of Prince’s most famed hits. Several months ago, Black Milk released this instrumental, Prince-inspired project, Music From The Color Purple, but with his blessings and permission, Rapper Big Pooh decided to make an album out of it. Pooh has been steadily releasing scrimmage projects like this, in anticipation for his next official LP, Dirty Pretty Things. This just happens to be his most outstanding, creative tease yet. For a short making-of documentary on the tape, see HOJTV.
In the Studio, New Music, News flashes Black Milk, Rapper Big Pooh, The Purple Tape
Eric Tullis ·
7 Jan 2010, 12:24 PM ·
5 Comments
Mic man.
The Wonder Years LP? Who cares anymore? While we’ve all been impatiently waiting on 9th Wonder to deliver his long-awaited album, we have a surprising new distraction here—9th Wonder as 9thmatic, the emcee. Yes, Mr. “Make-Me-Hot-P,” Pat Douthit, is rapping now. Oh, hell.
When hip hop producers decide to pick up the microphone and start rapping, they’re suggesting, in essence, that they’re just as verbally endowed as their rap peers, or they’ve come to the conclusion that sitting behind the production boards all day and making beats isn’t as thrilling as it used to be for them. The producer-slash-rapper title has become a venerable résumé builder and clout hoarder taken up by famed producers like Diamond D, Madlib and Pete Rock, just to name a few. They’ve all managed to turn emceeing into a mistress they parade around in hip-hop while also maintaining their production duties.
Oftentimes though, these producers have one of their go-to emcees ghostwrite their rhymes for them, which doesn’t really carry the stigma it would if the producer were a full-time emcee. In 9th’s case, however, it’s doubtful that anyone else had a hand in writing his verses. 9thmatic raps with the same down-to-earth enthusiasm that the producer offers in person and, at a few spots, his Winston-Salem, N.C. -bred Southern accent is highly effective. Skill-wise, he’s obviously not in the same class as many of the artists that he provides beats for, but at least now, we know that he can at least hop on a track with his favorite emcees without us wanting to skip over his verse.
After the break, you’ll find three fairly new tracks with 9thmatic. Also, notice that fellow Justus League producer and one of NC’s premier beatcrafters , Khrysis, picks up the microphone for his own, impressive, “fraggle naggle bullshit”. For now, in 9thmatic’s words, “Me and Khrysis are having LOADS of fun….fun fun fun…LOL …. workin on my ‘flow’ so to speak…..so it’s fun and a new challenge…..” Continue reading »
New Music, News flashes 9th Wonder
Eric Tullis ·
3 Nov 2009, 4:36 PM ·
1 Comment
Surely I’m not the only one who’s always had a super crush on that adorable, freckled-faced, Saturday Night Live alumnus Maya Rudolph. Also, I’m sure that I’m not the only one who’s recently discovered that she is the daughter of the late singer Minnie Ripperton, mostly known for her 1975 single “Lovin’ You”. In the odd case that you don’t know Minnie Ripperton, this Stevie Wonder explanation should help you out. Otherwise, you’ll have to rely on Durham’s Yahzarah to reinvent Ripperton’s “Perfect Angel” on ZO!’s …Just Visiting Too— the latest gift brought to you by Phonte and Nicolay’s Foreign Exchange Music label.
After all, did you really think that Phonte and his jheri curl wig were going to disappear? Well, they (along with Detroit, Mich., ZO!) didn’t, and today, Phonte (sans the wig) and his Foreign Exchange partner, Nicolay, released their bandmate, ZO!’s … JUST VISITING TOO EP. It’s free and you can download it here.
This seven-song EP, garnished with North Carolina vocalists like Yahzarah, Darien Brockington, Carlitta Durand and Phonte himself, is a purse-full of soul renewals ranging from Rod Temperton’s “Somethin’ Special” to Bobby Caldwell’s “My Flame”.
New Music Nicolay, Phonte, The Foreign Exchange, Yahzarah, Zo!
Eric Tullis ·
29 Oct 2009, 12:26 PM ·
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Settle? Who? Me?
On Monday, UNC’s Carolina Union Activities Board made the last-minute announcement that hip-hop artist Fabolous will headline its Homecoming 2009 concert Sunday, Nov. 1, at Memorial Hall. Now, just days later, two members of Student Congress are questioning the decision to bring Fabolous. Last year Gym Class Heroes and The Avett Brothers co-headlined the homecoming concert on separate dates, but this year, after a failed attempt to get Kid Cudi and Girl Talk to co-headline the concert, the CUAB had to “settle” with Fabolous as the only headliner. The night before he performs at UNC, Fabolous will also be in Greensboro, N.C. on Halloween night, performing alongside Gucci Mane, OJ Da Juiceman and Nicki Minaj for NC A&T’s Homecoming Concert. Convenient, huh? Continue reading »
Live Actions: New Bills Anoop Desai, Fabolous, UNC
