Top 5 Favorite Rap Artists

This is my Top 5 list from Episode 18. Now, I admitted in this episode that I'm only just starting to get into rap and hip-hop music after years of dismissing it just as many of peers in high school did. As I get older, I find myself more willing to appreciate forms of music that I previously found unappealing (like rap and folk) and losing interest in some genres that I used to enjoy (namely heavy metal). So I will be the first to acknowledge that I am by no means an expert when it comes to rap music, and I haven't put in the same kind of time and energy into learning about it and its history as I have with rock and roll. So, keep that in mind as you read my Top 5 list of favorite rap artists.

#5: Nas

Nas - Illmatic (1994)

Nas released his debut album Illmatic in 1994 and helped spark an artistic renaissance of East Coast hip hop in New York City. It has been cited as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time.Rolling Stone ranked it at 400 on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time - not hip hop albums, but all albums. Perhaps I'm doing a great injustice by only putting Nas at number five, but sadly Nas never achieved the same kind of critical success after his first album. Fans labeled him a "sellout" after his manager Steve Stoute convinced him to aim for a more commercial direction with his follow-up album It Was Written. None of his albums would ever be taken as seriously, but Illmatic still cements Nas's place in music history. Check out the fourth track, "The World is Yours."

#4: Danny!

Danny! - Charm (2006)

After two unsuccessful attempts to make a name for himself, Danny! released his third album Charm to unanimously rave reviews and managed to wind up on the short list for the Grammy Awards. Danny! has become South Carolina's most acclaimed hip hop artist to date, though still not exactly a well-known name. Danny!'s career is somewhat marred by the fact that he was expelled from Claflin University over a grade-changing scandal involving over 300 students.His first album was called The College Kicked-Out, but was panned as an amateur version of Kanye West's seminal debut The College Dropout. Charm is a concept album about a protagonist who dreams about becoming famous and wealthy only to find that it's not all it's cracked up to be. The album features a lot of sampling and includes little voicemail "skits" before each track giving some context for the song. Two tracks to check out are "Strange Fruit" and "Lip Flappin'," the latter of which parodies the cliches and nonsense prevalent in the hip hop genre.

#3: Lupe Fiasco

Lupe Fiasco's The Cool (2007)

Lupe Fiasco is one of the pioneers of the "conscious hip hop" movement, which focuses on social issues. As a boy, Wasalu Jaco initially disliked rap music for its use of vulgarity, and it shows because he almost never curses in his raps. He is definitely not your average rapper, in that he is Muslim and also really into skateboarding (he has a great song about it called "Kick, Push"). The most notable thing about his style is that he uses raps to tell stories. The subjects he touches on include absent parents, terrorism, Islam, war, and prostitution. His 2007 album The Cool is a concept album about a character named The Cool who grows up without a father and his interactions with the two characters who raise him, named The Streets and The Game. The Cool was nominated for four awards at the 2009 Grammy Awards including Best Rap Album. You may have heard the song "Superstar" featuring some beautiful vocals from singer Matthew Santos.Also check out the song "Gotta Eat," which is told from the perspective of a cheeseburger and addresses the poor nutrition in black communities in the US.

#2: El-P

El-P - I'll Sleep When You're Dead (2007)

El-P (real name Jaime Meline), one of the two white rappers on this list, was described by music critic Steve Huey as "one of the most technically gifted MCs of his time, spitting out near-impossible phrases and rhythmic variations that simply leave the listener's head spinning." El-P is incredibly proficient but his music is also incredibly dark, dense, and aggressive. Check out the first track on his second studio album I'll Sleep When You're Dead, entitled "Tasmanian Pain Coaster." I don't know what a Tasmanian Pain Coaster is, but the chorus of the song goes,
"This is the sound of what you don't know killing you
This is the sound of what you don't believe still true
This is the sound of what you don't want still in you
TPC motherfucker, cop a feel or two."
El-P's music contains many references to science fiction themes and writers such as Philip K. Dick, George Orwell, and Arthur C. Clarke. As I said, the music is incredibly dark and claustrophobic, so don't listen to this shit if you're high or you'll probably get really paranoid. By the way, it's also worth mentioning that El-P is the owner and CEO of Definitive Jux, the same record label that signed Danny!

#1: Aesop Rock

Aesop Rock - Music for Earthworms (1997)

Aesop Rock (real name Ian Michael Bavitz) grew up in Long Island, New York. His mother was Jewish but he was raised Catholic and later became agnostic. He has two tattoos that read "Must Not Sleep" and "Must Warn Others," quotes inspired by the 1956 film Invasion of the Body Snatchers. In August 2001 he had a nervous breakdown. What I'm getting at is that Aesop Rock is a strange guy, but damn can he rap. If you thought El-P's lyrics were dense and confusing, then prepare to have your mind blown, sucka. In fact, so many critics have commented on the complex and abstract nature of his lyrics that Aesop Rock had this to say in response,
"It’s probably because it’s not the most accessible music in the world. It may pose a slight challenge to the listener beyond your average pop song. I'm no genius by a long shot, but these songs are not nonsensical, that's pretty preposterous. I'd have to be a genius to pull this many nonsensical records over people's eyes. It's not exactly fast food but when people pretend I'm just spewing non-sequiturs and gibberish I can’t help but think they simply haven’t listened and are regurgitating some rumor they’ve heard about me. Even if it's not laid out in perfect sentences—is any rap?—you’d have to be an idiot to not at least grasp a few things from these songs. Or have had no interest in pulling anything from them in the first place."
His debut album, Music for Earthworms, was only released on CD-R and is therefore incredible rare. If you can get your hands on it, or download the songs, check out my favorite track from the album "Shere Khan." Aesop Rock is also on the Definitive Jux label with El-P and Danny!

Well, there you have it, my Top 5 Favorite Rap Artists.Comment and tell me how white I am and that I don't know what I'm talking about.

Top 5 Album Covers

This is my Top 5 list from Episode 16. In this episode, I discussed vinyl records and what the appeal of collecting an outdated medium is to me. The biggest draw of collecting LP (or Long-Playing) records is by far the amazing artwork that can be found on many record sleeves. In an era where more people buy music off iTunes or other digital services than actually purchase physical copies, the importance of album art is being lost. There's a vast difference between looking at a one-inch thumbnail on your computer screen and looking at the cover of a 12" record.

Thick as a Brick (1972)

Ogden's Nut Gone Flake (1968)

Vinyl packaging was also clever in its use of creative designs, with gatefold sleeves, crazy flaps, pop-ups, and entirely original concept packaging (as seen on Jethro Tull's Thick as a Brick and Small Faces' Ogden's Nut Gone Flake). Here now is my list of the Top 5 most striking or iconic album covers (after Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, of course).

#5: Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy

Houses of the Holy (1973)

It's difficult to choose the best Led Zeppelin album cover. I was especially torn between this and the cover of Led Zeppelin IV with the old man threshing wheat, but this cover is just far more striking. With that tinting, the amazing landscape (the actual photograph was taken at Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland) and those creepy naked children (which is actually the same child photographed in different positions), it leaves a real impression on me. The artwork was designed by Aubrey Powell of Hipgnosis. Hipgnosis was the design studio that is most famous for doing all of Pink Floyd's most recognizable covers, including Dark Side of the Moon, as well as designing covers for Genesis, Bad Company, and AC/DC.

#4: Tie - Santana - Abraxas / Miles Davis - Bitches Brew

Abraxas (1970)

Bitches Brew (1970)

I had to name these two album covers a tie since they are stylistically so similar. That's because they were both done by the same artist, Mati Klarwein. You will also notice that both albums came out in the same year. Musically, Bitches Brew is the far superior album, but Abraxas does rank as one of Santana's best. The cover of Abraxas is a painting done in 1961 by Klarwein called Annunciation. The cover for Bitches Brew was specifically done for that album. Both covers feature the use of naked African people, swirling colors, and juxtaposition. If I had to give the nod to one of these albums, I would give it to Bitches Brew because the artwork is cleaner and more concise.

#3: Yes - Relayer

Relayer (1974)

I could have really put any Yes album cover here, but Relayer is the most representative of artist Roger Dean's unique style. Roger Dean painted the covers for almost every single Yes album, including their most recent 2011 release Fly From Here. His style features moody, surreal landscapes featuring graceful stone arches, alien structures, floating islands, and other fantastic natural features. He primarily works in watercolors. Says Dean, "I don't really think of myself as a fantasy artist but as a landscape artist." Dean has also designed album covers for such bands as Uriah Heep, Asia, Gentle Giant, and Atomic Rooster, which are all excellent progressive rock bands (except for Asia, they suck).

#2: Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Brain Salad Surgery

Brain Salad Surgery (1973)

ELP's masterpiece album features one of the creepiest covers you'll ever find. It was designed by H.R. Giger, who is most famous for designing the alien for the movie Alien. He is without a doubt the master of creating artwork that is horrifyingly disturbing and yet still subtle. His most distinctive characteristic is the melding of human bodies and machines in a relationship described as "biomechanical." You probably can't tell from the picture there, but that front cover is actually split vertically down the middle so that it opens in two flaps, revealing a woman's face with alien hair and multiple scars, including one shaped like the infinity symbol and one that is clearly from a frontal lobotomy. The odd glowing dome-like object beneath her mouth is clearly reminiscent of a phallus, and there is a rumor that the phrase "brain salad surgery" is slang for fellatio.

#1: King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King

In the Court of the Crimson King (1968)

King Crimson's debut album is one of the most important albums of all time. It basically created the genre of progressive rock overnight. Its cover is one of the most iconic album covers in rock and roll history. Yet for all that significance, its original artist is not famous at all. It was painted by a computer programmer named Barry Godber; who died in 1970 not long after the album's release of a heart attack; this would be his only painting. The original painting is now owned by the leader of King Crimson, Robert Fripp, who had this to say about Godber:

"Peter [Sinfield] brought this painting in and the band loved it. I recently recovered the original from EG's offices because they kept it exposed to bright light, at the risk of ruining it, so I ended up removing it. The face on the outside is the Schizoid Man, and on the inside it's the Crimson King. If you cover the smiling face, the eyes reveal an incredible sadness. What can one add? It reflects the music."

And there you have it, my Top 5 Album Covers of all time. You'll notice that a common trend here is that a) most of the albums are progressive rock albums and b) most of them do not feature the band name or album name anywhere on the cover. What do you think about that? Comment and let me know.

Top 5 Annoyingly Infectious Pop Songs

This is my Top 5 list from Episode 14. These are songs that just seem to get stuck in my head regardless of whether or not I actually like them. There are so many examples I could name, but I went with five more recent songs to narrow things down. Here are my Top 5 Annoyingly Infectious Pop Songs.

#5: Katy Perry - "Firework"

My girlfriend recently had a revelation that she genuinely loves Katy Perry. My feelings on her, however, are decidedly mixed. On the one hand, her giant freaky eyes kind of scare me and "I Kissed A Girl" is one of the most obnoxious pop songs of recent memory. On the other hand, "Last Friday Night" is actually pretty entertaining and demonstrates that Perry is self-aware and possesses a sense of humor. "Firework" is anthemic, dancy, and that "Oh oh oh!" part is catchy. So catchy that I find myself singing along to it no matter how emasculating it may be.

#4: Enrique Iglesias - "Tonight (I'm Fuckin' You)"

This song has so much swagger it's kind of hard to argue with it, as much as you really want to. I mean, that voice is just so...sexy. Well, maybe not, since it sometimes sounds like Iglesias is actually yodeling. I'm serious, listen to the song. Nevertheless, the chorus begs you to sing along with it. There is something undeniably fun and goofy about shouting "Cause tonight I'm fucking you!" at a bunch of other dudes. Don't judge me.

#3: Diddy-Dirty Money ft. Skylar Grey - "Coming Home"

I don't even have anything bad to say about this song, other than the fact that it is, of course, annoyingly infectious. But it's a great song and Skylar Grey's vocals are beautiful. The lyrics are rather more substantial than the typical pop song and Diddy's rap is pretty tight. It's a great song to sing along to in a club or bar. Plus, I really like P. Diddy ever since his performance in Get Him to the Greek. You're all being mind-fucked right now.

#2: Rihanna - "S&M"

Rihanna is the queen of writing annoyingly catch songs ever since 2007, the year when "Umbrella" just would not go away. I don't know if I can bring myself to admit that I actually like "S&M," but I find myself singing along to it regardless. The rest of the song is completely forgettable, but I'll be damned if that chorus isn't immediately gripping. I can't say that the song actually had the intended effect of shocking or offending me, but this 2011 after all and it seems to me that the topic of S&M is actually pretty mainstream now. At any rate, Rihanna did not write a song called "Run the World (Girls)," which makes her a far sight better than Beyonce in my eyes.

#1: Cee Lo Green - "Fuck You"

Sigh. It makes me sad to talk about this song now. I'm serious. I absolutely loved this song when it first came out, and for once I was actually ahead of the curve. I showed a lot of my friends the music video and got them hooked as well. It's soulful, fun, and immediately takes up residence in your brain like a parasite the first time you hear it. Then it freaking exploded. This song was everywhere, and I could not escape it. Everyone and their mom was singing it. I would often hear it in some capacity upwards of three or four times a day. A rendition of this song was performed by chickens in the recent film The Muppets. That's right - a song called "Fuck You" was included in a movie for children. It's been so played out that I can't even listen to the song anymore, and that makes me sad - because it's still a genuinely great tune.

And there you go. My Top 5 Annoyingly Infectious Pop Songs.Comment and tell me what songs get stuck in your head whether you like them or not.

Top 5 Indie Bands (That Are No Longer "Indie")

Justin here.

This is my Top 5 list from Episode 13, the first episode of the new format. It's my list of Indie Bands that are now too mainstream to really consider "indie rock" any more. It's not that I even have a problem with that, but I do think we should call things like it is.

#5: The Decemberists

The King is Dead (2011)

As you all know, The Decemberists are my favorite band ever, due to their highly literate, poetic lyrics and their melding of pop, folk, and progressive rock sensibilities. However, their recent album The King is Dead charted at #1 on the US Billboard 200 and featured R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck. They've performed on Conan O'Brien and The Colbert Report. That makes them no longer "indie."

#4: Arcade Fire

The Suburbs (2010)

Arcade Fire were indie rock darlings when they released their debut album Funeral in 2004. It was one of the best indie rock albums of all time. Since then, they've exploded in popularity, with their song "Wake Up" being used everywhere from Where the Wild Things Are to NFL Monday Night Football. Their most recent album The Suburbs won Album of the Year at the 2011 Grammy Awards, prompting Rosie O'Donnell to ask "Who the hell are these guys?" and everyone else to respond "Shut the hell up Rosie, nobody likes you." The band has performed on Saturday Night Live and many other media outlets.

#3: Modest Mouse

Good News for People Who Love Bad News (2004)

Quick, how many Modest Mouse songs can you name? It doesn't matter, because you only need to name one. "Float On" was virtually inescapable for the better part of a year, and still continues to receive heavy radio play to this day. Good News... went Platinum and was nominated for a Grammy in 2005 for Best Alternative Album. Based on the strength of just one single, Modest Mouse went from relative obscurity to mainstream success. Not bad.

#2: Death Cab for Cutie

Front man Ben Gibbard

Whether you love them or hate them, you know who Death Cab for Cutie is. The band's music has been featured in a variety of film soundtracks and TV shows, most notably The OC. Their 2008 album Plans went Platinum and was nominated for two Grammy Awards. "I Will Follow You Into the Dark" brought their music to legions of teen girls who were previously unaware of the band. Lead singer Ben Gibbard has become a household name, and his side project The Postal Service has become as big as Death Cab for Cutie. The man was married to Zooey Deschanel for God's sake. If that's not the definition of success, I don't know what is.

#1: The White Stripes

Jack White

The White Stripes have been around long enough and have been successful enough that it might seem strange to even think of them as an indie band. However, Jack and Meg White formed their band in 1997 and did not achieve any sort of prominence until 2002. Their last three albums, Icky Thump, Get Behind Me Satan, and Elephant were all Grammy-winning albums. They were in that annoying iPod commercial. Songwriter and guitarist Jack White has become a prolific, extremely influential figure in the music industry. Rolling Stone ranked him at #70 on "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time." He's collaborated with such musicians as Alica Keys, Bob Dylan, and Jeff Beck, and formed two other bands of his own, The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather. Check out Jack White in the fantastic 2009 documentary It Might Get Loud.

There you have it, my Top 5 Indie Bands that are no longer "indie." Comment and follow the blog!

Prepare for Lots of Blogging Goodness

Well hello, Justin here.

Now that it's December and I've finished NaNoWriMo (that's National Novel Writing Month to those not in the know) I can devote some time to posting some content on this blog. We haven't really advertised the fact that Boldly Going Nowhere now has it's own blog, but that will change. As our audience grows, we want to continue to provide content and ways for our listeners to reach us and give us feedback.

In addition to using this blog to provide news and updates about the podcast, alert people to new episodes, and discuss upcoming events, I'd also like this blog to be a supplement to the podcast by putting some of the content we discuss on the show here on the blog. That way you won't miss out on the things we talk about if you skip an episode (or maybe just don't feel like sitting through an entire episode to get to everything - we should really start putting in chapter selection!)

You can expect a slew of updates here from me in the near future. I'm going to be posting all the Top 5 lists I've done on the show since the inception of our new format back at the beginning of the Summer. It'll be helpful to include pictures of the things I've talked about. Please feel free to comment and tell me how much my list sucks and how your top 5 list is so much better!