Day 257: Attack Of The Mean 90's People

The only writing I did yesterday was emailing Eleven Sweets to a bunch of friends and family and writing a riff at 11:55.

My wife took me for a 'I love you' lunch at the Soulsville Steakhouse. They play music that makes everything taste better. I honesty almost wept tears of joy at the beauty of the second bar of the chorus of Stop! In The Name Of Love. In fact every chord in that song is perfect (may the names of Holland Dozier Holland be forever blessed). I just wish we hadn't been seated at the Ike & Tina Turner table on our date. That's bad joojoo.

I am listening for the first time to A Night At The Opera by Queen. It seems to be a day for awe inspiring beauty. They created so many incredible singles that it's at least excusable to forget they made albums too.

Ever wondered what all the mean snarky judgemental people did before the internet?

Now I know. They wrote letters to guitar magazines.

One of my pupils gave me 120 issues of Guitar World, Guitar, Guitar One, Guitarist and so on and every single letters page contains the following flamefests

1) "I can't believe you f***** a******** ran another interview with [insert metal/thrash/hardcore band] those guys are talentless w*****. Why the hell don't you feature some decent music like [insert blues/alternative/indie artist]"

2) "I can't believe you f***** a******** ran another interview with [insert blues/alternative/indie artist] those guys are talentless w*****. Why the hell don't you feature some decent music like [insert metal/thrash/hardcore band]"


3) Yngwie/Clapton/Page/Dimebag/EVH is God. You're all d******


4) Yngwie/Clapton/Page/Dimebag/EVH is a pathetic joke. You're all d******

And so on...



Free download: Never Be Silent
Other free songs by Matt Blick

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The Saviour of Christian Music is Not a White Guy With a Guitar…

It’s a Black Man on a Mic.

At first I thought it was merely a result of my ineptitude as a blogger. 

I mean when you’ve giving away one of the best albums of the year and you’re struggling to find a taker something’s gotta be wrong, right?

Then I started to notice the underwhelming coverage that Lions And Liars was getting on the web in general. Hey! Sho Baraka’s reformed (as in theology) style of rap is a sub genre of a sub genre of a sub genre. No wonder he’s off the map.

Then the aptly named ‘Under The Radar’ podcast airs a special rap edition. The music is incredible (download it here) but the host sounded like he was already bracing himself for the backlash. What the problem?

The Christian music scene doesn’t need a new star, a new hero, or a new trendsetter. But we do need someone to save us from an army effeminate, doctrine-phobic mystics, and the ability to play barre chords is not necessarily a requirement.

Man-up

To borrow a line from Sho, when you have ‘hip hop minus all the thugging’ you’re still left with something inherently manly. On the other hand, take a pinch of ‘God is my girlfriend’ sentiments, sung in an effeminate vocal style and smeared with guyliner and it may be marketable, but it won’t make Driscoll’s playlist.

Word

The new rap is most bible-saturated form of music around today. Proof? Who are the champions for this new style of music? Old white preachers. Mark Dever (a man whose church regards Isaac Watts as a little edgy) interviewed Voice & Shai Linne.

John Piper got Lecrae to rap in a Sunday service at Calvinism H.Q. (aka Bethlehem Baptist Church).

Mark Driscoll had Lecrae & Tedashii over to jam at Mars Hill to the studied indifference of 9000 bemused Seattle cage fighting software programmers.

Why did this happen?

These preachers love the word and they love musicians who love the word.

This is something of a sea change as far as ‘urban’ music goes (and why urban? Do all the white guys live on the farm?). Marred by self-actualisation & the prosperity gospel and hamstrung by a ridiculous allegiance to King James English, too often black gospel artists have sounded like funky positive thinking emissaries from the 17th century.

Sunday morning

That all well and good. But can you rap corporately?

No.

And that’s probably a good thing.

Because at the moment it’s hard to tell who’s a worship leader and who’s not. It used to be easy. The worship leader was the one with a hole in the middle of his guitar.

But now he has a Strat, and a band, and a light show. He’s just like any other band leader (except his band gigs every Sunday morning). This problem isn’t the hardware. It’s the songs.

Let’s call him Don

Don has a Transcendental Experience of God.
Don commemorates that in a song.
Don sings that song at every gig for the next 3 years. 
Cool.

Don brings the song into a worship setting and teaches it to everyone.
They sing about Don’s mountain top experience.
Some identify. Some don’t.
Don introduces a few more mountain top songs.
Touching the divine right here, right now starts to become the expectation for a normal time of worship.  
Not so cool.

Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus.
When he got up off the floor he carried on down the road.
He didn’t build a roadside tabernacle and go back there every Sunday expecting to feel the same Holy Ghost high.

Imagine a testimony time where after every story of deliverance, healing, financial provision the whole congregation jumped up and started confessing that it had happened to them too.

Crazy huh?
Let’s make sure we’re not doing that when we sing.

This is me.

I’m a white guy with a guitar. I’m not dissing my tribe. But I’m thrilled to see something exciting and ground-breaking happening in gospel rap.

I want to welcome what God is doing with open arms, honouring him for the gifting he’s placed in my Christian brothers Sho Baraka, Tedashii, Lecrae, Trip Lee, Katalyst, Shai Linne (to name just a few)

Will you join me?

Here's three good places to start

Under the Radar #80
Lions & Liars
Identity Crisis





Free songs by a white guy with a guitar

Sho Baraka's Chicken Interview

Sho Baraka is a funny dude...

Sho Baraka 'Lions & Liars' Interview from Rapzilla.com on Vimeo.

Related Posts: Lions and Liars review

Free songs by Matt Blick

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DJ Official - EnterMission: Review

Don't forget you still have 3 days left to win this album right here.

EnterMission is less an album BY DJ Official and more a sampler or mix tape on the theme of urban mission featuring Reach Records artists and likeminded friends.

There’s a massive variety on display here, which is both a strength and a weakness. If you like hip-hop there’s bound to be tracks you love and tracks you hate. EnterMission serves you up everything from Nothing Without You (think Pink at her most feminine) to Chisel Me (a masochistic sanctification smackdown) to Not My Own (imagine speed reading Wayne Grudem while listening to nu-metal).

So, while they may not be your favourites, let me tell you mine

Some reviewers have described Show Off (Lecrae & Flame) as cheesy. I don’t agree (this, mon ami, is tres fromage). To me the track is just playful and fresh rather than fresh from the deli counter and as fun is not one of Reach’s strong points I say kudos to ‘em.

Streets Of New York (J.A.Z. & Magellan) is one of the best tracks by DJ Official evoking perfectly the knife edge tension of a city at flashpoint. The lyrics not only paint the picture in stark colours but motivate you to get out there.

Go features some insane speed rapping from H.G.A. (who are these guys?) & Tedashii.

Love Fallen (Gems, Jahaziel, BenJah & Dillavou) is the kind of track that shouldn’t work but is easily one of the best on the album. Crossing so many boundaries that you feel dizzy, the blend of UK & Jamacian rappers meeting over a sizzling reggae track is inspired.

On an album full of gritty realism Sho Baraka’s track Chaos is the hardest hitting of them all. The backing is a claustrophobic Prodigy (Firestarter) style track, all alarms and skittering beats representing the moral chaos Sho is rapping about. This track is Huge.

Overall there’s much to like on this album. DJ Official himself doesn’t cast a big enough shadow to give it a cohesive identity but it would make a good first purchase if you’re unfamiliar with Reach Records and want to check out the different artists.

get this album for FREE.



Related Posts: Sho Baraka - Lions & Liars review



Free songs by Matt Blick

The Final Countdown

Don't forget you have 7 more days to enter the Reach Records free giveaway. You could get your sweaty mitts on

Lions And Liars by Sho Baraka
and
Entermission by DJ Official

find out how here

Related Posts: Lions and Liars review

Free Sho Baraka (Re)Mix Tape

This should appeal to you if you like the track We Could Be More on Sho Baraka's new CD Lions and Liars.

I mean really, really, really like it.

Sho proves ha can be more, much more, by giving away a mix tape of 15 remixes of this one track.

Get it here.

Don't forget to check out the Sho Baraka/DJ Official giveaway I'm currently running.


Free songs by Matt Blick

Sho Baraka/DJ Official CD Giveaway

Here's the moment you've all been waiting for (since yesterday). I'm giving away two great Christian Rap albums.  

Lions & Liars by Sho Baraka

 

and Entermission by DJ Official feat. Sho, Tedashii, Lecrae, Trip Lee, Justin Bieber (just kidding). Watch out for a review next Tues.

What do I have to do?

1) subscribe to this blog by RSS, email or by 'following' me. (If you already do one of these things just leave a comment)

or

2) recommend this blog to a friend, link to this post or retweet it.

or

3) subscribe to my other blog by RSS or email (If you're a Beatle loving rap fan songwriter)

or

Do all 3!

THEN

Leave me a comment here telling me which ones you've done. That's up to 3 chance to win.

Closing date - Wed 26th May 2010 (midday GMT if you want to be all OCD about it)

Small print.

Prize is 2 well looked after ex-review copy CDs. Winner will be selected by a random number generator, then announced on Wed 26th May 2010. When winner has emailed me their postal address, 2 physical CD will be sent anywhere on the planet via some sort of registered post, which is as close to a guarantee that they'll arrive as I can give.

Free songs by Matt Blick

Why Sho Serious? Sho Baraka: Lions And Liars Review

  For a chance to win this album click here!

In 2009 Reach Records artist Tedashii released one of the best albums of any genre, Identity Crisis. 2010 looks like being the year of stablemate Sho Baraka and his amazing album Lions And Liars.

What’s so special?

Like all the Reach rappers, Sho is very worded and hard hitting, but he’s humorous with it. He has a gift for handling even the most serious themes in a playful way.

The album is packed with references, both cultural & biblical & is bursting with musical styles & lyrical themes.

Manhood & racial identity, sex, drugs and violence, thug culture & the gospel vie for attention over a crazy mix of stadium rock, & europop anthems, Motown Soul & Black Gospel, sax solos & performance poetry.

Don't trust the trailer

Ever seen a film where the best 3 minutes were all in the trailer? Well this album is the opposite. Don’t judge Oh Well & Revolutionary Died from the taster videos you‘ve seen on Youtube. Like his master, Sho saved the best for last. Both songs will have you hitting replay again and again.

The man raps with a twinkle in his eye. It’s apparent on Lions Anthem from the nod to Whole Lotta Love to rapping about the shoe salesman who’s used to save soles (souls) and his cousin at the IRS dealing with false profits (prophets). 

But he’s just warming up. He catches fire on Mercy On Me. Over a powerfully penitent gospel chorus, the criminal & the cancer patient who’ll “be dead by year's end” are our companions at the mercy seat. 

I’m Black - a creatively recorded performance poem by Tom Ason, serves as an attention grabbing intro to My Life

Nice aim! They taught us to aim for nothing

And look, we hit it, dead on the button.

Sho’s personal journey through self-identity issues features superbly crafted lyrics - each line of the chorus recaps the line before, and the final line leads us back to the first line. 

On Me, Myself & I he gets all Smeagol/Gollum on the mic, as he documents his battles against the flesh.

You’re a liar, a jerk you’re a creep,

So prideful, arrogant and weak.

Don't waste your skit

Liar’s Anthem is built on a sample from a Don’t Waste Your Life video skit. Singing from the thug’s p.o.v. could be dangerous move, turning this into a gangster's song, but Sho manages to makes the transition via looking at the sins of the rap industry, church & Nike(!) to straight out preaching. 

Propaganda supplies the second performance poem BOYS!!! and it is a killer. In 1:29 he manages to reduce wannabe gangsters to “silly boys.” And sets the stage perfectly for the album’s high point Revolutionary Died

It’s still hip-hop minus all the thugging

Take the poet & the priest & put it in the husband

I know one song can’t change the world

But maybe the dude next door [will] stop beating his girl

download it right now!

This song is a classic and the only reason not to get immediately is that’s ‘cos you’re gonna get the whole album.

Oh Well keeps up the pressure over a swaggering rock groove

They save whales, save dogs, save dolphins,

Save trees – but kids ain’t really that important

All the money he wants can’t buy joy

Dollar bills don’t make men out of boys

By this stage Sho is relentless. When the beat drops he keeps going - right of the edge of the map.

Perfect?

No, there’s a few weak points - all of them minor. 

The early tracks struggle to sustain the weight of the grand concept. Who is the dead lion? Jesus? Christians? Does the cover mean Sho is a Liar? Or a Lion and a Liar? As well as making him look freakishly ugly it’s trying to make a metaphor mean too many things all at once. AND IT DOESN’T MATTER! The songs and the track listing are strong enough to tell their own story. 

Just for once I’d love to see a hip hop album presented simply as “a collection of the best tracks I recorded this year” without feeling the need to make some kind of over hyped statement. Because the songs make a powerful enough statement all by themselves. Though strictly speaking this is not a concept album I can’t remember the last time I’ve heard an album with such a powerful flow (particularly from I’m Black to Oh Well).

The ugly photo isn’t the only sleeve issue. This is the second Reach Records release I’ve had to go online to find out the name of a track or featured rapper.  
Readab1E fOnts  guys!

The album is 17 tracks plus 4 bonus tracks. Filling every second of the CD runs the risk diluting the album. There’s nothing wrong with the bonus tracks – (Kobe Bryant On Em extended mix? Yes, please!) but why not keep the album tighter and include a unique download code for bonus tracks?

So to sum up, the only things wrong with this CD are Sho paid more attention to the music than the artwork and is too generous with his tracks. Shame on you Sho!

This is an incredible, inspiring five star album. It will make you laugh and make you think. It will move your heart and probably the rest of your body with it .

Wanna get your hands on a free copy of this CD? Tune in tomorrow to find out how.

Related Posts: Free Sho Baraka mixtape

John Piper vs Led Zeppelin (Tedashii & Lecrae)

Free songs by Matt Blick

Sho Baraka's New Album Is Out Now!

Thats right Sho Baraka's Lions & Liars is available RIGHT NOW!
Lecrae, JAMM, Trip Lee, Tedashii are all on board.

Deluxe versions are available here. There are five versions to choose from.




For more promos and snippets go here, more information? Visit www.reachrecords.com

US peeps can get it at Walmart ($9.99 w/bonus tracks), Family Christian, LifeWay, Berean, and Mardel Christian stores.



Related Posts: The Sho Must Go On


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The Sho Must Go On

Sho Baraka is one of the best Christian rappers out there. Not only has he got the same strong doctrinal underpinning to his rapping shared by all his Reach Records stablemates, he's a heavy hitter like Tedashii and he tops off the brew with a sense of humour. Here's a few recommendations for you to check out.

First up you want to get Sho's FREE mix tape Barakology. The flavour varies from the out and out silliness of the Serious Rapper Skit and the Intro to the epic track Glorious.


Sho recorded a great interview for christianmanifesto.com which you can download here.


Sho's Prodigy-influenced track Chaos is one of the standout songs on DJ Official's Entermission album. I'll be reviewing the album and giving away a free copy soon, but if you can't wait here's where you can download the track, the album or buy the CD.




Lastly Sho has a new album Lion And Liars out soon. Don't let the freaky artwork put you off ( if you aren't the lions doesn't that make you the liar Sho?).




Related Posts: Tedashii: Identity Crisis review
Lecrae Don't Waste Your Life video (starring Sho Baraka)



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