iTune$ and the Beatle$

When Apple announced the Beatles were coming to iTunes, my first reaction was “Who the hell cares?” Let’s face it, if you were into the Beatles you purchased the box set, the USB apple, and you’ve been to Vegas for the neutered Cirque de Soleil trip. Until the Beatles discovered drugs, they were a singles band. So iTunes and the Beatles are a perfect fit. By marketing to singles, iTunes has destroyed the concept of the album by allowing non-single tracks to be downloaded. Of course, this is only an issue if you care about the album as an artistic artifact. Something tells me that Steve Jobs' main concern isn't art. In fact the announcement was met in the NY Times by an article on the third page of the Business section!

In the end business is all this announcement means, more business for Apple, more more cash for the Beatles, more time until EMI goes bankrupt, and more consumers duped into buying the same old music over and over again.

Kanye Hearts BP

It’s been five years of empty rhetoric and promises since Katrina, and our recent experience with the latest man-made disaster, courtesy of our friends at BP and Minerals Management, seems to be delivering more of the same. At least after Katrina, the world seemed to be focused on helping, which included “A Concert for Hurricane Relief.”

If you didn’t know who Kanye West was before “A Concert for Hurricane Relief,” and most people didn’t, you knew who he was afterwards. It was during this telethon that West blurted out that “George Bush doesn’t care about black people.” If nothing else, that statement got the conversation moving about why was the government response was so slow. Suddenly West became a political figure. And although the veracity of his statement has not necessarily been disproven, the real reason the government couldn’t react probably had more to do with our misguided efforts in “the war on terror,” “the war on drugs,” “the war on (fill-in-the-blank-with-whatever-politically-motivated-issue-will-get-you-reelected-and-bring-in-money to-your-reelection-campaign-fund).” It wasn’t that Bush didn’t care about black people, its that the government doesn’t care about any people.

The government, which is continually being extolled by the right-wing to be run more like a business, is increasingly focused on the bottom-line, which is what businesses do. And more so than ever before, or wars on this and that, are actually run by private businesses, with profits going to private individuals, at a cost unknown to the US government! Now, with the BP debacle and the fact that they were “in charge” of the clean-up, we can see that big business and government coexist hand-in-hand to maximize profit at the expense of people.

Although there has been a little here and there from musicians, actors, and srtists, about the BP spill, obviously it has garnered the attention that Katrina did. After all, it was easy to point the blame after Katrina. Bush may not care about black people, but Kanye West like to support the international petro cartels, driving an $800,000 car and cracking up a slightly less expensive one.

So in the midst of another disaster that is affecting the lives of blacks and whites along the Gulf Coast, where is Kanye West to speak out against government and business injustice and incompetence?

He’s busy making records with Justin Bieber. However, what is the message of this song by the spokesperson for the oppressed? To quote another rap group that held true to their message, Public Enemy:

You singers are spineless
As you sing your senseless songs to the mindless
Your general subject love is minimal
Its sex for profit

So in the nation’s time of need, Kanye has aligned himself with the government and BP, watching out for his bottom line. Maybe it's hammer time?

"Born Free" What about Me?

Maya Arulpragasam has not been an artist to stay away from controversial issues. At one time Maya was denied entry into the United States allegedly because of her father’s ties with the Tamil Tigers and that her lyrics have been interpreted as being sympathetic to certain oppressed groups that the US government does feel sympathetic towards. With her new single, “Born Free” and its accompanying video, M.I.A. has again sparked controversy.

Click here to see the video

Romain Gavras’s video for “Born Free” was removed from youtube for a time and then reappeared with a mature content warning. The video show US paramilitary types—Black Water?—abducting redheaded boys and taking them out into a field to be slaughtered. The video is unapologetic and gruesome. Everything is depicted—sex, drug usage, murder. From the video we see a redhead resistance movement has formed and upon a wall the military bus passes a mural showing three redheads raised guns in hand with the slogan “Our Day Will Come,” which is Tiocfaidh ár lá, a slogan of the IRA. The boys are all brutally killed in the field and the viewer cannot be but stunned by the visual accompaniment.

This is a video that forces the viewer to question what is going on and what statement is trying to be made. Why do the soldiers have US flags on their uniforms? Why are they rounding up redheads? Why is the violence so graphic?

The thing is all art should make us ask “why?”.

Get Up! Stand Up! For Records!

Saturday, April 17^th is International Record Store Day!

“ So…” I hear you iTunes/Amazon mp3 purchasing kiddies saying. So, if it wasn’t for record stores you wouldn’t be able to interact, in a physical way, with the music you are purchasing before you buy it.

“So…” I hear you purchasers of nonphysical formats saying. So…although the music may still be there (albeit in an inferior quality), you are missing out on physically interacting with other people who dig the same types of music that you do and you miss out on the packaging of the music. And although you may think that packaging isn’t important, tell that to the Who, the Rolling Stones, to Radiohead, to Wilco, and all the other bands that spend time to add meaning and value to the music through the physical release of music. Tell that to the people who are trying to build physical communities of music fans buy running indy record stores. Trust me, running a small record store isn’t about making money—it’s about music.

Maybe it’s time for us, as fans of music, to also focus on the music and the musicians who care about putting out interesting content.

So if you don't know where a local record store is located, go to the Record Store Day web site and look for one. Buy some vinyl...it does the heart good!

Unreleased Protest Album (Released)

It’s been awhile since Leonard Peltier name has been mentioned, but just recently it has returned.

For those who don’t know, Peltier was accused and found guilty of killing two FBI agents on an Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Many feel his connection the American Indian Movement, which was very active in the 70s, was the primary reason for his conviction. Questions have been raised about the conviction and trail, yet Peltier remains in prison.
Pitchfork recently ran a story about an unreleased album that was meant to benefit Peltier’s defense. For some reason, Sony didn’t produce the album (surprise). Well an A&R assistant rediscovered the music and set up a website to raise awareness of the Peltier case and release the music—for free.
There are some big names on the album and the music is politically charged. So head over to the website, download the tracks, and think about the cause.

The Bob _______ of Haiti

In the wake of the earthquake that hit Haiti, many Americans are learn more about the country that has benefited little from its wealthy neighbor. During the Hope for Haiti Now telethon, in addition to Wyclef Jean and other well-know performers, many heard the voice of Emily Michelle, a Haitian singer, for the first time. The musical introductions have not ceased since the telethon ended.

The other day, NPR ran a story about the famous Haitian singer, Manno Charlemagne. He is a singer who has always stood up to power and has paid the price in several ways. As an old article in the Miami New Times stated, Charlemagne’s music is about “Raking tyrants over his jagged lyrics. Shoving dignity down the throats of a vast underclass. Inciting the people to justice.” He has been called the Bob Marley/Dylan of Haiti.

He has been on both sides of the political spectrum serving time as a political prisoner and being elected mayor of Port-au-Prince. During one of his troubled times, musicians such as Bob Dylan, Bono, Jerry Garcia, and David Byrne petitioned on his behalf.

Often times, we think of singers and artists as having little to lose other than a couple of album sales; however, Manno Charlemagne shows that some artists must face life or death decisions in order to have their message heard. His music, sung in French and Creole, recalls passion of the great French chansons George Brassens and Leo Ferré. Although Charlemagne now sings to a few dozen people at a time in a restaurant in Miami, his voice, and the message that it carries, should be heard by all.

The White Stripes Defend Themselves Against the US Miltary

Super Bowl! Geaux Saints! The Who! The White Stripes! "What," you're saying. "The White Stripes weren't at the Super Bowl." Well, if that is what you think, you would be mistaken. Everyone's favorite branch of the US military, the Air Force, used the Super Bowl as marketing opportunity like Coke and Doritos (well, maybe Coke and Doritos are less dangerous).

The ad, which minimizes the fact that being in the Air Force means your job is bombing other people, features some music that is oddly familiar. At least that's what the White Stripes think. They are accusing the Air Force of misusing their song, "Fell in Love With a Girl." So they've ordered the Air Force to stop the airing the ad. The Stripes wrote, "We simply don't want to be a cog in the wheel of the current conflict."

The ad will no longer be used.

White Stripes--Mission Accomplished!

Is Kayne West keeping us down???

Pitchfork recently announced that Kanye West is back on the scene. Granted he wasn’t at the Grammy Awards, but he is back in cyberspace blogging away.

There’s nothing like stirring the pot to keep your name out. As usual, Kanye seems to be defensive; this time, it appears to be about some fashion criticism. And although Kanye seems to have a problem with coloring inside the lines, what I want to focus on is the beginning of his ramblings. He writes “REMEMBER THE DREAMERS, REMEMBER THOSE WHO REPRESENT THE GHETTO...THE FAIRY TALE OF NOTHING TO SOMETHING.” What I find interesting is that in this, he evokes two things that are, by definition, illusions—dreams and fairy tales. In particular the fairy tale of the nothing to something, the rags to riches story which, to me, is one of the great ideological fantasies, actually functions as a tool for entrapment instead of emancipation. The system benefits if we all think that by following the rules of the game that we will make it. However, it is the exception to the rule—the rule of work hard for someone else—that proves the rule. Who benefits from everyone working hard to make it? The owners of the means of production. Instead, we should be focused on how to change the system so that our hard work benefits all of us. The rules are stacked against us. Art should work to liberate us not to enslave us. Maybe Kanye is the new “OPIATE OF THE MASSES”?

Think of Haiti

I had just heard an old friend on WWOZ play the Charles Mingus tune "Haitian Fight Song." Then I watched the news showing more of the destruction, the problems with the recovery (New Orleanians understand that issue), and the utter human suffering--it makes me wanna holler. I read that the IMF ("International Mother F---ers" Fela called them in a concert I saw him perform in New Orleans) gave Haiti a shady loan to "help," but due to watchdog outcry niced up the terms. Although things seem impossible there, we can make a difference.

So sit back and listen to Charles Mingus and his "Haitian Fight Song." Then go out and donate to the cause. It is the least you can do.

Haitian Fight Song - Charles M...

MLK and Economic Justice

Musical artists from the soul-filled, Tamla hit maker, Stevie Wonder to the Irish rebels, now world politicians, U2, have written songs dedicated to Martin Luther King, Jr. On this Martin Luther King Day, let us not only celebrate the man, but also what he was working towards. And let us not have a myopic vision of his cause. Yes, he strove for equal rights for all. But the latter part of his ministry was also dedicated to labor rights. Let us remember, he was assassinated while he was in Memphis, doing what? He was there supporting striking black, sanitation workers! Also, he had recently started his Poor People’s Campaign, with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which was focused on economic issues.

So as we remember MLK, in these times of Wall Street scandals, record bank profits, and a health care crisis, let us remember that his message included issues such as these and he would have sided with the poor and disadvantaged.

Vic Chesnutt and the Real Costs of Poor Health Care

The holidays are supposed to be times of joy, but this past Christmas brought sorrow to the world of music. On Christmas day, Vic Chesnutt, the singer-songwriter from Athens, GA, died from purposeful overdose of muscle relaxers.

Vic had been confined to a wheelchair since he was 18, when he broke his neck in an auto accident. It was from this vantage point that Vic songs emanated. Often funny in a dark Faulknarian way, Vic was probably one of the finest songwriters living, at least until Christmas day. In concert Vic seemed frail and shy, yet he was able to hold an audience as though they were moths and he was the light.

This fall he released the album, At the Cut, which the LA Times called “death-obsessed.” When interviewed by that paper, Vic discussed his mounting health care bills, which exceeded $70,000! A statement he made then was prophetic: "I was making payments, but I can't anymore and I really have no idea what I'm going to do. It seems absurd they can charge this much. When I think about all this, it gets me so furious. I could die tomorrow because of other operations I need that I can't afford. I could die any day now, but I don't want to pay them another nickel."

However, what’s frightening was how truly conflicted, as many of us are, Vic was. IN an Huffington Post Interview, he stated, “I can sing a love song to death because, it's no secret, I've suicided several times. I suck at it, it didn't work. But it's a song about a man who discovers he wants to live. It's like a breakup song with death.”

Yet, Vic watched the health care debate with great scrutiny. “I've had intimate relations with the health industry for many, many years. I've been in hospitals around the world too, so I've seen the way it works in other countries. Some of the healthcare debate that's going on now is some of the most ludicrous discussions I've ever seen. It's hilarious! Obama's incompetent and the right are morons.”

In the end we lost a sensitive songwriter fighting the antiquated behemoth health care system. The behemoth won.

p.s. Vic. Will you sign my iiiiiipod pllllleeeeeaaaasse?