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08-09-2009, 11:52 PM | #32 (permalink) | ||
Model Worker
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 1,248
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I think David Hinds is capable of tonque and cheek humor in his writting. David's toast on Rollerskate sounds like a lunatic episode in the life of Eek-A-Mouse that he'll turn into a humorous song like Penni Walli/
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David is well aware that he's overstating his case against the boombox thief and he delights in doing so to the point of absurdity. The dance hall toast is a musical version of a game called the dozens. The most skilled dance hall toasters and rappers honed their skill wordplay by being highly adept players of the dozens, beginning as children in the school yard. The dozens is a game, common in nearly all black cultures, of exchanging insults sometimes about the intelligence of the opponent, the mother of the opponent or other family members of the opponent. Skilled playing of the dozens displays verbal improvisation of great originality and wittiness. It also requires a thick skin: you lose the contest if you get upset. The most common version of the dozens begins with, " Yo mama's so ugly..." The origin of the term is unknown. Some conjectures include: it refers to a throw of 12 in craps, 12 being a difficult number to match; but a second theory is that inferior slaves were sold in lots of twelve, the number twelve therefore coming to mean 'wretched; inferior' itself. Both Jamaican dancehall toasting and old school rap music have stong elements of the dozens and Roller Skates is a showcase of David's own skillful use of humorous word play in the dozens style. David Hinds has all sorts of humorous asides even in his most serious songs. In the song Soldiers David Hinds humorously responds to "civilizing" influences of colonialism and Christianity with his angry but humorous rejoinder to Babylon: Quote:
When Steel Pulse was coming up through the clubs in the late 70s/early 80s, became known for their outlandish stage costumes that parodied archetypal Babylon authority figures like plantation owners, military soldiers, mercenaries, and Ku Klux Klan members. The outlandish costumes and satirical theatrics reminded me of agit-prop theater groups like Bread and Puppet Theater, San Francisco Mime Troupe or Theatro Campesino. A more recent stage costume adopted by David was a parody of the mercenary soldier of fortune from the Iraq War. In their live performance you see a humorous side of Steel Pulse that balances the more serious music of their recordings. You can have about as much fun as legally possible at a Steel Pulse performance. Ladies & Gentlemen of th jury, is this the work uniform of a man who takes himself too seriously? |
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08-26-2009, 03:04 PM | #34 (permalink) |
Groupie
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 29
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Finally gave Handsworth a good listen. Well worth it. I had listened to it a few times without really paying attention, and you never notice all the little intricacies that make each reggae song unique until you do. Anyway, really really great stuff.
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PESSIMISM, n. A philosophy forced upon the convictions of the observer by the disheartening prevalence of the optimist with his scarecrow hope and his unsightly smile. - Ambrose Bierce |
08-26-2009, 05:16 PM | #35 (permalink) |
why bother?
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 4,840
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^ It's a good 'un isn't it. The second side is one of the strongest sequences of songs on any album, reggae or otherwise.
For anyone who's not in the loop, here's the evidence... YouTube - Steel Pulse - Prodigal Son YouTube - Steel Pulse - Ku klux klan YouTube - Steel Pulse - Prediction YouTube - Steel Pulse - Macka Splaff |
08-26-2009, 07:02 PM | #36 (permalink) | |
Seemingly Silenced
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Everett, WA
Posts: 2,312
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Steel Pulse is great. Steppin' Out is one of my favorite reggae jams ever. They just played San Diego last weekend but I couldn't make it. Which is unfortunate.
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08-27-2009, 04:41 AM | #38 (permalink) |
why bother?
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 4,840
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True, but the way I see it roots reggae like Steel Pulse is about anything but being catchy. That's more what dancehall stuff concerns itself with, which is basically the antithesis of what the guys have tried to achieve with their career.
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09-03-2009, 02:39 PM | #40 (permalink) |
why bother?
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 4,840
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Yeah, Steppin' Out's a great tune. It's off their Earth Crisis album, the one that came after True Democracy. It's the album with their biggest hits on it (Rollerskates is there too) but, to be honest, it's far from a favourite of mine.
If anyone's already got True Democracy and Handsworth Revolution and you're scratching your head over where to go next with them, I say give Tribute To the Martyrs and Babylon the Bandit a try - they're both not quite on the same level of flawlessness, but very good albums all the same. |
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