Tuesday, March 31, 2009

We're All Children of God : Hasan Salaam (my frist celebrity interview!)

Hasan Salaam

A chat about his new cd and "that Dirty Jerz Mentality"




Hasan Salaam, New Jersey born rapper with a voice like wet electric sex tickling your ear , he uses it to carry messages that resonate long after the beat does on your ear drum.
Hasan Salaam has appeared in publications like The Source and on Fuse Music network, Mun2 TV and Show Time At the Apollo.

He maybe “Mr.Unsigned Hype” but he’s no amature, according to his website, Hasan Salaam has graced stages with Dead Prez, Common, Busta Rhymes, Saigon, Talib Kweli, The Rza, The Gza, Slick Rick, Lord Jamar, Sadat X, Smif N Wesson, Grandmaster Caz, Curtis Blow, Immortal Technique, Pharoahe Monch, Naughty By Nature, & Digital Underground ,Redman, Kidz in the Hall, Akir, Bashir, & DJ GI Joe. His career “highlight” came in 2007 when he had the pleasure of rocking with living legend Afrika Bambaataa.

Hasan Salaam gained praise early in his career with his first album Paradise Lost. He won two awards at the 2005 Underground Music Awards , one for Best Performance and Song of the Year for the single Blaxploitation.

He is active in the community and in the lives of its youth. In Newark he volunteers for the Essex County Youth House, a rehabilitation center for troubled youth.

Hasan Salaam is currently on tour in the UK and Germany.

Observer: Can you tell us about your current project?
Hasan Salaam: My new project is called Children Of God, its about the mathematics of life.

Observer: Mathematics of life? Sounds complicated.
Hasan Salaam: Not really, its just passing on knowledge that we all learn from growing up.
Observer: Especially in Jersey?

Hasan Salaam: Yeah, I'm originally from Camden and spent a lot of my childhood in Jersey City. When you think about it, the only thing we don't got in Jersey is a desert. There's so much variety, growing up in Camden, Jersey City and Teaneck showed me that. Here in Jersey you can pretty much have all of it.
Observer: So you think that being a Jersey boy help shape you and your music?
Hasan Salaam: Yeah, It's the “Dirty Jerz” mentality. Right next to New York, but we can be laid back and suburban, we can get a little country, or grimy.

For me, growing up, Jersey City was grimy. Watching it change ,through gentrification , showed how much people that have don't give a fuck about those that don't have.

At one point Jersey City was the fastest growing city- faster than Vegas and all they got around them is desert. They were tearing down people's homes to build condos for some rich motherfuckers.

I grew up seeing two very different faces of Jersey, when I was a kid, Camden was the murder capital of the world. I would got from there and Jersey City to Teaneck.

Teaneck is a suburban place, but historically it was one of the few places were suburban Blacks were allowed there were so many positive role models. I saw the good and the bad. I really want to show that good.

Observer: What do you think hip-hop now is so focused on the bad?

Hasan Salaam: The oppressor is always obsessed with the oppressed. Hip Hop now is kind of a racist's wet dream.

Observer: Strong words, if you saw someone big in the game, say 50 Cent in the elevator, what would you say to him?
Hasan Salaam: Yo, if I met 50Cent in the elevator I would day “Peace” - ya know what I say to everyone. I'm not going to tell him “ You killed hip hop.” Many Men is one of my favorite songs.

Observer: Where can people get your music?

Hasan Salaam: My new album and the old ones are available at CDbaby.com/cd/hasansalaam4 , Itunes, Amazon.com, Rhapsody and they can catch the video for the single 15 Minutes on youtube and of course HasanSalaam.com.


Keep Coming Back Like Herpes

Varied styles and heavy themes make Hasan Salaam's "Children of God" phenomenal

ZACHARY HUFF LIFE AND LEISURE EDITOR

Posted: 3/24/09


Salaam's voice deserves special mention. It's not easy to describe, but it's impossible to forget. Simultaneously deep, rough and endearing, his flow always sounds effortless and perfect for whatever he's rapping about.

It struck me hard while Hasan Salaam's album spun around in my CD player. Variety is almost nonexistent on albums lately. I'm not complaining; I'm a huge fan of concept albums, long and grand narratives spanning the entirety of a collected work of music.

But juxtapositions simply have no place on most albums. Politically charged artists need to hit me with twelve tracks of the same subject. Someone's talking about drugs and the shady side of life? I usually have to hear about it, almost to a redundant effect.

Hasan Salaam keeps “Children of God” from ever falling into a one-track mind kind of album. Instead, he hits so many different styles and subjects that it's easy to get lost in your own little world of deep thought while listening.

Take “Deliver my Soul” for example. Salaam presents an earnest overview of an unglamorous, realistic look at life as it isn't presented in the movies: shitty jobs, difficulties with women and falling into less than admirable means to survive. He trades verses with guest Majesty over a simple yet pitch perfect backing track that feels ripped from a detective movie.

Maya Azucena's phenomenal vocals on the chorus are heavenly, dripping in richness and evoking the spirit of soul artists of the past. Having her bright vocals against the gritty tale of surviving by any means necessary creates an unusual yet beautiful composition of a track.

Salaam's voice deserves special mention. It's not easy to describe, but it's impossible to forget. Simultaneously deep, rough and endearing, his flow always sounds effortless and perfect for whatever he's rapping about.

Lyrically, “Suga” is a fantastic love note clearly created by strong feelings. But Salaam's vocals make the track even stronger and believable, with a lovesick swagger breaking away at his smooth, deep voice.

Some tracks from the album are very politically charged, with Salaam's strong observations and unflinching delivery making his ideas all the more stronger. “Someplace” is a down key, piano-driven examination of gentrification under the guise of “urban renewal.” As Salaam raps, “tenements becoming condos worth hundreds of thousands/ so single moms with three mouths to feed get forced up out of 'em.”

His restrained, almost quiet vocals bleed a silent resentment that resides right below the surface of many people who are fucked over by the system that inexplicably and irrefutably keeps them from advancing, prospering… even surviving.
“Insomniac PT.1 (Nightfall)” is an almost scathing depiction of life as Salaam has seen it, with shitty living conditions (“poisoning the drinking waters/ only raise the cancer rate”) and segregation (“gates separate communities based on what we make”) at the forefront. Blares of horns punctuate the constant heavy percussion to create a feeling of urgency that is matched perfectly by Salaam's rapid. breathless delivery.

My personal picks for the best tracks on the album are definitely “Angel Dust” and “The Downrock.”

“Angel Dust” is disgustingly addictive and perfectly arranged and produced.

The bouncy funk groove and layered sampling combine with the guest Lord Jamar's vocal contributions to form one hell of a track that will remain lodged in your brain long after you've put the album down.

Salaam recounts the story of a girl forced to resort to shady means to survive, falling into temptations and doing what she has to do to feed her newfound afflictions; as Salaam raps, “she hates cocaine but loves the smell.” The allure of the girl is clear, and this tale of a fallen angel is heavy and catchy at the same time.

“The Downrock,” companion to “The Uprock,” feels like it'd be right at home in cheesy 70s kung-fu flicks, with heavy fuzz guitars immediately setting the mood of the track. Then, out of left field, Arabic rhythms float in from light horns and string arrangements poke their heads out now and then to create a strange amalgamation of a track.

The feverish raps from Rugged N Raw, BadSportt and Smarty Pants all create a distinct urgency that is perfect for “trying to see who can compete against whose moves on the floor.” Be sure to listen to this track in private should you feel compelled to breakdance and don't know how to; it'll make you want to move, whether you know what you're doing or not.

In all honesty, an album hasn't struck me in quite the way that Hasan Salaam's “Children of God” has.

It is never boring, always moving forward and keeping things interesting with varied subjects and a strong mix of sampling and instrumentation.

The production is amazing, matching the lyrics and delivery of Salaam perfectly. I can't think of a reason to not pick up the album and give it a listen; you're bound to find at least a few tracks that really hit you.

The work as a whole, though, is a fantastic example of how a little variety goes a long way.
© Copyright 2009 Observer

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

I love you Internet, I truly Do

One day If I try as hard as I can, I'll be 1/8 as fabolous as this bitch here.



Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Watchmen: End is Nigh - Straight Booty Juice!



Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
Release date:March 4, 2009
Genre(s) Action
Mode(s) Single-player, co-op
Rating(s) ESRB: M (Mature)


The downloadable game is available Steam , XboxLive and via the Playstation network was available to play March 4th. The editor of the original comic , Len Wein wrote the story and Dave Gibbons served as art consultant.

This game is straight booty juice, it clocks in a little shorter than the running time of the movie playing straight through. The highlight of the game is the animated comics akin to the ones offered on itunes.

Len Wein was the editor of the original comic, and while he was great at making sure there were no run-ons and dangling participles he has NO grasp what made the dialogue pop with resonance. It felt cheap and rushed.

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Nothing that calls itself a game should have gameplay be the most annoying part. There is not strategy or sophistication. I would like to say it’s reminiscent of a 3D Streets of Rage, but those games were enjoyable.

The story is a prequel to the movie/comic and takes place in the 1970’s when Nite-Owl II and Rorschsach were partners.

Gameplay is pretty much button mashing , there are no co-op movies or anything to break up the monotony . It was somewhat amusing to fight as Rorschsach an go upside a prison inmates head with a crow bar, but the act lost is luster quickly.

Even though its only $20 I’ll say its not worth it, I’m sure all the juicy bits will be on YouTube in a month and it will save you the chore and sore thumbs of playing.

Who's Watching the Watchmen? Hopefully you!

Action/Adventure, Thriller
March 6th, 2009

Rated R
strong graphic violence, sexuality, nudity and language.

STARRING
Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Patrick Wilson

DIRECTED BY:
Zack Snyder

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Watchmen is an intellectually heavy and intricately created masterpiece of sequential story telling.

To say the least, I was an established fan long before I ever thought a movie would be possible, even though such rumors are almost as old as I am. Simply put, I’ve always thought Alan Moore was the comic book world’s equivalent to Kafka.

There has been no piece of literature to touch me more than his masterpiece, Watchmen. When I first flipped through the comic’s pages in the loud food court of Paramus Park mall, it made me confront fears about the world and myself, even about the very basis of our system of morality. It has influenced my choice of major, but simultaneously causes me to question that choice everyday.

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Watchmen, the comic and film, follows a small group of former masked vigilantes in an alternative 1985: the US won Vietnam, the Pentagon Papers never were printed, Russia and the US are about to have WWIII and super heroes are just part of the fabric of everyday life. The murder of a government-sanctioned hero, The Comedian (who isn’t as funny as the name would suggest), sets off a chain of events that may save or destroy humanity.

Many nerds felt Watchmen, the movie, was like StarCraft Ghost; Sure, it sounded sweet, and you might see some concept art or some set designs, but it just wasn’t going to happen. That not withstanding, I’ve been waiting for this movie for the better part of my adult life.

As an elitist fan of the comic, I actually thought the Hollywood version of Watchmen would be a travesty and I would go opening night so I could be the first person to rip it a new one. I was delightfully disappointed. No sardonic paragraphs calling for Zach Snyder’s head will be found here. The movie was as good a movie as one could hope to be made from such rich and deep source material.

While Snyder does give Watchmen his own brand of stylized violence, he had sense enough to know that this isn’t a “super hero” movie; this is a movie about the very flawed and very human people “under the hood.” Those of you that go to the theatre expecting to see X-men 4 are going to be extremely disappointed.

Calling Watchmen a superhero action movie is like saying Ralph Ellison’s Battle Royal is a story about a really zany graduation party.
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This movie for the most part is not going to make you feel good; instead, it rips out the darkest part of the human heart and smears it across the screen. I’m not referencing the gore, though there is plenty. What I’m talking about is how excruciatingly human every character is, even the god-like Dr. Manhattan.
The characters, despite being covered head-to-toe in latex or not being covered with anything at all, will seem more real to you than most people you know. They seem real because they inhabit our real flaws, hopes and fears.

There are a lot of scenes and subplots cut out. Some of them had some of the best dialogue in the graphic novel. But as sad as I was to not see them, I think they would have overloaded the movie and confused viewers that were unfamiliar with the comic. The editing of the movie was as seamless as is probably possible.

As a fan familiar with the novel, it was a little jarring to feel gaps missing, but I can see the reason for cutting those parts. I hope that some of it will see the light in a director’s cut, but I know there will never be a page for page, word for word Watchmen movie.

I think the movie works because the team behind it opted for omission and editing as opposed to adding a lot of content to the story that was never intended to be there. It kept the integrity of the story intact. Even the ending that was changed due to content being taken out of the movie made sense. And I’ll be brave enough to say, it was an improvement on the ending of the graphic novel.

What really shines about the movie from a design point of view is the wardrobe. While some characters had their trademark outfits overhauled, it worked. NiteOwl’s suit reflected more a man who studied aerodynamics. Silk Specter II’s outfit was a lot sexier than in the graphic novel, but to me seemed to be a nod to the outfit overhauls of many female comic book characters in the 80s. I remember as a little girl wondering why the Uncanny X-men started having an uncanny resemblance to a Fredrick’s Of Hollywood Catalog.

All in all, this isn’t a film I recommend you just see; I recommend you see it at least three times, as well as getting acquainted with Moore’s masterpiece, the inspiration for the movie! Unless you think Twilight was good. In that case, I hear Wal-Mart has some neat coloring books (and bleach tastes like sunshine. Try it!).

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Update on Dusty

he's okay!

Watchmen Movie review ..coming soon

Okay I saw Watchmen at the first available showing, I'll post my review here as soon I edit out all my obviously fan girl elitism and references to Twilight fans drinking bleach.

in the meantime enjoy :