Poison Ladd SLR, Beats In General & MC Googly

(Youtube version is here.)

That link I mentioned is: another14u2nv.blogspot.com.

Tragedy's Black Rage Unearthed

(Youtube version is here.)

Sound Provided By DWG

Look at what arrived on my doorstep this morning. 8) "Say What" by Sound Providers, their brand new release on Diggers With Gratitude. If you don't know, the Sound Providers are a production duo (Jay Skillz and Soulo) that released some 12"s in the late 90's on the independent tip. Then, in the 2000s, they came back in a pretty big way on ABB Records and eventually wound up linking with an MC named Surreal, who is also featured on this release.

Now, I have to admit, I haven't made myself terribly familiar with work of the Sound Providers over the years. I mean, I've heard of them, and I think I've got a mixtape or two with a track from them on it, and an early 12" or two; but I've never really sunk my teeth into their catalog. So getting the hook-up from DWG was the perfect opportunity, and I have to say, I'm pleasantly surprised.

This is an interesting selection of their work, all previously unavailable on vinyl. The first two songs on the A-side feature Surreal. Track #1 is "Say What," an unreleased track recorded in 2009. This song, like all of their stuff, has a nice, light-hearted jazzy flavor. Surreal's flow is smooth and his rhymes are clever without being jokey:

"It's the funky rhyme writer,
You're never gettin' rid of me.
It's sorta like magic,
With the rhythmatic wizardry.
And all you wack rappers,
I'ma put you out your misery,
Because I'm gettin' busy
From the Caymans out to Italy.
Grandmother...
Was from the islands,
Grandfather from Sicily;
Now you know a little bit of history.
I'm top billin'
So there's just no dissin' me;
Plus, I'm six-three,
You don't wanna see me physically."

It's just an all-around, relax and cool-out track that's just a little too catchy to play the background. No matter what you're doing, you'll find yourself focusing on the music when this song is playing.

Next up is "Nuff Said," originally recorded in 2007 and intended to be a new bonus track for a single off of their True Indeed album. That single never made it out, though, and this song was shelved 'till now. This song's a little harder - just slightly - with a some funkier and dustier sounding samples. Surreal comes nice again, and the hook features some nice scratching of the classic "Top Billin'" question, "what more can I say?"

Finally, flip this over and you get an older track. "Who Am I?" was their fourth single released in 2001, and this remix was previously only available on a Japanese best-Of CD. This track predates The Sound Providers' affiliation with Surreal and instead features NY MC Grap Luva on the mic. Grap, if you don't know, is Pete Rock's brother and part of INI. This one features some slick piano samples over some very laid-back percussion. Grap plays it subtle, favoring a smooth flow over attention-getting lines. Soulo gets on the mic for the second verse and comes nice, too... He kinda reminds me of a more under-stated Bobbito.

This is DWG's third 7" release, and like the others, is limited (to 350 copies), but priced like a standard, not-limited release. I understand that DWG are sold out of it, so you can no longer order it from them directly, but it can still be ordered from other online vinyl shops like vinylism and hhv. And I have to say, after finally getting some of their music on wax: I always knew Sound Providers were a good, worthwhile group. But this has really got me wanting to get my hands on some more of their catalog now.

Mad Skillz and Ras Kass: Together Again for the Very First Time

This is a single that sorta came out of nowhere. In 2002, an label called Madd Game released a 12" called, "Six Figures," a collaboration between Mad Skillz and Ras Kass. Now, 2002 is when Skillz was still signed with Rawkus, and Ras still only had his first two albums under his belt. In other words, neither had really collected many detractors yet, both were well-regarded lyricists at a time when punch-lines were held in high esteem and a collaboration between the two seemed like a very long thing coming. In fact, they were sort of at stages where both of there fans were wondering just what was up with these guys' long-delayed projects. So it was sort of odd that this little, indie 12" suddenly popped up on sites like Sandbox with no fanfare, well under the radar.

Well, Madd Game was actually an upcoming Virginia label that had put out a 12" or two before of their own artists. You've probably not heard of any of the artists or labels outside of VA, though Bedroom Wizard, a producer who made a name for himself thanks to some projects with The Supafriendz when they were getting big, was involved with at least one of their early singles. Well, anyway, I guess the label decided to grab some attention for itself, put their own artists aside, and hire some big guns for this 12" release.

So, how is it? Well, they didn't quite manage to grab these guys when they were in their prime, but they got close. So, lyrically, it won't blow any minds, but it's pretty decent. Sometimes it feels like some slick wordplay with a thoughtful hook ("only two ways out the streets, up or down, look around. Either six figures or six feet under the ground") and sometimes it feels too cloyingly jokey, forcing in bad Monica Lewinsky jokes like a hacky Jay Leno routine.

The production is handled by Trackula, who was Madd Game's in-house producer. It's not bad, but nothing special either. A keyboard loop over a typical drum track and some understated bass. It'll get your head nodding, but the emphasis is clearly meant to be on the MCs' lines rather than the beat - nobody's gonna pick this up 'cause they need to have the instrumental.

It is on here, though. You get Street, Radio, Instrumental and Acapella versions of "Six Figures;" so they do it up right. What's more, you get a B-side.

"In the Game" is a posse cut, again featuring Mad Skillz. It also features $K-Mo$, Josef X-Plosiv and Mic Source, most of whom I've ever heard of, before or since. Actually, I think I heard Skillz say "Josef X-Plosiv" on another song, but I thought it was a joke name, like when he told Method Man, "if you're Johnny Hot, then I'm James Flames." But I guess there really is such a guy. ...I suppose these are just local VA MCs, but I think only one of them ($K-Mo$) was actually on MaddGame's roster.

Anyway, this song's pretty on-par with the A-side. The beat - again by Trackula - is a little nicer, and the posse cut vibe is more energetic. This one lacks the star-power of Ras Kass, but after multiple spins, I think you'll come to prefer this side. It comes in just Street and Radio versions.

So yeah, nothing amazing; but it's a pretty cool little single if you can find it for cheap (and you probably can). It's got a nice, underground vibe compared to the crass, pop efforts both Skillz and Ras later stooped to. They also shout-out the label's website (I checked - it's no longer active) constantly on both songs. It's almost like you're listening to a song on a mixtape, with the DJ shouting his name all over it. Anyway, I recommend this so long as you go in with tempered expectations. Surprisingly, this is the only time Skillz and Ras did a song together until Ras's just recently released A.D.I.D.A.S. album.

Oooh He Got an Exclusive Bonus Song

Okay, there's a good chance most of you reading this don't know who the Sons Of Sam are, so I'll start out by filling ya in. They're two brothers from New Jersey - Samson a.k.a. PA-Kid & The Xav - who released a killer indie 12" in 1993 called, "Ooh He Got an Afro." It was their only release, so in modern days it became a perfect example of "random rap:" a rare, virtually unknown but incredibly dope 12" on a 1-shot label (Workshop Records). You might think from their name that they're on some horrorcore - or at least over-the-top violent gangsta rap - tip, but they're really not (and the Sam in their group name is actually a reference to their real father, named Sam).

Anyway, in 2009, the greatly under-appreciated record label Vinyl Addicts got in touch with the Sons and released a bunch of lost music that they'd recorded in 1993-1994 but never released (The Unbirth EP). And now in 2010, we're seeing a second stage in the recovery of their music, this "Ooh He Got an Afro" repress on Promo-Only Records ("Promo-Only" is actually the name of the label).

Now, a flat-out repress of their original 12" is nice enough. It's a fantastic record and it's incredibly rare ... and expensive. But it's definitely one of those "raers" that's worth it... the music features great, crisp jazz samples married to very hardcore beats. It's just one of those records where the samples, the flows, the beats, the rhymes all just come together for that perfect hip-hop moment. "Ooh He Got an Afro" samples a classic Main Source record on the hook, and honestly, this could play right alongside the best of Breaking Atoms. If you like east coast 90's hip-hop at all, then there's no way you're not feeling this one.

So great, a repress! Hook me up! But it gets better.

Not only does this repress include "Ooh He Got an Afro," the instrumental and its B-side "Charisma," but it has an additional, exclusive unreleased song titled "Rising Son," which was actually the first song they ever recorded and uses a line from Chill Rob G's "The Power" for the hook. This song is completely in the vein of "Ooh He Got" and "Charisma" stylistically, and its right on par. fans' expectations will be happily met. Not only that, but it also includes an Instrumental mix of "Charisma," which was never on the original track. So it's an exclusive song and an exclusive instrumental.

It's limited to 500 hand-numbered copies (mine is #31)*, comes in a sticker cover and can only be gotten... for free. Yeah, you read that right, though I admit it's a little misleading to phrase it that way. See, you can only get this 12" as a free promo when you order a Sons of Sam t-shirt or hoodie (which, of course, are not free).

As you can hopefully make out in my photo, it's a black tee (or hoodie) with the green Sons of Sam logo that matches the 12"'s sticker cover. You can see the designs for both, check out sound-clips, and place an order all at the label's official blog, prom8nly.blogspot.com. They ship from Germany, but I got my copy here in the US very fast. It's not the cheapest of the recent limited editions, but it does come with some nice apparel, so that goes a good way towards balancing out any issues of value discrepancy.

*Update/Errata 10/04/10 - I've been corrected that this isn't strictly a limited pressing. 500 copies were pressed up initially, but it isn't being promoted as a limited edition and there's no promise that it won't be repressed - if there's a demand for more, more will be made. So don't be surprised if you order a copy down the line and you get #501. ;)

Interesting Upcoming Albums...

So there are a bunch of new releases dropping these days, at least a few of which are interesting. There's been stuff I've reviewed like Freestyle Professors, Branesparker and Nutso and Alternate Reality. Plus, I'm still meaning to pick up Themselves' new remix album, and I've got Buck 65's three EPs heading my way in the mail (review coming soon for sure). And there's still a lot on the horizon... some I'm really psyched about, some I'm just curious about. So I thought I'd take a quick look at what's coming up in the near future:

Atmosphere - To All My Friends/ Blood) I think I missed the last Atmosphere album or three. I think it's time to check in on them again. This is apparently two tour CDs combined into one semi-official album. Considering their tour albums are often better than their full-out, heavily promoted albums (Sad Clown Bad Dub 2 might still be their best complete album to date), that could just be all the more reason to give this one a shot.

Big L - 139 & Lenox) Is there anything on here to make this worth picking up? Looks like a repackaging of The Archives: 1996-2000 CD and vinyl EP that dropped in 2006 from the same label, with slight variations (a live version of "Devil's Son?" meh).

Celph Titled & Buckwild - Nineteen Ninety Now) Kinda gimmicky, but at least it's a promising gimmick (if you don't know, the gimmick is that they're using beats Buckwild made in the 90's). I don't know if Celph is really the MC anybody would have selected for this project, though.

Grand Daddy IU - Grown Man B.I.) I'm not sure if IU has ever been off his game, but he's definitely back on it now! He has been dropping some serious heat as free mp3s from his twitter. Even if he did nothing more than package those up and call it a day, he'd have a dope album. So this one's a lock.

Kool G Rap - Riches, Royalty, Respect) I'm already completely sold. Where can I send my money? Put me on a pre-order list for this immediately. Supa Dave is a dope, underrated producer; but Hell, I'd be sold on this album even if he wasn't.

LMNO - James Kelly 10-Pack) LMNO is releasing ten full-length albums all bundled together on 10/10/10. That's freakin' insane. LMNO's output has been very uneven... some singles I've liked a lot, some I think are flat-out wack. So I reckon this'll either be impressive or a last hurrah for his career.

Lord Jamar - Known Associates) You can always count on Jamar for some quality stuff. Whether it will be hot or just cool is yet to be determined, but it's a safe bet it'll at least be decent.

Lyrics Born - As You Were) You have burned me too many times, Lyrics Born! No more blind buys of boring, half-assed albums for me, no sir. I'm going to need concrete proof that this is your long-awaited masterpiece for me to even click on a free mp3 floating across the blogiverse.

Pace Won & Mr. Green - The Only Number That Matters Is Won) The first video ("Liquor and Drugs") is tight; their last album was fresh; I don't see how they can go wrong.

Pharoah Monche - W.A.R.) Is it time for a comeback? I'm not terribly optimistic (I'd like to know who the producers are on this), but my fingers are crossed.

Rah Digga - Classic) Actually, this has been out for the past three weeks or so. It looks like a big step back in the right direction for Digga, but I dunno... she's kinda flat/ boring without the other Outz members around her.

7L & Esoteric - 1212) Sort of a comeback album for 7L & Esoteric after a couple of weird, off-putting side and solo projects. If they do this right, I'm interested.

Skillz - Hip-Hop Confessions or World Needs More Skillz) I should probably know better, but I'm at least curious as to what he's coming with. Also, apparently, this album has two working titles; but that part I'm not really curious about.

2Mex - My Fanbase Will Destroy You) 2Mex is super prolific. What that means in practical terms is: more albums than anyone can keep track of, with no quality control. Will Strange Famous be the label to focus him into one solid, consistent album of pure top-shelf material? Or is 2Mex becoming the next Kool Keith?

Wu-Tang projects...) There's a couple coming, including Hell Razah - Heaven Raiser (stupid title), Masta Killer - Loyalty is Royalty and 9th Prince - One Man Army... Plus a whole bunch have dropped in the past couple months that I haven't paid any attention to yet. I'll basically just wait and see if anything gets overwhelmingly positive reviews before looking into anything... and that'll probably be a long wait. But hey, ya never know.

Legitimate Raw

(Youtube version is here.

...And that link I mention is here.)

...And One

...One and One returned in 1997 with their second single, "My Soul" on Next Plateau.  It's another quality cut with an essence that's pure, vintage 90's.  It's a little slower, more of a smooth song than the rugged, energetic "Phenomenon," which for me makes it less compelling.  But I suppose your mileage will vary there, depending on your personal tastes - if you're the type that's always seeking out those Midnight Marauders/ The Roots-type cuts, this may be more up your alley.  But, whichever side of that fence you fall on, it's still a quality, respectable song.  They flip another great sample ("Tell Me This Is a Dream" by The Delfonics), which has been jacked by a couple other artists since, but it sounds great here.

And unlike their previous single, this one makes with the remixes.  First up is the Soul Mix, which isn't bad either.  It's got some heavy bass notes and a cool, mellow vibe.  The downside is that it all sounds a little too studio-crafted... which is to say that the music all sounds like it was programmed and created with studio equipment, as opposed to rich samples (or live instrumentation, of course).  So, it's okay... sort of like the 12" single version of album filler, but for the most part, you're going to want to stick with the original.

That's followed up by The Boogie Mix, which embellishes the R&B... all the versions have a little uncredited singing on the hook; but on this mix, she croons constantly in the background, it's more pronounced on the hook.  The music is more traditionally "R&B"ish, too, with sparse piano notes and another soft keyboard loop.  The whole venture just has more of an early Video Soul groove.

Flip it over and you've got Instrumentals for the Album and Soul Mixes; and, better still, you get a B-side song called ""Didn't I."  This is a pretty cool and harder track.  It's built around another Delfonics tune, this time (obviously) "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time)."  They even have a girl singing a variation of their chorus for the hook.  It's not quite as good as there other two songs, but still nice.  Unfortunately, even though the label says "Album Version," this is clearly a censored Radio Edit with reversed curses.  And this song features a lot of cursing, so it really sucks that this is the only way to hear it.

Unfortunately, this was the last One and One record; they never released a full-length, which is a big disappointment.  Interestingly, though, they did reunite in 2002 to contribute a couple of tracks to the rather odd-ball Legends of Hip-Hop compilation, released by Absolut vodka, which I reviewed this time last year.

I wonder if there's an unreleased One and One album in somebody's vaults, somewhere.  The fact that Next Plateau had them for over a year (one single in '96, another in '97) and the fact that they released a Clean Version without a Dirty Version both suggest that one probably was recorded, or was at least underway.  Something seriously needs to be done about all this great hip-hop music being locked away in vaults; it's downright criminal how much the people are missing out on!

One...

Doctor Ice has had a couple of cool careers in hip-hop: dancer for Whodini, member of UTFO, and successful solo artist signed to Jive (and later Ichiban).  But I don't think many people realize that he invented himself another time in the 90's and had another successful little hip-hop career during the "lyrical," underground, grimy  backpacker-type era.  Well, okay, maybe not successful as in huge record industry bucks.  But successful as in quality records that real heads ought to appreciate.

"Yo, kid.  let me tell you something about this business.  It's a fucked up business, you know what I'm saying?  I gotta teach you a whole lotta shit before you see what this shit is like.  It ain't nothing but some dirt, kid.  'Cause if your shit ain't phenomenal, you ain't in there.  So your shit must be phat."

That's the intro to "Phenomenon," the 1996 single by One and One on Next Plateau Records.  And One and One is Doctor Ice and his cousin, recording under the aliases Sunny Bumz and Harry Balz.  lol  I know, but try to get past the names.  See, you'd never know Doc Ice or anybody old school was remotely affiliated with this project if you didn't know going in - this is a pure 90's release, along the lines of like Black Maddness or Ill Bizkits.  It's all about rugged but clever wordplay spit over a slow boom-bap beat with seriously hard drums and under-stated samples.  Seriously, the beat's really tight.  In fact, DJ Premier later lifted it for his single "Equality" with Afu Ra; but One and One, who co-produced the track themselves with some guy(s) called Swing of Things, had it first, by about four years.   In fact, I'll go one step further and say it sounds better here.

So, Harry takes the first two verses: 

"Study long, study wrong,
You know lessons get learned in minutes.
Keep my diction - full of non-fiction,
I hate gimmicks,
executives' views on the rules
Of the game,
I'm using sense to make dollars
Real scholars bring change."

...And at first it seems like Doc's just gonna spit the hook in support of his younger cousin's street flow, but then he comes in with a sick final verse.  He comes so hard, again, you'd never thing it was an old school UTFO cat unless you recognized the voice. At the end, he even breaks into a little Brooklyn-style ragamuffin (which is actually something he's done on a few past projects).  Don't even think of it as a Doc Ice-related project, just another cool, completely overlooked "random rap" release.  Then, the fact that there's an old school legend on here is just like a little bonus.

This single just features the one mix of the one song, but it comes in the four requisite versions: Album, Radio, Instrumental and Acapella.  The one drawback is that the Acapella is actually of the Radio version, not the album version, so the curses are censored.  What's the point of that?

This is a really nice release, and like I said, it's pretty slept-on, so something you should be able to score pretty cheap.  Pretty cool, right?  But maybe now you're wondering if this is their only release, or if there's more.  Well...

MC Shan Vs. Duke Ellington

"It Don't Mean a Thing" was the lead single off of MC Shan's oft - and understandably - maligned 1990 album, Play It Again, Shan.  That album, after all, featured the split from Marley and The Juice Crew, house songs, Shan singing(!) with some very cheesy computer manipulation to his voice, love songs, a duet with his wife and kid, and even a song by a girl group that Shan wasn't even featured on!  So, it's a bit of a mess*.  It was also his most heavily promoted and probably budgeted album - probably (though admittedly, now I'm just speculating) because he took every awful executive suggestion from the label and let them have their way at every turn.  But for all its myriad faults, it's an upbeat, enjoyable mess that at least has its moments.  And for me, "It Don't Mean a Thing" is one of them.

"It Don't Mean a Thing" is a pretty undisguised rap version of the old jazz standard "It Don't Mean a Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing" by Duke Ellington.  "IDMaTIFAGTS" (how's that for an abbreviation?) wouldn't be such a long-lasting standard if it wasn't a pretty catchy tune, so it's a reliable musical back-drop for Shan, who self-produced this song, and the rest of the album, along with co-producer John Ficarrotta.  So it's got a nice groove with some funky go-go percussion - a curious, but successful, combination.  And Carole Davis, who had her own album out on Warner Bros. at that time, sings a nice hook.  The horns do admittedly sound like they were played on a synthesizer keyboard, and Shan's lyrics are just your typical, unexceptional dance song lyrics ("As you can see, my rhymes are swingin' it, and when the punchline comes start singin' it").  Maybe I'm just too forgiving of the old school, but I get a lot of enjoyment from this song; and the lavish, jazz-era music video released at the time sure didn't hurt.

The 12" comes with two versions, LP Version and Fade.  The only difference between the two is that the Fade mix fades out twenty seconds earlier than the LP Version.  The longer version has a few more repeats of the hook, and Shan shouts, "pump it up!" at one point, but that's about it.  As you can see, it comes in a cool picture cover depicting Shan with four hands, and it's also b/w one of the better album tracks, "I Ran the Game."  The narrative-style lyrics are a bit corny but amusing, and the music's dope and the hook is a simple but fresh vocal sample.

So it's a cool, if pop and kid-friendly single, but the contents of the 12" are a bit underwhelming.  The only thing not on the album is a version that cuts off the last twenty seconds - who the Hell wanted those Fade versions Cold Chillin' used to do, anyway?  A DJ who wanted to fade the song out 20 seconds earlier could do that on his own easily enough, or he had no business DJing.  Oh well, regardless, it feels a bit like you're being short-changed on this one.  They couldn't throw in a remix, an exclusive B-side or at least an instrumental?

That's where this promo 12" comes in.  The "It Don't Mean a Thing (Remix)."  It's the same production team of Shan and Ficarrotta, but the music is completely different.  Shan's vocals and Carole's hook are the same, but all the music is completely different.  The drums are less go-go-ish, and all the chintzy horns and stuff are gone.  Instead you've got some subtle scratching, deep bass notes, some nice jazzy samples, a tuba loop, horn stabs, and an occasional piano riff.  If that sounds like a lot of elements, it is... the song as a whole sounds a bit too busy at times, and they would have been better off ditching the sung hook and just letting the scratching speak for itself at those points.  But it's definitely more straight-up hip-hop, and certainly a better sound than most of Shan's other stuff from this era.

Casual listeners will either just want to stick with the album version or pass on this song completely, but more serious aficionados who can listen to this with a more analytical ear will probably find it at least worthwhile.  It just doesn't quite work because the music doesn't really fit these vocals.  Or maybe more to the point, it's that the vocals just don't really make sense if they're not paired with a version of Ellington's music.  In other words... wait for it...  it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing.  :P

*The LP was a bit less of a mess than the CD and cassette versions, however, as it left off five of the songs: "Ain't It Good To You," "Rock Stuff," "Clap Your Hands," "Mic Line," and "How I Feel About You."

Finally, A Real Nerdcore Movie

Okay, now you might remember a time last year when I reviewed what I thought was going to be a look at hip-hop's odd-ball sub-genre, nerdcore, only to be pretty disappointed that it turned out to be essentially a tour film for one particular artist. Well after that, I became somewhat determined to see an actual, at least semi-comprehensive nerdcore documentary... and this is it. It's called Nerdcore for Life - a 2008 flick, but just released on DVD a few weeks back. And I am finally, after almost a year, satisfied.

TL;DR? It's a good movie.

I don't know how much actual nerdcore music I could vouch for, but the film? It's an enjoyable, informative and breezy experience. I say "breezy," because we don't get too close to anyone in this film. We don't follow any of the artists to their home lives, meet the people who knew them growing up or walk in on any powerful personal moments. Instead it takes a more comprehensive approach, covering pretty much all the major artists, events and issues that make up the genre. In that sense, it's a lot like the music: packed full of fun, obscure references, rather than delving into potentially affecting poetry.

This film covers how the genre formed, who the key players are, how and where it developed... it looks at key events, websites, articles, performances and even message board beefs. This is a film that knows what it's talking about and has a lot to share. Of course, how much you'll want to see this film - unless you're feeling particularly adventuresome like me - will depend on how interested you are in this nerdcore stuff.

A lot of the MCs are clearly getting by based on the novelty value of their subject matter rather than any actual MCing skills or quality of music. And it can get a little frustrating listening to these (sometimes self-proclaimed) hip-hop outsiders patting themselves on the back for starting something that hip-hop artists have already been doing since day 1. They seem pretty impressed, for example, by an early nerdcore artist who they say blew their minds by doing a rap song about Star Wars... but hey, what about the multiple tracks by guys like Phoenix Orion, Walkmen or Shamroc the Abstract Jedi who easily predate nerdcore? Of course, "Star Wars rap" is just one piece of it; but the point is, new ground isn't really being blazed anywhere here... I don't think any of these people have topped the nerdiness of Newcleus; and they're definitely not as funky. But you'd never know that if you only took these guys' word for it.

To be fair, the film does briefly address that: they mention early novelty rap songs and point out how "DJ Jazzy Jeff rapped[sic] about a lot of nerdy stuff." But that's what I mean: the movie gets it right even when the artists themselves don't. So, if you can get past the cheesy beats and sometimes pretty awful MCing (I mean, it's not all completely terrible... let's just say that the levels of talent and quality vary a lot, and none of it reaches "great"), there's a lot to take out of this movie. It was neat to actually see the real man behind MC Hawking, and surprising to come across Jesse Dangerously, an artist who I remember from the 90's but had no idea he was now explicitly a part of the nerdcore scene. There's a great bit where several of the MCs explain some of their more obscure references, and a shocking bit of back-story to YTCracker, who apparently did time in a federal prison for hacking into multiple government and military websites.

The DVD has some extras, too. You get extended footage of several performances and convention coverage that appear only as quick snippets in the documentary. You get a short but interesting look at a screening (of this film) and a performance in Amsterdam, followed by some uncomfortable after-partying. And finally you get music videos for "Buggin' Out" by MC Router and "Lolcats" by Doctor Popular.

So yeah, if you're even remotely interested in anything to do with nerdcore music, I recommend checking this movie out. It's a fun time, though you might want to just rent it or catch it when you can, since it doesn't have the emotional substance to draw you back in again and again like, say, Near Death or something. And if you're a hardcore fan of this stuff, definitely go ahead and purchase the DVD (which you can do direct from their site, nerdcoreforlife.com); you'll be pleased. Ah, who am I kidding? I'm sure those guys had this on preorder since 2009. ;)