Sv Yr Idlz #1

We here at Intellectual Props tried and tried to talk ourselves out of this. But in the end we relented. Yes, we gave wealthy gadabout and sometime I.P. contributor chuckchuck another running item that we're pretty sure he won't keep up with. So enjoy and happy pay day kiddoes.

A year or two ago, at my then-local library, I stumbled upon a book called Kill Your Idols in the music section. The concept behind it was a group of unassociated (I think), unfamiliar (to me at the time) rock critics, including Chicago's own Jim DeRogatis, individually writing about how they really really dislike famous and supposedly critically infallible albums from the rock cannon, and a Public Enemy album, all to varying degrees of success and believability. Well anyway, as I was re-looking at the book on amazon, I realized that I could probably go on just about the book and its concept. But here I just wanted to use this as a brief intro to my new concept, which is essentially the opposite. I wanted to take a fresh look at albums and artists who I became resistant to as my tastes changed. I want us all to do this actually. So on with the show.

Ill Communication - Beastie Boys (1994)
Last week sometime I was really feeling like getting into something I hadn't in a while and while perusing my collection, I came across this album. I'm pretty sure it's been two years since I've played it or even thought of playing it. I overdid it with this album around my junior year of high school when it was a big chunk of my driving around music in the old White Dynamo, my first car. And I just have no interest in the Beastie Boys these days. I feel like, despite their influences, despite their innovations, they just never really progressed, especially as MCs and as lyricists. Even though their philosophies have shifted almost 180 degrees from the days of "Fight For Your Right to Party," they still seem stuck in that mode.
So why "save" this album? First and foremost, it is the music. Wait, no, not so obvious as that sounds to you! It is so so easy to forget that the Beastie Boys started as a first wave punk band. They idolized the Bad Brains and were deep in the New York scene at the time, before they ever got caught up in the earliest hip-hop. And that is what is important here, that they were a band, that they did and do play instruments. If the liner notes/photos are to be believed (and why wouldn't they be?) they hunkered down and made live instrumental tracks for all the songs. There is a high level of musicianship for some rappers/ex-punks. There is a sort of funky jazz vibe on the instrumental interludes. Someone's been practicing!!! There is still a sample-heavy base for all the tracks and that is another positive. Though not as dense and musicologist as Paul's Boutique (allegedly since I admit I haven't heard it all) is, the samples mixed with the live instruments create something fascinating, something that could stand to show up more in hip-hop this mainstream. Of course one of my not-so-secret pleasures is to read the liner notes of hip-hop records and sort of dig on the samples as much as the product of the album itself, so I know what I like and I take it seriously here. Another positive is the guests. The Boys themselves tend to have voices that grate, so it's nice to have some other experts on hand, mainly Q-Tip and Biz Markie, to lighten the load and keep it interesting. And speaking of the Boys and their voices....
....Yeah, the lyrics? Hmmm. There is classic hip-hop boasting (almost every track with vocals) there is a hardcore song about pick-up basketball ("Tough Guy"), there are lyrics about respecting women ("Sure Shot") there are lyrics about aspects of their newfound Eastern Philosophy ("Bodhisattva Vow") there are many little pictures, so to speak, of their beloved New York (several songs) there are waaay outdated references (Anthony Mason !?! John Starks!??! for you basketball fans). So an eclectic mix. That doesn't totally work. The mixture of earnesty(new word!) and bragging are especially hard to mesh. But after all that criticism is levied, this is a rare hip-hop album where I don't want the voices, the MCs, to be right out front. This is the rare hip-hop album where it can come off as a coherent piece of music, where it can be put on from start to finish and be left to flow as background music or as a musical centerpiece. And that is why I am saving it from the cold calculating grasp of my favorite/least favorite rock critic: ME! Alright thanks for listening and thanks for listening!

xoxoxox
chuckchuck