Integrity

Integrity. Some people have it. Others don’t. But more importantly, there is the select group of people who used to have integrity. Sure there are the obvious ones: Green Day, Weezer, hell maybe even John Lennon. But we here at the Circular Narrative are here to bring you a list of artists who the average layman would assume to still have integrity. In other words, we’re goin’ Holden Caufield on yo asses and calling out the phonies (man, I remember when J.D. Salinger had integrity…)

Gene:

Wale

Wale’s story is an incredibly tragic one because the dude was killin’ it on a regular basis a couple years ago. His remix of Justice’s “D.A.N.C.E” was absolutely sick and his Seinfeld themed mixtape “The Mixtape About Nothing” was chock full of great tunes. However, like many before him, he blew it. The ridiculous amount of integrity that he had accrued all went out the window when he signed to Interscope and released the piece of crap that was his album “Attention: Deficit”. It seems that nobody knows it as well as he does, but his legitimacy is all but gone. It sucks because I’m a huge fan of his mixtapes, and to Wale’s credit his most recent release, another Seinfeld mixtape, is solid. Sadly, a lot of the damage was done when he agreed to let Interscope guide the release of his debut album.

Los Campesinos

Rather than being a statement on their entire existence as a band, Los Campesinos! loss of integrity came in the form of one incident. No one can be sure how it happened (at least no one who writes for the Circular Narrative) but one way or another this hip little group of rockers got in cahoots with Budweiser. Yeah, that Budweiser. Just like that their best known song (“You! Me! Dancing!”) was playing over images of wheat fields and hops (what the hell are hops anyways?) There is some added irony in the fact that Los Campesinos! are from Wales and Budweiser is an aggressively patriotic brand. I can’t imagine all the football and American falg images go over very well with their hometown fans.

Public Enemy (actually just Flava Flav)

It’s really hard to imagine that the dude who wears a viking helmet on MTV while girls fight to have him offer them a gold clock was ever a part of a controversial rap group who penned the song “Fight the Power”. While Chuck D used his success with the PE to score jobs doing video game voice-overs and involving himself in politics, Flava Flav was too busy lending his face to all that is ridiculous about reality TV. Separate vocations I guess.

Radiohead

Yeah, that’s right, I’m callin' bullshit on their whole “pay what you want” scheme. I’m onto them. They saw how successful Kid A and OK Computer were, then they realized that In Rainbows was just good and not mind-blowingly good, so they chose to avoid the obvious monetary comparisons. If everyone’s gettin’ it for free, how are we supposed to tell whether they’re gaining or losing popularity. This the ultimate sacrifice of integrity because they refuse to be judged. I remember when Radiohead wasn’t afraid of economic crises.

DH:

Ludacris

Luda may still have hoes in various area codes, but after appearing on Justin Beiber’s teenie-boppin’ smash, “Baby,” one might question the age of said hoes. In addition to appearing on the most obnoxious song of the year, Luda also appeared on Taio Cruz’s “Break Your Heart,” also known as, “That song that isn’t ‘Dynamite’”. Add to that his acting endeavors (killed it in “2 Fast 2 Furious”, dude!) and we have one sad tale of integrity-loss.

The Roots

Now, my co-writer will strongly contest this pick, but it is something that must be said. The Roots went from an organic, groundbreaking, counter-culture movement of a band to the backing band for “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.” And if you don’t think that the two are mutually exclusive, then you are clearly part of the problem. Additionally, while ?uestlove is still the man, artists such as Ke$ha and Curren$y have ruined the integrity of spelling names with symbols.

Four Loko

My relationship with 4loko is more tumultuous than my relationship with my ex-girlfriend (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSWWsadXzq8). But despite our great times and long nights together, The ‘Loko has become an overused punch line. Especially now with rumors that it may be re-released without its signature caffeine/ginsing kick in the gonads, I am left to shake my head and wonder how I will be able to get blackout next Saturday for under five dollars.

Wow

Jeez, we've been slacking.
We promise we will get back on our game very, very soon. Coming back to school 
takes some getting used to.
There will be new posts. Very, very soon.

Until then....

Rap-letes

Professional athletes are a unique group of people. They are paid more money than almost the entire country to play a game. Thus, until a professional Settlers of Catan league is started, it is our duty as outsiders to critique the legitimacy and nuances of their profession. To their credit, they never cease to give us topics to discuss, although many of these topics are outside of the realm of sports. Whether they are performing community service, performing illegal acts or performing in utterly moronic commercials (I'm looking at you Manning bros) everything they do is on a public stage.
Today the Circular Narrative would like to salute those athletes who take it one step further. Those who decide that being a pro athlete is not enough and choose to enter the music industry. For whatever reason, in recent years a growing number of pro athletes are picking up a guitar, a microphone or (god forbid) both and crossing over. Though they are cropping up in all genres of music, a large number of this new breed of super-celebrities are releasing hip hop and rap albums.

Hand picked by The Circular Narrative, here (in no particular order) are the most... well, interesting projects that the world of pro sports has to offer.


Shaq - "I Know I Got Skillz"

In the past year or so Shaq has established himself as one of the more entertaining personalities in the NBA, whether he's getting in the holiday spirit or showing his refined side, the big fella has been all over the news for his hilarious stunts. His roots run deep though, as his music career started way back in 1993. "I Know I Got Skillz", the best song on his debut, is a flashback to the early days of rap music. The beat is simple and catchy and the lyrics are downright harmless.

"all you jealous punks can't stop my dunks,
they're brand new like Heavy,
built like Chevy, Impala,
but Shaq's a smooth balla,
(yeah, but what about rhymin?)
I can hold my own,
knick-knack shaq-attack, give a dog a bone"

Classic.

John Cena - "Bad, Bad Man"

While Shaq may be a public entertainer, John Cena is a true renaissance man. Besides being one of the most badass wrestlers in the WWE, he is also an actor (see; The Marine) AND a rapper. You've got to respect the guy, partially because he's not afraid to defy wrestling stereotypes but also because he can beat the shit out of you with a folding chair. On "Bad, Bad Man" he comes real aggressive with it, spitting lines like:

"MC's and they beats is what I eat, 16 I'll leave you in the street 
My rhymes are sicker than gangrene in both feet"
and
"We the monkeywrench, that's gonna ruin your plan
And don't fuck with John Cena - I'm a BAD, BAD MAN"

Creativity is the name of the game here as Cena evokes rare diseases, old fashioned tools and much more in making his point. As if the fact that he fights people for a living weren't enough, this song will convince anyone who was considering of wronging Cena in the least that they should probably reconsider.


Ron Artest - "Champions"

Ron Artest has had some ups and downs in his career, that's for sure. He fought a fan, admitted to drinking Hennessey at halftime, spoke out for animal spaying and neutering and pledged to donate his salary to mental health charities. Somewhere in there he found the time to rap. In the aftermath of winning the NBA finals with the Lakers he released "Champions", a classic song about being better than everybody else. While it gets the job done, one can't help but wonder why he didn't draw more on his own experiences when writing. He mentions the 12th round, the checkered flag, Michael Phelps and about a million other sports references, except he doesn't say a thing about, ya know, basketball. Oh well.

Deion Sanders - "Must Be the Money"

 
Back in the day they must have seen this coming. The guy was nicknamed "Prime-time" and he played not 1, but 2 professional sports. It was only a matter of time before he tried to conquer yet another field. In retrospect though, maybe he should have stuck to being an athlete. Deion's rapping/singing voice is a little bit creepy, the beat is directly lifted from "Return of the Mack" by Mark Morrison (although chronology says it's the other way around) and the lyrics make little to no sense. A good example of this is towards the end of the song when Sanders is muttering weirdly over the background singers, he says: "my library cards are gonna turn into credit cards". Now, Deion is an amazing athlete, worthy of much respect, but this line is downright ridiculous. First of all, it's not really cool to admit that you are carrying a lot of library cards. You aren't going to get any street cred by flashin' copies of Catch 22 around. Additionally, it isn't necessary to turn the library cards into credit cards, because you can just have both. They are not mutually exclusive. In fact, it can be argued that a successful person would have both. The moral of the story is that if Deion is gonna hit the big time he's going to have to come to terms with paying for his books....... and making better songs.


Tony Parker - "Top of the Game"

If the fact that Fabolous is on this track doesn't give it away, let it be known that "Top of the Game" is a jam. Granted, half the lyrics are in French so I have absolutely no idea what Tony P has to say, but a pretty good beat, Fab's smooth accompaniment and a music video featuring Tim Duncan makes "Top of the Game" seem like an apt title. The France thing does get played out a little bit, especially when Fabolous says "closest they ever came to France was French kissing", but despite that this song is legitimately enjoyable. 



Though it would seem that the rap-letes are a dying breed, there is no telling what the future could hold.


Actually there is:

Macklemore

Hype is a strange thing. When it comes from the media (internet, magazines, etc) it's usually bullshit and the music is usually average at best. However, when hype comes by way of word of mouth from reliable people it's usually worth checking out the artist. Thus, when everyone's favorite Tufts soccer player, Patrick Bauer mentioned how awesome the guy was and played his music for us, we had to check Macklemore out.

Hailing from Seattle, WA Macklemore follows in the vein of Northwest rappers that have some of the most dedicated fans out there. He has released 3 EPs since jumping on to the scene in 2005 and his latest, The VS. EP, a collaboration with producer Ryan Lewis, is a must-listen.

At 7 songs Vs. is beefy for an EP, but we're not complaining. Literally every song is an engaging and interesting listen. The first thing that stands out is Macklemore's flow. His voice fluctuates from aggresive ("Crew Cuts"), to chillingly soothing ("The End"). This keeps the songs from blending together and gives the album an acute sense of diversity. He uses his life's worth of experiences to paint vivid pictures of love, loss and dedication. "Otherside" is proof of Mack's stellar ability to use rap as his vehicle to express himself. The song is a statement about the growing use of cough syrup as an intoxicant and the influence on hip-hop culture. His lyrics are incredibly candid, as he flows rhythmically over a sample of The Red Hot Chili Peppers' "The Other Side". However, it is not only the rapping that makes the song so fantastic, but Ryan Lewis' production.

It's impossible to talk about VS. without mentioning the backdrop that Lewis provides for Macklemore's words. By drawing on an eclectic array of samples and creating anything but basic beats, Lewis establishes himself as a creative force. Along with RHCP, he also samples The Arcade Fire's "My Body is A Cage" and the Killers' "All These Things That I've Done". The impressive part of his production is that he doesn't simply take instrumental loop and put a drum beat over it. Instead he brings different parts of the sampled song in and out of his mix, with beats that stop, start and change to accentuate the lyrics. Because of this the songs stay fresh and interesting after repeated listens.

While The VS. EP is his best output, Macklemore's other music is definitely worth checking out as well. The Unplanned Mixtape is a more casual outing, showcasing Macklemore's ability to crack a few musical jokes alongside his more serious side. His charisma is undeniable and he improves with each release. If he continues to work his dynamic flow and tap quality producers like Ryan Lewis, he's got a long and successful career ahead of him.


"Irish Celebration" from The VS. EP

"The End" from The VS. EP

"Letterhead (Remix)" from The Unplanned Mixtape

A Blast From the Past

We here at The Circular Narrative love finding new music, but it's not beneath us to take a look back at the albums that got us to where we are now. Thus, today we bring you look back at an important album in the lives of many.

Taking its name from a children’s nursery rhyme, Andrew Hollingsworth’s seminal Star Light, Star Bright album is widely considered to be the third best album produced by the Tufts Ultimate program after Jay Clark’s “Aeroplane” and Stauss’s freestyle in a Danbury, CT parking lot. But let’s not be superficial with rankings.

Legend has it that the album was recorded using just a MacBook built in microphone and GarageBand, but the listener would never be able to tell. Hollingsworth also declined to tune his guitar, saying “being in tune is for pussies.” We couldn’t agree more.

Lyrically, Hollingsworth is lightyears ahead of his contemporaries. While other kids his age were busy drinking Svedka and hooking up in the backseats of their parent’s minivan, Hollingsworth spent his days penning the songs that would define said kids childhoods. This is befuddling given Hollingsworth’s romantic prowess, as detailed in the power-ballad “Rosa.” He croons, “This is a letter, that’s long overdue/ the address postmarked, the first line reads ‘Dear You’.” Damn. Hollingsworth is playing so hard to get that he is openly admitting to not knowing a girl’s name in a letter to said female. The listener is further left to wonder how Hollingsworth obtained the woman’s address, given that he doesn’t even know her name. Additionally, one can't help but ask why he simply did not just facebook chat message her, given that he is on facebook roughly 22 hours a day.

This mystique is what makes Hollingsworth’s music so successful. It is unpretentious. It is universal. It is a little creepy, (“Top 5 reasons to write a song tonight/ sweetie, you are reasons one through five.”)  It is a soundtrack to the part of life that most of us forget about; when we were simply stumbling through adolescence trying to find our identity and hoping that people had forgotten about the time we wore pink sweatpants to school in 3rd grade.


A common theme throughout the album is the idea of the misunderstood artist. Hollingsworth is transparent in his artistic process, which allows the listener to see deep within his tortured soul. He broods, “instead I stayed home and wrote this song/ and you went down to Puffer’s pond/ you went swimming with your friends/ and it seems like this is the end.” Cryptic. Depressing. Beautiful. Andrew Hollingsworth.