Murder is one those words that I hear everyday and have for years and years and years - to the point, I fully admit, that I have become totally desensitized to its real meaning.  Yep to me, the more I hear the word murder and especially the more I read it in yet another newspaper report, the more and more detached I seem to become from it.  It has lost its initial intended meaning to me.  In fact right now as I type this and just think of the word MURDER in my head, I cannot help but hear the refrain from that classic 1993 dancehall reggae hit by Chaka Demus & Pliers (Murder She Wrote)  echoing happily in my skull "murder she wrote, nah nahnah, murrrrder she wrote." So to me murder or that six letter word spelt backwards - redrum (popularized by The Shining) is just  another empty meaningless word or even worse, alternately it is a sexy catch-phrase, repeated in songs I hum, the theme of entertaining movies I watch, video games I play,  books I read,  and juicy headlines in morning newspapers I read as I sip my comforting coffee.  So ultimately murder to me (and maybe to you too?) is just another hollow disposable word - nothing more, nothing less. Unless, unless, that is, of course, that the word "murder" is directly connected to me personally or to someone close to me.

So as I sat on the BART the other morning reading a small short article in the Bay Area section of the San Francisco Chronicle under the heading "Two Murders In Oakland Over The Weekend" about a couple of unrelated fatal street shootings (one of them "gang related") to be totally honest - it barely registered in my consciousness - just the same ol, same ol to this jaded soul. Until, that is, the location of one of the murders jumped off the page at me ("Fairview Ave. in the 100 block, north of Lake Merrit"). Damn!  I realized that this was directly outside the apartment buidling where I stay. Later that day from talking to folks in the immediate East Bay neighborhood I found out all the killing's tragic details: that the murder happened on Friday night at 9:25PM. That it took place directly opposite the church (ironically) when a car screeched to a halt in the middle of the street with two guys audibly arguing inside. Both got out, still arguing loudly, and one shot the other nine times before hopping back into the driver's seat to speed away leaving the body of a 29 year old man bleeding to death on that chilly Oakland night.

You know how they say that the Golden Age of Hip-Hop was the years (approx) 1988 - 1993? Well the Golden Era of Yay Area (da Bay mayn) hip-hop would have been a lil later, namely 1991-1997 a time when major labels and big indies (when they still had money and duplicated CDRs were not even an option) were signing Bay Area artists left, right, and center. It was when  the Luniz (signed to Noo Trybe/Virgin) released their classic "I Got 5 On It" and the even sicker remix featuring Shock G, Richie Rich, and E40 etc. Check the remix video here and if you like these videos, this is just part one of a new series showcasing classic Yay Area Rap videos. Add comments, complaints, feedback below. And be warned that some contain explicit language or images!


And let's not forget the (explicit) Dru Down song "Pimp of the Year" from his first major album -  the one that introduced a young unknown duo called The Luniz (originally Luni Tunz). This is the nasty album version video of "Pimp of the Year" not be confused with the cleaned up and remade for radio "Mack of the Year" - Hence explicit warning!!!!!!!!!!

 
Up next is a video that my boy Chris made for my man Khayree back in the day for the late great Andre Hicks (aka Mac Dre) for his superdope track "California Livin" - one of those classic Yay Area joints that never ages or that I get tired of hearing. Like most West Coast rap videos shot at the time the luxory home scenes were not shot at Mac Dre's crib (he lived in da Crestside of the V-town) which was some rich guy's backyard out in Dublin or somewhere borrowed for the afternoon.. Note this AMOEBLOGGER  appears in this video - dancing by the pool scene. Hint: I'm the white guy :)

Los Angeles based documentary film-maker Doug Pray (Hype!, Scratch, Infamy), whose latest release "Big Rig" - a documentary about the subculture of contemporary truck-drivers - premiered at Austin's SXSW fest in March:  and whose latest production "Surfwise" - a documentary about the family dynamics of a unique surfing family, says that the distinct common thread between each of his documentaries is that each tells the story of misunderstood individuals. "They're all subcultures... groups (that) have been misperceived. I see their characters as underdogs," he said. His first film was the 1996 documentary "Hype!" which was literally about the hype behind the North West's underground "grunge scene" and how exactly that music was transformed, neatly packaged, and sold to the gullible masses. His next and even better known film (which won numerous awards) was "Scratch" about the the rise and history of the hip-hop DJ/turntablist. It was followed by  "Infamy" a documentary about six graffiti artists plus one anti-graffiti activist.

To director Pray there is an obvious common thread between each of the films' subjects.  Speaking of Hype!, Scratch, and Infamy he said, "They're all subcultures which I never set out to do but it is interesting how things turn out. All three groups were misperceived in general and I think that's what's in common with all three. Like the way people in Seattle felt that their movement had been packaged and kind of sold to the masses as something that it wasn't - that was a reason to make a movie because I was there and I thought 'You know what?' What the world thinks about this music community is not what they're saying it really is!' Same thing with the deejays in "Scratch" It was sort of like everybody, as in mainstream America, thought they knew what hip-hop was and what the hip-hop DJs were saying was really different from this perception.....It's all the same thing - same thing with Infamy about the graffiti artists."
 
 Before he began shooting the director mistakenly thought that "Infamy" would turn out to an upbeat, celebration, of bright beautiful graffiti art. Instead it turned out be an engrossing, dark portrayal of obsessed artists who commit felonies, constantly risking jail time just to create their art. "Graffiti artists are manic depressive," confesses graffiti artist Saber in one engaging scene. Infamy is unlike other graffiti films. "Most graf films are made in such earnest from a graffiti art fan's perspective that they often overlook the human element," said Pray who deliberately limited the number of subjects profiled in his film.  "I didn't want to have 30 artists in there and just get to know a little about (each of) them. I wanted to really focus on just six artists. I wanted to make a movie where you really got to know the person, their family, their peers, their crew...One of the differences with graffiti and others is that it is really demented....It is an obsession and it is both very stimulating and it leads to trouble....it is unlike any other art because it is a felony."  

Although Infamy didn't get near as warm a reception as its predecessor (Scratch) and outside of a handful of screenings (mostly at small film fests) went straight to DVD last Fall, it is nonetheless a wonderful film and well worth seeing for both graffiti and non-graffiti fans alike. Also recommended for all audiences is the critically acclaimed aforementioned Scratch which truly is an amazing film that captures the soul of the dedicated hip-hop DJ (Full disclosure: the writer of this AMOEBLOG is one of the subjects in the film and also credited for giving the film its title) and the DVD version boasts an additional disc with four bonus hours including the ever engaging, turntable instructional "How To Rock A Party" with Z-Trip. Scratch, which can still be seen occasionally on the Sundance Channel, can be found both as a single DVD at Amoeba and other new and used DVD outlets and also in the nicely packaged hip-hop DVD set along with the film Freestyle**

So what happens to Amoebites (people who work at Amoeba) after they stop working at Amoeba Music and move on in their lives?  And does their time spent at the music store impact or influence them in anyway later on?  These questions and a lot more are answered in this interview (the first in a series) with a former Amoebite, who is now a Brooklynite, named Nick Lesley who worked at all three Amoebas (Hollywood, Berkeley, San Francisco) before moving out to NYC two-and-a-half years ago. In California Nick played in the bands Vholtz, The Oma Yang,  and Felicia & Coctopus with whom he appeared on Amoeba Music Compilation Vol. V on the track "Whiskey Dick." Currently Nick is a student at Brooklyn College, updates several websites, and plays in several bands including Necking whose lineup includes Dong-Ping Wong and Josh Graver. He books shows at the cool Brooklyn living space (Dead Herring House) he shares with other artists (they had a giant show there just last Saturday night). For income Nick now works at a funky, fun  lil spot in New York City's  Lower East Side called the Cake Shop which is part record-store, part cafe, and part music club.  It was there that I caught up with the former Amoebite recently and asked him about  the differences between East and West coasts, about his studies, his music, and his life - before and after Amoeba.

While Hillary Rodham Clinton's popularity among Hispanic voters currently leads the Democratic pack by a long shot the "Amigos de Obama" are slowly gaining ground and gradually growing in numbers thanks to such showing of grassroots support for Barack Obama as the recently recorded "Obama Reggaeton" which can be heard here with lyrics printed below (scroll down) - a catchy song that calls upon Mexican and other Hispanic voters to support Obama with a call to "Listen to  gente, es tiempo para algo diferente.. What we need is un nuevo presidente*… Como Se Dice…Como Se llama? OBAMA! OBAMA!"   As clearly outlined in the map (below) posted on the website supporting Obama, 13 million eligible Hispanic voters live in ten states (including California, Florida, and New York) with all but one hosting primaries on or before February 5th. Note that Texas' primary isn't until March. Roughly two thirds of the nation's Hispanic residents live in nine of the states that will hold Democratic primaries or caucuses on or before early February, 2008.


Obama is way behind Hillary in popularity with Hispanic voting Democrats, as recently reported by the New York Times which cited polls (including the paper's own and ones carried out by CBS News) from the past few months which show that about 60 percent of registered Hispanic voters who identify themselves as Democrats have a favorable view of Hillary while a quarter do not. Meanwhile Senator Barack Obama, Democrat of Illinois, according to the Times "remains a blank slate to many Hispanic voters, polls show, with 40% having no opinion of him. But his aspirational biography could prove a draw as more Hispanic voters get to know him." No doubt "Obama Reggaeton" can only help in this effort.