It goes oak, leather, rims and tires.

You'll never hear or read me claim that Backbone is actually a good rapper. His voice is weird and off-putting in large chunks, to call him a writer would be a cruel joke to many rappers and other musicians, and his sense of rhythm when he's rapping is just bizarre, what with all the odd pauses and non sequitur lines that come in the middle and end of his verses. For this reason, it's not hard to imagine why I have never really checked for Concrete Law, his 2001 solo debut. He also has an inane obsession with the phrase "5 deuce, 4 tre" (good song though, check it out). Given all my problems with Mr. Fat Face 100, he seems like an odd choice for a blog post. But like I mentioned on No Trivia, Backbone is like the Superb of the Dungeon Family. It's easy to confuse his voice with other, better rappers, but his verses can such great fantastic moments, but I would never be able to tolerate a full length from him. That said, Backbone is twice the rapper Superb wishes he could be, even if Yayo thinks he wrote Supreme Clientele. With all that said, here are my favorite songs that feature Backbone:

Big Boi feat. Backbone- Dubbz

This recent link from Sir Lucious Left Foot is the first we've heard from Backbone since... what, Even in Darkness? Lines like, "the whip super stupid, it ain't got no brains" are the very reason I both love and loathe him at the same time. When I first heard the song, I couldn't believe Backbone was on the track, as he sounds even more nasal than normal. I've never really expected him to blow me away with his rapping skills, and this is a car song, so he just has fun with it, making his style so easy to soak in.

Goodie Mob feat. Backbone & Big Boi- Get Rich to This

I am sure some people think I am a moron for liking anything on World Party, but this one came out right after those great videos for Aquemini and Cool Breeze's "Watch for the Hook," so any Dungeon Family was all right with me. Again, Backbone doesn't really have a point to get across, and neither does the song, so you can enjoy your champagne campaign with it. And his mention of E-40 got me tangenially thinking of the reason why he never really blew up, besides the obvious characteristic of his pretty mediocre rapping. Everyone in DF had some weird personal style that came across in their videos, but Mr. Fat Face was always pretty conservative in his dress (40 Water, on the other hand, always stands out). Maybe he just seemed like some random Southern rapper, rather than a member of the A's premier rap collective.

OutKast feat. Backbone & Big Gipp- We Luv Deez Hoes

Don't lie you love it, and if you don't, you like this song a whole lot. Honestly, his style would have worked very well with Jim Crow on their first album. He and Cutty Cartel both have thick accents and exude style, as that's all they've got. Again with the awkward pauses in the middle of his verses, but the laziness works here. Hoes don't deserve great verses, do they?

OutKast feat. Backbone & Cool Breeze- Slump

Easily one of his best verses, and one of the first where he mentions "5 deuce, 4 tre." His accent and slow pace makes him sound world weary here, and it works great within the context of this song. It's like his verse is sort of a prologue for the other two verses: Backbone explains what he's doing and going through and the reasons for that choice (if it was one), Big Boi offering a note of caution about the lifestyle (sort of like that "next to the hood" concept Brandon Soderberg talked about), and then in the final verse, Cool Breeze takes us back to the trap to the mind of someone looking to get out. Great way to structure a song, and Backbone really delivers in the first song that's not a sort of rowdy party starter.

Goodie Mob feat. Backbone- I Refuse Limitation (Sadly, there's no link for this song. Your loss, sorry.)

His best verse by far. It's like "Slump," but he sounds even more tired from selling drugs and living a dangerous life. It's really short, now that I think about it, so there may be a tie, but something got into him back in '98 that seems to give these verses a sense of urgency and claustrophobia, even though he raps so slowly. Good to have him back after almost ten years. Here's hoping he gets back into the mix, though I may be the only person who decides to pay attention.

NOTE: I found Concrete Law, there will be more Backone to speak of shortly.

My Boston.

Sorry I've been gone so long. I've been moving (to Boston), and in the stress of moving with the help of my parents and starting a new (and my first!) job, it seems I've come down with shingles. Which, as you might imagine, is very pleasant. Getting a condition that normally affects people over 60 when you're 22 is a great way to start post-college life. This time, I absolutely promise a post very soon on music. But nothing really current, as it just goes back to the old stuff eventually. And I'm out.

I-I-I-I ain't tryin' to leave my old lady

Contrary to what some may have thought, I am not done blogging at all. Like I wrote earlier, being at home takes away any inspiration I may have to write. Luckily that should all change in a couple weeks when I get to Boston. In the meantime, why is no one talking about this song? I will concede that Fonzworth has no business in front of a microphone, but he's damn sure better than Diddy. More importantly, a member of Outkast is on the song, qualifying it for any year-end lists. Sadly, it only exists as a video, as I have yet to hear it compete with "Out Here Grindin'" or "Bust It Baby Pt. 2" on the radio. It's a shame, because if people like dancing, in my mind this kind of beat is perfect. I'm also surprised Mr. West didn't try to get a verse on this beat. Seeing that kind of restraint from him is rare nowadays, though much appreciated. I'm sure once there's a remix, I'll regret that statement.

Robin Thicke's "Magic" is great. Sadly, the video is f-ing atrocious. Please, Robin, don't ever dance.

Nene, Daddy's back.

Yea, I saw it.

It always feels weird to write posts in my old living room. I'm in a completely different state of mind when I am in NJ, and it is hard to get motivated to write anything while I am here. But, since I don't start working/move for another month and a half, blogging will be a good project to keep me busy in my ample downtime. Yesterday, I officially moved out of college, and on the way back home, besides listening to one the CDs I made for Off the Yelzebub, I caught some of the local radio station for the first time in months. There are a few things that stuck out to me that I figured I'd make quick notes about:

Noz has his own thoughts on the matter, but I actually kind of like the beat to "A Milli." The first version I listened to had Corey Gunz, who made Mr. F. Baby look lazy and boring. There was some other version with the line "it's nap time/ I'll holla back at you at snack time" which was cute, though I can say I do like the version now with the "what's a goon to a goblin" talk. But, while I was driving past Lincoln Financial Field, I heard "A Billie," Hovie Hov's take on the beat. It's horrendous, simply terrible in my mind. He needs to stop with the "rrrrah, rrrah" thing that he started on that Lupe song from Food and Liquor, "The Pressure," which was so disappointingly underwhelming. The Jadakiss version is worth it simply for the lines "tight shirt, tight pants, all these Homo sapiens" and "Closed casket, leave nothing but legs for them." But somehow, Wayne still sounds the best over the beat, probably because they're both annoying as hell after the first 30 seconds and then I start to zone out.

Bun B's on the remix to "Get Silly." So is the 40 Water. One of these guys fits in my mind, though I may be wrong. Oh, and Polow easily had my favorite verse, given that I've heard the song twice now. Jermaine Dupri should never be allowed near a microphone for reasons that should be obvious.

Busta + Linkin Park = f-ing terrible.

I promise that a write-up of Dirty Money is coming soon. I just need to actually think about what I want to say. Should be easy with nothing else to do.

Call me Purdue

Some quick notes on the great personal narrative, "Killa Season," Cam'Ron's movie from a couple years ago that was released on DVD (I think). I saw it almost exactly two years ago with the actual founder of this blog, Jason, and another friend. Of course, I was very drunk as it was senior week so I only remember a few pieces of it. But, Patrick and I watched it again yesterday. First off: this has to be the longest movie (about 2 and a 1/2 hours) about a rapper's life ever... no homo. Any casual readers know I don't use that dumbass phrase, but as this is a movie about DipSet, it's only appropriate. Anyway, on to the highlights:

• I never need to see the process of how mules transport drugs into and around the world. Maria Full of Grace was enough.
• I can't figure which situation offends me more: a little girl being shot or a little girl's face being spit on. Somewhere, R. Kelly was smiling when that scene was filmed.
• Let's take over the block.
• Don't have sex with crackheads. They'll only take your money... and go to community college and clean their lives up and thank you in a very special way.
• Michael K. Williams (Omar of the Wire) has the greatest cameo ever. It's a beautiful performance, no homo.
• Though he hasn't put out a (relevant) compilation album in years, Funkmaster Flex still has paternal-like control over all rappers, especially a guy who says he gets the computers 'putin'.
• Let's take over the block.
• Don't claim to be hard or tough, no homo.

As you may be able to tell, TT is back. I have nothing but time on my hands, so in between laser tag and sleeping I'll try and get back to writing some more stuff. I've been out of the loop for the past three weeks or so, please excuse me if I am late on a few things (like Noz losing his job). There's a new muxtape up, since the site crashed a little while ago. There are a few songs I want to post, but the site can't accept them, so check them out here and here. I have a few thoughts on albums I've been giving a lot of burn recently, but I need to get back into the flow of writing, so please be patient. As soon as I'm ready, I'll give it to you raw. No homo.

Man of the year.

I want to do hoodrat things, too.

More or less Lindros

Sorry if posting is infrequent over the next 2 weeks or so; finals beckon, and the idea of graduating is rather enticing. Patrick sent me the newest installation of Prodigy's sage-like musings. Check it out here. He also recently started a muxtape, though I still hate that name.

The above pic is from a recent Off the Yelzebub field trip from Saturday night. Wale came to Haverford last weekend, and while I tend to avoid those kids (like Mr. block-off-access-to-girls-with-a-toll-booth-arm), the show was pretty tight. Big shout to the little singing guy with the shades, they were lovely. Apparently, the Philadelphyinz played afterward, but we missed them. Wah, wah. There are more photos here (kind of).