More Nerd News in Brief

It’s been a busy week for your old pal Z., and it occurs to me that I probably haven’t given y’all enough of that sweet, nerdy goodness that you’ve come to expect from Hipster, please! of late. As such, I approach you humbly, meekly, with More Nerd News in Brief.

• They are too!: You can currently download the new MC Lars track "White Kids Aren't Hyphy" for free from the Web site of San Francisco radio station Live 105. East Coast nerds can also catch Lars at the following venues: Feb.16 Ft Lauderdale, FL @ The Culture Room, Feb.17 Orlando, FL @ The Social, Feb.18 Gainesville, FL @ 1982 Bar, Feb.19 Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade, Feb.20 Knoxville, TN @ Blue Cats, Feb.21 Vienna, VA @ Jammin Java, Feb. 22 Virginia Beach, VA @ The Jewish Mother, Feb.23 Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church, and Feb.24 Bound Brook, NJ @ Hamilton Street Café. Additional dates are available at Lars’s site.
• Party Without Me: Don’t forget that Emergency Pizza Party will be playing a free show on February 24th at A Comic Shop in Winter Park, Florida. Also, please remember to buy the books before you read ‘em. It ain’t a fuckin’ library!
• Look at his mouth!: EPP member and all-around fascinating fellow MC Wreckshin will release a new full-length album for free download on April 1st. You can preview the title track, “Nerdcore Supervillian,” at Wreckshin’s MySpace.
• In case you missed it: If you like super-geeky rhymes with the smooth lyrical flow and solid hip-hop bite of Deltron and Metamystiks, I would wholeheartedly recommend you check out the MySpace of a certain LogicOne. Both “Mech’s Eye View” and “Comic Shop Rock” are personal favorites.
• In case you missed it Pt. 2: The rabid Spamtec fans over at G4’s The Feed posted a webcam interview with “nerdcore rapper and hacker supreme YTCracker” to their show’s blog last week. In addition to repping nerdcore and talking about his hacker past, YT also does an impromptu live performance of “The Feed Theme Song.”
• Embrace the ambiguity: I was recently invited by one of my favorite new-gen nerdcore artists to help out with an exciting new, non-musical project. Though we’re still in the early planning stages, it looks like said project may become part of a new regular feature for Hipster, please! I can say no more.
• Creeping toward legitimacy: There’s a new edition of Nerdcore News currently available for your viewing pleasure. I’m a big fan of Gabriel and Syn’s work, so I was delighted to find my own little interview with mc chris got a mention. Continuing my grand tradition of ending these news segments with someone else’s hard work, I’ve embedded the video below.

It's Valentine's Day.

I’d love to have a really witty retort to follow that obviously pedestrian statement, but I don’t. What can I say? I’m a married man. The ring on my finger somehow manages to sap most of my romantic predilections. This year for Valentine’s, I got my wife a purse. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a kick-ass purse, but that sort of gift lacks the kind of sitcom romanticism that we as a culture have come to expect.

I understand that this isn’t exactly a nerd-friendly holiday. Historically speaking, nerds aren’t exactly the type to ride in on ye olde white steed and woo their preferred gender with wit and charm. But the image of the nerd as a lonely, wistful, unattractive wallflower is slowly fading. There are, in our midst, a progressive group of geeks who are, like me, happily coupled. There are nerdy fellows who are suave, sophisticated, and confident. Shit, in nerdcore hip-hop alone there are a number of beautiful, beguiling, sexy young women who turn many-a head even outside of our circle.

As hard as it may be for some to believe, being a nerd doesn’t necessarily mean that one is entirely socially inept. I’ll wager that there’s probably an element of awkwardness that many of us share, but our people generally exorcise such demons for the greater good. I guess what I’m getting at is that we’re not all Duckie. And many of those of us who are have long since learned to turn our respective eccentricities into pleasant positives rather than humiliating handicaps.

So today, in light of the inherent romantic undertones, I’d like to wish all you love struck nerds out there – even those of you who, like me, may’ve grown a little lax in the passion department – the best. May your champagne flow free, your chocolates not melt, and may you and your partner be making the sweet, nerdy love by nightfall.

If you’re in the Seattle area, you’ll probably want to make your way down to Columbia City Theatre for the launch party for Ultraklystron’s Romance Language. Karl and company swear to sex up your eardrums to the utmost of their combined ability. But worry not; they will be gentle.

It promises to be an ideal place for you West Coasters to take that special guy/girl. Consequently, for you single types, I can’t think of any better place to go trolling for a new crush than a nerdcore show. Hell, it’s almost too easy.

MC Lars Concert Impression by Antisocial

Last weekend, my pal Antisocial got a chance to see MC Lars perform in the very large and boisterous state of Texas. He was nice enough to write up a little show review for those of us unable to attend. Did Lars bring his A-game? Did Soc dig it? Was there beer? Read on to find out!

-------

Dear Z, faithful readers of Hipster, please!, and loyal Nerdcore scene kiddies,

I have had the pleasure of attending an MC Lars show. Here is how it went:

The doors opened at around 6pm, so my brother (aka MC Localhost, aka Phil Ridlen) and I ( Antisocial aka Mark Ridlen), ended up there at around 7. The venue was Fat Daddy's Sound Shack (or something to that effect), and it was built in an old movie theater. It made a very good venue and could hold quite a few people. There were around 200 people at this particular show... of all ages, as it was an all ages show. We arrived to hear the very last guitar pickings of a local emo band. Up next was some horrible local ska band that we managed to survive. After that was Patent Pending , a band that performed with Lars later. I must say, Patent Pending is the wildest band I've ever seen perform. For the final song, they invited the audience up on the stage for a mosh-tastic finale (see grainy phone pictures ). There must have been more people on stage than off. It was quite unusual. After this, MC Lars began to set up, so Phil and I decided it was safe to venture up close to the stage. His setup was simple and elegant: a laptop (a MacBook Pro , I believe), a digital projector, and a screen for said projector. Basically, instead of using backup tracks, he used backup movies. A very novel concept, and it worked out very well. I apologize that I didn't memorize the track order, but I have tried to piece it together as best I can.

Following an epic intro movie, he kicked off his set with one of my personal favorites, " Space Game ," and surprised me with a freestyle-style additional verse at the end, as well as the "Rock and Roll Robot" message that played on the screen during DJ Hal's guitar solo (DJ Hal is closely related to DJ CPU , for those who are not aware). Next he played another great song, the Jay-Z referencing, Tetris sampling " 21 Concepts (but a hit ain't one) ." He followed Tetris samples with the amazing Super Mario Bros. infused remix of " Straight Outta Stockholm ," which was quite possibly the high point of the show. Very fitting considering he wore Nintendo boxers. You honestly have to hear this track to believe it. It made me feel giddy like a 12 year-old. He made sure to play the RIAA bashing " Download This Song ," which featured vocals from Bowling for Soup's Jaret Reddick , and plenty of "la la la la la la la la" from the audience. The classic " Signing Emo " was performed, with help from the audience on the screamo "DIEEEEEEEEEE!" vocals. Somewhere in his set, he made sure to include " Generic Crunk Rap ," which is another of my personal favorites, and once again got plenty of help from the audience for the crunk vocals. " Mr. Raven ," the song based on the classic Edgar Allen Poe poem , was a great hit with the crowd. At the end of his set, he performed his smash hit " iGeneration ," which was certainly a crowd pleaser, and yet another of my personal favorites. He included viral video from the Internet, and asked the audience to cheer whenever we recognized something we'd seen. Finally, he took down his laptop and projector, and brought Patent Pending back on stage. I knew immediately that " Hot Topic Is Not Punk Rock " was about to be played, so Phil and I took to the high ground to avoid another mosh pit. Sure enough, there was.

We stuck around for the next band, Suburban Legends , a ska outfit that put on a very good show complete with synchronized dance moves. Phil and I were very tired, so we left towards the end of the set. We went to the merch table and tried to talk to Lars over the loud ska that filled the air, and we both purchased a CD (a good deal at 10 bucks). He was a very friendly guy, as expected, and he mentioned he will be going back on tour in April. I'll be there if I can, Lars!

Link to pictures

-------

I live in the boonies. As such, I don't get out to as many choice geek gigs as I should. Thankfully, Hipster, please! has a (very) small, (ridiculously) dedicated group of readers who tend to be a bit more advantageously located than little ol' me. Soc, for example, is always nice enough to hit me up post-show to let me know how things went down, and I truly appreciate it. If any of the rest of you has a ticket so hot its burning a hole in your pocket and a solid grasp of the English language, feel free to hit me up with your own concert impressions. I'll gladly reward you with... uh... my sincerest thanks for your trouble.

Nerd News in Brief

It’s Monday, and I am once again tucked away in my office being… well… nonproductive. Sure, I could get some real work done, shuffle some papers and whatnot, but I think I’d rather do some Nerd News in Brief. Won’t you join me?

• Love the way you love: As mentioned previously, Karl “Ultraklystron” Olson will be joined by a garrison of his peers this Wednesday for the launch event for his new release Romance Language. The whole of the world is invited, and all of Seattle is expected to attend.
  
• You asked me, so I asked him: So what has been going on in BC of late? By his own admission, nerdcore producer supreme Baddd Spellah is currently in the thick of working on MC Frontalot’s next album. Does this make anyone else all warm and happy in their nether-parts?
  
• Wanted – New Moniker: First she was MC Fanatical. Then she was simply Fanatical. And now? Well, that’s anybody’s guess. Jaylyn is currently in the market for a new name under which to sling the rhymes. If you have one with low mileage and the remainder of the factory warranty in-tact, hit Fanatical up.
  
• Rocking and Rowling: Nerdcore isn’t the only nerdy sub-genre getting the attention of documentarians. The Wizard Rockumentary examines the strange and fantastical world of those few, proud souls who devote their rock ‘n’ roll energy to matters Potter-related. Rock out with your wand out!
  
• Lucky Lunar New Year Sale: In the event that you currently have a deficit of strange, nerdy, Japanese things in your life, I would like to direct you to Play Asia’s Lucky Lunar New Year Sale. Not only are there ridiculously low prices on more than 3000 discounted games, toys, and knickknacks, but each purchase of one of these items earns you the chance to win geek-tastic prizes including an Xbox 360, a Nintendo Wii, and a DS Lite. Click the banner below to check out Play Asia’s discounted wares.
  

Karl Olson and the Heartbreakers

Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and, as a result of grand design rather than mere coincidence, nerdcore’s foremost otaku has chosen this hallowed occasion to unleash upon a lovelorn world his newest collection of geek-tastic tunes, Romance Language. Moreover, said release shall be marked with a bona fide event – a launch party, if you will – to commemorate this revered nativity.

The album itself features, in Ultraklystron’s own words, “an 11 song arc about romance, attraction and various other things in that vein.” Karl also promises a myriad of musical facets will be explored: “everything from classic hiphop to crunk to grimecore to ambient/hip-hop fusion is in play, likely much to [the] dismay of perspective listeners.” Of course, the CD itself will be available on-site for early adopters.

As for the show, well, suffice it to say that it’ll put Ringling Bros to shame! Ultraklystron will be joined onstage at Seattle’s Columbia City Theatre by MC Tanuki (of Northwest Nerdcore), Rai (Karl’s long-time partner in crime), and the delightful Nursehella (that enchantress from the land of Rush and Greztky).

How much would you expect to pay for admittance to such an auspicious event, such an ass-rockin’ show? One hundred dollars? Five hundred dollars? A solid fuck-tillion dollars? Not even close, buddy. Keep that fuck-tillion dollar bill to yourself, ‘cause pre-sale tickets are available now at a mere seven bones! Sure, you can get tickets at the door for a slightly inflated price, but why risk it? Pick up your tix now via this unassuming link.

Did I forget to mention that the show is of the all ages variety? Oh, it’s true. Everyone is welcome to come and enjoy the nerdy goodness.

If you’re near the Seattle area, I’d highly recommend that you attend. Despite what he might tell you, Ultraklystron is a consummate performer, and this show promises to be a great time… even for those of you without a special sweety for St. Valentine’s.

Event: Ultraklystron's Romance Language Release Party. Acts include MC Tanuki, Rai, Nursehella, and, of course, Ultraklystron. Hear songs from Ultraklystron's new album, Romance Language, and buy a copy before anybody else! Pre-show ticket cost is $7.00, more at the door.
Location: Columbia City Theater(4918 Rainier Ave S Seattle, WA 98118)
Time: February 14, 2007 from 7:00 PM to 2:00 AM

Go out to a killer nerdcore gig and meet some people, or stay at home eating bonbons and crying into your sleeve while you watch reruns of Gimme a Break. The choice is yours.