Radio Free Hipster Ep. 3 – The Evolution of Nerdcore (As Told By Z.)

I love nerd music. That’s why I started this blog. That’s why I continue to try new things (like podcastsing), to approach different artists to share their views, and to seek out new avenues through which to I may do my small part to promote my nerdly compatriots. Still, as much as I say this isn’t just a nerdcore music site, that (sub)genre does hold prime real-estate in my heart. I love the beats. I love the rhymes. I love the sci-fi references. I love the rampant profanity. But mostly, I adore the eclectic group of artists who make with the funky shit.
I’ve been side-stepping the subject of my own personal views in nerdcore for a while. What can I say? I’m no fan of conflict, and I don’t wanna spark any further division. Still, I reckon since everyone else has had their say, I too should make with the dropping of my own unique brand of knowledge.
Now don’t get me wrong; words are my friends. I love ‘em, and they’ve served me well for three decades. Still, there are some things that are best communicated via example. Therefore, I have summarily combined these two elements to form my third podcast. There’s some talking – some drawling, as it were – and some songs to serve as illustrations. It’s like a book. A book made purely of sound… and nerd love.
For me, nerdcore is not merely an art form, but a living, breathing, ever-changing entity that grows and evolves; strengthened by each new artist’s own distinctive style and personality. The catch is, unlike evolution in a strictly scientific sense; the evolution of nerdcore – this growing and changing – is not in response to any environmental difficulty or fundamental flaw. Early nerdcore artist are no less important (or stylistically developed) than their n00b counterparts. They are all important. And, to paraphrase one of the oft-repeated YTCracker jewels, we are all family.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 3 – The Evolution of Nerdcore (As Told By Z.) Size: a whopping 72.2 MB Running Time: an interminable 78.55

RFH Ep. 3 – The Evolution of Nerdcore (As Told By Z.) Show Notes

Intro: Beastie Boys – “Shake Your Rump”
Nerdcore cavemen? Maybe. I just remember, as a kid, this being the first rap group my friends could all agree on. I was always more of a Run-DMC type of cat, but you just can’t fuck with the Beasties.
Z’s 1^st interlude: “Protonerd”
There were actually some artists from this section that got cut out too. Hopefully, I’ll keep doing this podcast long enough to get around to everyone!
Track 1: MC 900 Ft. Jesus -- “Buried at Sea”
This isn’t Jesus’s most hip-hoppy track, and it’s by design. This is a good example of the kind of stuff I relate guys like myf, Doc Pop, and Shael Riley too; cats unafraid to add nontraditional ingredients to the recipe.
Track 2: Kool Keith – “Lost in Space”
Kool Keith is the original Black Elvis. He was also nice enough to participate in the Rhyme Torrents compilation.
MAJOR EDIT: Kool Keith was Dr. Dooom not MF Doom!!! I was thinking one thing but said something different. Sorry for making a total cock-hole of myself there, folks. I really do know what the hell I’m talking about… most of the time... honest. Christ, I really gotta start writing scripts for these things.
Track 3: Handsome Boy Modeling School – “Rock n' Roll (Could Never Hip Hop Like This)”
I feel like I didn’t say enough about Prince Paul during the podcast. Lucky for you there’s Wikipedia! Rap can be a tad humorless sometimes, so I think producers like Paul and Dan did us all a favor by lightening shit up a little.
Track 4: MC Paul Barman – “Make No Mistake”
I cut Paul some slack. If he doesn’t wanna be part of the club, I’m cool with that. Still, I consider him to be an important stop on this journey through nerdcore.
Z’s second interlude: “Founding Fathers”
This is where things get confusing. This is also where things get really interesting. Coincidence? I think not! The line between first and second generation (or first and second wave for my rudeboys) nerdcore is thin at best. Who came fist and who influenced whom? We may never know.
Track 5: MC Frontalot (feat. Baddd Spellah, Jesse D., MC Hawking) – “Nerdcore Rising”
When I said buy the album, I meant it. Don’t forget to buy Spellah, Jesse, and Hawkman merch too! This may be my favorite nerdcore track of all time.
Track 6: mc chris – “DQ Blizzard”
I’m not gonna bitch about mc. As I said, whether you like him or you don’t, he influenced a lot of people to try out there skills behind the mic. I love this track and I always will.
Track 7: Optimus Rhyme – “Just Forget It”
Depending on which day of the week you ask, I will either tell you that Optimus or MC Hawking was the first nerdcore act I ever heard. I’m old and prone to forget such simple things. Either way, I think you understand why I became so enthralled with it.
Track 8: YTCracker & Router – “Nerd Love”

The YTCracker you hear on the tracks is the real YTCracker. But he’s a nerd, you say, how can he be so down? No one knows, but that’s what makes him so unique. YT lives the nerd life. I’d love to tell you where I got this track, but that info is another thing that age has robbed me of. Try his MySpace.

Z’s 3^rd interlude: “Proudly Nerdcore”

The following artists wear the badge of “nerd” proudly. I respect that. It’s as simple as that.

Track 9: Ultraklystron – “Five to Nine”

I don’t generally watch anime. I mean, I love giant robots and shit, but your average otaku on the street doesn’t generally wanna hear me wax poetic about the incredibly unsafe toys of my youth. 70s nostalgia aside, Karl Olson is a musician/writer/anime freak that I have immense respect for. He’s an incredible talent, and an incredibly nice guy.

Track 10: Beefy – “Internet Celebrity”
Where my podcast should rightly be finishing up, this one is just getting its second wind. :) I mention Beefy a lot around here. He’s a pal and a big supporter of the blog. Hell, he even offered to host my podcast over at Nerdcast! I really dig this song because I think it’s something a lot of us can relate to. Who doesn’t wanna be Gabe and Tycho?
Track 11: Futuristic Sex Robotz – “Back in the Day”
The entire Hotel Coral Essex album is free from the FSR site. You’ve already downloaded it, right? When I heard about George Takai coming out of the closet I thought: good for him – it’s never too late to unapologetically let the world know who you are and what you’re about! Then I saw the guy and felt stupid for not realizing it sooner. I mean, shit, he looks better at 68 than I do at 30. You just don’t see a lotta straight guys who take that good care of themselves! ;)
Track 12: Former Fat Boys – “Party in My Basement”

Am I the only one who thinks it’s clever to have a FUTURISTIC Sex Robotz track about the PAST paired with a FORMER Fat Boys Track about the PRESENT? I reckon if it was a clever as I’d originally thought I wouldn’t be explaining it now…

Z’s 4^th interlude: “The Sound of Nerd to Come”

When I right it out like that, it really seems kinda dirty. Still, I think you feel me on this one. The following acts are perfect examples of new-er nerdcore that brings in interesting elements. All three tracks are from the Rhyme Torrents compilation project.

Track 13: Myf (feat. Masta Cwik)– “Top Secret!”

As I mentioned, myf is a very cool, very talented cat. I know for a fact that he’s working up some new phatness for the next RT disk, and that’s a fact that allows me to sleep soundly at night. He also has some quality stuff at OverCLocked ReMix that you should definitely check out.

Track 14: Nursehella – “Nursehellamentary”

If ‘Hella never releases another track, I can say with some certainty that she’s left her mark on nerdcore. She’s sparked fierce debate, been the target of damning allegations, and evoked quite a bit of ire within the scene; all unintentionally, I might add. All I can speak is my own mind, and as far as I’m concerned Nursehella is perfectly welcome within my nerdcore worldview. Last I heard; she and Baddd Spellah were diligently working on the rest of debut album. This is another release that I look very forward to.
Track 15: Rai – “Sunny Sunny Sunday”
J-Nerdcore. I don’t even know if that’s a genre, but it should be. I have heard exactly two tracks from Rai, and they were two of my favorite RT submissions. She’s got an album in the works as well, and she’s agreed to talk to me about it prior to its release. Judging by the tone of her messages on the ol’ BBS, I think talking to her will be a blast!

Z’s final interlude: “…”

The dirty truth is as follows: Y’all got a 79 minute podcast because the original 130-someodd minute ‘cast was just too goddamn long and I lacked the strength to do the whole thing again for a third time. This one’s still too long, and I apologize. Will anyone actually listen to the whole thing? I’m kinda doubtful.

Track 16: MC Wreckshin – “I Want Candy”

With an hour of nerdcore already busting the seams of this ep., I needed something special to take this one home. Wreckshin provided this in spades. There really is a lot of excellent nerdcore coming out of Florida. And, in case you can’t tell, those FLA nerds know how to have a good time. I think I picked this track up from Wreckshin’s MySpace.

And so concludes my thoughts on nerdcore. Consider this my two cents. Two very, very long cents. Let the debate commence... um... I mean... continue.

Post-PAX goodness

You may have already heard about "Nerdcore Night" as Beefy mentioned it on this week's edition of JALP, but I found this handy-dandy post over at the Rhyme Torrents BBS:

"Announcing the world’s first ALL-NERDCORE HIP-HOP Show!!

Come celebrate the end of the Penny Arcade Expo at “NERDCORE NIGHT;” The first all-Nerdcore Hip-Hop show in the history of the known universe!

No cover charge! Only 6 miles from the Meydenbauer center.
Show begins 30 minutes after PAX shuts it doors on Sunday.

THE SHARK CLUB
52 Lakeshore Plaza, Kirkland WA.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 27th. 7:00PM.
http://www.thesharkclub.com

Never before have so many Monsters of Nerdcore assembled on one stage. Featuring the biggest names in the Pacific Northwest’s Nerdcore scene:

Beefy
Rai
Ultraklystron
The Futuristic Sex Robotz

And featuring very special guests, direct from Colorado, Ohio and Florida it’s;

THE SPAMTEC CREW: YTCRACKER, PHLOW and EGOD!!

The legendary digital Gangster himself YTCRACKER and the STC will storm the stage at the Shark Club for their very first west coast performance.

Don’t miss this one of a kind event! Come out and get your geek on! Sorry kids, 21 and over only! Nerdcore Night is sponsored by the producers of the upcoming documentary “Nerdcore for Life!” For directions from the Expo center to the Shark Club or for more information about the film, click here: http://crapbots.com/show.html

Did we mention it’s FREE!?"

Got this link from my gal Buttnik (I loves ya, Nik!), and I thought I'd pass it on. Test thyself:

Your Geek Profile:

Academic Geekiness: High Movie Geekiness: High Music Geekiness: High SciFi Geekiness: High Gamer Geekiness: Moderate Fashion Geekiness: Low Geekiness in Love: Low Internet Geekiness: Low General Geekiness: None

How Geeky Are You?

Nerd love to the haters

Not a lot in the way of posts this week. Once again, it’s not because shit hasn’t been going on. I’ve simply been otherwise indisposed. I’m already piecing together ep. 3 of my podcast, Radio Free Hipster. (It’s an all nerdcore edition that’s looking to be a doozy. That’s right, kids, a doozy.) I’ve also been working on a new mash-up using an a cappella that YTCracker was nice enough to provide for me. Needless to say, that process is slow going. I’m not exactly what you’d call a “DJ” or a “producer.” Nor am I blessed with what you’d call “talent” or “skill,” so don’t expect much, okay?

I’m also finalizing my feature for the month. The real work has been done for weeks, but I always like to let a piece sit for a while if possible. That way all parties involved are able to take a good, long, sober look at what we’ve compiled and weed out anything that may incriminate us later.

On a totally unrelated note, my homie (sp?) High-C over at Rhyme Torrents posted a link to this little gem. I know Joel isn’t exactly everyone’s favorite software pundit, but I think he hits the nail on the head in this regard. For some reason, making fun of nerds is still in vogue. Considering the facts that A) with the prevalence of technology in the modern household, pop culture is rapidly aping nerd culture and B) because of this proximity to tech most people (especially the young, the educated, and those with a fair amount of disposable income) who aren’t professed nerds at least have nerdly tendencies, this is fairly asinine. But hey, what can you do? Rail against it in your blog, I reckon. It works for Joel. And for me.

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 2: Rural Hadouken

I took the title of this episode from a phrase Paige used in last week’s edition of Just Another Lazy Podcast. The entire crew was expressing disbelief at my southern accent, and it was just too funny not to snake. What can I say? I am a country gentleman, born and raised. That’s not exactly the type of cat you’d expect to blog about nerd music, but life’s funny like that.

On the WWW it’s easy to just assume that everyone you encounter is pretty much just like you. I, for example, often imagine that all half-dozen of you are tiny, dark-haired dudes dressed in skinny ties and cheap Steve Madden knock-offs, even though I realize this to be patently untrue. The digital world is fairly subjective, so I imagine it’s a good thing to throw a little harsh reality in now and again.

Speaking of which, here comes another dose.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 2: Rural Hadouken Size: 34.2 MB Running Time: 37.22

RFH Ep. 2: Rural Hadouken

Intro: John Denver -- Thank God I’m a Country Boy (Party Ben’s City Boy Mix) Z’s AM Radio edit

I hate this goddamn song. Seriously, it’s just not a very good song. Not to piss on John Denver or nothing. I mean he was down with Jimmy Carter. Party Ben made a pretty serviceable dance track out of it, so big up to Ben. You’d be hard-pressed to call this song “geek,” but it is dorky as hell. That’s gotta count for something.

Z’s 1^st Interlude: “Sorry to startle you”

I realized upon listening to this interlude that I seemed to have subconsciously played up my accent here at the beginning. I doubt y’all’ll notice. I’d imagine that, to most of you, I already sound like Jeff goddamn Foxworthy.

Track 1: 50 Pence -- In da Pub

This is a track that folks either love or hate. Personally, I can’t get enough of it. 50 Pence is, in actuality, a UK producer named Liam Don. You can get more tracks here.

Track 2: Silence Xperiment (AKA Q-Unit) - We will Rock You in da Club

The Jay-Zeezer track went over really well last ep, so I figured I’d try again. If you haven’t downloaded the entire Q-Unit: Greatest Hits album yet, you really need to. It’s free.

Track 3 MC Router, funky49, & Redvoid -- 8BITch

It appears as though I wrongfully attributed this track to 1GB in the actual podcast (even though the lyrics plainly state that it’s MC Router and funky49). :( What can I say? A couple of glasses of wine with lunch and I’m pretty much useless. Apologies to Router and to funk and ‘Void for the mistake. No disrespect intended. This track was on the playlist for the first ep, but I pulled it fearing that Beefy would feature it in his podcast that week. I was wrong. Ain’t I a ‘tard? Oh, and Router’s “power button?” It’s on her thumb. Trust me.

Track 4: The Emotron – 80s Nightmare

I’m not sure if this is total dork rock or weird-assed performance art, but it followed the last track nicely. Emotron was on the Frontalot bill when Front came to SC back in May. My friend Neil, a singer-songwriter and real tour-horse in his own right, warned me that the thing that he remembered about seeing Emotron live was that the cat ended his set by catching his wang on fire. He wasn’t joking. This and other Emotron tracks can be found on MySpace.

Z’s 2^nd Interlude: “Nerdcore vs. geeksta”

No one really seems to know what exactly constitutes “geeksta rap,” but I guess I attach this label to geeked out rhymes that seem to specifically mock or explicitly parallel the gangsta rap style. This is the segment where I misrepresent 8BITch and look like a douche. Once again: apologies to Router and funky49/Redvoid. The High-C track that follows was the first song I found in my collection with the word “penis” in it. It’s also one of my fave tracks from Rhyme Torrents Vol. IV.

Track 5: High-C – Flame Extension

High-C is better known as “that guy who put the Rhyme Torrents thing together.” It was an ambitious project, but he managed to pull it off with support from the bulk of the community. He’s got a really non-traditional flow, even for a nerdcore MC, and I dig it. Does he sound like a young Jack Nicholson to anyone else but me?

Track 6: Devo - Girl U Want (DJ Tonyy Devologic Remix)

The second part of the aforementioned High-C track uses a sample from Soundgarden’s cover of the Devo tune Girl U Want, and I really wanted to follow it up with the original cut. Suffice it to say, I couldn’t find it. Instead I tracked down this spiffy remix. I don’t know anything about DJ Tonyy aside from the fact that he’s Brazilian and he’s a DJ.

Track 7: 14 Year Old Girls – Animal Forest

A great band with a horrible name, 14 Year Old Girls plays “Nintendo Punk.” This particular song is about the most addictive game ever devised. (I’m sure that statement won’t spur any death threats from Everquest and WOW fans.) This is another act I really need to try to interview. They seem fun.

Track 8: The Protomen – Unrest in the House of Light

I guess I’d say that The Protomen are best described as a Mega Man-centered prog-rock-opera. Of course, that’s just an approximation. Before you dismiss them as “gimmick” you should really take a listen. I have a strong feeling that their live show is killer. I like the Country/Western feel of this track. Sometimes I gotsta keeps it rural!

Z’s Final Interlude: “EGM article”

That Electronic Gaming Monthly article was a pleasant surprise. That mag has never been one of my favorite gaming publications, but I scored a free subscription from somewhere, so I probably shouldn’t bitch. There are several notable acts I would’ve liked to have seen here, but, as my writing is largely relegated to this blog, the reasoning of legitimate journalists escapes me.

Track 9: Futuristic Sex Robotz -- Snakes on a Plane

This should have been the theme song for what will surely be the goofiest goddamn film of the year, but, alas, Hollywood dropped the ball. If you dig this track (and I know you do) FSR have an entire album worth of material for free download over at their site. Show them love.

And that concludes the show notes for the venerable episode 2. I tried to resist the urge to group the songs into subsets of two, but I slipped a couple of times. Please forgive my rampant cheesiness in that regard.

Comments are welcome and encouraged. You can hit me up here, in public like, via the comment link. You can also post your input to the Rhyme Torrents BBS thread that will most assuredly spring up shortly after this is posted. And you ultra-shy violets can even email me privately. Just be sure to let me know your listening one way or another.

Objets d'art

Beefy was kind enough to immortalize my fulgy mug via his artistic prowess.

The first is a vector render of me in a jaunty olive sweater. This piece -- though drastically resized, cunningly cropped, and with a slight color alteration – will serve as my new profile pic, replacing Jorge the Ceramic Burro. For those of you concerned with the wellbeing of Jorge, let me assure you that he has retired to a posh seaside resort just outside Santiago.

The second image is a sketch in the traditional Beefy style. While Beef refers to them as doodles, I prefer to think of it as being Beefy-ized. Although, now that I see the phrase, it does appear unsettlingly homoerotic.

Much thanks to Beefy for his contributions. May the hair on his toes never fall off!

(What the hell is up with me and all the Hobbit quotes lately?)

"If I say he is a Burglar, a Burglar he is."

Word around the old Rhyme Torrents board has it that the new album by Halifax’s most word-burglingist MC, the Wordburlgar, drops this Tuesday. A sample of the ‘Burg’s stylistic hip-hoppening is available for those skeptical of his wordburglary, and additional info is available in a couple of places.

A busy week for the big guy

How does Beefy follow up his recent AOTS appearance? By doing a guest strip over at Joe Loves Crappy Movies. Behold the Beefy goodness!

I thought I’d seen everything

It appears as though I was sadly mistaken. Apparently Oni Press has a comic adaptation of one of my favorite NBC sitcoms in the works. Sorry, Beefy, it ain’t Scrubs.

More questions than answers

Thanks to all who checked out the first ev-ah edition of Radio Free Hipster. Aside from a couple of less-than-stellar track transitions, some sound level issues, and the fact that I sound like a total hick, I think it actually came together fairly well.

Not surprisingly, I’ve received ample support from the nerdcore community. What can I say? They’s my peoples. Much love to Beefy (as well as Jones and Paige from the JALP crew), Router, Oddioblender, Benjamin Bear, and everyone else from the Rhyme Torrents camp that listened, commented, and talked me up.

So, a few people actually bothered to check this thing out. This, of course, begs the question will there be a second Radio Free Hipster podcast?

Yes. It appears so.

I am, at present, cobbling together a playlist for episode 2. Between the time it takes me to plan a show (and believe it or not, there is planning involved), search out new artists and tracks, allocate proper quality time with the wife and boy, keep this very blog in a quasi-updated state, hold down my day job, and all of the other countless activities and related engagements involved in being a somewhat responsible adult, you can rightly expect one to two podcasts per month. Mayhap that’s less than you expected. Mayhap it’s more; far, far more.

In addition to the podcast, or, perhaps, because of it, I am also in the process of compiling a list of frequently asked questions concerning this blog, its author, the podcast, and how to contribute material for possible inclusion. If you, for whatever strange and twisted reason, would care to add to this growing list of queries, I direct your attention to the comment link below.

I would request that you limit your questions to matters both thought-provoking and pertinent, but, as I can scarcely stay on topic myself, that seems a bit hypocritical.

Attack of the Beef

In case anyone missed it, our good pal Beefy made yet another G4 appearance last week. Beef found himself in one of the Attack of the Show “monitor heads” asking a question concerning the movies of M. Night Shyamalan. Watch below.

+1 gig of Nerdcore goodness

According to Dirty Nerdy (the a-fficial podcast of 1337 G33k B3at), Shael Riley has landed the opening spot for MC Frontalot’s Sunday night gig at Club Midway in NYC. Congrats to Shael and congrats to all you the lucky Gotham fans who get to experience what will assuredly be a fantastic show!

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 1: Pilot

Which, I suppose, would more truthfully entitled Radio Free Hipster Ep. 1: An Auditory Exploration of Z.’s Salivary Glands.

Seriously, kids, for a cat who just recently bitched about audio quality in podcasts, I must have some kinda fuckin’ nerve subjecting you all to the slobbery sound of my hillbilly drawl in this particular edition.

Shitty voiceovers aside, this is my “podcast demo.” This is where all my heartfelt philosophies and idle conjecture concerning what makes a good podcast clash with my own astounding ineptitude as I try to cobble together something vaguely listenable. Did I succeed? I reckon that’s for you to judge. Read on to wrest the meager podcast from its unworldly slumber and further still to find the ubiquitous “show notes” – a concept that I wholly ganked from Tim over at Radio Clash.

Yes, I’m well aware that this podcast may not actually qualify as a podcast at all based solely of the fact that the file itself was not directly delivered to you via the silver platter that is RSS, but, as I’m currently operating this blog with a budget of nil and I have yet to find a stable, remote hosting option that will give me the famed “something for nothing,” I’m making due however I can. Perhaps, if I elect to continue making with the podcasts, I’ll shell out a little scratch (or badger someone into hosting the ‘casts for me) to stream-line the process. In the meantime, I’m afraid, we’ll just have to make due.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 1: Pilot Size: 30.8 MB Running Time: 33:38

RFH Ep 1: Pilot Show Notes

Intro – DJ Snyder “NCHH”

I was fortunate enough to coax a fairly high-profile artist into promising to make me a snazzy intro track when I got my podcast “off the ground,” but, as it’s currently achieved only a minimal altitude, I figured I wouldn’t bother him about it just yet. In the absence of a personalized theme, I settled on this DJ Snyder ditty (pulled from Rhyme Torrents Vol. IV) to fill the void. I love this song because of it has a ruthless intensity but still manages to sound silky smooth. It seemed like a perfect place to start. I just hope Snyder doesn’t mind.

Bumper – MC Router “Goddamnit Nerdcore”

Router had a bunch of little one-liners floating around from her last recording session, and was nice enough to share. I really wanted to use a 1337 G34k B34t track in this ep, because I really love Router’s voice, but since Beefy gives 1GB a good bit of play on his podcast, I figured I’d hold off for a bit. This mini-rant seemed like a nice alternative.

Track 1 – MC Frontalot/Baddd Spellah “Nerdcore Hip-Hop (Ye Old School Remix)”

My original intent for the structure of the show was play an intro track, a song to set the mood, and then say my piece before beginning the podcast in earnest. Considering all the love that the nerdcore community has shown for me and my little site, this song seemed like a perfect fit. Plus, Spellah and Front were both nice enough to let me interview them, so I wanted to give a little something back.

Z’s 1^st Interlude – “What to say? What to say?”

I have a deep-ceded fear of microphones. As near as I can figure, it’s an extension of my paralyzing stage fright. This is where I try to set the stage for what this podcast is in as few words as possible. Do I make an ass of myself? Probably, but at least I got my point across: This is a show about music with a blatantly nerdy slant (stuff about nerdy topics/issues and stuff that celebrates nerd-dom) and music that is more subversively nerdy (like tracks that embrace technology and the nerd DYI ethic, as well as songs and styles that focus on geekly concepts like a juxtaposition of styles and a competing revulsion/fascination with popular culture.)

Track 2 – Jay-Zeezer “Bonnie, Clyde, and El Scorcho”

After my “this is not a Weezer podcast” spiel, I come right in with a Weezer mash-up. What can I say, the Jay-Z rhymes over that Weezer hook is classic, and it has enough nerd elements to keep the show moving in the right direction. Grab the whole Black and Blue Album. It is phenomenal. And free.

Track 3 – Beefy “Movie Girl”

As a rule, I hate skits in a hip-hop record, but this one always tickles me. I swear to god he sounds simultaneously like a snooty debutante and angry chica– it’s scary. He sounds a bit like Stewie Griffin too. Weird… Beefy was another cat nice enough to do an interview. He really does show a lot of support for what I’m doing. Truthfully, most of the regular readers of this blog are Rhyme Torrents contributors. Plus, the RT site links the hell outta me! What can I say? The Nerdcore scene has been really good to me. Grab “Movie Girl” and the rest of the tracks from The Whitesican EP in this handy zip.

Track 4 – Year 200x “MegaMan 2”

A rock solid track I stumbled across a few months back on MySpace (where I picked up this song and several others). I was all prepared to approach them for an interview when I opened up Nintendo Power and found a write-up on ‘em in there. What a cock-block! I should really grow a pair and approach those guys about a feature, but that’s beside the point.

Track 5 – McVaffe “Dancehall Ragga”

I don’t know much about McVaffe, but I do know that he has over forty ReMixes available for free download from OCR and I’ve yet to come across a bad one. This is the kind of amazingly talented individual that makes you realize just how important a resource OverClocked ReMix truly is for lovers of game music. As far as I’m concerned, OCR is required listening.

Z’s 2^nd Interlude – “I am such a goddamn hick!”

I really tried to dial down my accent when I was recording this, but when I say McVaffe and it comes out Mack-Vay-Affe, I suppose it becomes impossible to belie my rural upbringing.

Track 6 – Stemage “The Theme”

I make some fairly broad generalizations from time to time concerning the listening habits of others based solely (and unfairly) off of my own. One such generality is that everyone has heard Metroid Metal. Apparently this isn’t so, and I’d like to do my part to remedy this travesty. The truly amazing thing about Metroid Metal is that it’s one guy – Grant Henry – who does all the instrumentation.

Track 7 – MC Lars “Hurricane Fresh”

Lars is one of a growing number of artists who seem to be considered nerdcore by everyone but themselves. I’m cool with that, and I’m not here to hate. I’ll borrow a leaf from YTCracker’s book and call him “tangentially nerdcore.” That’s fresh.

Track 8 – The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets “Twenty Minutes of Oxygen”

The Thickets really have been making music since ’92. That’s, like, what? 100 in nerd years? I consider the Thickets maybe one rung below classic nerd rockers like Devo and Talking Heads; that’s the same echelon as They Might Be Giants, for those keeping score at home. That track is from the Spaceship Zero RPG soundtrack. If the lyrics are to be believed, it’s a song about a space traveler who may or may not have a ripcord in his destiny.

Track 9 – YTCracker/myf “In My Time”

As I’ve already mentioned, YT, myf, and all the cats from the Rhyme Torrents project have been big supporters of Hipster, please! And, though I plan to do a show purely dedicated to RT artists (if, that is, anyone actually listens to this one), I had to throw this track in. I actually like that mix even better than the original cut, and that is saying something. YTCracker and myf are untouchable independently: Put ‘em together and it’s unbelievable. I’m still a little fuzzy on the lyrics, though. What exactly is a nig nog? Waitaminute! I have a blog… am I a nig nog? My butt does hurt a little. Ah, no matter, I’m sure it’s unrelated.

Z’s Final Interlude – “Berenstain Bears erotic fan fiction”

Did I actually say that? I guess so. This is my show-ender. It ain’t much, but at least I made it through the entire half-hour. Thanks again for listening, and for actually reading this far. ;)

Track 10 – Go Home Productions “Don’t Hold Back (Sweet Jane)”

I know it’s fuckin’ cheesy to end with an inspirational story™, but this track really speaks to me. Mark Vidler doesn’t exactly fit the nerd mold, but, whether he’s “one of us” or not, I think his style has a distinct nerd appeal. GHP has remixed/mashed pretty much everybody, and despite his acceptance into the musical mainstream he still gives away tons of shit through his site. That’s nerd.

Outtake – “Turds”

I tried to coax my son into saying something adorable for the intro. Instead he said something funny that I first discarded and then elected to use as an end-cap. Life’s funny sometimes.

And those are the show notes. Thanks for listening/reading, and feel free to share your thoughts. As much as the concept of my voice being spirited throughout the WWW for all (read: some) to hear chills me to the very core of my… core, I actually had a pretty good time putting this thing together. If you’d like a second helping – that is, if you’d like for this feature to continue – holler atcha boy.

Another NYC show

NYC nerds get a double-dose of nerdcore as Jesse Dangerously will be bringing the noise to Galapagos Art Space this Wednesday and, as if that weren’t enough, MC Frontalot has just announced a show at Club Midway the following Sunday. Lucky bastards!

Front writes:

MC Frontalot
Last stop on Nerdcore Rising Tour 2006
Club Midway, 25 Ave B (between 2nd and 3rd) New York City
Sunday, July 23rd 9:30PM $7
18 and up

First eighteen-and-older show in the norteast! Last show before PAX! I could use other exclamation points, but you already understand. That! This! Is!Exciting!

Will have exclusive tour shirts for sale, CDs too. Jess Klein (http://jessklein.com ) is opening the show, and she's totally rad. Plus Front will probably do a verse in her reggae number so don't be late.

Saturday the 22nd, Front's at HOPE ( http://www.hopenumbersix.com ) to see if he can learn anything about quantum cryptography. If you're attending, find him and say hi.

UK nerd-girl keeps it real

So apparently, Welsh geek-mom Sarah Lang has expressed interest in using her winnings from a TV gameshow to purchase her own little piece of land… on the moon. The admitted Star Trek fangirl also plans to buy a telescope, presumably to make sure people stay the hell out of the yard at her new digs.

I wholeheartedly support her and her crazy-assed decision. First, she admits to her geekiness, so that earns her some cred. Secondly, is there a nerd among us who hasn’t yearned to own his/her own slice of lunar real estate? And lastly, you just can’t argue with a lady with a million quid at her disposal.

In Canada, paperclips are like money

Another story out of Canada! Eh, whatcha gonna do?

I don’t know if most of you would consider this to fall under the umbrella of “nerd culture,” but I do. I mean, this is the kind of outlandish shit that only a wired world has to offer.

For those of you who haven’t been keeping up, Kyle MacDonald traded a red paperclip for a house. He started a blog about wishing to trade a single red paperclip for bigger and better things on July 12 2005 and 14 trades later, exactly one year after his original offer; he traded a movie role to the Town of Kipling Saskatchewan for a free house.

My only qualm is as follows: Who the fuck trades an afternoon with Alice Cooper for a measly Kiss snow globe? But, hey, this wasn’t my project.

This story has gotten tons of media attention, but you can read Kyle’s story for yourself at his blog.

Ain’t life grand?

More news from the Canadian front

Remember all there prayers you’ve been saying? All those candles lit in quite vigil as you mulled over just what you could do to get Jesse Dangerously out on the road so as to revel in his Canuck nerdocity? Well that shit worked, ‘cause Jesse D. is back on the road.

From his post at the Rhyme Torrents BBS:

Perpetual Motion Road Show!

I'm appearing with "sorry-ass folk singer" Cort Bulloch and "expat femme wordsmith" Hadassah Hill on the following dates in the following cities!

Chicago: Sat. July 15, 7 pm. Quimby's (1854 W. North Ave.) w/ foul-mouthed friend Brandon Wetherbee!

Cincinnati: Sun. July 16, 4 pm. Hobo Books (4040 Hamilton Ave.) w/ rap group Undermind and Bratwurst, a film by Steven Paul Lansky and Leigh Alfred Waltz!

Rochester: Tues. July 18, 8 pm. The Bug Jar (219 Monroe Ave.) w/ Gaybot!

New York City: Wed. July 19, 7:30 pm. Galapagos Art Space (70 North 6th Street, Williamsburg)

Montreal: Thurs. July 20, 8 pm. Bibliograph/e Zine Library, Toc Toc Cafe (6091 Avenue du Parc)

Ottawa: Fri. July 21, 8:30 pm. venus envy (320 Lisgar St.) w/ pornographer-librarian Megan Butcher!

Toronto: Sat. July 22, 8 pm. Art Bar (in the Gladstone Hotel) (1214 Queen St. W.) w/ teller of goofy tales Mike Bryant and dance troupe Fat Femme Mafia!

*Nerd-newsflash*

The Slashdot review of the Rhyme Torrents NCHH compilation project is finally up. The clincher? It’s overwhelmingly positive. Take a gander for yourself.

Despite all the drama surrounding it, I really have a strong affection for this project and for all the cool-ass folks I’ve met as a result. It’s good to see Rhyme Torrents get some major net-press that, while not overly complimentary, takes a constructive and realistic look at the fruits of the community’s labor.

To podcast, or not to podcast

As you may or may not know, the concept of a Hipster, please! podcast is rapidly shifting from the realm of "idle notion" to the domain of "definite possibility." Not a big jump, but when you’re as lazy as me you take what you can get. I’ve not discussed this idea openly in the blog before, obviously due to my fickle nature, but I have let it slip out to a few of the faithful via private channels. Those select few have been very supportive of the idea, so I feel I owe it to them to at least consider getting off my flat honky arse and having a go at it

Other than my own exceptional personal level of sloth, there is another obstacle that impedes Hipster, please! joining the podcast revolution™: There are many, many podcasts currently available and the vast majority of them just don’t appeal to me. Between the sound quality, the subject matter, and the lack of preparation/structure, the standard podcast, for me at least, lacks much to be desired. Y’all know that I don’t like to hate, but with so many podcasts out there, it seemed for a long while that I was always coming across the ones with minimal appeal. I sometimes fear that, were I to contribute, I would simply add to this glut.

There are, however, some notable exceptions. Within the past several months I’ve been fortunate enough to come across several that really do it for me. I always find myself anxiously awaiting the next editions of the following podcasts. They display the kind of attitude, attention to detail, and overall personality that, should I actually begin this undertaking, I hope that I could personal bring to a regular podcast. If you believe any of these would interest you, then by all means check them out. And feel free to recommend other jewels that I may have heretofore overlooked.

CAGcast – I’m a big supporter of Cheap Ass Gamer. CAG, for those of you not in the know, is a community based entirely around the concept of helping you get the games you want for less and the games you don’t want for nearly nothing at all. Could there be a nobler, more selfless end? I think not. The CAGcast is a regular feature of this popular site during which founder and occasional television personality Cheapy D and his right-hand marsupial Wombat entertain the listeners with gaming news, Cheap Ass deals, and the always compelling CAGbag, a feature during which the hosts answer questions from the CAG message boards.

This was the first podcast that I ever made a concerted effort to stay on top of and not simply because the focus of the show is on gaming. Cheapy and Wombat come off as genuinely likeable guys who actually know what the hell they’re talking about. Cheapy takes care to prepare show notes beforehand so that he and his co-host can have some semblance of flow and structure. Interestingly enough, even on the occasions when Cheapy doesn’t do his homework the show still works: the chemistry between he and Wombat is just that good. CAGcast exists to supplement that CAG community, and, as a fairly longstanding member of that community, I can say with some certainty that it succeeds. Even when the show diverges into the personal lives of the hosts, it manages to stay interesting. Here I could recount a tale scatological horror that Cheapy related from his Tokyo hideaway just weeks ago, but you’d do better to get it from the horse’s mouth.

Radio Clash – Shortly after discovering the CAGcast I found myself bored and listless at work. To stave off sleep, I began searching podcast listings for something, anything to keep me interested during the post-lunchtime doldrums. I began typing in random search terms and, to my surprise, the string clash + mash-ups actually returned a valid result.

Radio Clash is a (usually) weekly podcast by a delightful Englishman named Tim. Tim is a designer by trade, but he’s also a mash-up artist (who sometimes boots under the moniker Instamatic). He has a real passion for music and is quite knowledgeable. Despite his personal protests to the contrary, he is often touted as our generation’s John Peel. Though I can only speak from personal experience, I have to agree that Tim has turned me on to a great many artists and more than a couple of genres, disseminating his love for varying styles and sounds in a very Peel-like fashion.

Though the original focus of Radio Clash was on mash-ups and bootleg culture, Tim doesn’t discriminate. He’s featured everything from country to metal and all points in-between. He even threw in some nerdcore on his alt.alt.alt.rap show at my request. His love of music and his appreciation of his listeners make this a podcast not to be missed. And, lest I forget to mention, the sound quality is excellent.

If CAGcast made me realize that there were podcasts out there that genuinely appealed to me, then Radio Clash showed me that a music-centered ‘cast was not only plausible, but that it could provide a damn fine alternative to the shit that you’re served on a silver platter by corporate radio and MTV.

GoNintendo – I have no qualms about admitting that I am a Nintendo fanboy. The GoNintendo podcast is geared toward my ilk, so it’s no surprise that I enjoy it. It did take a little getting used to, though. This particular podcast has a stable of hosts, with the only constant being site founder RawmeatCowboy. It can be a little confusing listening to a half-dozen people cracking-wise while one lone voice tries to make its way through a news story or press release, but it’s that madness that makes GoNintendo great. While CAGcast makes you feel like part of a community, the GoNintendo podcast makes you feel as though you’re part of a family.

Every GoNintendo listener has his or her favorite team member: the young fellows love that fiery Nintenho, the jokers and smokers love Lube’s half-drunken ramblings, personally, I’m a fan of the good-natured and matronly tones of MomBrain, but we can all agree that it’s ‘Meat’s jovial personality and tireless work that keeps the site and the podcast running. Sure, sometimes the sound may be a little off, and the dialogue may wander, but the GoNintendo crew bust ass to provide more exclusive content and Nintendo love than any other podcast I’ve come across.

Just Another Lazy Podcast – As a card-carrying member of the sacred Seven, I feel it’s my duty to espouse the JALP gospel. Once a week, Beefy, Jones, Paige, and newcomer Amy join their power and energy in a sonic gestalt similar to that of an über-nerdy (and occasionally drunken) Voltron. Just Another Lazy Podcast blends just the right amount of music, humor, and idle chitchat to make it simultaneously amusing and endearing. Beefy and crew not only spread the good word of nerdcore, but manage to make riffs on primetime television and Chinese food sound instantly engaging. What’s more, the podcast regularly features audio-boobs, wine in a box, and surprise sex. Who could ask for more? A Doc Pop theme song? Shit, they've got that too!

Beefy also seems to have a definite agenda with his podcast: make with the funny, play a couple songs, and the get the hell out. A usual edition of JALP lasts only a half-hour, and that’s important to me. I like that the crew keeps things brief and makes a concerted effort not to overdo it. It’s refreshing to have a podcast that I can listen to start-to-finish during my morning commute.

And those are the four podcasts that I truly enjoy. Likewise, each taught me something about the fine art and delicate science of podcasting: CAGcast enlightened me to the importance of preparation and proper planning, Radio Clash showed me that the secret to making a good music-based podcast was to expand horizons without compromising integrity, GoNintendo explained that making the listener feel like an intrinsic part of the process goes a long way in establishing a podcaster-listener bond, and Just Another Lazy Podcast demonstrated that fun, quick, and dirty always makes for excellent listening.

Will I actually launch a Hipster, please! podcast? Who knows. If so, will I apply any of this abstruse knowledge? I sure as hell hope so. The only thing worse than a shitty podcast is a shitty podcast no one listens to.

Addendum

Doc Popular was nice enough to drop some knowledge on us concerning his Master of Champions appearance. It appears as though things didn’t exactly go swimmingly for most of the participants, with lots of last minute changes and such. It also appears as though ABC did some clever editing and other reality show hoodoo to give the illusion of drama. What else could we expect from network television?

Teh haxxord

So, um, apologies to anyone who may’ve been perusing the blog within the last hour or so. In my infinite wisdom I opted to fuck with the menu bar without first making a backup of my original Blogger template. Suffice it to say that there was, in fact, fire and brimstone, rivers and seas boiling, 40 years of darkness, earthquakes, volcanoes, the dead rising from their graves, human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... You get the idea.

But at least it’s fixed now. It’s fixed, and I was able to reverse the order the archive links. So, yeah, totally not worth all the trouble.

A tribute...

This is what happens when Roachman (my silent partner in all things Hipster, please!), my one year-old son, and I have a bucket of chalk and too much time on our hands. It's based off of the Baddd Spellah nerdcore t-shirt design.

Just another tiny way in which the Z. clan shows the nerd love... and pisses off the neighbors.

Our champion

On Thursday evening, the entire Z. clan crowded around the telly to watch Doc Popular do his thing on national television. After enduring urban freestyle, some automotive jump-rope, and a dude pitching cards into defenseless fruit, we finally got to see the good Doctor (and two of his young charges from The College for the Easily Amused) take on a (rival?) team of yo-yoers from Texas.

Don’t get me wrong; the Texans were hot, but Doc and his boys did some shit to which no apt written description may be properly affixed. The best way to impress upon you the true splendor of the activities to which we bore witness is as follows -- press the back of your tongue to the roof of your mouth and the tip of your tongue to the back of your front teeth… now attempt to cough… and bug out your eyes like Marty Feldman. This was the precise reaction of my entire family to Doc Pop’s routine-ending trick.

Our heroes easily won their challenge against the Texans, but were denied the final trophy in favor of the card guy. Alas, this is what happens when you leave important decisions up to the likes of Johnny Moseley.

Again, it is impossible for me to describe to you the caliber of yo-yo wizardry that I observed on that faithful eve. It was akin to seeing a man, not merely opening a bottle with his teeth, but tapping a keg of beer using only his ass cheeks: you imagine such deeds are possible, but you never exactly expect to see them performed. Particularly on network television.

There is video of the night’s festivities readily available, so you have no reason not to see for yourself. After you do, why not throw some love Doc’s way? He is easy enough to locate.

What Video Game Character Are You?

I never get tired of silly shit like this. It must be a personality defect of some kind.

Nerd news in brief

I work for the state, so the whole “Week of the 4th” thing is kind of a wash. Needless to say, I haven’t done a goddamn thing since last Friday. Okay, so maybe I actually managed to post that killer Baddd Spellah interview Saturday AM, but that was a fluke.

Unfortunately, the world refused to stop spinning to accommodate my meager schedule. Some shit happened. Some important shit. The kind of shit that can only be rightly communicated via the eldritch powers known as nerd news in brief:

• Nintendo easily secured another decade of my personal brand loyalty by sending ol’ Gee-Dub a birthday prize pack complete with new Nintendo DS Lite and a copy of their mega-selling cerebral workout Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. Someone in Redmond certainly has a healthy sense of humor. Of course, there’s really only one way this can end: With Reggie Fils-Aime on the national “no-fly” list.
• Doctor Popular will be appearing on tonight’s episode of ABC’s Master of Champions. This cat can do more tricks with a yo-yo than a Parisian hooker can with a scarf and a bowl of sorbet, so it’s in your best interest to watch.
• Game rock legends the Minibosses have several shows lined up for next week in both California and their native Arizona. What happens when 8-bit gets turned up to 11? Show up and see for yourself.
• If you prefer your geek music a little more on the hip-hop tip, may I humbly suggest checking out Beefy’s most recent track “Ego Monster” over at the big guy’s MySpace. It sports appearances from both Jones and Paige (of Just Another Lazy Podcast fame), an infectious beat by DJ Snyder, and *gasp* name-drops ­Hipster, please! All jokes aside, Beefy is a really big supporter of this little blog, and it was pretty fucking cool of him to reference it in song. The track is fierce, and it’s really got me excited for his next release.
• In related news, Beefy, Shael Riley, and the MC Router of 1GB have joined forces to create nerdcore supergroup Tri-Forc3. You can peep their first track “Mint Potion” over at their very own MySpace. They’re like a nerdcore equivalent of the Wonder Twins, though forgive me if I leave the all-important decision of which of the fellows gets to be Space Monkey Gleek to your own discretion.
• Lastly, in the spirit of giving the fans more for less – or, in this case, much more for free – the fifth volume of the four-part Rhyme Torrents nerdcore hip-hop compilation project has been officially announced. Take that Douglas Adams!

Like a turtleneck sweater

Some people love feet. Some folks collect thimbles or tiny spoons from around the world. Others live to roast, grind, and brew their own coffee; fresh and strong. Everyone has their weird little eccentricities, their secret perversions, their relentless fascinations. Mine is Canada. I am obsessed with Canada.

Our kindly neighbor to the north asks so little, but gives so much. The electric light bulb, the snowmobile, the Jolly Jumper, Rush, Neil Young, SCTV, The Kids in the Hall, Bill Shatner, Dan Aykroyd, Wayne fucking Gretzky: all Canadian in origin, and those shining examples are far from all that this great nation has to offer. (As an added bonus, Canada, through absolutely no explicit effort, really pisses off Ann Coulter. For me that only adds to its inscrutable mystique.)

Moreover, Canada has a storied history of nerd music. From the geeked-out rhymes of Jesse Dangerously on the east coast to the Lovecraftian horror of The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets on the west, Canada is well represented in all things tuneful, catchy, and bookish.

Like The Thickets, Baddd Spellah, certainly nerdcore’s most prolific producer, reps British Columbia. Through his sparkling production, his chic beats, and his reserved demeanor, Spellah exemplifies his province’s motto: Splendour without diminishment.

Spellah was nice enough to answer a few questions for Hipster, please!, affording his legion of fans a rare glimpse at the man behind nerdcore’s most infectious tracks. Behold as we discuss the current state of pop music, Anglophonic nomenclature, and nerd life… and poo. We also discuss poo.

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The biggest question on everyone’s mind is obvious: Exactly how bad is your spelling?

The name, Baddd Spellah, was actually intended for an unrealized boy band spoof concept I had in college. I repurposed it when I started developing my musical persona. I'm bemused by its tautological humour and amused when people spell it wrong.

My spelling is actually pretty darn good; I pride myself on it. Being Canadian, I find honour in colouring my words with certain ye olde Commonwealth spellings that my neighbours to the south don't employ. I am an avid dictionary/thesaurus user.

Not to pry too much into your private life, but what is your day job?

I work in the video games industry. It keeps me well-steeped in nerdiness on a daily basis. The current hot-topic is how lame the source of Superman's powers are if you really think about it: gravity and sun colour? Come on!

True. That is pretty lame. And what about that costume? A little modesty never hurt anyone… But I digress.

As an artist, Baddd Spellah wears many hats. Do you consider yourself primarily a producer, a DJ, a remix artist, or a beatsmith?

In a pinch I'd call myself a beatsmith because I like to make beats. Producer would come in a close second, especially of late as I have been cultivating recording projects with/for other artists and vocalists. Call me old-fashioned, but I think one should only dub themselves "DJ" (disc jockey) if they actually manipulate records.

How did you find yourself involved in nerdcore? Are there any non-nerdcore Baddd Spellah tracks floating around in the Internet ether?

I love rap music for the beats. I've been making beats since the mid-90s but I've never been "down" enough to be acquainted with talented local rappers so all my beat productions were strictly for my own edification. Around 1999 a friend of mine turned me onto MC Frontalot's songs and I was tickled pink. I emailed him asking if he'd allow me to produce a remix of his seminal "Nerdcore Hip Hop" track because I had the notion of sampling the rap song from "Revenge of the Nerds". From there Front and I corresponded across the continent, via the internet, firing off a number of collaborations over the years that were well-received; I've long said that it’s due to his sizable coattails that have allowed me to be as recognized as I am.

I think by definition any songs I make and release on my own accord would have to be considered "non-Nerdcore". For me Nerdcore-ness comes from lyrical content, I don't believe you can justifiably call instrumental songs "Nerdcore"; at that rate its plain-old "beats" or "electronic music". I used to post music on the net before I was drawn into Nerdcore's nerd core so I believe there are such tracks floating around out there. They are not plentiful and they mostly suck so it’s probably best if they were left floating.

The mc chris/DJ John track “Bad(dd) Runner” was your prize for winning an mc chris remix contest. Do you ever receive actual monetary compensation for all your hard work?

I wish I could say that I was typing this on my diamond-encrusted Sidekick 3 aboard a 60 foot yacht in the middle of the Aegean Sea... I'm only just starting to take my musical projects seriously enough to contemplate making money with it. I don't have a record deal (yet) but I have had the honour of making some pocket money through my contributions on a handful of music projects.

Half of the tracks on Front’s Nerdcore Rising CD credit you in some capacity. With you living in BC and Frontalot in New York, am I to deduce that this mammoth collaboration was also predominantly executed online?

110% online. Front and I have arrived at a process that works well for us: I'd email him a roughly arranged rhythm bed and he'd record a demo with scratch vocals over it. I'd take that and flesh out the arrangement more, oftentimes incorporating musical elements recorded by his talented keyboardist, Gm7. I'd send him the latest version of the instrumental and he'd record his final vocals. We'd go back and forth until the track and the mix was tight, sometimes this would accelerate to the point of us chatting over IM while I tweak the mix and upload it for him to review and feedback all instantaneous-like.

Nursehella, on the other hand, lives in Vancouver. Does your work with Canada’s foremost nerdlinger take place face-to-face? Which method of collaboration do you prefer?

I send Nursehella a rough beat and she writes to it on her own accord. When she's good and ready, she comes to my secret laboratory and we record there. Then she goes away and I spent countless hours on my own editing, writing, arranging and mixing until the track is hot and tight... like a turtleneck sweater.

I dig both processes in different ways. Online with Frontalot, he has clear ideas as to how he wants his performance to sound and is a perfectionist as such so each delivery of audio from him is chock-a-block full of polished, useful material. Face-to-face in my secret laboratory, I get to be all producer-like and make suggestions on phrasing and cadence when it comes to the performance of the vocalist. At the end of the day, it all comes down to me spending late nights, basking in the glow of my monitor, sliding bits of audio and MIDI notes around.

Baddd Spellah tracks have a very layered, breezy feel that differentiates them from those of other artists. To what do you attribute the Baddd Spellah sound?

I think the layered nature of my "sound" is probably due to my limited understanding of sophisticated music theory. I played trumpet in high school so I'm aware of — and attempt to use — techniques like chord changes and modulation and whatnot but I pretty much just muscle through those aspects of composition; I'm a strictly "play by ear" kind of song writer. With my limited musical toolkit, I end up layering to maintain listener interest throughout a song!

I think the breeziness comes from my appreciation for pop music from Burt Bacharach to Beyonce. I'm all for indie cred but I love trying to crack the code that makes a song so virulently catchy that even my mom could dig it.

I’m glad you mentioned your appreciation of pop music. I hesitated to use the phrase “pop sensibility” in the previous question because, much like the word “nerd,” some folks see it as a badge of shame. What is your take on pop backlash in the indie music scene? The Beatles were a pop band. The Kinks, The Police, Blur: All pop band and all well-respected. Has pop music changed, or is it just our perception of what “pop” is that has undergone a metamorphosis?

I tend to make a hazy distinction between Capital 'P' Pop Music and Top-40 pop music. At its best the former epitomizes an emotional milieu while the latter is more often just music as commodity. I'd have to cynically say that the distinction is that Capital 'P' Pop Music regularly get's licensed for Gap and Nike and BMW commercials while Top-40 pop is the domain of teenage girls and fitness club sound systems. But its not necessarily nostalgia or how well-heeled a song is either, Top-40 can be Capital 'P' Pop and vice versa; Missy Elliot has released some classics in my opinion while The Archies grate on my ears. But I love the whole continuum of pop music for different reasons: Capital 'P' Pop inspires me musically (i.e. "What are the ingredients for an infectious hook?") while Top-40 fascinates me for its sociological components (i.e. "If rap is about authenticity and a rapper's life is all about bling does that not justify his lyrical content?", "Do 12-year-old girls bear their mid-riffs because of Britney Spears? Does she have a responsibility to her audience as a role model?"). By that token, I see no shame in an open appreciation of pop. For me, pop as music is just the tip of the iceberg, I want to know why it exists and what it says about the world around me.

I think the indie backlash towards pop is the result of our culture's paradoxical cult of individuality; the aligning of yourself with other "individuals" as mavericks separate from the thronging masses, defining yourself by what you are not, what you don't like; "You hate that too!? I like you for hating that!"

Your tracks also feature very polished production. What is your recording setup?

My recording booth (read: livingroom with the curtains closed) is fitted with my AKG C1000 condenser mic. That's lined into an Aardvark DirectPro audio interface that's installed in my reliable but aging PC in my studio (read: the adjacent room where I pay my bills and put my filing cabinets). I pretty much only use a set of comfy Sennheiser headphones for all my monitoring so I blame any deficiencies in my mixing on that busted-ass habit; then again I pretty much only listen to music on headphones so I think I understand how to mix adequately on headphones, I think. For tracking audio I use Abletone Live and split the composition chores between that and Propellerhead Reason. I am proud to say I am a registered owner of both programs; I am too legit to quit. The company that made my soundcard, Aardvark, went tits up sometime not too long ago so I don't know how much longer my set up will remain as such but its served me well so far.

Your remixes tend to careen wildly from the aural texture of the original tracks. From what/where do you draw inspiration?

Someone wise once told me that an artist should immediately discard their initial idea for any work of art they set out to make, the theory being that most people will likely have arrived at that same idea. This rings true for me, I'm not enough of an iconoclast to reflexively think "outside the box" so I try to stick to that ethic as much as possible. If I remix a song the one that I ultimately release is oftentimes the 3rd or 4th version because by then it’s (hopefully) not as obviously derivative of my immediate influences.

The driving force behind my remix decisions is the attempt to evoke another facet of the song that may not be readily apparent in its original form but that once revealed seems imminent. Like the connection between Boba Fett (as bounty hunter) and country/western/cowboy music in the "Fett's Vette" remix or the "aural homonyms" in the "Nerdcore Hip Hop 2006" remix; swapping the whistling from the original with flutes, "blown jug" sounds and slide whistles. That sounds like a lot of pretentious hooey and I'm not as successful as often as I'd like to be but it is what I think do about when I'm making remixes; I need there to be a firm conceptual grounding.

As I’m not above asking a man to pick a favorite of his children: Is there a specific song or project that you are most proud of or that stands out in your mind as a particularly significant achievement?

All things considered, I think my remix of mc chris' "Fett's Vette" is tied with working on Frontalot's "Nerdcore Rising" as my most significant achievements.

Fett's Vette Remix: Its such an iconic song in the first place and so well-loved by fans of all things rappy and nerdy I'd like to think I gazed into its soul and saw its potential as a country-rap song and teased it out for the world to hear. Of course it was very divisive too, folks loved it or hated it but on the site where I hosted it, it received 12,049 listens before the site was re-structured and re-launched!

Nerdcore Rising: Prior to this album, I've never been involved with a "serious" recording project. It was through collaborating with Front for it that we really honed our process and I learned a lot about what does and doesn't work for me as a beatsmith. It was working on this project that something clicked in my brain that said "yes, you've got what it takes". Previously, I was just making music for laughs, something to pass the time, now I like to imagine actually getting paid to do this on a regular basis! Who knows...

You definitely have what it takes! Hell, I’d love to pay you for this interview, but as you can see (clearly illustrated by the fact that this is a thinly-veiled free Blogger account), I’m not exactly making mad cash off nerd culture blogging, myself!

Next question: What is the present condition of your Gawd Particlez? Are they properly aligned?

Sadly no. My Gawd Particlez are in total disarray. My poo particles are in better order.

Well, at least you’re regular.

There seems to be a dearth of information about Baddd Spellah on the WWW (your entry in the Rhyme Torrents wiki, for example, simply reads “Beat maker for MC Frontalot. I think he is of the Asian persuasion.”). In a genre that is primarily perpetuated via self-promotion this seems odd. Is there a specific effort on your part to remain out of the limelight so as to be identified more by your music, or is this merely an unfortunate oversight?

The lack of info about me had its origins with the whole "electronic musician as anonymous artist" mystique that I bought into at first and it morphed into "I'm just not big on hyping myself up". Polishing my rather prosaic life into a scintillating diamond via third-person narrative seems disingenuous. I guess it’s my nature to be a private person but I'm learning how to better deal with the whole public vs. private persona thing; answering these questions is part of that process I guess.

And I appreciate you taking the time to answer them.

What kind of nerd is Baddd Spellah?

I'm definitely not as much of a hardcore modern nerd as some of the other kids doing this music; I don't code, my knowledge of anime ends with Hayao Miyazaki and I don't have a Gamertag. Technically, I think I am a lapsed old school nerd generalist who uses computers lots: I'm old enough to have had an Atari 2600 and later a Commodore 64, I saw Star Wars: A New Hope in the theatres, I collected Teenage Mutant Ninja comics when they were still printed in black and white and 100% indie and I played AD&D with 1st edition rules well into my early 20s. These days I think my nerd card is renewed solely on the fact that I spend at least 80% of my waking life in front of a computer and still visit the comic store on a semi-regular basis.

Old school nerd cred is a highly-valued commodity around these parts. Which brings me to the obligatory closing question: What, in your opinion, is the nature of nerd?

I think the nature of nerd is obsession with things that most people don't care enough about to explore beyond the surface, be it baseball stats, collecting glass unicorns or cultivating rare orchids. I think its finding that one right "angle" in the myriad possibilities of human existence and throwing yourself headlong into it and not caring what anybody else thinks.

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If we lived in a just world, Baddd Spellah would be making Timbaland bank. He would, in fact, be replying to his email via blinged-out Sidekick from his luxury cruiser (which I, for the purpose of this fantasy, have dubbed The Pacific Princess). Even as I type this, Sony Music would be plying him with high-grade coke and high-class hookers, clinging to the desperate hope that he would finally concede to join them in their tireless quest to make Jessica Simpson sound both talented and refined.

Of course, if we lived in a just world, our governments wouldn’t be overrun by opportunistic power mongers, and automobiles would run purely off that feeling of satisfaction you get when you successfully merge onto a busy freeway.

And, upon further reflection, a just world would most likely be incapable of producing a Jessica Simpson, but you get my drift.

Idealized worldviews aside, one thing you can be sure of is that Baddd Spellah is the real McCoy. He is an artist of genuine talent and integrity who wholly embraces his inner nerd. Spellah’s efforts have propelled nerdcore as a whole forward, and his tracks standout as highpoints in the catalogues of all the performers with which he’s worked. Music geeks (and geek musicians) owe a true debt to the man who took Fett to the country and Nerdcore Hip Hop to school.

Keep your good eye ceaselessly to the north, my geekish companions, as Baddd Spellah is most certainly cooking up another delicious track for your auditory amusement. After all, that’s what Baddd Spellah is all aboot.

More nerd news in brief

There are some pretty interesting developments in the works right now, so let me touch on ‘em rapid-fire style:

• Doctor Popular has confirmed that his Master of Champions appearance will be broadcast next Thursday, not tonight. Set your Tivos, kids.
• Syn and Gabriel have a ton of nerdcore news to impart to the masses. Unfortunately, their computer’s fucked, so they’ve been relegated to elaborating on that particular issue in this week’s edition of Seattle Nerdcore News.
• Circuit City and Game Rush both have some unbelievable deals on the video games you didn’t know you wanted. Big love to the CAG community for helping me while away the summer gaming doldrums.
• But most importatnly, Cee-Lo Green is Darth Vader.
  

Q: Slow news week? A: Not quite.

I’ve been uncharacteristically quiet this week. (Lucky you!) This isn’t due to any dearth of nerdly goings-on or any lull in the action-packed life of a geek blogger. Much to the contrary, in fact: I am currently hard at work on not one, not three, but TWO high-profile interviews for good ol’ Hipster, please!

The first is in what I refer to as the “make sure we don’t sound like a couple of dicks” phase – a newly employed machination of my design that assures, in theory, that neither I nor the other party involved come off sounding like, well, dicks. It should be in a post-able state in the immediate future, and my sources (chiefly me and the subject of said dialogue) tell me that the piece should be available for your perusal this weekend or early next week.

The second is only just beginning to sprout, to germinate as it were. The opportunity for this one simply fell into my lap through the facilitation of a certain dashing gentleman known sometimes by the arcane moniker of Mythril Nazgul and other times as simply myf. Myf, in a fierce display of nerd love, hooked a brother up, and thus you too were hooked up by proxy.

While I won’t make with the juicy details just yet, suffice it to say that these are two big-name artists who are apparently under the impression that this blog has a significantly higher readership that it, in actuality, does. I take no responsibility for their collective misconception as I always strive to remain realistic when discussing the site’s smalltimedness.

See? That wasn’t even a real word. It’s so small-time that I don’t even have an editor.

The crazy things I do for (nerd) love

For a man who’s spent the better part of his life in literature classes, my reading comprehension skills have gone straight down the shitter of late.

Perfect example: Within the last few days I have noted (from two different sources) that nerdcore’s favorite yo-yo enthusiast, Doctor Popular, will be appearing on the June 29th episode of ABC’s Master of Champions. Then why, pray tell, did I just waste an entire evening breathlessly awaiting his appearance on NBC’s America’s Got Talent? Obviously I’ve suffered from some manner of CVA. (This would also account for my recent hypersexual gestures.)

Well, at least I got to see Rappin’ Granny.

Now that I’ve had time to make a sign on an oversized piece of cardboard that reads DOC POP NEXT THURS ABC, YOU IGNORANT FUCK!, I reckon I should be able to avoid any future slip-ups. Of course, since I’m obviously suffering from some sort of mental incapacitation, I half expect myself to be watching TV Land in hopes of catching sight of the good Doctor on a rerun of Full House.

The moral of this story: Doctor Popular will display his otherworldly yo-yo skillz (note the “z”) on next week’s episode of the ABC game show competition Master of Champions (Thursday, June 29 8:00-9:00 p.m., ET, though YMMV). Watch it and show your support for the San Franciscan sometimes known to the nerdcore faithful as beatsmith extraordinaire Drown Radio.