Earful

Skeletons in the jukebox

“Skeletons” provides a forum for local musicians, artists, record-store owners, etc., to erase cool points by expressing their unseemly affection for an unhip album from their past.

Ace of Base, by singer/songwriter Pierce Edens

My first-ever mechanical music-making device was a little Sony Walkman, presented to me on the evening of whatever birthday happens in seventh grade. Despite the fact that CDs were already the norm, my little cassette player was definitely way cooler, if for no other reason than the fact that this Walkman, when purchased, came with a complementary single. So, yeah, I got down to some Ace of Base. Couldn’t really say what effect it had on my music, but at least I can say I moved on quickly (I saw the sign, and it opened up my eyes, I saw the sign).

CD reviews

Double Fist, Bad Acid in the Dirty South: Three Stars

• Genre(s): Rap, hip-hop.

• You’ll like it if: You enjoy rhymes dirtier than the socks living under your bed.

• Defining song: “Sevier to the Row” – Featuring Al Blisterfist, this dark little ditty calls for peace, yet decides the best way to tranquility is submerging oneself in alcohol. “My bad side is too dark to spark,” waxes Al. “… We can either fight in the backyard or share this bottle of scotch. Think about it. Do you really want the neighbors calling the cops?”

While individuality is often heralded, collective inspirations can provide confidence and a familial atmosphere. Thus is the case of the Fist Family, a hip-hop cooperative that includes colorful characters like Philo Reitzel (an excellent landscape DJ and rapper), Al Blisterfist, Gus McGuillicutty, and their most recognizable band, Ironfist. Darker in delivery than the GFE collective, Fist Family recognizes the need for lighter times, but concedes that life is cruel and indifferent. Doublefist – a project comprised of Fist members J Ease and Ronny Mac – portrays this battle of light and dark (and all the gray area in between) on Bad Acid in the Dirty South. Featuring production by Philo, Arbukle, Dirty Frost, and a cast of guest emcees, Bad Acid is greasier than taking a bath in motor oil. The apocalyptic debauchery found on the cover art (e.g., hookah-smoking babies, cannibalism) should alert bold listeners what to expect inside. The slick-tongued sexual innuendos in “Drip Drop Theory” (featuring rapper Smitty) will arouse in all the wrong ways, while the beer-can-cracking intro of “Sweet Licks” (featuring Iron Fist) includes metaphoric musings on meat.

The raps are so eruditely sewn together that issues like cock-blocking, heavy drinking, and calling out “punk-ass bitches” feel scholarly.

Music News: Future Fisting

Expect more album releases from the Fist Family in March. Al Blisterfist’s band, Someonelse, will release And the Dead Wait, while Gus McGuillicutty will claw his way into the public ear with Lobster Man.

[When he’s not bending readers to his will, Hunter Pope cooks, gardens, hikes and spends his mortgage money on CDs he’s never heard.]