Hey, y’all. So, in preparation for the upcoming posts, I’ve been going through boxes, looking for tapes and assorted mementos. Thought I’d share a few miscellaneous things with you today.
My primary search of late has been for old demos and unreleased songs and whatnot. Seen here is the ancient tape deck I’m using and a small handful of the tapes I have to go through (there’s a Rubbermaid bin in the basement that’s filled to the brim)…
One of the interesting tapes I found was of a couple of interviews I did in the old days of my college radio show. I interviewed RZA from Wu-Tang in 1992, right after the “Protect Ya Neck” 12” came out. I remember we hit it off quite well and talked for about an hour. On the same tape, there’s an interview with J-Ro from Tha Alkaholiks. I remember that conversation being very entertaining.
Going back much further, when I was a kid, I bought Word Up magazine every month. I would cut out pictures of my favorite rappers and put them into an old photo album. Here you can see a page from that photo album, circa 1987 or ‘88, I’m guessing (my scissor skills weren’t exactly on point).
Next we have an old rhyme book. This one looks to be from about 1993, which is when Ultramagnetic MC’s released the Four Horsemen album (I had a stack of those stickers which were used to promote the album). I became a member of the Universal Zulu Nation right around the same time.
Speaking of rhyme books, here you can see the handwritten lyrics for the song “Untitled”, which appeared on the Anticon compilation album, Music For The Advancement Of Hip Hop and on my album, Man Overboard.
I remember writing that song very quickly. The words came in a flood. You can see that I made very few edits or corrections along the way. Looks like my pen died halfway through which must have created a panic since I flowing so well.
The album that preceded Man Overboard was Vertex. I recorded that album on a Tascam cassette 4-track. Here you can see my mix notes.
Years later, I sold that 4-track to Skratch Bastid. Another several years later, he asked if I wanted it back and I said no. Geez, I regret that now. I wonder where it ended up…
Before Vertex and Man Overboard, I recorded an album (in 1995) called Year Zero, which was never released. Fun fact: a dub of that cassette got out into the world and was eventually sold on the Discogs website. It’s in the top 10 of the most expensive cassettes ever sold on the site. Check out the list here. Below you can see a big ol’ stack of stickers that I had made for the album. I can’t remember if they were intended to be a promo item or if I was planning to stick them on the cover of CDs.
In 1999, I recorded an album called Square. I finished the album in late December of that year and performed the album in its entirety on New Year’s Eve at the Marquee Club in my home town of Halifax (Y2K!). The album didn’t come out until two years later due to prolonged record deal negotiations. When it finally did come out, these promo flyers were made (there were also giant posters - I wish I had one but I don’t).
In 1998, I was lucky enough to record with Biz Markie. One day while we were in the studio, he received a phone call from his manager. A Tribe Called Quest was touring with the Beastie Boys and broke up the night before (I believe it was in Seattle). So the Beasties needed a new opener and asked Biz if he could do it. He said yes and when he hung up the phone, he turned to me and said, “will you DJ for me?” Here’s my backstage pass from the show, which happened in Toronto a day or two later.
In 2001, I played this killer show in Chicago. I remember it being completely off the chain. Chicago was always a great place for me to play.
After the Square album, I made a record called Talkin’ Honky Blues. The first single released from the album was a song called “Wicked And Weird”. Here’s the hat I was wearing in the video for that song.
Talkin’ Honky Blues ended up winning the Juno (Canadian music award) for alternative album of the year. The other nominees in the category were Joel Plaskett, The Constantines, Stars and The Weakerthans. I’m guessing most people probably think The Weakerthans should have won.
That same year, I was asked by Feist to dance with her in the video for her song “One Evening”. Here’s part of the shot sheet from the shoot.
Anyway. I could go on all day but I’ll spare you. I promise that the stuff I’m saving for future posts will be more worth your while. This is just some of the stuff that didn’t really fit into any particular category.
A ew quick notes before I get out of here:
I’m planning a big baseball-themed post for early next week. Just pulling a few more things together. That may not sound too interesting but I’ll do everything I can to make it worth a few minutes of your time. And as I mentioned before, baseball played a role in the creation of the new album. I’ll make it all make sense.
Tomorrow (May 6), the album Flash Grenade that I made with my old friend Tachichi is coming out. Get it here.
And in the bio of my Bandcamp page, I mentioned that I’d be posting the entire Sebutones catalogue, including demos and stuff. Shortly after making that announcement, a few indie labels got in touch offering to re-release the Sebutones stuff on vinyl! Very exciting. So posting the stuff on Bandcamp may have to wait a bit while Sixtoo and I decide what we’re going to do. He and I have been cooking up some pretty interesting ideas.
Speaking of Sixtoo, one last thing… He was WAY ahead of everybody in the early days of the internet. He was a real pioneer in that regard. Here’s a flyer he made promoting an online radio station he launched sometime back in the late ‘90s!
That’s all for now. Back at you next week.
