Politic 26

A little over five years ago, a relative unknown hip hop producer was killed in a car crash in Tokyo. But by this point, Seba Jun - also known by the backwards pseudonym Nujabes - was creating a cult status for himself among nerds throughout the West. As previously identified (here), built from his 'Samurai Champloo' soundtrack, anime fans in North America and Europe, as well as Japan, were posting his music on YouTube over their own photos and 'Samurai Champloo' stolen images.

Throughout the Naughties (teehee), he created his own brand of distinct, soulful, piano-laden hip hop of instrumental tracks and beats for underground US rappers, Japanese bilingual wordman Shing02 and Hackney's own Funky DL. But he chose to keep himself to himself. Little to no promotion existed and minimal photos are available of the man; 'Samurai Champloo' perhaps his delve into getting his name out there.

But beyond people who had seen and liked 'Samurai Champloo', Nujabes' influence can now be seen throughout Japanese hip hop. His releases between 2003-2008 can be, for me, seen as a turning point in Japanese hip hop, moving away from the trip hop stylings of the likes of DJ Krush and Tha Blue Herb and the American-influenced Zeebra and ilk of the 1990s.

Over the last few years, a new wave of Japanese hip hop artists have emerged, mixing soulful, keyboard-heavy beats with a more fun outlook, with comedy and imagery that feels distinctly Japanese, avoiding the temptation to too easily slip into an American style.

This post-Nujabes wave seems to be led by producer and rapper Evisbeats, collaborating with most, earning himself 1990s DJ Premier-esque production announcements from the rappers he works with, continuing this lighter side of hip hop. With the likes of BASI, 環ROY, Meiso, Haiiro de Rossi, Itto and the ever charismatic 鎮座DOPENESS on the microphones and Michita, Nomak and Eccy on beats, among others...Or, have I just made this all up?!

What follows is some beats and them words of this post-Nujabes generation for listening pleasure. Ya here...

Kemuri (Untouchable Mix) - DJ Krush

The Way That Hope Goes - THA BLUE HERB

mystline - Nujabes
八百万 - Evisbeats featuring 908
Do The Hip Hop - Evisbeats
あなたには - BASI
さみーね - Kakato
いい時間 - Evisbeats
Mentor - Michita
MOGU MOGU - 鎮座DOPENESS
Break Boy in the Dream - 環ROY featuring 七尾旅人
ゆれる - Evisbeats featuring 田我流
Allegro Pt 2 - Michita and Haiiro de Rossi
あの場所 - Itto
Nakanaka - Meiso
Dandelion - Michita featuring Meiso and Hisomi-TNP
散歩と太陽と音楽 (Instrumental) - Eccy and 環ROY
Velodrome (Nomak Remix) - Nomak 

蛍 - Evisbeats featuring Itto
果てない - BASI
チンコ - Crazy-T and Spence featuring 鎮座DOPENESS

Every 14 Days...(25)

It's the Christmas Special...in mid-March!

Christmas Special obviously referring to this edition covering the books I received as Christmas presents last year. And seeing as I can't read five books in one day - though that would have an amazing impact on my days per book rate - this Christmas Special arrives in Spring.

Dead Funny: Horror Stories by Comedians (Edited by Robin Ince and Johnny Mains)

'Dead Funny' comes from the theory that good horror always comes with a generous helping of black humour. What can only be described as a charity gig of British comedians has, therefore, been assembled, each tasked to write a short horror story that will have us screaming with both laughter and terror. This of course doesn't really happen.

The sixteen stories can be categorised into one of three groups: the silly comedy, aiming more for laughs than scares (Reece Shearsmith, Richard Herring, Michael Legge, Danielle Wheeler); the psychological black humour (Stewart lee, Phill Jupitus, Rufus Hound, Robin Ince, Al Murray); and the greater attempts at horror writing (Mitch Benn, Matthew Holness, Neil Edmond). There are then those that just don't fit the horror or humour categories, largely due to my lack of respect for the comedian.

As with any short story collection, the level of quality varies throughout, ranging from the very strong to those that can just be glossed over and forgotten. Notable mentions go to Stewart Lee's 'A View from a Hill' blurring the lines between reality and fiction to mess with his audience's minds, as ever, and Mitch Benn's 'The Patient'.

There are obviously more laughs on offer here, and some maybe show that writing fiction isn't their strong point, with some stories falling off by the end. But that's not why this was bought for me - it was to make me laugh, which it did. LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL (in a ghost voice).

Days to read: 14

Days per book: 15.0

Thinking About it Only Makes it Worse (David Mitchell)

No, not that one. This David Mitchell likes a good moan, and this is a book full of his moanings that he writes for the Observer. 'Tis quite the standard for comedians these days to publish books of their collected ramblings for whichever broadsheet they write.

Often, these are entertaining, short nuggets of thought from comedic minds. Though coming from a collection of years worth of writing, they can be sometimes inconsistent and ask you to think back to that time when the horse meat scandal was all the news knew existed.

I've always subscribed to the thought of Mr Mitchell, and this book is no different, providing wit, insight and moments of outrageous cynicism to entertain. This probably didn't tickle me quite as much as his holiday chum Charlie Brooker's books - though this didn't come with free tickling gloves - but still raises a smile with thoughts that make things better.

Days to read: 20

Days per book: 15.0

Captain of Hungary (Ferenc Puskas)

It's hard to believe, but 1950s Hungary was the Premier League hair salon of its day. The 'Magnificent Magyars' as they were dubbed were the international team to beat (if you're West German), with an unbeaten run that stretched forever and a day, as they proved the greatest team never to win the World Cup...after the England team featuring Danny Mills, of course.

It was common for members of the squad to release an autobiography in their mid-twenties, cashing-in on their fame, much like even the least interesting Premier League (non) star will do today. What's probably different here, however, is that this book is about football. Strange to think that, an autobiography by a football player at the height of his fame, but it is. Very little is about off field activities, with focus largely on his skill and how amazing a talent he was, and how the opposition's style of play led to their defeat. There are chapters dedicated to single games, namely their defeat of England at Wembley and the 1954 World Cup final.

This book is only part of the story, his days playing in Hungary when he was part of the best international team around. This is the days before his move to Real Madrid and the success that followed there.

A man that now has the FIFA goal of the year competition named after him, there's no doubt that he was good. And Puskas definitely alludes to this writing with an arrogance/knowledge of his own ability. Written approximately sixty years ago, it shows that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Days to read: 8

Days per book: 14.9

Ayoade on Ayoade: A Cinematic Odyssey (Richard Ayoade)

Hello, my name is Withheld and I've never seen a film directed by Richard Ayoade. That's not exactly many, but I do feel it still qualifies me to read a book he has written about film making. But this isn't exactly a normal film book about normal films.

'Ayoade on Ayoade' is a supposed collection of interviews between Ayoade and an alter-ego Ayoade about film. But, if his interview with Krishnan Guru-Murphy on Channel 4 News is anything to go by, he doesn't exactly do interviews.

What this becomes, therefore, is a random collection of obscure thoughts that always trail off, full of sarcasm and post-irony. It's clear that Ayoade is being subversive here, discussing bad Eighties films and obscure references to Nineties music that teach us little about his real thoughts on directing.

But within this there is a clear lampooning of the film industry and the character types that inhabit it, hiding what his thoughts on good filmmaking are behind mocking of bad.

Or have I just made all this up?!

All-in-all, I'll give this twenty-seven thumbs up on a scale from one unspecified number to another.

Days to read: 13

Days per book: 14.9

For Richer, For Poorer: Confessions of a Player (Victoria Coren)

Having read her husband's new book, I had show that I believe in equality and read Victoria Coren-Mitchell's (then just Victoria Coren) book about her life and times as a millionairess poker player.  

Now, I don't really play poker, never in fact, and so this book is of little interest to me. But being that 'Only Connect' is the best show in television, I simply had to read it.

As expected from the lady herself, it is a book full of wit and charm, charting her rise from chubby teenager joining in her brother's poker games to European Poker Champion, winning a fair amount of money along the way. Being that this is about the world of poker, a lot is lost on me or in language I don't understand, so parts drag or seem a little repetitive, when they probably are anything but. For much of this she is as much observer than player, focusing on the characters, personalities and superstars that the 'sport' has created, herself a lowly player who used her comedy and journalistic skills to become a celebrity poker player.

The book builds to her European success, as her playing career progresses, though now poker celebrity is just one of the many hats she wears, big Stetsons, of course.

Days to read: 18

Days per book: 14.9