Re: In theatres: 'Desolation of Smaug' [2] SPOILERS

by Mrs Figg Fri Mar 21, 2014 11:06 pm

why does Boromir look like a Geisha?

by Mrs Figg Fri Mar 21, 2014 11:12 pm

bloody freaky Shocked

by halfwise Sat Mar 22, 2014 12:51 am

Mrs Figg wrote:I think its more like dis

that was surprisingly cute. Very Happy

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 1:38 am

halfwise wrote:that was surprisingly cute.

I'm shocked at your magnanimity towards a *gasp* rap song. Shocked

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 1:40 am

Mrs Figg wrote:truly bizarre Finnish version

I tried watching that once but couldn't finish the first episode. It's not quite as weird as the Soviet version of The Hobbit, though.

by Forest Shepherd Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:13 am

Mrs Figg wrote:why does Boromir look like a Geisha?

Yeah that scene plays more like a distorted seduction routine.

by halfwise Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:48 am

Eldorion wrote:
halfwise wrote:that was surprisingly cute.

I'm shocked at your magnanimity towards a *gasp* rap song.

It's rap done the right way. I have no intrinsic problem with rap, except that 90% of it (mainly the most popular samples) is drek. And in many cases when rap is combined with other types of music (Empire State of Mind and My Heart's a Radio comes to mind) the rap sections are not organically melded with the melodic parts, and are usually a let down in comparison. In Walk This Way there's not that tonal shift ("Okay, enough of that singing/instrumental shit, let's rap"), and it works. Incidentally, several country songs lapse into rap-like sections, and it works to build excitement; it flows naturally out of the music. Same thing in this case. Nod

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:22 am

Well I'm glad you approve. Razz

Run-DMC are one of the all-time greats and their version of Walk This Way is a classic. Very Happy

by bungobaggins Sat Mar 22, 2014 4:28 am

I think my general dislike of rap comes from the glorification of illegal behavior and misogyny (50 Cent comes to mind). Are there still songs that have social commentary? The Walk This Way video was fun, though. Nod

by halfwise Sat Mar 22, 2014 1:05 pm

Other than the gangsta rap message issues, my artistic problems with rap are twofold:
1. Overly mind-numbingly repetitive
2. What I call the donkey braying effect: hammering the rhymes -
da-dah da dah to HO
di dah- di day di FOH
si day di da di GO
da dah di dah di DO.

"Oh look, they're rhyming, aren't those boys clever?" Rolling Eyes

I found the Grand Master Flash and Coolio songs much more enjoyable; a variation of rhythm and presentation. So many rap songs (mainly the ones you here people chanting in braying monotone as they walk down the street) fall short in comparison.

by Mrs Figg Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:13 pm

''big leeks will impress you''

by **Amarië** Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:32 pm

halfwise wrote:
Mrs Figg wrote:I think its more like dis

that was surprisingly cute.

Oh I love that video. I think my sister had it on VHS once upon a time, it is still supercool. Huge, happy grin on my face now. I love you

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:49 pm

halfwise wrote:Other than the gangsta rap message issues, my artistic problems with rap are twofold:
1. Overly mind-numbingly repetitive
2. What I call the donkey braying effect: hammering the rhymes -
da-dah da dah to HO
di dah- di day di FOH
si day di da di GO
da dah di dah di DO.

Listen to more/better hip hop, dude. The over-emphasis of the last syllable of each bar hasn't been the norm since the 1980s.

If I recall one of our previous discussions on this topic, the repetitiveness part that you dislike is the beats, right? If you don't care for that style it's fine, that's a valid personal opinion, but there are a lot of different sounds that you can hear in the genre. Instrumental hip hop producers in particular are all over the place.

by Radaghast Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:50 pm

That was my intro to Aerosmith. Scary to think Steven Tyler was younger then than I am now Neutral

by Mrs Figg Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:53 pm

talking of great music Massive Attack is probably my fav band of the last 20 years or so.

by halfwise Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:53 pm

Mrs Figg wrote:''big leeks will impress you''

He did slightly improve on the original delivery. Rolling Eyes

But since no-one can match Alicia Key's soaring vocals the contrast between the melodic theme and the rap is not so jarring. When I hear Empire State of Mind my usual reaction is "get that guy the fµ¢K out of there so I can listen to the damn song!"

by Radaghast Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:55 pm

I'm no rap connoisseur but I do enjoy a few tracks by various artists; Beastie Boys, Wu Tang Clan, 2Pac, Eminem, to name some examples.

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 2:59 pm

halfwise wrote:He did slightly improve on the original delivery. But since no-one can match Alicia Key's soaring vocals the contrast between the melodic theme and the rap is not so jarring. When I hear Empire State of Mind my usual reaction is "get that guy the fµ¢K out of there so I can listen to the damn song!"

I actually largely agree with you about Empire State of Mind. I'm not a big fan of Jay-Z's more recent work in general. But what a lot of fans of the genre are looking for in hip hop is word play, complex rhyme schemes, and the like. While the delivery of rap lyrics is very different from singing (it has more in common with spoken word poetry), the results can be very impressive.

For an example of this, try NY State of Mind (which borrowed the title from Billy Joel but introduced the whole "_____ State of Mind" title to hip hop).

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:00 pm

Radaghast wrote:I'm no rap connoisseur but I do enjoy a few tracks by various artists; Beastie Boys, Wu Tang Clan, 2Pac, Eminem, to name some examples.

All great artists. Thumbs Up

I've been on a bit of a Beastie Boys binge lately since watching their concert film Awesome: I Fuckin' Shot That, which as the title suggests, was mostly filmed by people in the audience. They've been all over the place in terms of style and genre but are consistently great.

by Radaghast Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:45 pm

Beastie Boys are the rap act I listen to the most. Kind of a shame their catalogue is relatively small.

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:52 pm

They put out eight full albums (including one of all instrumentals), which I guess isn't that much compared to some artists but it gives me plenty to listen to when I'm in the mood. Smile

Paul's Boutique would be my favorite if I had to choose just one.

Edit: I recently was introduced to their Rock Hard EP from the pre-Licensed to Ill era. It's been out of print for years since they never got permission to use the AC/DC sample, and it's definitely rough around the edges, but I think it's a lot of fun. Very Happy

by Radaghast Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:55 pm

Hm. I was unaware they'd released an album in 2011 or the instrumental album for that matter. I guess 7 or 8 is not too bad for 26 years. Certainly better than Boston or GNR Very Happy

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:58 pm

Unfortunately they weren't able to do any touring for the last album due to MCA's cancer treatment (RIP), but I thought it was pretty good.

by Radaghast Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:59 pm

Eldorion wrote:They put out eight full albums (including one of all instrumentals), which I guess isn't that much compared to some artists but it gives me plenty to listen to when I'm in the mood. Paul's Boutique would be my favorite if I had to choose just one.

Edit: I recently was introduced to their Rock Hard EP from the pre-Licensed to Ill era. It's been out of print for years since they never got permission to use the AC/DC sample, and it's definitely rough around the edges, but I think it's a lot of fun.

Cool. I wonder why they were refused permission for the BiB sample.

by Eldorion Sat Mar 22, 2014 4:05 pm

According to Wikipedia:

The track contains samples from the AC/DC song "Back in Black", which was used without obtaining legal permission - thereby causing the record to be promptly withdrawn. Later, when the group planned to include the out-of-print song on their 1999 compilation, Beastie Boys Anthology: The Sounds of Science, AC/DC refused to allow the sample to be used. Mike D spoke to AC/DC's Malcolm Young personally on the phone when their lawyers refused to clear the sample, and later said that "AC/DC could not get with the sample concept. They were just like, 'Nothing against you guys, but we just don't endorse sampling.'" Ad-Rock then added "So we told them that we don't endorse people playing guitars."[3]