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xtract the extraneous: in a word, minimalism. How does one arrive at this in techno? Excise the catchy vocals typical of French disco house. Cut off the faucet of rainy synths from Germany and Holland. And that glowstick in your mouth has gotta go.
Be like me. Like Wu-Tang, but let your true blue Wu-boasting friend buy the album. The W contains a few new techniques: The band includes interludes within songs, place short samples of other songs at the end of some tracks and inserts what jungle fans would recognize identify as a rewind in others. But new tricks and all, this album swings its Wu-blade less like a nimble ninja and more like the stoned NYC inhabitants the Clan are. And those insightful lyrics we all used to like in Wu's early days? They haven't changed. Now that we're sober and not Johnny Blazed, let's admit they were never deep at all.
Occupations tend to share characteristics among their members. In education, it's altruism. In investment banking, it's the avarice. For solo artists and lead vocalists, it's conceit.
Musical genres don't change very often. To be able to watch one metamorphose from birth is almost as rare as a solar eclipse. In hip-hop's case, it seems producers and listeners alike have barely noticed the decline of their art. Mos Def's solo debut, Black On Both Sides, is an exercise of artistry in a sea of utter filth.
There is a difference between hip-hop and rap music. The term "hip-hop" refers to the art of emceeing, deejaying and breakdancing, a subculture with notable distinction from mainstream America. Rap music is a commodity. Its success is measured in album sales rather than in authenticity or creativity. Rap "artists" often sacrifice their creativity and dignity for financial gain, aka "all about the benjamins." In summary, hip-hop equals art, and rap equals art-less.
