It's Hip Hop Literature Time,Boys and Girls!

Some of you reading my blog may have notice the name Rhymeweaver popping up here and there every once in awhile.For those who do not know, dude's a,in his own words,a struggling rap artist hailing from Malaysia but currently studying in New Zealand (where the milk powder are melamine free) to be an English teacher. I met him in a friendster group for hip hop zealots,and RW, being the experienced rappuh that he is,taught us noobie rappuhs some tricks and shiznit on multiple syllable rhymes,recording techniques and other boring stuff to non-rappuhs.Anyway,I did a little post on his stuff awhile ago,and this will be another 2 cents worth on his new mixtape,The Rhymeweaver Presents THE MIXTAPE SERIES VOL. 1:Music From and Inspired by Classic Literature,or TRPTMSVOMFAIBCL, for short.Which is not exactly short.But I digress.

As the mouthful-of-a-title suggests,the mixtape contains 5 songs that took their sources from famous classic literature (well to some of you anyway),which includes Billy Shakespheare's Macbeth (Ambitions as a Rider),HP Lovecraft's The Shadow Over Innsmouth (Night of the Deep Ones),and a couple of songs on the Holocaust and Hitler (Maybe RW read Mein Kampf as inspiration besides Maus),and one Persian poem,Layla and Majnun.OK,to be honest,I haven't read some of the original works before,so I cannot bitchfit and wail about how RW should omit or include certain parts of the original works into his songs.But not knowing in detail the classic literature could be a good thing since it won't spoil your experiencing RW's intriguing tales.But of course those who know the original work can easily relate to what RW is talking about.And now I have no idea what I am talking about.Anyways.

I remembered when I first encountered RW,he introduced himself as 'a rappuh that specializes in multis'.And this mixtape is sprinkled with multis all around,which IMHO is no small feat because the songs are basically stories told through rhymes,and every line that follows the previous must have a connection,therefore it is amazing that he can spit lines of multis that makes sense and does not interfere with the flow/plot of the story.With his vivid storytelling,fantasy worlds with eerie creatures,meticulous plans of murder and the horrors of genocide comes to life.

I did notice though that RW likes to end a lot of sentences with 'pair words' (well that's what my teacher calls it anyway)with the conjunction AND in the middle ,such as:
breathing and crying
good and faithful
bruised and painful
pain and hardship
corruption and evil
servants and friends
bitches and wife
spouse and his son
slow and hobbling
oval head and round ears
cold and rigid
etc etc...

I am not sure whether RW purposely use this type of rhyming or he wrote it without realizing it,I for one whore this technique to death when I was writing essays in secondary school,and personally I think pair words are excellent for describing scenarios and ..well all sorts of stuff.But it sounds kinda good on the ears lol.My favorite track off the mixtape is without a doubt Night of the Deep Ones (watup Jin!),where RW describes a creepy encounter between a man and some locals of a small town,which turns out to be bizarre hybrid fish-man creatures. RW told the story with such clarity that you can actually see the whole tale unfolds in your mind's eye.Not really feeling the love story though (The Eye of the World) since I am just a bitter cynical bastard.

For those who like classic literature told with a breath of fresh air,download this mixtape quick, or preview it here.I'm sure you won't regret it.For those who like dumb shit club songs,go download Nelly's new album and give this mixtape a miss.Another reason why you should at least give RW a try is because dude's a hardworking man; he actually included in the mixtape: the 5 songs,the lyrics,cover artwork,notes about the songs,the original works,RW's biography,RW's links, preview of his upcoming mixtape,link to feedback,AND a subscription.ALL FOR FREE. Respect,homie.

through the wire

'Hey..I think we are going the wrong way,' said Yuva,my colleague at work.She was sitting beside me in my car,and we were waiting at a traffic light on the left lane of two lanes.

"Really?" I frowned,looking around, trying to make sense of the roads,sign boards,and landmarks around me.We were in the Tasek Industrial Estate,where multinational companies and gargantuan factories nestled side by side. Huge lorries and trucks slowly lumbered along dusty roads while relatively smaller vehicles like ours weaved in and out.Most days of my work I would be going around places like these,making appointments with lab heads,purchasers,managers and the like in hope of making a deal,selling some laboratory instruments or analyzers.

"I hate to say this,but you are right,"I muttered.We had been trying to locate a certain company for more than 15 minutes,to no avail.The feeling of frustration prompted me to make a hasty decision.

"We need to make a U-turn,"I hissed at Yuva.

'But how?we are on the left side of the lane.'

On my right side was a car,and behind it a huge truck that I assumed was shipping compressed gas,with the tank and all. Suddenly,the car next to mine moved into another road,leaving a vacant space in front of the truck.

I grinned."That's our cue." Immediately I put the pedal to the floor and drove into the empty space,attempting to make a U- turn from there.I stopped my car in a 90 degree angle to the lane in the space,waiting for a clear traffic.

I heard a faint rumbling.And out of the corner of my eye,I sense movement.I turned my head towards my window.

And saw the front portion of the truck approaching the right side of my car.

It all happened so fast.My face was against the window,staring right up the truck's head,seeing it looming over my car.My jaw dropped in horror as reality dawned upon me.Yuva was screaming and trying to get out the door.And at that moment I heard the sickening crunch of metal compressing against metal.I felt my car trembled,shaken by the impact of the incoming truck.The truck was edging forward slowly.And taking my car with it.

Gripped with fear,I instinctively honked,pressing my hand on the horn as hard as I could.I could feel my car moving as the truck picks up momentum.After what feels like a lifetime,it stopped.I could hear a ringing sound in my ears.I realized that I had forgotten to breathe. Slowly,ever so painstakingly,the truck back up.It took awhile for the truth to sink in:I'm alive.muthafucking damnit I'm still alive. I slowly open the door,and I realized that my hands were shaking.When I step out of the car,my knees felt like it did not belong to me; they were wobbling ever so slightly.Weakly,I looked at my car to survey the damage.My first thought was wtf I just bought it for 3 months and now look at this.

Luckily was that me and my colleague came out unharmed, although visibly shaken.The truck driver told me that he did not notice my car.Heck,he did not even know that he rammed into my car,he only realized when I started honking.I was told that had he not stop,my car would be under the truck.And me in it.Crushed to death.The sheer possibility of this ending made me be thankful of how lucky I am to come out unhurt. Thank *Bleep* (Note:Any mention or reference to any sort of omnipotent higher being with power to create and destroy is automatically censored.But after this,I may need to rethink.)