My Bad Trek

92%


I have to print a retraction. On second thought, the more I sit with the song "Due West", the more i like it. Sometimes upon further listening you discover the truth of what you initially didn't comprehend. The more I listen to it, the more I get the back story of where Trek was going and coming from with the song. It established a relationship that overcame the initial feeling of isolation. And I'm man enough to admit a mistake. Because of this I'm switching to Thumbs Up on "Due West" (despite the mix issues). This takes the score up to 11 out of 12 = 92% Good work homie.


Look below for the initial full review

Album review - Trek Life - "Everything Changed Nothing" produced by Oddissee

83%


"Is that the new Roots!" That's what my wife says. For those unfamiliar with Trek Life, (Where y'all been?!?!) he has that same aggression and precision in his style that Black Thought has, but with a distinctly west coast truth, so the Roots comparison is pretty spot on. And let me say for the record, that this review will be heavily biased. Both for and against and I'll explain how and why along the way. We will be tackling every song point by point, so stick with me here.

The album starts with a live drum heavy, bright, and bouncy track, "Ready to Live". I'm a fan of both Trek and Oddisee (pre-Biased) and this track shows why. It just feels good. No need for a heavy message yet. It gets the juices flowing and the smile stretching. It truly reflects the laid back sunshine of California. Olivier DaySoul is featured on the hook and fits the mood just right. Definitely a summertime with the top down track. This track gets a thumbs up.

Next up is "Still Never Rains" featuring J. Bizness, Audio Live and Skeem Price. Synth heavy electro funk with jazzy electric piano on the top. A slick combination. Sunset music with palm trees and ocean breeze. I enjoy how the content is strictly west coast but inclusionary. You feel like you're getting a view into California life that you can love, hate and break even with. Thumbs up again.

Olivier DaySoul returns for "As the World Turns". This pulls me into that same feeling I had on the "Do You Want More" album by the roots. Straight ahead hip hop, that's tight as a glove. And then the chorus comes in and the mood seamlessly finds Bootsy style Funk. Just the addition of Olivier's funky, slurry singing brings a new angle to this track. It went somewhere I didn't think the beat could go. Good use of creativity. Thumbs up on this jawn too.

On "Everything Changed Nothing" we find Olivier still hanging around. Oddisee takes chaotic chops and smooshes them under a filter that makes them cohesive. Spare drums give a solid base for Trek's storytelling on this track. At this point in the album the pacing is really controlled. Everything feels in place. A thumbs up here.

"Wow" takes me to the movie "Strictly Business" watching Halle Berry moving in slow motion on a crowded dance floor under the flickering strobe lights. Oddisee once again combines an east coast sensibility with pitchy west coast synths flawlessly. Trek tells the club scene from a down to earth point of view. It is possible to hit the club and not buy out the bar. The cuts from DJ Buddy are adequate but not distinct. Of all the things we have at our disposal to cut, I don't know why DJ's reuse the same vocal pieces. I actually missed Olivier on this track. I think he could have brought more to the track than the DJ cuts. Still a thumbs up on this but could have been better.

On "What it is" we step away from Oddisee for a moment for Hudson Mohawke who produces an off kilter limped leg banger. A good change of pace. Trek just goes in raw and explains the plight of the working emcee. DJ Buddy's cuts seem messy and slightly out of time here. They should have been left out. Thumbs up minus the cuts.

My east coast bias negatively impacts "Due West" for me. The beat is perfect for reminiscing but a little heavy in the mix. Tough to sit vocals on. This song makes me feel like "I guess I had to be there". It represents the west in a way that i feel excluded from it. Too many inside references. "So L.A." and "Still Never Rains" bring Cali to the world rather than segregating it. For those that know, this hits home, for all the others, we're lost. And there's no need to apologize for that. Everything ain't for everybody. I'm thumbs down on this though.

Oddisee gets ridiculous on "So Supreme". A HUGE track. This should be the NBA JAM theme song. It'll make an armless midget think he can dunk on shaq in the paint. The Busta Rhymes vocal clip on the chorus is a perfect fit. Trek handles his business, though I would have liked to hear more punchlines on a track like this. Thumbs up here.

Olivier returns for "I'd Rather Be". This feels like a funk update from the late 80's. Like a funk group trying to feel current. Well produced but just not hitting my sensibilities. I love the content. Trek expresses disgust with the duality of the female personality. That always hits home for me. (sorry honey). This one goes thumbs down for me though.

The pacing comes back to the rescue. "So L.A." is strictly raw rap. the feeling of this track is the same as when I first heard Smooth da Hustler's "Broken Language" or Camp Lo's "Swing". Just raw, dope emceeing. This is an open door, a welcome mat, and a glass of lemonade. Welcome to L.A. Finally, DJ Buddy comes through better on this track. Thumbs Up.

From the front porch we go down to the basement for "Jump Out There". Nice dusty joint from Oddisee brightened with a tambourine. Nice and simple thumper. Trek preaches tough love to those who aren't where they want to be in life. Simply "Jump out There". Thumbs Up.

"Might Sound Crazy" finds Oddissee banging out another big track. West Coast in a Dre kind of way. Olivier brings good life to the chorus. Audio Live and Ralph Real round out the track well. Thunmbs Up.

Let's tally it up. 12 tracks, 10 ups, 2 downs. 10 out of 12 is 83%. The album has been in constant rotation for a couple days. I'm happy with it. I spent good money. You should too.


http://treklifemusic.com/

http://oddiseemusic.blogspot.com/

Buy the Album

latest designs

Hang Le Photgraphy

Just Designed a logo for Hang Le Photography. A great photographer based in Australia. Check her out here.

Check out the design:

New Logo Designs

New logo designs

Here are a couple of designs for various companies that i'm happy with. hopefully one of these will place.

2 new beats

just 2 of the new joints.

The unknown Rendered by mercurywaters

Redhead by mercurywaters

Thumb Wrastle

This is another one of those ideas that started strong and then lost steam. "I'm gonna write a comic strip!!", i said. And of course not realizing how difficult it is to keep coming up with funny material. Especially when your characters are thumb wrestlers...But i got 3 done. hooray me!! Click on the pics to enlarge them.

Six word stories

I was playing six words stories on twitter the other day. Here are a few i came up with that i enjoyed:


military mindset mastered, madness mobilized faster

death is a streetwalker, run faster

killed the dayjob, lived the nightlife

when she's quiet, i listen closer

convincing life to kiss me back

my real face, loves the sunshine

looking for, what stays in vegas

escaped the womb, retracing my steps

lies elope...truth ties the knot

run for freedom waters, find salvation

hiding from god, found almighty truth

on the floor, searching for sleep

the look of love, blindly watching

silken sweat powdered her brow...afterglow

love as a drug...online pharmacy

spare the rod..pity the fool

dressed to the nines...party of 1

when the sky falls...I catch!

seven steps, two shots, one fall

What He Saw Shook...

Picture copyright Getty Images

A short story i wrote some time ago. i need to write more...


What he saw shook…

Dreams that used to be pristine and gorgeous are now barren, broken to dust. (No, I’m not going to finish that first sentence.) It began absolute. Absolute lust with lying eyes, laying out life so precious and pretty. We guard ourselves from others and others from themselves. We are perfect people in our eyes, and we need you to see that reflection as well. This day proved to shatter the mirror.

Don’t look at me. Love me as I was. I am pure. These are the sum of such thoughts Darla thought, as Anthony ran down the hallway to the safe fortitude of his room, all smeared with love.

Anthony’s room breathed so spiritual and free. 6 hours of painting and repainting until the clouds on his walls were heavens. Even the ceiling sported puffs of angel dust and cottony groups of fluff. It was if Anthony lived in the heaven he came from, everyday. Wallpaper would have been just fine, but Darla wanted uniqueness, her own hand to draw his world. Jeff thought it would soften his son, but Anthony was too forceful and pigheaded to break. He was a man since birth and nothing would change that permanently. Well…until today. Today he was a shaken little boy.


Darla is, was and will forever be guarded. “I want him to see me the way I want”, she told her chuckling husband. “Jeff! It’s not funny! You’re a jerk, you know that?” “If you say so.” Muttered Jeff indifferently.

Stop staring at the wall Darla. There’s no truth written there. There’s no easy way out. No way to make that march down the hall any more proud and majestic. Just take it head on if you must. And pull Jeff down with you, hehe. “Come on Honey!” commanded Darla. “Hmph! I don’t know why you’re worrying so much. Didn’t it ever happen to y…..?” “NEVER!” she interjects before he can even finish his cop out.

A mile is a mile and this felt like one but wasn’t. It was fifty feet at best. Past the ruins of a picture perfect façade. The walls of this hallway held more pictures than one would think a life could depict. One of the 3-day-old father holding his pride in his arms wrapped in a swaddling blanket. You know that one, with the reddish pink and blue stripe that every new child cuddles with in his first hours on this earth. After the escape from home-base, and before the healing is over. And yes we men remember the maiming of circumcision you inflict on us. The, “He’s just a baby, he won’t remember it” excuse holds no weight. Pain is pain.

A mile is a mile and this felt like one but wasn’t. Fifty feet at best I’d wager. Trudging past the temple of a family of three on picture day. Clip-on ties and penny loafers. Too long, gray Farrah slacks covering the blue-striped tube socks beneath. Dad’s hand me down, silk-like (rayon) pocket square. Half poofed afros. A young man’s transition between adult and baby teeth. Mom’s favorite flowered dress in purple and silver, accompanying gloves, and heels better for wear. They’ve taken much too many laps around the floors of the church. Soothing your small life to sleep. Father’s discount-find of a pinstripe suit. Silk, woven, gold flecked paisley tie, framed with the dark, almost navy button down Armani irregular shirt with the club collar. If they only knew his secret. He’s not rich, yet looks the part of brooks brothers to a tee.

A mile is a mile and this felt like and actually…it was. A mile is a short trip from the dark to the light. From passive to passion. He knew something he didn’t want. Poor Anthony. Childhood fades away a little more. Contrary to popular opinion, you can’t lose knowledge. Only tuck it away in the vast trunk of your memory. Under the time you were too excited in front of the whole class of 5th graders you called friend and enemy. The boys understood. Ms. Jett was oh so scrumptious. They all were glad they didn’t have to stand at that moment she bent over in her tight, burgundy wool skirt. They felt your pain and laughed at it at the same time. Recalling that event helped you to understand. So when Darla told Anthony of love and its physical expression, he understood. And when he saw his father Jeff’s slight grin, he felt that connection from boy to man and realized that jump from one to the other, was quite capable.

Now let’s finish that first sentence. “What he saw, shook away the fears of a boy’s jump to manhood.”

Shoulder Honey

Painting copyright Corrie Scott barbados art council.com



I happened to run across this poem i wrote to my wife when she was pregnant. hope you enjoy...


Shoulder honey


When it is, is when we’ll be there
When it was, is the place where we’ll land

What awaits me is as familiar as my childhood
All blurs and screens of smoky memoirs pasted together scrapbook style
Lost in that pile of Polaroid past, is a youth so firmly rooted, the gardeners of the lord’s harvest had to use both hands to unearth it
If I could spread my seeds back to that fertile earth and hope once again to bear fruit
so sweetly buttered, I’d won half the war for the dreams of our future

Don’t think you don’t hold keys as vital as water to the next rising sun
Motherhood is a future builder as sweet as shoulder honey
That elixir that puts restless children to bed on dream sleepy highway 9, right beneath the silver lined cloud
The smooth run down on the palate that heals wounds on young ones so smoothly, the scars can only be seen in a not so memorable past
Shoulder honey that calms the savage mans constant need for intimate intricacies of the illuminated thigh

You are so powerful honey
The type of power futures daydream about building foundations on
Picket fences, financial stability, and do-for-self business structure
All those futures we planned 5 years ago, but could never seem to catch up to
We had to run light-years and fight night tears to grapple the left leg of this future
It’s a slippery one, but it’s ours and no one else’s
We now know the course of this future and stay on the true straight and narrow for the sake of the reward
Not the one at the end of the path, but the blessings we receive along the way

If ever we misstep this dance to future
Take moments in precious silence
And just look over your shoulder honey

Adventure Girl

I recently landed a big logo for me. Adventure Girl Stef Michaels. She's a travel guru who's appeared on CNN and nbc and good morning america too, I think. She's a great person as well. check out her site at http://www.adventuregirl.com and on twitter @adventuregirl I'm sure she'll be a household name soon enough. maybe she can get a show on the travel channel so we don't have to be subjected to so much of Andrew Zimmern eating any disguisting piece of bug, innard or mystery meat he can fit in his mouth.

Ainability

This is for a movement in hawaii to create more sustainable agriculture. I really tried to make it creative and bold. the final verdict by the client was that it was too abstract. It's disheartening that very few companies want something actually creative. they want a basic font and basic icon. They're afraid if it takes longer than 1 second to process, then they'll lose their audience. enlightment is very neccessary in this world. I'm still fighting the good fight though. don't worry. revolution will come.

Slacker

yeah, yeah, yeah. just loop it, filter it, add some drums and call it a day...slacker...

Slacker  by  mercurywaters

Cruelty

I'm digging this joint. It has a good movement to it. An off kilter forward stagger. it reminds of an uptempo cypress hill track.It's like grinding teeth, janky tank lunges, dusty fingers on rusty tools. in other words...its got guts!

Cruelty Rendered  by  mercurywaters

AMP

Another of the day's creations. amp is a company that will basically let you group your favorite podcasts together in one place. the adjoining icon represents this joint connectiveness, as well as the joining of the letters. this is a less is more design.

Escape

This is a logo I created for escape creative. it mimics the movement of a set of stairs. i.e. the path to 'escape'. the cartoony text flows well into each other and the bold red commands attention. I''m enjoying this one. the client didn't, but oh well. what are you gonna do?

Post Power Nap Blaps!!!

so i took a late afternoon power nap, ate some dinner, and banged out a couple jawns...

SLIM DUGGY:

Slim duggy by mercurywaters

VELO RAW:

Velo raw by mercurywaters

DR WHO

so i'm a child of pbs. i grew up watching british television on late night pbs. benny hill, are you being served, one foot in the grave, and of course, the ultimate...DR Who. The real dr who. Tom baker with the 15 ft long multi-colored scarf. the scourge of the daleks. the delectably attractive assistant who changed every few episodes, and the stubborn, belligerent robot dog who always gets him out of a jam. i always wanted to travel space and time in a phone booth that was at least 3000 sq ft on the inside but looked deceptively normal from the outside. and of course, now you ask, why am i going on a random rant down memory lane about dr who?? because this beat i made reminds me of the theme song. i've sampled plenty of dr who in my day, but none of it really captured the who sound when it was done. it was transformed into something else. then there's this beat, "loss stop", that contains no dr who whatsoever but feels like 2 am in the 8th grade dozing off to the sound of laser beams and late 70's synthesized orchestral pieces. anyway....

Loss stop Rendered by mercurywaters

Anniversary weekend pics

Click Here for all the pics