Listen & Be Heard Weekly Archives

Maybe, as Gil Scott-Heron once sang, the revolution will not be televised (ah, those pre-CNN days…), but its musical aspects are downloaded from the Internet on a daily basis. As an once-alternative-now-mainstream way to hear, share, and sell music, this revolution has moved from the early days of mp3.com to file-sharing sites like Napster to the current myspace.com pages, mp3 blogs, and music-oriented websites like pitchforkmedia.com. Downloading is here to stay. My my hey hey.

Three selections from Supanova?s new [tag]spoken word[/tag] CD [tag]First Movement: My Thoughts[/tag] are available for downloading at www.myspace.com/supanovasword. One of the selections is ?Round Midnight.? It begins as a standard performance of the Thelonius Monk classic, with an unidentified male voice ([tag]Supanova[/tag]?) singing the original Bernie Hanighen lyrics, then segues into a spoken word middle section reminiscent of late 1970s/early 1980s Jamaican toasters ? intentional or not, it even includes the phrase ?free like Jamaica? ? before ending with a now-multitracked vocal duet singing Hanighen?s lyrics. It is an excellent version and definitely worth hearing.

Another selection available for downloading is ?I Wish.? This piece begins with the sound of a turntable needle on a scratchy vinyl record, then is joined by bass, congas, and drums. Supanova?s lyrics are like a State Of The Hip-Hop Union address, discussing topics ranging from performers killing each other over perceived insults to the bling culture to a litany of those who left the world too soon. Two sections are worth mentioning here: ?I wish that every emcee with a mic would really learn how to use it ? but not just off-and-on, but how to bring the good out of the hood,? and his conclusion, ?I wish my love for hip-hop would make the world love hip-hop ? not in that fake sense, but in the genuine, like back in the day when emcees were more worried about their ?content? than ?dollars and cents.?? The song ends, as it began, with the scratchy sound of old-school vinyl.

The CD also contains ?When Did Spoken Word Become A Competition,? that illustrates how ?this art form has been turned into such a performance that so-called poets are missing the point of this oral tradition…from puttin? the realistic truth in your verses to talkin? about money, clothes, hos, and keepin? a grip of cash in Louis Vuitton purses.? No speaker-shaking bass and drums here, just one man?s voice to the listener?s ears.

In August, Supanova is performing at the National Poetry Slam in Austin, TX. I do not know whether he plans to perform the above-mentioned piece, but it seems guaranteed to get a reaction at that event, especially since so much of slam?s popularity seems based in form over content, which is the opposite of the late poet Robert Creeley?s ?form is just an extension of content? maxim. It would be ironic, even comic, if ?When Did Spoken Word Become A Competition? was judged Best Of Slam; I?m keeping my fingers crossed.

This CD is available for purchase at Supanova?s performances. For schedule dates and additional information, visit his above-mentioned webpage.

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