producers: mister jason

guests: cage, k-no supreme

Love 'em, leave 'em, they are out there and a whole lot of people dig 'em. Who? Them Porn Theater Ushers, that added oddity to the bubbling Boston scene. They crashed on us with the symbolism of ivory marbles dropping on your hand, at the most three at a time, but at least totaling two hundred in number. And if you think that this would be kinda annoying and how this statement can be a compliment, well, shift to the perspective of the person watching this little ordeal, and things will suddenly make sense. More or less.

The team up of the Ushers with Cage makes sense too, for the latter turns up the strangeness level even further on "Balloon Knots". And Mister Jason hooks up one of those beats that sound like lifted off the soundtrack to a 70s French soft porn, or erotic comedy. And speaking on the topic, "Girls Sweat Me" starts with a voice sample of such a cinematic accomplishment. Nabo Rawk talks about how in his view things should be and not really how they are, when he claims "girls jock me, wherever I go". Yeah right. But as this can be the soundtrack to nerd fantasies, reenacted hopefully only in their mind, we are continuing to check out "Blah, Blah, Blah", that starts out totally well, with them horns, but then declines to unneeded choppyness. Going down the braggadocios route, Rawk's always present humor is actually well enjoyed.

With "Duck Hunt" we are reaching a point where we want to be once more totally satisfied with the beat. And the beat keeps things bare, or the exciting elements hover in the background, and Rawk's punchlines sting like a bee and if you close your eyes, you most likely see Elmar Fudd nodding his head, adjusting his hat from time to time too. So this track is like watching a porn, and reaching another fuck scene, after a too long unneeded dialogue sequence. "Oozing Pestilence" happens to be the double insertion, as it takes what has been done on the track before, one step further. This gets us open, the beat's burpyness has us give our full approval. Hooray, Mister Jason. And it's hard to repeat something like that, but the 60s soulness of "Far Out", the cute and funny open voice sample, the cinematic effects that accompany the story telling rhymes, make another dope track. But the hip house of "Bug Men", that features K-No Supreme is confusing. That's changed up quickly though, however, the alternative beat is not much better. That gives us a chance to focus on the bragging and boasting lyrics, even if that's really hard, as we are not able to get that annoying beat outta our head.

After this hole on the pavement to our collective hooting and hollering, we are getting to the three tracks, that have seen the light of day on the previously released 12" (reviewed here). "Catnip" is still happening, as much as "My Imagination", and especially "Me & Him". This last cut is once again opening with one of those extra dope samples, and then goes into something enormously bouncy, with that chopped organ / bass sound, prominent lately, combined with rhymes that go the 'strange dood at work' route.

So here you have it: then tracks that ask to not be liked. And that's not going to be that easy. Sometimes very, sometimes harder than solving tricky algebra. This is no turkey rap, still in the wrapping and without the filling. Get yourself glasses and experience the world of a nerd. Get yourself a sense of humor and heck, brush your teeth from time to time. Not because the last thing had anything to do with the record. But just like your teeth without brushing would rot and stink, this record doesn't. Well, apart from the few times, it has that bad morning breath.