Producing beats live on the streets of Oxford – Mr. Woodnote and little Rhys

Oxford has it’s fair share of buskers and street performers. But sometimes, something will catch your eye, your ear or maybe even your nose and you will stop and watch. This is what happened when I first heard Mr. Woodnote and little Rhys, a hip-hop group perform a few years ago. Now they seem to be coming back every summer.

Forgive my thumb being in the way, that was terrible of me!

What was so special about them? Well they produced their beats right there and then in front of you. The thing you see on the ground is a pedal system that allows you to loop sounds that you record into a microphone. One of the performers will play a bit of saxophone and loop that. Then he will beat box to add the drums, and loop that over it. All of it, there and then, it is produced in front of you which I think is quite awesome.

Another nice thing to see is that it is being performed in the street. We have a lot of people playing guitar, singing as duos (there were two different duos that day and another young man playing his guitar) but I rarely see someone rap in public. What is better is to see older and mature people bopping their heads to it and enjoying themselves!

It really is things like this that make me want to get back into lyricism…

P.S. I would have had a word for them, but they were working hard on performing and then trying to sell their CDs in between.

Immortal Technique – the Martyr

I don’t know why I am writing this now, and if you know about Immortal Technique then you are probably a big fan, and if you are a big fan then you probably already know that he has a new album that is completely free to download, it is called the Martyr.

Asides from the usual mix of passion, anger and political activism within each song in the album, Technique also has a much more prominent element of self reflection, best exemplified by the song, Eyes in the sky:

The borders should be illegal instead of the people, that we’re here before the Bible and all of it’s sequels. 

The flow in this song is quick, and if you are not used to hip hop that much yourself you may need to listen to this a few times to fully appreciate the lyrics. For me, from the second I heard it it made me think and it produced vivid images in my mind. From the tone of his voice, to the semi-melancholic nature of the beat and the flow, it was a very good composition. The obvious “eyes in the sky” reference to the Illuminati is something that I personally don’t believe in fully, for I am a sceptic to an extent. But I do respect his beliefs and what he has to say simply because he says what he means, and not because a big record label struck a deal with him.

Other notable songs that I enjoyed are (these are all youtube links):

Toast to the Dead - A powerful song about the nature of revolutionary struggle and the bloody nature of history.

Sign of the times - A spiritual song, utilising the the chants of native Americans (I think, anyway, corrections welcome) in the beginning and the middle of the song. All I can say is that this is song is full to the brim with metaphors and references to symbolism. One of my favourite is “they say you fight the greatest Jihad in your heart and your mind” and “this is a message to the older Gods, I’ll sacrifice you all to the revolution like the Romanovs”.

Running Nowhere - A skit (a beat without lyrics, usually thrown in the middle of the album) which will most likely be used by Immortal Technique later on. It is short for now and quite repetitive, but listen to the lyrics and you will find it thought provoking.

Rich man’s world - An insight into the world of corporatism and oligarchy and how it works, from the point of view of the Oligarch himself. The beginning shows a very quick flow style which goes well with the abruptness of the beat.

Check out the rest of the songs, it is definitely worth a listen. And if this is the first time you hear of this artist, then welcome to Immortal Technique!