Talkin 'Bout Wu-Tang

[Come Closer]

For my money, Well Done is the best thing Bronson has done to date. Dr. Lector and Blue Chips are also solid to quite solid.

Fans of hip-hop/Wu would likely enjoy The Doppelgangaz. My favorite hip-hop act of the last few years, can't recommend them enough.

[oistheone]

Bumping this thread solely to say my Wu phase is still hanging on strong as ever, and ALSO...

The Wu announced a show in Toronto taking place next month. There are no other shows scheduled. Just this one. In my hometown. I would normally be dying from excitement at such an announcement, but I'm pegging the odds of this show actually happening at a abouuuut 1.4%.

[oistheone]

The Wu rolled into Toronto last night, and despite my fears that the show would be canceled, they brought the ruckus! People behind me must have thought I was on a pogo stick because I was bouncin' up and down the entire show. Was awesome to see Raekwon after he no-showed at Roo. Even got to hang out backstage with the Clan after the show! Casually talking to GZA was surreal. At one point some juicehead security guard tried to kick GZA out of the backstage area because he didn't have a wristband. "Do you know who you're talking to?! This is the Genius!", I instinctively (perhaps drunkenly) interjected. The security guard apologized to GZA, and GZA gave me the "props handshake". For a dorky-looking white guy, having a member of one of the most gangster rap groups of all time give ME props was fucking hilarious.

I've seen more hip hop shows this year than all the other years of my life combined, and I've realized that when it comes to these shows, energy is king. Rock shows can get by on low energy if the music is good enough, but a hip hop show without energy is just a fuckin' shitty show. I've come to the conclusion that a Wu show just can't be shitty, because when they attack the stage, the energy is unparalleled. Sure, you could complain that their voices are a little ravaged, that their words are a little slurred, that they occasionally forget their lyrics -- but does any of that really matter when they have the entire audience going batshit crazy? When it comes to hip hop shows, Wu Tang Clan SERIOUSLY ain't nothing to fuck with.

[Fully]

I love this story, Carson. The experience must have been mind blowing.

[oistheone]

Mind blowing indeed. What also blew my mind was how nice these guys were when I got the chance to talk to them. I was expecting them to be cocky and street-talkin' like they were whenever they had a video camera in front of them back in the day. Their "hype mode" is definitely just an act, because in person they were as humble and down-to-earth as can be. Talking about my favorite Inspectah Deck verses with Deck himself was a moment I will never forget. Though, I was a little shocked to find out that he thought his "Hellz Wind Staff" verse wasn't anywhere near one of his best, especially when I frequently rewind that verse for repeated listening just like I do to after an unreal guitar solo.

Special recognition goes to U-God, who seemed genuinely flattered that I had some track-specific questions to ask him about his latest album. And for the record, Keynote Speaker is definitely worth tracking down!

[parkervb]

This is a FANTASTIC profile on what's going on with the Wu on the 20th anniversary of 36 Chambers.  It's an honest and, at times, sad profile of one of the more influential groups of my teen years.

http://grantland.com/features/wu-tang-clan-20th-anniversary-reunion-rza-gza-ghostface/

Sidenote: Grantland is from the Sports Guy but I find myself enjoying their pop culture writers more than the sports guys. 

[oistheone]

What an amazing read. They are such a dysfunctional group, it's comically sad. RZA asking the writer what the other guys were thinking about the reunion says it all. Doesn't sound like they're gonna get Raekwon on board for the final album. A damn shame.

Bad management, group bickering, drug problems, death, complete lack of cohesive vision in their later days -- it all makes for one interesting group. I would read the shit out of a full-length Wu book by this writer. He clearly gets it.

As sad as the dissolution of Wu is, the article also provides plenty of anecdotes as to why I love the Wu so much in the first place. Especially all the Bonnaroo content. So I guess it wasn't in my head, RZA really WAS completely fucked up. Absolutely love Ghostface describing the lasagna in the artist's tent. Also love the image of GZA walking around with a bottle of vodka and announcing he was going to see Paul McCartney. I'm with Deck -- quiche is good, man!

Highly recommended reading.

[parkervb]

completely blown away with the approach that the Wu is taking with this newest release.  ONE COPY!

http://scluzay.com/

History demonstrates that great musicians such as Beethoven, Mozart and Bach are held in the same high esteem as figures like Picasso, Michelangelo and Van Gogh. However, the creative output of today's artists such as The RZA, Kanye West or Dr. Dre, is not valued equally to that of artists like Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst or Jean-Michel Basquiat.

Is exclusivity versus mass replication really the 50 million dollar difference between a microphone and a paintbrush? Is contemporary art overvalued in an exclusive market, or are musicians undervalued in a profoundly saturated market? By adopting a 400 year old Renaissance-style approach to music, offering it as a commissioned commodity and allowing it to take a similar trajectory from creation to exhibition to sale, as any other contemporary art piece, we hope to inspire and intensify urgent debates about the future of music. We hope to steer those debates toward more radical solutions and provoke questions about the value and perception of music as a work of art in today's world.

While we fully embrace the advancements in music technology, we feel it has contributed to the devaluation of music as an art form. By taking this step, we hope to re-enforce the weight that music once carried alongside a painting or a sculpture. The album will be put on listening display in renowned galleries, museums, venues and exhibition spaces around the world for only the most dedicated to experience before it disappears into the private collection of a buyer. The public will know that what they will hear will be a once in a life time experience.

A notable few have explored original and creative economic models. Prince, Radiohead and more recently Jay Z and Beyonce have all introduced new financial and distribution models and challenged the industry structure. In 1993, the Wu-Tang Clan introduced the revolutionary 'Wu-Tang deal' which allowed the group to sign with one record label as an entity, but sign separate deals with other major labels for solo releases. It was an approach adopted by many groups that followed. Now 21 years later a new approach is introduced, one where the pride and joy of sharing music with the masses is sacrificed for the benefit of reviving music as a valuable art and inspiring debate about its future among musicians, fans and the industry that drives it. Simultaneously, it launches the private music branch as a new luxury business model for those able to commission musicians to create songs or albums for private collections. It is a fascinating melting pot of art, luxury, revolution and inspiration. It's welcoming people to an old world."

Cilvaringz & The RZA

[oistheone]

When it comes to gimmicks, I say the more audacious and hilarious, the better. So this concept gets five stars from me! If this museum tour actually happens, I won't be able to give them my money fast enough.

HOWEVER, part of me questions if this album actually exists. I could see this being a RZA marketing masterstroke -- is there a better way to drum up publicity for the real upcoming album than by dropping the news of an exclusive, mythical, "lost" Wu album?

Also, the new single, "Keep Watch" actually isn't that bad. Of course, in true Wu fashion, Meth isn't happy with it, saying that "it's got the wrong hook". But I dig it!

[capt. scotty]

No way this actually works, itll get leaked or something, but bravo to trying to do it. Id easily drop $20 for a listen in a museum.