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There is an overbearing wave of confusion. A looming cloud of disappointment is present above us all who believed we'd be witnessing the first woman president succeeding America's first black president. But America wouldn't allow a telling of that tale. That deep of a progressive uproot was too much of an unsalvageable peak to ascend to against the calls to "take their country back." So now, we are where we are.
And in the midst of sorting our emotions, venting pits of frustration over the results of a tiresome election, I look towards music to halt my invasive thought stew in an effort to help me begin to deal with what's faced in front of me. I listen for a settling of the mind. And I did so by plating what Michael Anthony and TheMIND cooked up.
Michael Anthony & TheMIND's Unplugged - Nov 8th Commentary is spoken word with a jazz score. The very first chord played in Unplugged sounds similar to the first chord struck in Jay's Change Clothes (courtesy of The Neptunes). It's something minor my musical ear connects to, but that group of notes, whether similar in placement or not, awaken the track in a unique way. Then the piano rips away into an improvised tangent. Unplugged's snare drums, hi-hats and bass drum tic tac and jiffy pop a high level of exuberance into the music. The rhythmic feel of this track is forever there. The music forms a canvas. It makes the vocal performances in each half of the song shoot to paint something that matters.
Unplugged - Nov 8th Commentary's first half of vocals try to follow in the realm of Nina Simone's blueprint sonically. I thought it could have been an altered sample, until I heard the lingo. The lyrics detach us from the election. In a very calming, almost ascending demeanor, Michael Anthony puts things at ease. I thought his vocals raise us just above what happened a bit. I love the calm right before TheMIND's storm.
TheMIND truly snaps here! This is when Unplugged catches wind of its poetic legs. His verse runs like a soliloquy to a crowd he only sees shrouded in darkness. His untamed flow, the instrumental's infusion of horns blaring with passion, lyrically contrasting this election to a Shakespearean "comedy turned tragedy" sums up our feelings. TheMIND sorta dissolves the reliance on political parties in two minutes of soapboxing. His "flood of emails" line is a cold double entendre that releases some stress now that this thing is over. But his final cry to wake Huey up is powerful. That plea for a black leader of his magnitude and importance cut deep. It's my favorite moment in the song.
Michael Anthony and TheMIND made a forward moving song for where we currently are in time. Musically, it's damn good. So good I'm asking the same question TheMIND did: Can we make this go viral?
Listen to Unplugged- Nov 8th Commentary below.
Lead Photo Cred: soundcloud.com
There is an overbearing wave of confusion. A looming cloud of disappointment is present above us all who believed we'd be witnessing the first woman president succeeding America's first black president. But America wouldn't allow a telling of that tale. That deep of a progressive uproot was too much of an unsalvageable peak to ascend to against the calls to "take their country back." So now, we are where we are.
And in the midst of sorting our emotions, venting pits of frustration over the results of a tiresome election, I look towards music to halt my invasive thought stew in an effort to help me begin to deal with what's faced in front of me. I listen for a settling of the mind. And I did so by plating what Michael Anthony and TheMIND cooked up.
Michael Anthony & TheMIND's Unplugged - Nov 8th Commentary is spoken word with a jazz score. The very first chord played in Unplugged sounds similar to the first chord struck in Jay's Change Clothes (courtesy of The Neptunes). It's something minor my musical ear connects to, but that group of notes, whether similar in placement or not, awaken the track in a unique way. Then the piano rips away into an improvised tangent. Unplugged's snare drums, hi-hats and bass drum tic tac and jiffy pop a high level of exuberance into the music. The rhythmic feel of this track is forever there. The music forms a canvas. It makes the vocal performances in each half of the song shoot to paint something that matters.
Unplugged - Nov 8th Commentary's first half of vocals try to follow in the realm of Nina Simone's blueprint sonically. I thought it could have been an altered sample, until I heard the lingo. The lyrics detach us from the election. In a very calming, almost ascending demeanor, Michael Anthony puts things at ease. I thought his vocals raise us just above what happened a bit. I love the calm right before TheMIND's storm.
TheMIND truly snaps here! This is when Unplugged catches wind of its poetic legs. His verse runs like a soliloquy to a crowd he only sees shrouded in darkness. His untamed flow, the instrumental's infusion of horns blaring with passion, lyrically contrasting this election to a Shakespearean "comedy turned tragedy" sums up our feelings. TheMIND sorta dissolves the reliance on political parties in two minutes of soapboxing. His "flood of emails" line is a cold double entendre that releases some stress now that this thing is over. But his final cry to wake Huey up is powerful. That plea for a black leader of his magnitude and importance cut deep. It's my favorite moment in the song.
Michael Anthony and TheMIND made a forward moving song for where we currently are in time. Musically, it's damn good. So good I'm asking the same question TheMIND did: Can we make this go viral?
Listen to Unplugged- Nov 8th Commentary below.
Lead Photo Cred: soundcloud.com
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