treats
 G21 AFRICA:
AFROBEAT
PART 1 OF 2
NTONE EDJABE
 "To take part in the African revolution it is not enough to write a revolutionary song; you must fashion the revolution with the people. And if you fashion it with the people, the songs will come by themselves, and of themselves."
The deep voice of Sekou Toure announces my arrival behind the decks at the Curve in Observatory, Cape Town. A strange place, this Curve. A darkie vibe in a joint owned and frequented by whities who feel there should be a darkie vibe in their neighbourhood. On a weekly basis these friendly cats get to hear two of the voices most feared by their grandparents as I open my gig. Toure's baritone and an excerpt of Kwame Nkrumah welcoming African freedom fighters at the Accra Conference in June 1962.
Then comes the gong, reminiscent of the Far Eastern intonations at the end of Stevie Wonder's "Pastime Paradise. It is followed by a Yoruba war cry coming from the depths of Abeokuta, Nigeria. ... More
IRISH EYES:
BLEEP
MATTIE LENNON
Among my other qualities is a lack of auricular sensitivity to distinguish between certain high-frequency sounds. Not so long ago only bleepers bleeped. A bleep meant that an anaesthetist was being summoned to theatre, an upmarket husband was to collect the laundry or an interviewee had blurted out an expletive on the BBC.
Now everything bleeps.
The other day I just extracted my mobile phone in time to see an ageing yuppie setting the alarm on his BMW.
I blamed my amnesia for the "urgent" bleeping in the house: had I forgotten to switch off the frying pan and set the smoke alarm mad? No. My son had wiped out half of Berlin in a war-game.
If you thought that your neighbour was being burgled at 3 A.M. only to find a truck reversing it wouldn't enhance your humour..... More
POWERSSOUND:
Post-Punk Pop Rock from Poland
BOB POWERS
Americans tend to believe that rock can be good only if it's created in one of the 50 states. But a new album from a Polish group called Happy Pills (are you smiling yet?) demonstrates conclusively that rock need not suffer from exclusivity to the U.S.A.
According to the publicity packet that came with this release, "Happy Pills use the past as launch-pad to shine a revitalizing new light on indie rock." The band, together since 1993, has won every award known to the Polish nation. The group isn't impressed with awards, with singer Agi Morawska commenting, "We are doing what we like and if people like it, that's great. If journalists like it, who gives a f---!"
The band has been visiting the U.S., seeking to make an impression. The new album, "Smile" (Tamizdat) offers a satisfying taste of the group. The music is happy and should be enticing to today's rockers.... More
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THE SEX COLUMN:
Porn Wars
CHARLIE THE TUNA
 This week I'm gonnah take a page from my old friend and G21 alumnus JEFF WINBUSH of the Vanessa del Rio get fame. Jeff used to like to spice up these pages by reporting on the ins-and-outs (so to speak) of the porn industry. An interesting obsession, if you're of a TunaMan like mind.
In case you missed it, porn star Devinn Lane (pictured here) has just produced a new series for the Playboy Channel called "7 Lives Xposed." Devinn's real happy about it, but it seems her former roommate, a guy in LalaLand, El Lay, named Jeremy ain't. So he put up this Web site called icaughtthebitch.com to diss Devinn for havin' fake hooters. ... More [ADULT CONTENT]
RECOMMENDED DAILY REQUIREMENT: :
Welcome to Hard Times
RADIO RAHEEM
OAKTOWN, CALI - I was reading the San Francisco Chronicle the other day that over 500,000 folks have been laid off they jobs since the September 11th attack on this country. Then there was the House members of the US Congress scurrying away in fear from our national capitol the other week. Yeah, the terrorist attack had no effect on mighty America. Thangs are goin' on just like they always did. We are not injured or afraid.
So how come I know so many folks who are losing their jobs? How come I'm startin' to wonder if I'll be next, only months after tying the knot with my love, Tanya?... More
RDR 10.22.01: THOMAS HART joins punk cult musician Wesley Willis in saying "F--- With Me and FIND OUT!"
RDR 10.15.01: ROD AMIS turns to the foreign press to get logical analysis of America's Vendetta "War & Hell"
RDR 10.08.01: THOMAS HART laughs about the Dubya's notion of "Spending Out of Debt?"
MEMOIRS OF THE INFORMATION AGE:
SSDD
ROD AMIS
In which our Editor looks at lack of customer satisfaction at Western Union's Web site; Edmunds.com's choice of the Mini Cooper as the most significant technological breakthrough in the auto industry this year; other developments varied and sundry.
"Di'n't you used to be a technology columnist?"
Yeah, me and about fifty other writers I know, before the Dot-com implosion last year. Now we write on other topics, when we can still find a paying publisher, or we dig ditches. That doesn't mean I'm not interested anymore, or that I don't still get items which expose the fun and frolic which characterize "The Information Age." (Remember that phrase?) So I've got a couple of items for your amusement and amazement this week, the first of which strikes close to home. Can you say "Western Union Online?".... More
MY GLASS HOUSE: :
All Saints Day/City of the Saints
ROD AMIS
 NEW ORLEANS - 28 October, 2001: Despite my dear friend Dragana's plea that I stay here in New Orleans, it's getting more difficult by the day. I can't seem to dig myself out of the hole here, no matter how hard I try. People who were born here, like my friend Carlos, and people who have lived here for years, like my roommate Caio, say that everybody is vetted by suffering when first acclimating themselves to this town. But I've given it months now and the old college try. I've started to apply for jobs in real American cities. That paralegal job I thought I had supposedly sent me my paycheck --- FROM HERE IN NEW ORLEANS --- a week ago last Thursday. Know what? It hasn't arrived yet. Third World .
Oh yeah, the New Orleans Saints lost to the Atlanta Falcon last week. THE ATLANTA FALCONS! We're talking a team who had tanked in their last two games. The Falcons fans left the SuperDome talking Big Trash: "How you like me now, punks?"... More
This week we give you MichaeL because we're feeling retro. Your NEW G21 Easter Egg
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