IN WHICH a particularly geeky form of music is celebrated, and a cinematic paean to the Great Detective is underwhelming.
Briana's pick: Nerdcore Rising
For every musical genre there exists a series of related subgenres followed by another group of sub-subgenres only to be dragged down further by sub-sub-subgenres (continue). For example, no-fi is a sub-sub-subgenre of lo-fi which is a sub-subgenre of indie rock which is a subgenre of the genre that is rock. You could spend a lifetime arguing over the classification of music. And just when you thought you had rock and jazz sorted out, along came the rap music. And with it came its own series of types and genre. Not the least of which is a little something called NERDCORE HIP-HOP.
Simply put, nerdcore hip-hop is a type of rap music that appeals to nerds. Whether it be the subject matter (science, video games, comics), the sound (chiptune/8-bit sampling), or the look (glasses, ill-fitting T’s, a severe lack of gold chains), nerdcore is taking the hip-hop world by storm!!!!!!!! Uh, not really. But they do have their own documentary now. Nerdcore Rising came out on DVD last year and it’s a pretty good starting point if you want to know what the genre is all about. The doc focuses on the first cross-country tour of ‘the godfather of nerdcore,” MC Frontalot.
Singing his praises are co-nerdcore artists Optimus Rhyme, MC Lars, mc chris, and DJ Baddd Spellah. All star hip-hop producers J-Live and Prince Paul ring in on the genre as well. Nerdcore is the new kid on the hip-hop block. But strip away the bad dance moves, songs about gaming, and other stereotypical nerd related topics, and you will find a repeating scenario. At its core, this is a documentary about an independent band learning to get by (and get successful) in the big bad world of music. And to be honest, MC Frontalot is pretty good at it.
James' diss: "Sherlock Holmes"
Something happened a few weeks ago that I truly never thought I would see: Sherlock Holmes was the subject of a big-time Hollywood blockbuster movie.
You see, I've been into the Great Detective for pretty much all of my life. I've blogged about Holmes and related topics for years. I've spent more money than I care to remember on eBay on Sherlock collectibles and books and pipes and comics.
It is precisely my love for the character and the canon that makes me not the target audience for the Robert Downey Jr. version.
[podcast]http://archive.wfpk.org/Podcasts/20100108-nerdy.mp3[/podcast]