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page 22 the paper november 18, 2009 it shrugs its shoulders.” Easing the acerbity, she repeats these lines to end the record peace- fully, its storm having passed. With this consistent mix of tur- bulence and sweetness, Holy Ghost! sustains a simple rich- ness throughout, seamlessly meandering between folk and soul, fast and slow, and melan- choly and playful. LIL’ WAYNE No Ceilings by Alex Blalock “Okay! No ceilings! Moth- er fucker good mornin’! Dick in your mouth while you’re yawnin’, I’m goin’ in!” These opening lines off the track Namaste. We’re back to 33 unreleased tracks by artists of course, the timeless 3/4-4/4 of strings culminate as Laura “Watch My Shoes” set the normal here at the ‘Wax, and (some famous, others not so polyrhythm. This is cultural ap- tests her larynx’s limits by the mood for Lil’ Wayne’s newest because Fearwax had no new much) primarily in the Highlife propriation done right: a blend- chorus. Punctuated pauses dra- mixtape, No Ceilings. Sched- releases, we have a backlog of genre. Highlife is a combination ing of all of the best bits of the matize her voice as it trills up- uled to drop on Halloween, the new material to get to. Yours of traditional African music and popular musical lexicon of the wards, and violins whine with mixtape was leaked on sites truly staked claim to the lead American funk with a distinctly time rolled up into one neat and a guitar riff that seems to tell such as Datpiff and Biggy Jiggy article this time around, re- Afro-Cuban sentimentality. It’s highly enjoyable package that a secret. Having settled down, Mixtapes, giving anxious fans viewing some fantastic African a little more midtempo than the is somehow able to remain dis- the distortion kicks back in with like myself the opportunity to music from the 60’s and 70’s. faster, more aggressive funk of tinctly African. trombones and trumpets in a eu- hear Wayne’s fi rst mixtape in Also, we have reviews of indie Fela Kuti or Orchestre Poly- phonic ruckus. The song reach- over almost two years. An- folksters Laura Stevenson and Rhythmo but still danceable in es an emotional climax as the ticipating greatness after hear- The Cans’ new effort as well every sense. instrumentation explodes with ing singles such as “Wasted,” as recently convicted ‘martian’ The musicianship on this the lyrics and then fades out. “Swag Surfi n,” and “Run This Lil’ Wayne’s newest mixtape. compilation is of the highest Following more gently, the Town” which seemed to go Indie rocker Bradford Cox’s level. The drumming is perfect- title track begins with spectral harder than any of the tracks we fairly awesome solo project At- ly metronomic, the guitar solos slurs that provide the white heard on Lil’ Wayne’s last mix- las Sound is also featured, and are precise and varied, and the noise against which Laura be- tape Da Drought 3 (hailed as the although I haven’t listened to vocal harmonizing is pitch per- gins her solemn prayer: “Oh best mixtape in 2007 by MTV it myself, the album cover fea- fect. On “Bofoo Beye Abowa dear lord, I can feel your claws LAURA STEVENSON AND news), No Ceilings surely deliv- tures Cox shirtless, exposing Den,” St. Peter & The Holy- upon me / scratching sweet- THE CANS ers. Working off of the theme his pretty bad case of Pectum men put together a wonderfully ly, scratching sweetly, in the Holy Ghost! “your beat ain’t safe,” a mes- Excavatum, which is probably calming and lighthearted tune, middle of the night.” She hums by Sarah Madges sage Lil’ Wayne sends to art- indicative of its general weird- and although I am not fl uent in her hymn soulfully with violin ists in the track “Outro,” Wayne ness. Lastly, African globe Akan, I can only surmise that accompaniment, and her voice A self-proclaimed “nervous demonstrates his lyrical genius trotters BLK JKS get the once whatever they are singing about makes glissandos as smooth as brand of soul metal,” Laura Ste- by rapping over beats by Gucci over. Happy reading! is as happy and carefree as the the strings. She pleads, “Make venson and The Cans produce Mane, The Black Eyes Peas, melody. Well, as the old adage it alright,” over and over, al- GHANA SPECIAL much more than sophomoric tit- Lady Gaga, and Jay-Z, to name goes, music is the universal lan- though she sounds less desper- Modern Highlife, Afro-Sounds ters about Laura Stevenson and a few. guage, and fl uency is simply a ate than hopeful. A fuzzy guitar & Ghanaian Blues 1968-81 “Her Cans.” Born in Brooklyn But let’s be real here, the matter of allowing oneself to get kicks in with the strings and in 1984, sing- beats Wayne raps over are not by Lenny Raney carried away in it. drums while a er-songwriter what make him great. What Speaking of language, there second vocal- Laura is now makes Lil’ Wayne “the best rap- Last semester, I wrote an ar- are several songs featured in ist joins her en- busy being per alive” is his unique approach ticle for the Arts section about Ghana Special that are sung in treaty until the adorable in to music, as well as the similes, the vibrant West African music English. Amongst them include song ends as Long Island. metaphors, and illogical twists scene in the 60’s and 70’s, fea- “Them Go Talk of You” by The softly and mys- Though her and turns which culminate to turing such luminaries as Ni- Cutlass Dance Band, “You Can teriously as it second record form his utterly indescribable geria’s Fela Kuti and Benin’s Go” by The Bokoor Band, and began. release, on lyrics. First time listeners might Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de “I Go Die For You” by Kyer- The last October 20th, be tempted to describe Wayne’s Cotonou. I explained the con- emateng Atwede. It’s a little bit track, “Gather- Holy Ghost!, music as “random,” but I urge cept of polyrhythm and its roots off-putting at fi rst to listen to ing and Leap- might at fi rst those listeners to pay closer at- in the African cultural tradition. English lyrics sung in a thick ing,” compo- glance diverge from the collec- tention to his lyrics (or Lyrics. More pertinent to this review, African accent over distinctly sitionally borrows from both tive, Bomb the Music Industry!, com his songs) and understand however, I also baited the no- African rhythms, but it is im- of those gerunds as it gathers for which she plays keyboard, that yes, what Wayne is saying tion that this renewed interest in portant to note that the offi cial speed and makes leaps. Begin- the liner notes prove otherwise. may be random, but it’s smart. the West African musical output language of Ghana is, in fact, ning with an eerie overdrive Offi cially released November Wayne’s lyrics are creative and of the second half of the 20th English. like the quiet before a storm, an 13th on Mandible Records, intelligent and form verses that century would bear some deli- This is almost a microcosm enlivened guitar starts strum- the new 7” was recorded this make sense in a way no other cious fruit as of the plural- ming, while violins and drums past June by Jeff Rosenstock MC’s ever could. Weezy com- more time and istic leanings assist the vivace march of a sea of BTMI! In fact, “The Cans” mands listeners with the open- resources were of this sort of shanty. Laura’s voice loses its originally consisted primarily of ing lines in his remix of “Run spent scour- music, as this saccharine tinge as it bends air- BTMI! members, though there This Town,” rapping, “Nigga ing the conti- genre wears waves like the heavy wind she are now a few extras who lend a we are so ready for the war. nent. Well, I’m its vast infl u- sings about. At the chorus, the certain orchestral richness to the ‘C-A-R-T-E-R’ / put the beat happy to report ences on its tempo slows so that the guitar’s three songs. in ER / I’m colder than ‘B-R,’ that I was right. sleeve. From pizzicatos highlight her voice’s “Mouthbreather” opens with add another 3 R’s / Watch me The sec- one song to an- ability to weaken without losing Laura’s distorted guitar tickling like D-V-D, V-C-R. Pump to ond in a se- other you may impact. An accordion blends out arpeggios as her girl-next- your chest / I ain’t talkin’ CPR ries of African hear a jazz or- with violins to guide us back door voice swells in sweetness / Ridin’ this track like a mutha compilations gan, waltz time to the up-down strokes of both and volume. The sparse instru- fucking streetcar / New Orleans by Soundway signature, a salsa-tinged piano her voice and guitar as she spits, mentation gradually thickens; coroner/ His name is Frank Records, Ghana Special is a solo, a balls-to-the-wall elec- “We rearrange the streets in our the whisper of cymbals, whistle Minyard. Fuck with me wrong / wonderfully deep collection of tric guitar shred session, and, favor so that as we grow older / of horns, and fi nally the breath you’ll be waking up in his yard.” november 18, 2009 the paper page 23 While rhymes off this track and on the Radio.

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