Hangin' Out In 100b

This week we start off with some tragic news. Rock n Roll icon, Bo Diddley passed away at the age of 79. A lot of musicians, like members of Wilco, Franz Ferdinand and The Rolling Stones have already given tribute and praise to the legendary artist, who once rightly said that he ‘opened the door for a lot of people and they just ran through and left [him] holding the knob’.

I wish I could say the sad news ended there; As if Kurt Cobain’s memory hasn’t been soiled enough with those awful, tasteless, so-called tribute Converse, his ashes have been stolen out of Courtney Love’s home, where she’d stored them in a pink, bear-shaped handbag. OK first of all, I know I’m a total square for bringing this up, but were they out of urns, or what? And who the hell steals ashes?? That sets all new standards of low. Unless the perps (uhuh, I know the lingo, I watch two out of three CSIs) thought they were just stealing a bear-shaped handbag and what they got was a bag full of a Grunge icon’s remains.

Tricky came out with a new video for “Council Estate”. The song gets mixed reactions, but I really like it. It’s not the veiled, whispery, darkness we’re used from him; he shouts out his lyrics in this one, which gives it an alarming urgency. On top of that, he mixes Gene Krupa-type drums with a seventies rock melody for some extra edge. What’s not to like?

Here are some odd pairings: Hard Rock + theme park and Wu Tang Clan + chess. Let’s start with the least interesting of the two; Thanks to the Hard Rock franchise we can now, not only eat, drink, gamble and sleep, but also scream and ride, whilst immersed in all things Hard and Rocking. The Hard Rock Park is South Carolina’s latest tourist trap, it’s a Rock ‘n Roll theme park … Right. I don’t know what that means either, but I don’t really get why it’s exciting to eat your burger next to a display case filled with The Eagles’s platinum records, or Gene Simmons’ tongue, or Billy Corgan’s smugness in the first place.

The Wu Tang Clan started an online chess game for the hip hop/Kasparov fans out there. According to the site they created the ‘world’s first chess and Hip Hop community’, where you can get your learn on and flex ya mentals. I love it, it’s unexpected, but it might just give your local stuffy, sweater vest-y chess club a shot of cool. Who’d pass up the chance to play against The RZA, a long time fan of the game? Not The Tamboosh.

Well, that’s all the news I felt was worth reporting this week. The rest is all of the level of Amy Winehouse’s zany shenanigans. If she’s not playing with new born mice and her BFF Pete Doherty, she’s either in court standing by her man like a bee-hived Tammy Wynette clone, or canceling shows all across the land. Why that continues to be riveting is a mystery to me.

   Wu Tang Clan – Da Mystery Of Chessboxing