September
can be considered a tumultuous time for people. Farmers having to get
their crops off the field before the first killer frost, businesses
getting ready for the big shopping rush and for children, they have
to go back to school. This years main course; Language Arts. It's
teacher, Random a.k.a Mega Ran. Listen up children because class is
now in session.
Language
Arts volume 1 is the brainchild of Raheem Jarbo a.k.a Mega Ran and he
mixes his three passions of gaming, teaching and nerdcore into one
solid package. The rhymes on the album are a mix slow, soulful lyrics
like City of Angels, goofy and fun like Wake Up and the surreal such
as Buggin. Being the teacher, Buggin is a retelling of the famed
Kafka novella The Metamorphosis.
The
album both begins and ends with narration by Kyle Hebert (channelling
his DBZ narrator role perfectly) giving a synopsis of what has
happened and what's to come. His narration is a perfect fit as an
introduction to the Language Arts story. Hebert is not the only
person to lend his voice. Other prolific nerd-core artist such as MC
Frontalot also bring cameo lyrics.
The
story so far is that Raheem Jarbo (loosely based on Mega Ran himself)
is a struggling teacher in the roughest part of town. By day he is
teaching the kids the classics such as Kafka while by night he is a
struggling musician, trying to make a name for himself. However,
trouble is brewing in the distance as a brand new game is pulling
kids from school. With kids dropping out to play this game, people
start to believe that “Mr J” may not be suited to be a teacher.
It is up to him to bring the kids back to class.
Of
all the songs on the album, I find myself going back to City of
Angels. It is an incredibly beautifully soulful song. This song shows
the spiritual side of the main character. He wants to make his life
better. He has dreams of getting out of this part of the city and
ensure his girlfriend and his mother's safety and security. Where he
doesn't have to fear for hoodlums breaking into his place. City of
Angels is by far the best song on the album, and dare I say one of
the best songs he has ever made.
At
the end of the CD Mega Ran delivers a brief Language Arts lesson in
his usual style. On song 11 of the CD (a song that doesn't play
during the game) he gives the listener a lesson on adjectives. This
song really showcases Mega Ran's ability as a teacher.
Mega
Ran has crafted a wonderful story here. While it is not exactly
original, he has given it enough of a unique spin for it to seem
appealing. Mega Ran's story telling is one of his strong suits and
the story of Language Arts is very gripping. You want to know what
happens next. Will Mr J win, or will the game win and force him to
give up on his dream. The only way to find is to tune in next time,
on Language Arts volume 2.
Final
thoughts? Get this album. Mega Ran has come a long way from his Mega
Man days. The beats are solid, and the story is quite solid. This is
a great buy if you are a fan of nerdcore. You can buy the CD at his
website or check out some of his other work over at his soundcloud page..
Next
week, I am visiting Shibuya to play a game. Will I win, or will I
lose my soul to the Reapers? This is Daimo Mac and I am lost in the
music.
~~~
Follow
me on Twitter @lostwiththmusic or email me at
lostwithmusic@gmail.com.
~~~
One
more thing. For those of you who are aware, Ashleigh Ball (of My
Little Pony: Friendship is Magic) has a band called Hey Ocean (which
Predates MLP : FiM by a few years) and would like to do a World Tour.
To do so, they have started a Kickstarter to make their dream a
reality. Their music is really good and I would love to see these
guys on tour. If you can please donate. You can find their
Kickstarter page here.
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