Crib Notes

Ike Turner, one of the inventors of rock ‘n’ roll, passed away Wednesday, Dec. 12 at the age of 76. I wanted to post something here because I was disgusted by the arms-length coverage the media accorded him, and the way they focused almost exclusively on his monstrous reputation as an abusive husband to Tina Turner.

Considering how bad he came off in Tina’s book, I, Tina, and the nasty rendering of that book in the 1993 movie What’s Love Got to Do With It, it’s not surprising that people would rather just acknowledge his passing and forget about him. Still, I expected more of august publications such as the New York Times, which turned Turner’s death into a referendum, asking, “Should we forgive him”? (To be fair, the Times also published a thoughtful memoriam by Jon Pareles.) The real question, though, is do we need to forgive Turner to appreciate his music?

I planned for this post to be a protest, a way to shed light on Turner’s real achievements. Unfortunately, I don’t know much about Turner’s history. Like everyone else, my knowledge of him solely consists of a classic single, 1951’s “Rocket ‘88,” perhaps the first rock ‘n’ roll song ever recorded; and his broad caricature in What’s Love Got to Do With It. I’m unequipped to combat any of the stereotypes held against him.

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It’s been awhile since Atlanta was consumed with lust for all things Drive-By Truckers, the kind of frenzy former CL editor Tony Ware alluded to in a Nov. 30, 2005, edition of his late, lamented RedEye column. “The Drive-By Truckers look at something internal and eternal in the South and Southern rock; the songs explore how good men can do bad things but bad things don’t have to overtake good men,” he wrote.

Too bad the Truckers’ last album, 2006’s A Blessing and a Curse, didn’t generate the same kind of passion from its fans. I thought the album was fine material, but it drew some criticism for being too mainstream Americana and not containing enough awe-inspiring Dirty South-sized visions.

Hell, I almost completely forgot that the band released a covers album with the great Bettye LaVette, The Scene of the Crime, earlier this fall. Judging from the dearth of local press, I’m not the only one, either. The Recording Academy did not, however, since it earned a 2008 Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album.

So let the band’s upcoming opus, Brighter Than Creation’s Dark, be a reminder of the great Truckers’ considerable powers. It comes out via New West Records Jan. 22, just like the new albums from the Selmanaires, Anna Kramer and the Lost Cause, and the Whigs. Read the track listing below.

Perhaps mindful of the aforementioned criticism, the Athens band has excluded Atlanta from the first round of dates for its tour next year. You’ll have to drive an hour-and-a-half to Athens to see them on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 11-12, at the 40 Watt. Boo-hoo!
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Many people within Atlanta’s indie hip-hop world already know that Arc the Finger Records no longer exists. After putting out three albums in 2006 (Cadillac Jones, Collective Efforts and Intellekt & Dirty Digits), the label has been inactive all year. It seemed like it would return once its owners, Brian Knott and Kevin Elphick, reorganized the business. Instead, Arc the Finger Records is officially finished.

Casual readers of Crib Notes may not understand how important Arc the Finger Records was to Atlanta. When I moved here two years ago, Arc the Finger was the only game in town, and the only label consistently mounting quality shows. (Peace to Dropbombz and 4 Kings Entertainment.) Its roster — Psyche Origami, Collective Efforts, Minamina Goodsong and, momentarily, Intellekt & Dirty Digits — was the best of the city’s backpack crop.

But at the dawn of 2008, the backpack era is ending. Proton, Supreeme, Gripplyaz and Yelawolf, all former outcasts in the sometimes conservative indie-rap scene, have put in major work this year, performing dozens of local gigs and cranking out mixtapes. Along with them, and a new wave of artists, including the Dreamer, Clan Destined, Stacy Epps (who just moved back from L.A.), Mojo Swagger and many others, have created a fresh and provocative underground hip-hop scene unencumbered by expectations of keeping it real or rejecting the ever-present mainstream.

Knott acknowledged as much when I conducted an interview with him last week. “As a record label, when I think about our legacy, what we accomplished was to define a specific era in Atlanta underground hip-hop,” he told me. “As this year ends, and our record label’s done putting out those records, now we’re curious as to who will define this next era of what comes out of here.”

Yes, it appears that underground hip-hop is finally coming back and reinventing itself. But don’t forget that Arc the Finger kept the scene alive when it was at its weakest point and, to be frank, a lot of those aforementioned acts were sitting on their ass and not doing shows. Love it or hate it, the label made its mark in local rap history.

Initially, my conversation with Knott was not only going to include details of ATF’s demise, but a preview of the upcoming A3C Festival, which takes place March 20-22 at the CW Atlanta complex. However, Knott says he has some exciting news about the festival, and he can’t reveal the official details until sometime during the next several days.

So this interview is split into two installments. The first covers Arc the Finger. I’ll post part 2, which encompasses A3C, when Knott is ready to make the announcement.

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(photo by Brian Crumb)

Georgia State University’s acclaimed college station Album 88 (WRAS-FM 88.5) caps another year of programming with the musical showcase WRASFEST. Previous editions have featured buzz bands such as the Selmanaires and Deerhunter. The 2007 installment ventures outside of Album 88’s traditional indie-rock pastures for a more eclectic lineup featuring avant-garde soul starlet Janelle Monae, funky-breaks ensemble Cadillac Jones (pictured), experimental punk trio Chopper, rap group Clan Destined and organic-electronic crew Random Rabbit, among others, Fri., DEC. 14. $8. 7 p.m. Eyedrum, 290 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Suite 8. 404-522-0655. www.eyedrum.org.

For more See & Do, click here.

For the Sound Menu, click here.

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(photo by United Talent Agency)

CAFÉ TACUBA may be the best indie-pop band you’ve never heard, but that doesn’t keep the Mexican quartet from selling out large theaters around the country and packing them with multicultural audiences. The group’s following includes everyone from Spanish-speaking fans who can recite all the lyrics to English-speaking fans who simply love the music. The key to Café Tacuba’s success is a series of brilliant albums, including 2004’s Cuatro Caminos. A tour for its new album, Sino, lands at the Masquerade Thurs., DEC. 13. $30. 8 p.m. 695 North Ave. 404-577-8178. www.masq.com.

For more See & Do, click here.

For CL’s Sound Menu, click here.

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It’s been four years since Lil Jon released Crunk Juice, and more than a year since his “Snap Yo Fingers” single with E-40 dominated the airwaves. We’re still waiting for that long-delayed Crunk Rock album, but Lil Jon hasn’t been completely absent from the charts. He gave California pop-rapper Baby Bash’s “Cyclone” the Lil Jon treatment. (T-Pain’s on it, too.) It hasn’t gotten much local airplay, but kids elsewhere seem to love it, and it’s on the Billboard top 10 singles chart.

If pop rap isn’t your thing, then you can watch Lil Jon narrate an episode of “AE Winter Tales,” a series of claymation short films on apparel manufacturer American Eagle Outfitters’ website. He lends his distinctively crusty voice to “Snowman,” a cute tale about a snowman who comes alive and chases after a bunch of kids. And no, the Snowman doesn’t look like Lil Jon. You can watch the video here.

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Last weekend on V-103, Jermaine Dupri announced that he was bringing the Jackson 5 to his Studio 72 club for New Year’s Eve. The news seemed too fantastic to be true. THE Jackson 5? Jackie, Jermaine, Tito, Marlon and Michael? What about Randy?

Yes, the world-famous Jackson brothers plan to perform together for the first time since the Victory tour in 1985. Thank Jermaine’s boo Janet Jackson for the honor. Tickets start at $100, but buy cautiously: Michael might choose to stay in Bahrain.

Visit gossip queen Sandra Rose’s site for more on the announcement.

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DJ KLEVER (LEFT) AND TITTSWORTH: Don’t stop believin’.

(photos copyright the Midnight Socialite)

After turning the Royal from a second-string contestant for celebrity photo-ops into a favored hangout for Atlanta’s ’80s babies, Sloppy Seconds has moved to MJQ, and will now happen there the second Saturday of every month. Last Saturday, Dec. 8, event svengali Caleb Gauge brought his star client, DJ Klever (whom he manages), and Washington, D.C.’s Tittsworth for the first installment. The two turntablists party rocked on four Serato-powered turntables, and flew from Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” to Three 6 Mafia’s “Stay Fly.”

Freelance party photographer the Midnight Socialite, whom Rodney Carmichael spoke to for CL’s Oct. 4 issue, took a few photos of the party. Check out the flicks below, and then visit the Midnight Socialite’s website for an extended look at his work.

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(photo courtesy J-Pat Management)

Take a good look at this guy. Doesn’t he look like Usher?

Actually, it’s James “JLack” Lackey, Usher’s younger brother. But the 22-year-old kid isn’t trying to be the Solange Knowles in the family (at least not yet); he’s establishing himself as the latest hit-making producer from the ATL. He scored his first credit on Usher’s “Confessions,” and his first major hit with Lloyd’s sweet “Get It Shawty.” He just signed a publishing deal with EMI, and upcoming projects include Usher’s long-awaited new album, of course.

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(cover art by Dubelyoo)

In the cinematic epic The Player, Sydney Pollack’s Dick Mellon character identified new jack Larry Levi as a “comer,” someone who gets all in your face. That’s how I would describe DJ Wreckineyez. Dude just moved here from Springfield, Mass., but in the past two months, I’ve seen him everywhere, from Fadia Kader’s Broke N’ Boujee party to the DJ Drama blowout at MJQ.

Wreckineyez’s sets are usually marked by a lot of predictable old-school and mainstream hits speckled with a few rarities and jaw-dropping blends that keep cranky old fools like me interested. But on his new mixtape, Soul Edition Vol. 2, he goes a little deeper. Hosted by Phonte from Little Brother, it finds him flipping through future soul cuts from Oddisee, Ta’raach, Flying Lotus, Sa-Ra and others. Anything with Flying Lotus on it is fine with me. And yep, Nicolay & Kay’s “Tight Eyes” is on it, too. Good stuff.

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When I posted an item about Crime Mob on Nov. 26, I didn’t know the group would seemingly collapse mere days later. I noticed on Crime Mob’s MySpace page that a link to Diamond’s personal MySpace page had been removed. (It has since been put back.) But who could have predicted that the lady tiger with the blond tresses was in the process of getting kicked out?

According to a Nov. 30 story on AllHipHop.com, Diamond has split. She signed a production deal with Polo Grounds Music, an Atlanta-based management company.

Diamond and Crime Mob have been at the center of the rumor mills this week, following an informal announcement at the Dirty Awards that she was no longer a member of the group.

Though she was first to speak on the situation, Diamond says the decision to have her leave Crime Mob was not her own.

“The whole idea was brought to my attention by the group,” Diamond stated, speaking exclusively to AllHipHop.com. “[But] I feel like it’s the best decision to make because now I’m able to take [advantage] of the choices and opportunities that was presented in front of me the whole time while I was in the group, and not feel like I’m being disloyal to the group or being held back.”

It’s disappointing that Crime Mob is falling apart. In a weak year for ATL commercial rap, the Bankhead teenagers were the only ones who actually delivered a solid album, Hated on Mostly. And I was genuinely looking forward to the Diamond & Princess album. But it seems like BME didn’t know how to reach the teenage market that loved “Rock Yo Hips” and, in search for more opportunities, the crew is splintering.

Cyco Black, Princess and MIG say they’ll continue on as Crime Mob, but with Diamond’s departure they’ll lose an integral part of their appeal — those two-part female chants that got the club crunk. Too bad.

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The Dream

(photo courtesy Island Def Jam)

The Recording Academy announced the nominees for the 2007 Grammy Awards Thursday. Over the past few years, the Grammy Awards have been a reflection of the Atlanta urban-music industry’s commercial dominance, both here and around the world. That was particularly true in 2004, when OutKast won Album of the Year for Speakerboxxx/The Love Below.

But in 2007, that’s not necessarily the case. In Atlanta, the big story has been the rise of the city’s underground music scene, from well-documented bands such as Deerhunter and the Black Lips to innovative soul artists such as Janelle Monae, Donnie and Anthony David. Of course, none of those artists sold enough records to get the Recording Academy’s attention.

However, the Grammy noms reflect a few important trends. Regardless of one’s thoughts on his recent legal troubles, T.I. remains a tremendously talented and compelling artist. The ringtone rap phenomenon continues to generate stars such as Soulja Boy and the Shop Boyz. And with some of the industry’s most talented songwriters, producers, musicians and engineers living here, studio veterans such as Aldrin “DJ Toomp” Davis, Christopher “Tricky ” Stewart and Terius “the Dream” Nash are making key contributions to the biggest records.

Most of the major artists on the Atlanta front, including Ludacris, Usher, India.Arie, and OutKast didn’t put out albums this year. As a result, behind-the-scenes players held down the major categories. DJ Toomp got several nominations for his assists on Kanye West’s Graduation, including Album of the Year. Tricky Stewart earned Record of the Year and Song of the Year nominations for co-producing Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” and the Dream got a Song of the Year nomination, too, for writing the “Umbrella” lyrics.

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Pimp C, one-half of Southern rap pioneer Underground Kingz, was found dead early this morning in an L.A. hotel room. The cause of his death has yet to be determined. He was 33.

Based in Houston, Texas, UGK — rapper/producer Pimp C and rapper Bun B — was one of the first Southern rap groups to have a major impact. Its 1993 single “Pocket Full of Stones” was included on the Menace II Society soundtrack, and subsequently became a national underground hit. A 1996 album, Ridin&#