Wu Review

Okay, I'm damn sick of writing about the Wu Tang Clan now. Still and all, I posted like a mahf about this show so I know I gotta run it down for my people.

The Habs and the good people at Boreale warmed up the crowd - well, me and my crowd - so I got to the venue in time to take a leak and walk down to the bar, at which point the DJ on stage was yammering on about something or other. I guess he was introducing the show, because within about 15 seconds all these cats swarmed the stage and the opening bars of Nuthing Ta Fuk Wit kicked in on the speakers.

K...there's 4,5,6....wait...5 again...4. Hardly a Clan. Who we got up here? There's Rae...GZA I see you...U-God, I know you're in the building...is that Deck? Nah wait. Masta Killa. Hmm. But...

Shit was ill from the get-go. For once the sound people at Metropolis got it right. Hip hop has a bad habit of not making it past the monitors in that place so whoever was on the boards that night, let's get him/her back next time.

The half of Wu Tang that bothered showing up at least brought their B + game. Genius looked a little beat, and Masta Killa barely did shit, but they all delivered on their respective times to shine. U-God stole the show as far as solo material was concerned, playing a ton of new joints and getting a great reaction. GZA was the man of the hour with all the solo clasics you coulda wanted (at least, the ones from Liquid Swords).

I gotta say, the high points of the show for me were when Raekwon decided to spit a bunch of inflammatory comments at the crowd, and then again later when he totally contradicted himself. Apparently if you have a family and a home you should own a gun and use it - but of course the Wu only preach peace. So..yeah. Amazing.

Also - and someone put this up on YouTube so see for yourself - Rae was the bearer of bad news: that Ghostface, Deck, etc., couldn't make it. Evidently customs are just awful. I don't buy that shit for a second, but you know, the four of them pulled it off. The show was tight, crazy hype, the crowd went off, and if you divide the cost of a $55 ticket you know you'd pay roughly $13.75 to see any of these guys live, so all things considered, they brought the muthafuckin ruckus.



An interesting contrast in expectations that evening: Montreal hockey fans, having just watched their team win game 7 of the first playoff round, rioted and set cop cars on fire on the west side of town. Meanwhile, Montreal Wu Tang fans (not that these are two mutually exclusive groups), having just been bilked of a couple of key members, went home happy and caused no bullshit whatsoever - although I did see the riot cops gearing up to go bust up the peaceful playoff celebration that was going on outside Metropolis.

So from now on I propose we blame society's ills on hockey and not hip hop, eh?

Wu-Tang Montreal: 11th Hour

Clan In Da Front


Within 48 hours of this post, we'll know how it all went down. Until then, things are looking fairly promising for Monday night's scheduled Wu-Tang Clan concert at Metropolis in Montreal.

The show is sold out, according to the official Facebook event page. Incidentally, someone on there is saying cameras won't be allowed. I wasn't gonna risk getting mine smashed to bits but if you read this, leave your technology at home. Let someone else be a YouTube hero. I'm looking forward to a show that doesn't have a goddamn press scrum taking up the first 5 rows.

RZA is not on the tour, and word has been out for a second now that Method Man isn't currently doing shows due to Hollywood obligations. Their show in NYC the other night went down, but how much of a stretch is it to get the Wu together in their own city? Still, be cautiously optimistic. It feels nicer.

People are all worried about who won't make it over the border, that type of thing, but the Wu have been in Toronto more than once. If any of them don't get to Montreal, it won't be because customs don't let them in. After 15 years in the game these guys have the resources to get their papers in order. This isn't '96.

Let's be very fucking honest here: we need Ghost, Rae and GZA, together under one roof, to make this one for the books. If they're in the building, they give Deck, Masta Killa and U-God added value plus interest. I got love for all these fools but for 60 bucks I wanna throw up the fullest Ws possible. Half a W is just one hand. What's the sound of one hand making Ws? Not even a V. Sheeit.

I bet Big Baby Jesus coulda done it though.

Have fun at the show. Play nice.

Buckshot Collabo W/Nelson Muntz

I dunno. I just...I just don't know. This would seem like a good idea to me, maybe, if I felt like I had money to piss away on nothing. Maybe for five minutes. Then I think I'd decide to spend my doll money on one of those videos with strippers and cars.

I hope there is some scheme afoot here other than Buckshot just owning Simpsons dolls. He can't even do the damn voices.

Anyways, him and 9th drop The Formula on April 22. More on that here.

The question of the day is this: what's he hitting at 0:19 in that Simpsons deal? Refer to scene at 1:09 before answering.

Time Keeps on Slippin', Slippin'

Hola fam, been a few days. It's been nice out so I've been risking the bombs and leaving the sheltah a little more often.

Actually that's not entirely true. Lotsa school stuff going down for the past week, and it's done now. Fully, officially finished. I think. But I should get a diploma in the mail some time this summer, so that feels aiight.


I started a journalism degree in 2003, peaced in 2006 when my young'un was born, and have only now just wrapped the bow around it. I mention this not because it's any kind of distinguished achievement (sure as fuck hasn't been for me) , but really to say that in 5 years, this blog is the first assignment I can say I've really loved being on for credit in j.school and I look forward to keeping it on an'poppin'.


That said, The Bombsheltah can also be a bit more of a shitshow now. School's out, children.


I'll talkatcha soon about something more interesting than myself.

Termanology Poppin' Off In '08

Term doin' his damn thang

Here's something to look forward to this year.

Ill Massachusets emcee Termanology is set to drop his debut Politics As Usual this year on NYC indie Nature Sounds, whose roster also includes underground champ RA the Rugged Man and hip hop demigod Pete Rock.

I only became aware of Term earlier this year due to his heavy involvement in Statik Selektah's Spell My Name Right LP (well worth copping, by the way). Termanology has skills for days and a number of pedigreed hip hop figures in his corner. His collabos on the
Selektah record prove him to be in league with some of rap's nicest.

I wish this was out now, I need something dope to listen to.

5 Canadian MCs to Check For

12 time Juno nominee J-Roc & crew


Yes yes yes. Spring is finally starting to kick winter's ass down the steps, and Quebecers have earned themselves a nice summer this year, Alhamdullilah.

Canadians don't realize sometimes that we're part of a significant minority of people on planet earth built to withstand the cold. After the winter we just had, be proud of yourselves. You can't buy that in stores. True north.

The next few guys I'm gonna mention do offer Canadian heat that you can, for the most part, actually purchase at fine retail outlets or online. Or, just go download I'm sure, if you promise to tell 10 friends*. So here, in a very deliberate and painstakingly precise order**, are the Top 5 Canadian MCs currently bruisin' mics.


*The Bombsheltah takes no responsibilty for you or your ten friends doin' dirt, see me?
**Untrue. This list is pure chaos. K-os, however, isn't on it.


1. Wordburglar


Wordburglar is this cat from Halifax. He has a record called Burglaritis. He's got some jokes and the beats are alright most of the time. Thing I'll say about the guy is that he's kinda the best of all kinda half interesting Canadian indie rappers rolled into one. I'm looking so hard at P&C right now.


2. The Narcicyst


Narcel X is a citizen of the planet. We're just lucky to have him count Montreal among places he calls home. Already a veteran of local hip hop in his mid-twenties, we'll be proud to have this man represent the city in all of his endeavours for a long time to come. Here's his blog and here's a free mixtape he put out recently, Stuck Between Iraq And A Hard Place Vol.2.


3. Shad K


From London, Ont., Shad has been making a name for himself for a minute, but the release of The Old Prince this year seems to be the real jumpoff. The beats are eclectic but highly listenable. Subject matter and talent are moving in tandem bar for bar. Good looks to fellow Londonite B.Greene for putting me on to Shad.


4. Wasun


Here's the thing with Wasun. Unless you're from Jane and Finch or the GTA you probably haven't heard of him yet. His debut EP, What Must Be Done might be hard to get your hands on, even. I don't know if he's even making music these days, but I certainly hope so.

We met in '06 when he came to town to see M-1 and network a bit. I love this cd. Listen to the stuff on his MySpace page. You'll hear the streets in a way you might not be used to from Canadian rap.


5. Cadence Weapon


Probably the guy with the most shine on this list, the gifted young Edmontonian runs back and forth across the country showin' off like Terry Fox. If you haven't heard Cadence Weapon yet go cheer him on the next time you see his name on a flyer. He's nice behind the boards and unique on the mic. See him on tour across Canada with Buck 65 and Skratch Bastid in the weeks to come.


If you're an mc somewhere up here in the Durty North, send me your stuff. Can't hurt. If I don't like it I'll leave it alone, but if it's good I'll mention it. Just a thought.

Wu-Tang Poll Update!

Pertaining to the question of whether or not the Wu-Tang Clan will make it to their Montreal date, we have some action. Three people think they'll be here, one person says maybe, another says no, and a sixth says never.

So, it's official: nobody reads this thing.

8 Things To Consider Hating

I don't have any real news today, but as I look around for something to write about so much stuff is aggravating that I'm just gonna list off the top 8 random things that I'm tired of reading about re: hip hop.


1. Kanye, Lupe and Pharrell's supergroup


Child Rebel Soldier ain't said shit yet but somehow there's a new story about them every day. The rumored collabo won't see the light of day until after '08, according to Lupe Fiasco.

A planned promotional campaign involving a gigantic three-headed robot hype machine is scheduled to pillage and then level your city sometime next fall. That oughta get the album pushed back until at least '10. 'Til then get your $80 ugly t-shirt while you can.


2.Rappers' reality shows


Flav, Ice T, Run, Snoop: Can't you all just pander to 10 year olds on wax like the rest of the rap world? I mean, there's sucking and then there's sucking. Snoop, which is working better for you?


3. Lil' Wayne


Enough already. Check out how bad this is. If that's not enough, the comments section almost made me check into music rehab. I swear hip hop is on some Flowers For Algernon shit.


4. Hip Hop Court Cases


Busta, T.I., Beanie Sigel, Prodigy, Remy Ma. Assault, guns, piss, guns, guns. I mean, so what? Meanwhile this F1 fool hires an army of hookers to treat him like a prison camp inmate and gets to give a press conference about it. Since he has a video maybe he'll just get a slap on the wrist.


5. Serato Haters


The future is so five minutes ago. Where does that leave you? In the Bronx with a flashlight ? How's that thing with your prostate going, by the way?



6. The Fif

Not to judge him on this story, because we don't know all the facts (and because there's plenty of other stuff to judge him for), but 50 could fly around the world on a sleigh giving out presents and I'd still wish him the worst. Just go away and make room for the up-and-coming talentless hacks. Speaking of which...



7. Flo-Rida


You fucking kidding me?


8. Jay-Z's Next Move


First he had the R.O.C.. Then he took over Def Jam for a minute. Rumours that he would move to Interscope were bogus. Then he was supposed to do something with Apple but that got deaded. Now it's this. Hey, uh...how about a fully decent record again? Remember those?


Alright. That's enought hating. Nothing but love for the next little while on The Bombsheltah.

R.I.P. Frosty Freeze

Mr. Freeze of the Rock Steady Crew passed away yesterday at age 44. Peace and blessings to his family, friends and fans. He left behind a legacy for sure, but 44 is too young. Rest in peace Freeze. Long illness is an understatement.