Yoko Kanno, the composer behind anime such as Cowboy Bebop, Escaflowne, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, is currently working on a song for a non-profit cultural promotion.
And if you’re a male vocalist who’s 25 years old or younger, you’ve got an opportunity to join in on the project.
More details after the break.
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The youngish UniversalVGMusicians gets the spotlight for a bit in part 3, and we also examine what DIY and Paying Dues means to the fan remix scene in this conclusion to the special 3-part Spotlight series titled Remixed And Rearranged.
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Recap of Pop GO posts published on Jul. 27, 2012.
Opening
News
Reviews
Segments
361 plays
by Tech N9ne
album Everready (The Religion) (Collector's Edition)
Weekend Remix: Remix For A Rainy Day
Song: The Rain
By: Tech N9ne And Polyhedron
Based On: Rain From Cowboy Bebop
Original Composers: Yoko Kanno And The Seatbelts
Hip hop and nerd culture aren’t exactly strangers. Del The Funky Homosapien was rapping about his love for gaming through Proto Culture well before a certain Gorillaz tune introduced him to the popsphere. Artists like Akira The Don, MC Chris, and Adam Warrock are modern alchemists between hip-hop and geek/otaku subjects. And we’ll be here for a while if we discuss Wu-Tang Clan and their references to comic books and Kung-Fu flicks. Hip hop and nerd culture have often found themselves in front of each other, giving that approving “What’s Up?” head nod.
Tech N9ne’s The Rain has gone past the simple greeting with Cowboy Bebop’s Rain, and now the two are trading manga favorites while Midnight Marauders plays warmly in the background.
There’s a lot to love from their friendly union. Polyhedron’s sped up sample of the Yoko tune recalls early College Dropout era Kanye. Tech could easily get away with killing this beat with his ammunition of machine gun flow and wordplay. Instead, the artist takes it a step further by actually penning lyrics that detail the consequences of being a constant on-the-road entertainer. It’s here that you realize this isn’t just a dope song, it’s a song worthy of the original source.
Rain is a melancholy tune. It simply exhales a beautiful type of sadness. Whether it’s that chopped up organ or the conversation between Tech and his daughter on the second verse, the track still maintains the feel of the original. It’s just that there’s a different cause for the sadness.
If you’d like to hear more from Tech the Bad Season mixtape is probably a good place to start. As for Polyhedron, check out some of his production on these albums.
Until next weekend…GO Party!
“Cowboy Bebop” Play Arts Kai Figures
Looks like Square Enix is adding Cowboy Bebop to their Play Arts Kai Figures.
Pictured above are Spike Speigel and Vicious. These super jointed figures will be released this October and they probably won’t come cheap. Pricing could end up in the $80 range if you get from overseas, although the official U.S. price could drop. Spike comes with another pair hands and his pistol, while Vicious comes with his sword and bird.
You can catch more images of the figures at Tomopop.
[Tomopop]
Mash-Up Monday Presents: Cosby Bebop
Here we have a fun little mash-up of the classic Cowboy Bebop opening with audio clips of Bill Cosby. The video is done in the style of the opening sequence for the hit 90s anime and features the same track, ‘Tank’ by The Seatbelts.
Oh hey, FYI, a live-action Cowboy Bebop might still happen
That is, according to a not so sad Keanu Reeves in this very brief interview clip with MTV.
Short story even shorter: He’s had “some conversations” with people who are “still knocking on that door, but it has not opened.” Which in all likelihood means this movie probably won’t get made, but if it does, you should probably still expect Neo to play Spike Spiegel.
Opening Your Day: Cowboy Bebop
If the live action movie ever goes into production, maybe we’ll stop seeing Sad Keanu… maybe.
