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Welcome To The Jason and The Beast Email List and Jasonandthebeast.com
Thanks for being here, as Jay-Z, in what I believe is his most thoughtful incarnation, has pointed out to his crowds, “You could be anywhere in the world, and you’re right here with me.”
It’s my belief that 99%of the people that come to underground hip-hop shows like ours are artists themselves or are in the process of becoming artists–to say nothing of the fact that they are uncommonly sexy artists. This is an asset to the community, and I look forward to co-creation within the Jason and the Beast fan base!
Of course, if you’re not interested in making your own songs, poems, apps, etc, I’m still very happy to have you here. The support and interest non-musicians have for hip-hop artists is invaluable to the survival of this music in its ongoing creative development.
To that end I’d like to invite all of you, to an upcoming show in the St. Louis area. Jason and The Beast will be appearing Saturday, June 16th at Johnny’s Sidebar at 109 E. Main St, in Collinsville, IL. We’ll go on at 10pm.
For those of you also interested creating songs, poems, apps, and more stayed tuned! I’m working on putting together how-to’s and interviews with other creators on these topics. But, in the mean time, here are a few links to get you started:
Ruth Gerson wrote a great article for the Huffington Post about how to start writing a song at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ruth-gerson/how-to-write-a-song-for-w_b_893649.html
Chad Mureta wrote one of the best introductions to the business of app creation for Tim Ferriss’ blog at: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2012/04/22/how-to-build-an-app-empire-can-you-create-the-next-instagram/#more-6688
Thanks,
Jason Braun
Jasonandthebeast.com
Link
Show Review of Jason and The Beast, Robb Steele, Bus Driver, and Buck 65
Show Review of Jason and The Beast, Robb Steele, Bus Driver, and Buck 65
Converging on the Firebird from the outer fringes of hip hop, Buck 65 andBusdriver, along with Robb Steele and Jason and the Beast, gave us proof that underground hip hop is still like the Wild West, full of pioneers and prospectors mining gold.
The first act of the night was Jason and the Beast, featuring Jason Braun (one of the hosts of 88.1 KDHX’s Literature for the Halibut) on vocals, Adam Sirgany on the saxophone and Matt Jones behind the turntables. Trying to label this trio with generic terms like “rap” or “hip hop” isn’t possible, as their set transcended the traditional norm and could have easily been a re-enactment of a Beat Generation-era poetry slam. I wondered the entire time if I should be snapping my fingers instead of clapping. Overall the set had a bit of a film noir feel and would have been equally at home in “The Maltese Falcon” or a Charles Bukowski reading.
Braun’s delivery was more like a spoken-word performance than a rap act, his timbre and cadence meshing well with the background music. His lyrics are poems that tell vivid tales of life, often drawing inspiration from classic literature and artists, such as Milton’s “Paradise Lost” and the photographs of Cindy Sherman. With his long hair and mustache, Sirgany looked like a young “Blue” Lou Marini while playing some fantastic runs on his baritone sax, creating a river of notes for Braun’s vocals to sail on. DJ Matt Jones created a great mood for the set. His scratches didn’t seem out of place given the atmosphere set by the sax and vocals, and he dropped some samples that were reminiscent of old 3rd Bass and Del the Funky Homosapien tracks.
Matt Champion Writes at KDHX.org
Me and Adam give a director’s commentary for, “Made This For You: The Mixtape As Literature.”
How it happened:
I wanted to do something special for the 2012 American Writers and Poets Conference (AWP), which was to be held in Chicago at the end of February. I conceived the project as a sort of audio guide to the present and future of literature, and on February 19th I went into Will Jones’ Yellow Hat Studios with the tracks for this album in sequence. Still, I was unsure if anyone else would dig the “mix tape” I had built out of three tracks from a finished album recorded over two years ago, three tracks from an unreleased album recorded a year ago, six tracks recorded two days prior to final production, and an assortment of sometimes candid and sometimes orchestrated audio clips of varying fidelity, which I whittled down from seven hours worth of iPod voice memos and radio show interviews. Determined to have a finished product before leaving St. Louis for the AWP, Will Jones and I completed the album at around 1:15AM on the 21st—just a week before the release and so close that it was yet to have its title, “Made This For You: The Mix Tape As Literature.” I want to show some love to Will for helping me pull this off. I’d like to add a special thanks to KDHX 88.1 and Sou’wester Literary Magazine if possible.
Track by track:
“Turning It On,” This first bit contains SIUE grad students and a professor at Stagger Inn, a short clip of Adam Sirgany’s (He’s an SIUE Graduate Student with Creative Writing Specialization.) Saxophone from Vince Café, and novelist Lloyd Kropp either from a selection of Literature for the Halibut or a recording I did of him at Sacred Grounds in Edwardsville.
“Inferno” is a retelling of Dante’s story with Eliot and Shakespeare thrown in for good measure. Emily Sudholt is singing the hook. (She interned at NASA, by the way.)
People that are somewhere in this track are: Will Jones, Jerry Hill/ DJ Uptown, Mic Boshans of Humdrum and Nee, Elaine Holtz, Dan Meehan of Humdrum, Dan McKenzie, Emily Sudholt, Josh Evans, Shae Moseley of Ghost in Light, Dustin Sendejas of Arts & Sciences, Jon Weiss of Arts & Sciences
“Ander Monson, I’m Losing You,” This was a section of a prerecorded interview. This section of the interview wasn’t aired on KDHX as his phone was cutting out. But Monson’s book, Other Electricities, has been described by Michael Martone as being, “Like Franklin’s discovery of the electricity we do know, Ander Monson’s luminous, galvanized book represents a paradigm shift. The frequencies of the novel have been scrambled and redefined by this elegant experiment.”
“Faust” self explanatory, right?
“Taking Shots At Legends: Bob Dylan Now Works For Cadillac,” This was a late night think tank featuring me in a bad mood about Bob Dylan. I love Freewheeling Bob Dylan, but do not love Cadillac. Neil C. Luke and Nate Fisher (SIUE Grad Student in Creative Writing) speak up for dear old Bob. I’m not especially proud of this moment. But this mix tape idea wasn’t about clipping moments where I’m proud of myself. There are plenty of moments where I’m on there stuttering, more on this later (if you ask).
“Overhearing Black Power Poems,” is a response to a reading the that the Eugene Redmond Writers Club put together at the Mo History Museum featuring Haki R. Madhubuti, Amiri Baraka, and my former SIUE professor Eugene Redmond. The track features SIUE Graduate Creative Writing Students Adam Sirgany on sax and David Rawson on bass.
“Adam Says It’s About Fame,” Adam Sirgany, Tim Harvey and me, running our mouths at Stagger Inn.
“The Thermodynamics Of Laundromats,” is a Dan Meehan original beat, we think. I sent it to him and he thinks he remembers recording it for me at my old place in St. Louis.
“Adam Doesn’t Save The World,” Adam Sirgany running his mouth at Stagger Inn.
“Matt Madden’s Dream Machine,” Artist and Author and Friend Matt Madden, exert from Literature for the Halibut.
“Giant Man, After Matt Kindt: Graphic Novel As Poem And Song,” Matt’s book is also becoming a movie, but there’s already an River Front Times story on that.
“How Many Purses David?” David Rawson runs his mouth at the Stagger Inn.
“Basquiat” is another massive track with all or most of these people: Will Jones, Jerry Hill/ DJ Uptown, Mic Boshans of Humdrum and Nee, Elaine Holtz, Dan Meehan of Humdrum, Dan McKenzie, Emily Sudholt, Josh Evans, Shae Moseley of Ghost in Light, Dustin Sendejas of Arts & Sciences, Jon Weiss of Arts & Sciences
“He Marries The Legless Woman,” Lloyd Kropp taken out of context in a recording of him I did at Sacred Grounds.
“The Fly,” Features Carl Pandolfi of The Lettuce Heads on drums and bass, and Adam Sirgany on sax.
“Extra,” Adam Sirgany, Tim Harvey and me, running our mouths at Stagger Inn.
“Reanimator” is a true story about this Scientist Mark Roth. (www.esquire.com/features/best-and-brightest-2008/bringing-back-the-dead-1208)
“Scott Phillips In French And Jedidiah Ayres In Laughter,” clipped from Literature for the Halibut.
“Alma Mater,” is me, the geese, and a memory.
“Is The Book Dead, Al Katkowsky?” is clipped from Literature for the Halibut.
“Lowdown Redhead Blues: How My Ex-Girlfriend Slept With Ryan Adams While I Was In L.A.” Also true story. Recorded live at Venice café with the iPhone in my pocket. Adam Sirgany and I had never played together before that night. We don’t know what that drummers name was, but we liked him, and still do.
“Dundee” is clipped from Literature for the Halibut.
“Faux Pas” Adam Sirgany on sax and David Rawson on bass.
“Really Creepy Breathy,” David Rawson runs his mouth at the Fine Dinning Hall at SIUE.
“Death By Blackhole,” is writing for astophysicist, Neil DeGrasse Tyson, who has a book by the same name. The track features Carl Pandolfi of The Lettuce Heads on drums, bass, and piano.
“Curtain Comes Down,” is Lloyd Kropp taken out of context in a recording of him I did at Sacred Grounds.
Jason Braun is Jason and The Beast. These are his friends who helped him on this:
Will Jones (Producer/ Engineer)
Jerry Hill/ DJ Uptown (Produced a number of tracks)
Mic Boshans of Humdrum and Nee (Drums, Found Object Percussion)
Elaine Holtz (Keys)
Dan Meehan of Humdrum (Guitar, Keys, Bass)
Dan McKenzie (Fife, Bass, Vibes, Atari)
Emily Sudholt (Vocals)
Josh Evans (Engineering/ Bass/ Guitar)
Shae Moseley of Ghost in Light (Drums, Bass, Backing Vocals)
Dustin Sendejas of Arts & Sciences (French Horn)
Jon Weiss of Arts & Sciences (Trombone, Tuba)
Matt Kindt (Logo)
Carl Pandolfi of The Lettuce Heads (Bass, Piano, And More)
Adam Sirgany (Sax)
David Rawson (Bass)
Tim Harvey
Lloyd Kropp
Al Katkowsky
Matt Madden
Ander Monson
Jedidiah Ayres
Scott Phillips
Valier Vogrin
Neil C. Luke
Nate Fisher
Paradise Lost in The Office app Released Today
Paradise Lost in The Office is the app that asks, “What Would Lucifer Do?” The quotes pulled from John Milton’s epic cut through the philosophical fluff of the ages to the essence of power, spin, and strategy. Milton’s words hold their own against Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, Miyamoto Musashi’s The Book of Five Rings, or Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince. Paradise Lost works as a how-to get what you want in life or instruction manual in spin, niche marketing, employee motivation, outsourcing, hostile takeovers, and geoarbitrage. Read the quotes on the subway, while you are stuck in traffic, or while your boss has their back turned to you pointing at some chart. These words from Milton are actionable, but take action at your own risk.
Download the app at http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/paradise-lost-office/id524619644?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D4
What they are saying about it:
“I downloaded it this afternoon and I already gained wisdom from it.” Benson Schliesser, Principal Engineer at Cisco Systems, Inc.
“One of our creative writing students (Jason Braun) at Southern Illinois created the Paradise Lost Office app for iTunes, which (hysterically: but will some people take this seriously?) offers cutthroat “how to get ahead” business advice using quotes from Milton’s poem; who knew Milton was so useful for niche marketing and office spin?” Eileen A. Joy, SIUE English Professor
“So you think you have control of your life. You have all the answers and sense of self satisfaction. Perhaps you do, but perhaps you need some extra guidance through the hard times. Satisfaction is hard to come by,let Milton ( with the help of the beast and friends ) guide you through the troubled times. Buy this app, have you ever had $.99 save your life and piece of mind? Except for a loosey nothing else will come close.” Jason Gonzalez, Roustabout St. Louis, Inc.
Link
Check Out This Big Bridge Anthology I Edited
Check Out This Big Bridge Anthology I Edited
Months ago Michael Rothenberg and I came up with the idea of collecting poems that work equally well on the page as well as the stage. We decided to call this online anthology from Big Bridge, “Fusion.” Specifically we were trying to weave a tapestry of Beat Poets, Slam Poets, Black Arts Poets and Hip Hop Poets. We were looking for poets from those movements and peripheral to them, as well as poets inspired by any and all of those movements. We were working to show the similarities of these movements as well as celebrate the cultural and individual differences.
What I received, were great lyric poems. Fusion features one poet from Israel, one poet from Ireland, and one Fulbright Scholar. Fusion also fully represents the outsider arts as well, featuring a few poets that will count that as their second or third publication. They all follow Kerouac’s decree to “moan for man.”
Thanks,
Jason Braun
Show with Buck 65, Busdriver, And Robb Steele At Firebird on June 2nd
On Saturday, June 2, 2012 at 8pm the Firebird Presents:
Buck 65
Busdriver
Robb Steele
Jason And The Beast
Get tickets: http://ticketf.ly/KRgmCv
2706 Olive, Saint Louis, MO 63103
From Sou’wester
Our Associate Editor, Shining Bright
Jason Lee Braun is a man of many talents and he’s always up to something new. (He was one of the main creative forces behind our new website and the new cover.) He hosts Literature for the Halibut, a weekly hour-long literary program on KDHX 88.1. He writes fiction and poetry. He releases music under the moniker “Jason and The Beast.”
This month, Jason released his most recent projectMade This For You: The Mix Tape as Literature – which is weird and wonderful and one-of-a-kind. Consider yourself strongly urged to check it out.
Furthermore, yesterday he guest-posted on Jane Friedman’s blog: “If the Book is Dead, Then Why Buy a Zombie?”
jasonandthebeast 