Posting has not been as feverish around the Fake White House lately as I would’ve liked. Blame Obama and K-Rudd. It’s harder to be knife-edge vigilant when operations are now being conducted with sanity and moderation. Sure, both men are still guilty of mis-steps now and then – but the malice has disappeared from our governance. Obama is the Man of the People we’ve waited for, and Rudd is boring but generally a force of good (which is a nice change). Content that we’ve been given a reprieve from the fast train to Hell, the fever pitch has subsided.
Still, I’ve not quite gone into a coma. In fact, last week when the Hilltop Hoods released their 6th studio album I was ready and waiting for it. The Adelaide hip-hoppers (Pressure, Suffa and DJ Debris) have been chiselling away at success since the early 90s, but started to make serious waves with The Calling (2003) and The Hard Road (2006). They do some party songs: Dumb Enough (“if I forgot your name I’m sorry – you’re probably pretty ugly”), What a Great Night (“put your hands up if you’re not too drunk to stand up”); chronicles of their slow rise to fame: The Hard Road (“I was going nowhere like a children’s letter to God”) and occasionally some political/message stuff: Circuit Breaker (“John Howard knows the taste of George’s dick!”).
The latest album, State of the Art (2009), has a similar mix of songs and the classic Hoods sound. But this is not a music review – and my heightened interest in the new album is due largely the standout last track: Fifty in Five. MC Suffa chronicles fifty years of history in a five minute track – covering off on politics, pop culture, current events, the War(s) on Terror… it’s really an epic. The song has played over and over in my head since I heard it, and as a conscientious President, I thought you should all be exposed to its power. Enjoy the clip below. I recommend reading along with the lyrics, the first time, for the full effect.
