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Nerdcore Hip-Hop
by Doom
I like hip-hop. The lyrics are more interesting than 'my parents don't understand me, and I think the shop teacher is hitting on me'. Also, before anyone thinks it, not all hip-hop acts resort to outright sampling and no other musical endeavors. Nor are all songs about the hood and/or guns, drugs and women. To prove this, I give you Nerdcore Hip-Hop: a subgenre that features rapping about mechas, Star Wars and the Unified Field Theory.
Examples of the Glory of Nerdcore Hip-Hop:
1. The originator of Nerdcore himself, MC Frontalot. Frontalot proclaims himself to be 'The World's 579th Greatest Rapper" and is the official rapper of the webcomic, Penny Arcade. He has a fake-braggadocio, self deprecating attitude, which mixes well with his more sarcastic songs, like his song decrying the 'indie' attitude.
'next you know I'm meeting pop stars in stretched cars
doing the soundtrack for the wendy's tie-in with jar jar
paying rent on time, owning things,
suing napster with my best friend sting'
The song Indier Than Thou can be found on his website, along with the rest of his discography. Some of his other great songs include Yellow Lasers [about a Star Wars convention and watersports], Message No. 419 [about spam e-mail], and Braggadocio [a very hilarious example of hip-hop bragging]. And still others are Which MC Was That?, Crime Spree and Mountain Kind.
A unique thing about Frontalot is that his primary means of distribution is the internet. He has no sort of a record deal, though he states that he'd "sell out in ten seconds flat if somebody stuck a contract under [his] nose". According to the site hit numbers, this formula is somewhat successful; certainly, anytime Tycho from Penny Arcade references the Front, traffic goes through the roof, but the Valued Suckers Program and the Front Store seem to keep Redacted from fronting for food on street corners. However, we should all hold out hope that SOME record label notices him and signs him to deal, so that more can be aware of his awesomely wack fronting abilities.
The Master of Fronting often contributes songs to the website Songfight, whether under pseudonym or not. For those not in the know, Songfight is a website where musicians [aspiring or otherwise] are given one week to write and record a song with a set title. Though it gets its fair share of unlistenable crap, there are some good artists, like ADD, JBB and Frankie Big Face. And, of course, KOMPRESSOR used to do the Songfight thing too.
2. MC Hawking. Imagine, if you will, Stephen Hawking. Famed scientist and all-around Smart Guy. Now, imagine him as a hardcore gangsta rapper. The results are incredibly humorous.
From 'Quakemaster', his song about his excellence at the video game Quake:
"The Mighty Stephen Hawking is a fucking Quake god,
got my finger on the trigger and my eye on the quad.
I know it's just a game, but I didn't come to play,
the Hawkman cometh and he's bringing Doomsday.
You say, "impressive", I already know it,
I'm a hardcore player and I'm not afraid to show it.
I got a Phd in pain and a masters in disaster,
the mighty Stephen Hawking is a fucking QuakeMaster."
Using equal parts science and equal parts gangsta, MC Hawking has recorded such brilliant tracks as UFT for the MC, Entropy and E=MCHawking. Not only are they hilarious, they are also informative!
He has an album out now, somehow, entitled 'A Brief History of Rhyme: MC Hawking's Greatest Hits'. I suggest all buy it or they shall be punished.
The best part is that the real Stephen Hawking actually approves of this site, and finds it humorous. That's the greatest thing ever. No wonder why Hawking's the smartest man on Earth.
3. Optimus Rhyme is a tricky rap act. They're a group of guys from Seattle who think of themselves as Transformers, fighting against repetitive hip-hop acts with looped samples, wack rhymes and angst, whom they dub 'Wackacons'. They recently put out a self-titled album on Narcofunk Records. Samples are sparsely used [if ever]; they have a backing band consisting of guitars and drums.
This is obviously not your average rap act.
The current band lineup is as follows:
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Wheelie Cyberman: 'conveyer belt poet'
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Stumblebee: 'bass theorist'
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Powerthighs: 'axe manipulation specialist'
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Grimrock: drummer
Their subjects are varied; listening to a rapper thump his chest about his computer prowess is amusing, to say the least.
"I got five hard drives with 89 gigabytes.
I eat databases, networks and websites.
I got vicious viruses that devour these satellites.
Encryption deciphering all that you read and write."
In fact, Wheelie and Powerthighs are Web designers and programmers, respectively. Other topics are more common: complaining about a wack show promoter, the usual bragging hip-hop. Of course, there are scattered Transformers references in all of the tracks, the biggest being the song 'Incogni2', which is available on their website.
One of the aspects of Optimus Rhyme that sets them apart from most other rap bands is that they DO have a backing band. Instead of a DJ, they have bass, guitar and drums. The fact that said backing band is good enough to be an act in and of itself is icing on the cake. Narcofunk Records describes OR as a mixture of 'Deltron 3030 and Kool Keith', which is in my mind an apt comparison. Wheelie's incredibly fast tongue and flow [8 lines in 10 seconds], combined with Broken English [guest MC on their debut album]'s punchlines and the consistent drumming and guitars make this a band you don't want to miss out on.
4. Likely THE most recognizable nerdcore MC [well, to select late night cable markets, at least] is mc chris. Chris Ward, aka mc chris, writes for Sealab 2021, Aqua Teen Hunger Force and the now-defunct Brak Show. Most people know him as MC Pee Pants of Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Hesh of Sealab 2021. His most popular song, Fett's Vette, was featured on the season 1 episode of Sealab 2021, 'All That Jazz'. It's the song played during the concert and during the credits.
His voice is VERY high pitched, and before anyone asks, it's all natural. No helium. His topics are mainly nerdy, though his third album is more about getting laid than anything else. But he is nerdcore, no doubt about it. Proof comes in form of songs such as Geek, Fett's Vette and White Kids Love Hip-Hop. Whom else could rap about Dreadknocks and Dinobots?
Three albums are out; the second and third [Knowing is Half the Hassle and Eating's Not Cheating] are available for a nominal fee on his website. The first, Life's a Bitch and I'm Her Pimp, is offered for FREE on his site.
Links to the artists mentioned above:
MC Frontalot [Recommended songs: Indier Than Thou, Rappers We Crush, Penny Arcade Theme, Yellow Lasers, Special Delivery]
MC Hawking [Fuck the Creationists, GTA3, E=MCHawking, What We Need More Of Is Science]
Optimus Rhyme [Ford vs. Chevey, Incogni2, Calm Down]
mc chris [Fett's Vette, The Tussin, Hijack, Bad[dd] Runner]