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| Cex: Actual Fucking |
| Written by Ola | |
| Monday, 27 November 2006 | |
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As I’m writing this it is one of the wettest, most miserable nights I can remember. Blasts of wind try to snatch my umbrella away and when I cling to it for dear life, it suffices with breaking two of its ribs. So now I have to hold my umbrella at a perpendicular angle. When the rain gets in it feels more like a crashing wave than raindrops, soaking one side of my pants in two seconds. All this makes for a pretty unpleasant trip home, but it is also the perfect time to be listening to Actual Fucking. It is a dark, icy album for the most part–sharp and jagged edged–sprinkled with those surprisingly warm moments that are like thinking about your warm bed on a stormy trip away from home. It follows a natural progression from Cex’s previous, Maryland Mansions. Like that album, this one is not hip-hop centric, veering away from the style of “Tall, Dark and Handcuffed” and “Being Ridden.” It is also the first appearance of Roby (his wife) as a member of the band. Previously in Milemarker (and currently playing in another band with Rjyan called Sand Cats), she makes a big impact on the sound of the album. Her elastic vocals can range from sweet and innocent to those of a world-weary siren, often within a single phrase. There are also a lot of guest musicians on Actual Fucking that integrate themselves quite nicely into the Cex sound, most notably Cale Parks (from Aloha). He is one of those drummers that can become one with a drum machine, playing along with sequenced tracks without losing any of his explosive energy. When checking out the liner notes you’ll notice that every song is named after a city. And indeed they do sound inspired by long tours to every dark and dirty corner of the world, channeling the intensity that comes from being on the road for too long, finding yourself in shifty places, playing shows to fifteen people… and throwing yourself into it anyway. General dissatisfaction with the music establishment has been a long-standing lyrical theme for Cex. Not that MTV is the way to measure success, but if anyone deserves some mainstream recognition by now, it’s Rjyan Kidwell. He has the energy, talent, and appeal to articulate the mission statement of every overlooked genius. And better yet, do it with a sense of humor. If there is anything that leaves me dissatisfied with the present form of Cex, it is that he has so much good hip-hop material that we may never see again, and that most will never get to hear live or on newer releases. He had a thing that he could have kept doing all the way to the nursing home (or at least until he was playing to packed dance floors). But maybe that is too much to ask of any hard-working musician, when they don’t expect any fame in their lifetime, and continue making music regardless. You can’t stick with one phase just because you want to. Art requires change in order to flourish, and though nostalgia is ubiquitous in today’s pop culture it is a poor imitation of meaningful expression. So for this I will let myself like “Actual Fucking.” And if you’re into that sort of thing, you probably will too.
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