$5 Review
Compiled by Joel Calahan of KSPC 88.7FM

Ken Nordine – Wink – Asphodel
Wink is a collection of classic beat poems by Robert Shure, read by Ken Nordine, originally published in 1967 under the name “Twink.” Shure engages gabardine potatoes, left-handed cigars, cellophane shoes, and orangeade tears in these timeless barbs and reflections. Told as conversations between two voices within the same brain in alternating stereo channels, the haunting political, social, and moral jabs are backed by cool jazz that reflects the mood of each poem. Some poems are clever, some are cutesy, some heartbreaking; all intelligent and poignant.

Hrududu Factory – Songs From the Burrow EP – Shmat
A local lo-fi project by a fellow named Douglas Adams Hrududu is everything you’d expect of lo-fi: subtle but mannered guitar playing, quirky lyrics, and sometimes twee instrumentation. Each song bears an irritating structural resemblance to the others, but even that is unconventional: Adams drives from quiet and abstract to a thundering climax in what we might call a chorus, all in about two and a half minutes. The project does not realize its full potential.

Brother Ali – Shadows On the Sun – Rhymesayers
Straight from the streets of Minneapolis comes a killer album from one of the country’s hottest young MCs. Shadows On the Sun is Ali’s second studio release, and he proves he has the skill to rhyme any style he chooses: political, anecdotal, humorous, and personal. The album features fellow Rhymesayer crew member Slug (of Atmosphere) on a couple tracks, but Ali carries the weight of the album himself, spitting venom and antidote in the same breath over DJ Ant’s stylized beats. One of the finest hip hop albums of the year.