CD Review: Black Nasty's Feed From Me

Black Nasty Feed From Me

It's hard not to start by saying "This music is totally offensive, completely cringe-worthy, and absolutely not appropriate in almost any situation you can imagine."

There, we didn't start by saying that.

Feed From Me is a maxi single (not an EP, CD or regular single, these are different times, folks) with ten songs that push the boundaries of what most normal people consider music. Influenced by the olden days of hip-hop when songs were little stories that progressed through a repeated chorus (seriously, think "Funky Cold Medina", only about bestiality and period blood), Nasty's songs are about things that you assume your parents don't know exist in the world, with cock-sure vigilance to boot. The Black Nasty character is a sort of caricature of every obnoxious suburban rapper you've ever laughed at in the mall, the creepy postal service worker you suspect might sniff your packages when you aren't looking, and, well, people that are in jail. It's awful. Just awful.

But here's the thing: Black Nasty's music is important. Arguably more important than his sister's very socially acceptable project. Don't balk, hear us out. While Pink Nasty is a NPR Song of the Day darling, a Mark Kozelek-opening act beauty, and -- perhaps above all -- an enjoyable listen, her brother is the social activist of the pair. In a fairly brilliant (if its intentional) slap in the face to modern politically correct notions of what's ok and what isn't, Black Nasty urges listeners to exercise a type of philosophical impossibility: actively agree that no form of expression is unacceptable in the world of art by listening to songs that are absolutely unacceptable.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't, right?

Sure, you can listen to it and simply say, "Nah, it's not for me. I hate electronic hip-hop made on a computer by some self-important douchebag." Fine, be that way. There might be people who find the fairer Nasty offensive, if they're way into the hip-hop bestiality and rape fantasy scene. There's no accounting for taste, folks.

The other possibility is that Black Nasty has found himself entrenched in the bowels of a pretty self-conscious music scene here in Austin, a scene that tends to treat local bands (even friends in local bands) like celebrities, and wants to give some side-armed commentary. To our credit, a lot of the idolization is warranted, but at the same time, the worth repeating adage "You never know you're in a bubble until it pops" is alarmingly accurate, and in many ways, Nasty pops that bubble (figuratively, but probably literally, too) every time his record is listened to.

On his best day, Black Nasty is the Lenny Bruce of self-promoted, vulgar rap music. On other days, he's a mildly demented social misfit that created his own way of expression by means of pushing buttons that we didn't know we had. We didn't think we'd ever need to say things like, "Well, maybe he means that AIDS won't stop him from enjoying a high quality of life. No? Shit."

Black Nasty MySpace
Black Nasty Official
Black Nasty "HI5" (.mov) - Don't watch this at work, or if your mom might walk in at any time.
Pink Nasty MySpace

Photo of Black Nasty courtesy Asim Syed on Flickr