“Bored To Death” Returns on HBO

This Sunday, September 26th, the second season of “Bored To Death” returns to HBO. The show stars Jason Schwartzman as the real life writer Jonathan Ames alter ego, who poses as a private detective on Craigslist out of boredom and a broken heart. The first season was well-received by critics and fans alike, and features all kinds of great Brooklyn locations that New Yorkers can relate to. Part comedy, part detective “noir”, “Bored To Death” has struck a chord with viewers for its witty humor, excessive weed smoking and a solid supporting cast. Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover), Ted Danson, and John Hodgman add to the great mix of characters, and guest stars galore make it apparent that this show is going to be around for a while.

Jason with cocaine all over his face. Movie cocaine, that is… And Frank151 Chapter 40: Gumball 3000.

Red Bull THRE3STYLE Denver At The Church

Photos by Matt Alberts.

The Red Bull Thre3Style international event series came through Denver last Thursday for one of its 14 stops on the way to the U.S. National Finals in October, which also happens to be back in Denver. The Red Bull Thre3Style brings local DJs out for one night of party rocking to see who can most successfully blend at least three genres of music and get the place jumpin’. A discerning panel of judges including the Denver Diggers’ DJ Lowkey took notes on creativeness, technicality and overall energy that the elite crew of Denver’s finest brought to the stage. DJs Amen, Sounds Supreme, Soup, Psycho, Shares, Skip Rip, Mada and Magmanimous went head to head to see for the title of Denver’s best DJ, with a special closing performance by Jay-Z’s tour DJ Neil Armstrong.

The Church was the setting for this event, Denver’s longtime staple of dance-oriented nightlife in the SoCo (South of Colfax) club district. Red Bull had a great presence as always, complete with the all-terrain mobile party unit parked outside, a well-designed lit logo over the stage and screens throughout the venue displaying each competitors’ name and time allotted.

Swollen Members Hip Hop Halloween

Swollen Members is on the road right now promoting their new album Armed To The Teeth. Along with Big B, (with the Denver Diggers’ DJ Klaw), Common Market, and Bliss N Esso, Swollen Members are slaughtering stages from Oregon to Ontario. In what seemed like a perfect holiday for hip hop’s most Dungeons and Dragons-derived rap group, the tour showed up in Denver just in time for Halloween.

Once again, Denver’s intimate Marquis Theater played host to an underground hip hop show. The all-ages venue is a good mix of everything—with a solid sound system, a multi-leveled viewing area, easy access full bar, and NY style pizza slices right on site. For Halloween the place was packed with creepy characters and party people ready to ring in All Hallows’ Eve with the Battle Axe Warriors.

Nigel Sylvester’s “Because I Grind”

In today’s modern information age, any boundaries between cultures are rapidly disintegrating. Rob Dyrdek is an MTV superstar, known to millions who will probably never pick up a skateboard. Louie Vito was recently ballroom dancing on ABC’s “Dancing With The Stars”, exposing millions more to the concept of professional snowboarding. And Z Trip is now a character in a video game—household nerds everywhere will learn what real music that talented DJs like him can produce.

While much of this cross blending between subculture heroes and mainstream avenues is rooted in marketing, an element of genuine collaboration always exists. Such is the case with “Because I Grind”, the latest project from pro BMX rider Nigel Sylvester. This 21-year old Queens, NY native is not only one of the sport’s premier talents, but is also is also a business owner and a blogger, with his own BMX shop, Format, and a column on HighSnobiety.com.

“Because I Grind” is a four-stop tour and mixtape project that took Nigel and his posse across the country, stopping in Atlanta, Miami, Oceanside and Las Vegas to put on impromptu demos, film, shoot photos and interact with local riders. BMX filmer Glenn Milligan shot footage for the four episodes on MissionG.com, while the soundtrack was put together by renowned hip hop producer and artist The Alchemist, with an exclusive mixtape download by Mick Boogie. The entire idea for the tour came from Nigel’s love of BMX, and the soundtrack is a testament to the mutual inspiration between BMX and beats. Nigel and The Alchemist spent some time in the studio, working on the project together, with each taking influence from the other’s field of expertise. Frank151 recently sat down with The Alchemist, and he explained how it all came together.

Souls of Mischief on Montezuma’s Revenge Tour ’09

If you were a teenager in 1993, it seemed like there was nothing but good hip hop coming out from all over the country. New York had Tribe, De La Soul, Wu Tang, Nas and Biggie (among countless others); the South had Outkast; L.A. had Snoop, Dre, Cypress HIll and The Soul Assassins; and the Bay Area had Too Short, E-40, and Hieroglyphics. Hailing from Oakland, CA and led by Del the Funky Homosapien, the Hiero crew of Souls of Mischief, Domino, Casual, and Pep Love were at the forefront of the classic era of influencial rap music. Most were them were teenagers then too.

For those of us now all grown, looking back it’s easy to realize that it was a very special thing to be part of. Sure, hip hop has changed a lot over the years… but luckily some things remain the same. Like the raw talent of all the acts mentioned above. Souls of Mischief was a big part of that early nineties explosion of musical creativity, and it’s on their current nation wide tour that you can not only catch a glimpse of a time long since past, but realize that ’93 ’til Infinity was more than just a good song and album title.

Rock The Bells 2009 in Denver

The Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver, Colorado hosted one of the last stops of the 2009 Rock The Bells tour last Thursday, with Nas and Damien Marley performing to thousands of hungry hip hop heads. Now in its sixth year, Rock the Bells is a one of kind tour that brings various hip-hop acts to each city, providing a unique concert experience at every stop. Denver’s historic outdoor venue was the setting for acts like Chali 2na, KRS-One, Supernatural, Slaughterhouse, The GZA, Techn9ne, Reflection Eternal, Big Boi, Busta Rhymes and the headliners to show and prove.

As a sponsor of the tour, Frank151 recognizes the importance of having so many gifted emcees come together and represent real hip-hop for the fans. It’s a rare thing to get artists from different places, backgrounds and styles to collaborate on a tour of this magnitude. We show the love, and they show it back—Talib Kweli Frank Fam for life.