I got an email today regarding a young comedian / musician who I had never heard of. The email asked me to “please post” the email so here ya go:
Internet phenomenon Bo Burnham is about to release his first full-length album, simply titled Bo Burnham. With a CD of 13+ of the best of his hilarious, irreverent, and craftily-worded songs and a full DVD of his internet videos, a Comedy Central Presents, and other performances, this is the package that the fans have been waiting for.
Before he reached his 18th birthday, Bo entered the mainstream consciousness with internet videos (that have been viewed well over 20 million times) of him playing uproarious songs with ingenious wordplay and bad puns.
Bo was also just tapped by Judd Apatow to write and perform in various upcoming films, and when Bo isn’t on set, he will be touring the country selling out shows from coast to coast.
Bo’s Comedy Central Presents special will air on March 27th. Check your local listings for times and channels.
This kid is only 17 years old. Crazy… So how did he get his start? Well I checked out his website and found out:
Ever since his first temper tantrum, Bo knew he wanted to perform. After an awkward “athletic” phase, he started dedicating his time to school theatre. He continued to nurture his love for performance, receiving rave reviews from countless relatives. Bo chose to attend an all-boys catholic high school, thus giving his nickname “theatre queer” some additional validity. During the fall of his junior year in high school, Bo started teaching himself how to play piano and guitar. Soon after, he wrote and composed autobiographical songs, such as “My Whole Family Thinks I’m Gay,” as non-fictional jokes between him and his friends. On December 28th 2006, Bo recorded two of his songs as videos, and posted them on YouTube. Eight months and seven songs later, Bo’s videos have been seen over ten million times worldwide, generating literally hundreds of thousands of laughs. The songs, recorded in Bo’s bedroom with a camera resting on a stack of books (couldn’t afford a stand), have been remixed, rated, and reviewed thousands of times. Now amongst such elites as “The Chocolate Rain” guy and Chris Crocker, Bo hopes to capitalize on his “success” and share his stories with the world.
Bo Burnham on tour:
3/19/2009 – Case Western University – Cleveland, OH
3/27/2009 – Comedy Central Presents: Bo Burnham Premiere –
4/04/2009 – Michigan State University: The Wharton Center for the Performing Arts – East Lansing, MI
4/11/2009 – Wilbur Theater – Boston, MA
4/17/2009 – Norwich University – Northfield, VT
4/19/2009 – 04/27/2009 – Melbourne Comedy Festival – Melbourne
5/01/2009 – University of Miami – Coral Gables, FL
10/16/2009 – Aladdin Theatre – Portland, OR
10/17/2009 – Moore Theatre – Seattle, WA
I know my last blog was about P.O.S. and I feel I am starting to sound like a super fan, but when artists release videos like this…
…you have to talk about it and share it with others.
I’m not sure if you read my review of the P.O.S. CD Never Better but I did state how organic sounding the beginning of “Optimist” was and how I thought it was cups. I had no idea he created the beat from the game that combines cups and stacking skills…very original!
I was lucky enough to receive an email today on how the song was actually created:
P.O.S. describes how “Optimist” was created:
I made the beat to this song after my friend Alegra taught me how to play a game she learned when she was young. Based off of taking a few upside down cups and tapping on them and swooshing them around. The main rhythm of the beat was made by setting up some mics and playing the game. (You see it clearly at the top of the video) I added the organs and pads to kind of soften up the hard noise of the clapping and cups. I wrote the words while listening to the beat in my car, driving around mpls (Minneapolis) trying not to sweat how it came out. This was one of the last songs I wrote for the record and I was just not about feeling any pressure. Not from the label, not from my fans, no pressure no stress. That’s where the inspiration came from for this song I think. Not worrying about what anyone has to say about anything, ever. Doing my own thing and expecting the same from everyone else. That’s where the refrain comes from, “We make our own and if they don’t feel it, then we are not for them”.
I loved the idea of this video as well as how P.O.S. created the song and just had to post it here. I hope you all enjoyed it.
P.O.S., born Stefon Alexander, is a hip hop artist from the city of lakes many refer to as Minneapolis. P.O.S. can mean a lot of things, but in this instance it is an abbreviation for “Pissed Off Stef,” something he was referred to long before the days of his hip hop career. Growing up a punk rocker, P.O.S. was not originally a fan of hip hop until he learned it was more of an alternative form of expression over a glorified music genre.
Recently putting out his fifth release, Never Better,once again on Rhymesayers, P.O.S. produced over half of the CD himself. The album was also released in a limited, custom, do-it-yourself edition, featuring 16 solid picture inserts with six plastic overlays, allowing the owner to create their own cover art combination. I admit to having some fun with this prior to checking out the CD.
Taking his love of punk rock, P.O.S. chose to try a new way of expressing himself and soon was creating rhymes and beats that elaborated into a style of his own. It’s hip hop fueled with punk rock suggestions, personal journeys, and accomplishments, making for a striking release.
Already making a name for himself in the underground hip hop world with Doomtree, P.O.S. is slated to be touring a city near you this summer at the Van’s Warped Tour. Keeping himself occupied until then, P.O.S. will soon will be appearing with label mate, Atmosphere, in the Spring for even some live shows before the Summer kick off.
“Sorry I took so long” is stated by P.O.S. on the beginning track “Let It Rattle.” This introduction track really proved P.O.S. has something to say with an array of statements fornicated into a rap track with excellent intense drumming. My first taste of P.O.S. was exactly what I was expecting.
Following the impressive opening was even more insane drum heavy track “Drumroll (We’re All Thirsty)”. Accompanying P.O.S. was Doomtree making for a thrilling collection of words and beats. In addition to this track a video that blew my mind accompanies it. The video is like watching an urban war with people running for their lives while being attacked by… well I think it would be best if you just checked out the video for yourself to come to that determination. I have my own ideas.
Continuing the CD was the intriguing “Savion Glover,” with P.O.S. taking a lyric from Fugazi‘s “Five Corporations,” and adding it to the already heavily referenced track that seemed like a non-stop expression. “Purexed” really had a Sage Francis flow style throughout leading up to even more impressive drumming backing the chorus. I loved the energy and personable, friendly feel throughout the track. “Graves (We Wrote The Book)” was a little more urban hip hop sounding mixed with some guitar jams. Again, choice words added together with clever rhymes kept me entertained throughout the song.
“Get Smokes” was a freestyle of sorts, with P.O.S. stopping and laughing for a brief moment here and there in between his determined flow, speaking out on everything from Iggy Pop to the disturbed nation. The beats backing him were a unique mix of funk, and even at times had a record-scratching Kid Koala resemblance. “Been Afraid” was a little more serious than the previous tracks, speaking of the misfortune of a girl caught up in a violent relationship.
“Low Light Low Life” stood out with the catchy beats, accompanied by horns and keyboard, with the sweet female flow of Dessa from Doomtree adding to the excitement of the track. This song not only was one of my favorites on the CD but will get the party moving for sure with amazing RJD2 like beats and Blueprint reminding flows.
The CD seemed to start mixing things up with “Optimist (We Are Not Meant For Them),” as it started out very plain and organic sounding, with beat produced by slapping hands on inanimate objects, perhaps cups. P.O.S. concluded with a screaming and hollering refrain of sorts.
“Terrorish” mixed the rapping some more with a little hard screaming, courtesy of Jason Shevchuk of None More Black. The quick bass line kept me rocking my head along to the quick track, with P.O.S. spitting out words as fast as he possibly can. Can you say freestyle group sing-a-long lyricism?
“Never Better” continued with a stray away from the hip hop and more so an indie rock, alt rock approach, reminding me of Cooper Temple Clause mostly from the highly distorted guitars, as well as Judah Nagler, of The Velvet Teen, lending his calm dreary singing. Closing down the CD was “The Brave And The Snake,” a track that left me wanting more – and thanks to a secret track, I got my craving. The secret track was a stunning bonus and seemed to calm me down after such an exciting dose of a real hip hop release.
Never Better really grew on me throughout as I listened to the CD. It was like during each track I was reading a Choose Your Own Adventure book because I had no idea what was coming up next. The genre combination, especially the punk rock and hip hop, kept things ever so interesting to the point where I have listened to this CD over and over.
P.O.S. does not sound like he is full of himself at all during any of the tracks, and when you add that to his amazing beat creations and genus writing skills, I have nothing bad to say about this release or P.O.S for that matter. Drums, bass, a constant flow, and a serious widespread talent for expressing himself make me a fan of P.O.S. and I am pretty sure it will for you, too, if you appreciate expression and real hip hop.
-Need something to do? Head over to Make It Better, a do-it-yourself album cover maker. The site was inspired by the DIY Never Better CD artwork concept. You can also check out the entire album while messing around with the fun little program.
-Are you wondering waht the DIY CD artwork is all about? Check this out:
-Check out the powerful video for “Drumroll” – seriously, this video is insane:
(EDIT: – My personal blogging analyst Matt just informed me via comment that this is Amazon’s Deal Of The Day. If you have not heard of this deal of the day you should.)
Bring back the 90’s techno rock with Prodigy. From what I have gathered this CD sounds just like Music For The Gilted Generation mixed with The Fat Of The Land.
If you Twitter add twitter.com/amazonmp3 to your followings… You never know what you are going to find.
God bless you Matt and Al Gore for creating the internet.
Everyone’s been making lists it seems on their favorite bands and songs lately. I would suspect that many of the songs chosen are happy songs and remind one of the better times in life. I contributed my top albums recently and even added some favorite tunes too.
I am curious though… What songs made you sad? That is a question I don’t think I would ponder much considering I prefer happiness.
Well a friend of mine had asked for some sorrowful reminding tunes for a college project and I happily (sadly?) obliged. It took me a few days to think back to the bad times. It was not easy but I came up with a few. This is not a top 10 or top anything. It is just a list.
Here are some sad songs that I chose. Some of them I listened to alone as a teen when I just felt I could not figure out life. Others have meaning behind them and can bring a tear to my eye depending on the day I am having. One is even so happy it makes me sad…
Internet phenomenon Bo Burnham is about to release his first full-length album, simply titled Bo Burnham. With a CD of 13+ of the best of his hilarious, irreverent, and craftily-worded songs and a full DVD of his internet videos, a Comedy Central Presents, and other performances, this is the package that the fans have been waiting for.