#alternative rap

You want an energetic, rythmic beat paired with clever meaningful lyrics? Well, let me introduce you to one Michael Franti and Rono Tse. You may know Michael Franti from the less niche band, Spearhead, which he formed after TDHOH, where he was the lead singer. Today, I will tell you about my two favourite TDHOH songs.

Satanic Reverses: One of my favourite songs of all time. The trombone parts in this song give it a kind of 60s/70s vibe (apologies if it is not trombone, I only play piano and guitar) and we get a lovley batman-esque moment in the background every now and then making it honestly just fun. As much as I love the music and the beat, it's the lyrics that really make this song stand out, namely the many mentions of things happening around the time Franti wrote this song, and heavily implying these things are all linked, and something bad is happening/about to happen, we just haven't realised it yet. He then goes on to make predictions like "In 1999, and this is no coincidence The nation of Panama will control it's own canal," which turned out true. I especially love the repeated line "bail out the banks loan art to the churches," which references the loan crisis of the 1980s. Overall, this song is just amazing at communicating Franti's political views and the various political issues of the time.

Television, The Drug Of The Nation: This is arguably their most popular song, and for good reason. This song speaks mostly on the issue with society becoming depended on the entertainment they get from the TV, with the famous line, "television, the drug of the nation, breeding ignorance and feeding radiation." Basically, Franti is making a point about how people trust what they see on tv and use it as an excuse to be unaware of what is actually going on in the world. It's a commentary on the whole "out of sight, out of mind," thing, which can be a harmless joke, but is also a genuine issue in this context.

Fat Tony- BKNY (ft. Old Money)