about
the last rap song ben recorded with math, in the no sunlite manassas house over new year 2012. ben had been writing the lyrics for several months (he was always a perfectionist in writing, even if sloppy, lo-fi in the delivery), all referencing his favorite mountains & revolutionary causes. he wanted to sample the no sunlite "mountains" lyric as a chorus but then decided to use it as an intro with the spoken word distortion hook he made.
math created this beat a few hours before ben came down to cut the vocals, but unfortunately the breaks were way too slow for zoom loco's flow - but he just went with it anyway (as long as there were drums it was ok with ben - he let math throw in all sorts of these goofball noises without complaint). the vocal track accidentally got mixed into the beat, leaving ben's vocals sadly buried in the mix. hopefully these flaws do not detract from zoom loco's messages here.
ironically, the vinyl record sliced up to create these melodies was a world music lp titled "flute music of the andes".
the convoluted name of this cut refers to: a) the camp song "one tin soldier" about wars and peace, mountains and the meaning of life; b) a 1997 massacre of innocent revolutionaries from chiapas (see ben's blog about it at the link below); and c) the importance of staying elevated in the mountains out of the world's chaos.
zoomloco.xanga.com/611092221/party-for-your-right-to-fight/ lyrics
acteal ‘97 and the one tin soldier (stay high)
[calling us down from the mountains but we’re not listening]
ima send this out for the appalachian
before the last laugh i get 40 lashings
before the ratpack puts the whack in fashion
we rep johnny cash; there’s no need to cash in
mind if my rhymes gonna lack punch lines?
take my time cuz it’s mine; let me dim light shine
40 watts what i gots, so i meet deadlines
40s, glocks, trigger cocked, how they make headlines
you heard and I wrote this, the words not for show biz
the media and greedier labels won't promote this
got pockets full of lyrics in my head unwritten
but sit and listen cuz instead i'm spittin
we paid less, but i say this, to the street corners
if the onus ain’t on us, then know this, we're goners
CHORUS real parallels to the one tin soldier
V2
ima send this out for the high sierra
bring the ruckus suckas and the terror, the terror
the dove not the cannon is way more canonical
the war is waging - purely economical
greedy nation, what mediation is for
i spit it straight, the candor i stand for
we keep the peak and don't demand more
like jabba the hutt i release the the rancor
man of peace or a pacifier
appeaser, the breeze or rev the righteous fire
cain or abel, fight or enable
stopping or watching as they run the table
didn't choose my team, it was chosen for me
for sure we wanna skip the sordid courting
and whoring, good morning, did i catch you snoring?
stay awake for god's sake; satan's rain is pouring
CHORUS the truths in the tale of the one tin soldier
V3
ima send this out for the himalaya
la playa, inspired by the zapa-maya
tebetian resettelin, ccp distortions
chinese policies - force abortions
say what i need on my knees in sorrow
pray i don't need to pray for peace tomorrow
estas listo en la sangre de cristo
copper canyon, my grandson, wasatch for cops
watch out from the outposts of foxes and birds
bombard boulevards and streets with these words
stay high in the mountains above the fray
they seek as we find, come and go as we stay
got no time so i run with my naked wrist
no clothes, so I close and raise my clenched fist
i was raised and will stay close to a way missed
if i stray home is razed, so i praise, get the gist
CHORUS
up high it is colder but as we get older
real parallels to the one tin soldier
the truths in the tale of the one tin soldier
credits
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