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Tuesday, June 29, 2004

Reflections on Platform4

The real reason as to why i joined Platform4 initially was to win the cash prize of a $1000 so that i could buy an electric guitar.Prior to Imran telling me about the competition,i had totally given hip-hop up as i was infected with rap writer's block which disabled me from constructing 2 coherent rhyming sentences. I was dabbling heavily in indie rock and doing an intensive amount of research into The Beatles. I was intrigued by John Lennon,his music,his attitude and his outlook on life which i considered to be somewhat similar to mine,to a certain extent. I admired his non-conformist stance on his music,even though he was initially kental(with the moptops and matching suits).
I considered my earlier persona as YoungZ to be extremely kental and i despised the wannabe thug-posturing that was evident in my rhymes,my clothes and whatnots.

I totally gave up rap and decided to do "real" music.
Under the influence of Ridzal( fellow Ninja Muscle Sensei), i started appreciating psychedelic art and i was fascinated by psychedelia. I started listening to Jefferson Airplane,The Grateful Dead and The Beatles circa Sgt Pepper. I practiced on my classical guitar which had been collecting dust for 3 years and found out that I was just as crap as ever. Nontheles,i seeked the tutelage of Idzwan,Yazid,Rasta and Ibrahim in order to improve my basic guitar-playing which i considered essential in my songwriting.

Then came the fateful night when i chatted with Imran on MSN. By coincidence or a twist of fate,i was simultaneously at The F word's soundclick page. I had taken a particular liking to a beat called "The Fun Of It" as it was really cute,funny and totally unpretentious. Imran asked me whether i wanted to join Platform4.
I decided to break my vow of not doing hiphop again and i started writing rhymes for the aforementioned F Word beat.

I named the song "My Fault" and performed it to anappreciative audience at NTUC Celebrations at Hougang Mall. Apparently Fiquetional of Teh Tarik Crew was very amused at my rhymes and animated delivery.I was on a high. FreakyZ supplied me another beat which became the song "Did I Say It?!" The song contained a diss towards dikir barat and subliminal references at certain people in the scene which made some members of the audience scratch their heads in bewilderment at the semi-finals. Maybe i'm too advanced for my time. I got through to the Grand Finals which wasn't that grand at all.Too Phat didn't turn up. No big fucking deal. Expected in fact. They were probably watching cartoons at home when they suddenly remembered and decided not to come. There were dope performances from Bless and Switch. the crowd was fucking disrespectful to Triple Noize.I noticed that Shafiee of Triple Noize had gained a lot of weight. Cute. Triple Noize were trying their best to hype up a crowd that was lacklustre and their performance went unappreciated. Fuck.

Synopsis on the contestants:

Corrupt Ethics: Cool indonesian beats. Great camaraderie with them.
G-Feminiz: Matching uniforms.
Ninja Muscle:Interesting. Just a lil too animated. But he dont really give a fuck.
Nthral: Fucking dope. He'll kick Xzibit's ass anytime. Anyfuckingtime i tell ya.
Psykelectics: very matured for their age. They'll grow and become something really good i can tell. I wish i was as good as Naufal when i was his age.
Yadin: the eclectic funky Mike Shinoda(HAHA!) electronica,drum n bass,rock..aint no territory he didnt cover. and his urban poetics kicked some ass..the crowd didnt appreciate his verbalistics but it didn't really matter cos if i think he rocks ,then fuck everybody else.

I would like to thank Al for his undying support and his redundant nagging when i refused to rehearse.We had a dream my brother.. My Yoko Ono for being a more wonderful Yoko Ono than the original one and much much more prettier.And not putting pressure on me to win. Faezah for taking time and effort to support me to the extent of coming alone. Yenny and Akmal for all the publicty on the blog and Akmal for asking those B-boys to shout "Teban!!!" during Esda Insane's performance. Hilarious i tell you..Fildza and Juherman for making sure i was clear about everything.Syaheed for pointing out the need for me to up the ante in my diction and flow. John Lennon. Changed my perspective on music and what it should be all about.

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
7:56 AM and they said..

Monday, June 28, 2004

Notice how much the Ninja Muscle kicks ass..We kick ass soooo much that we can't help it but have lightning balls flash out of our armpits..Damn.."Kenapa kita cool giler buah pley? tak fair sak untuk orang lain.."

Ermmmm..I'm gonna say something about Platform4..I won..but victory wasn't as sweet as i thought it would be..Yadin kicked some real Linkin Park (HAHA!!) shit!! Dope as fuck!! Back to the essence my brother!! And I'm still a bit skeptical as to the details of the so-called "affiliation" to Fyeworks. I'm not going to tie myself down to any obligations tha's going to,in any way,stifle my creativity.

My Afterthoughts..

Reality check for my fucking ego
Gravity pulls me back to ground zero
I ain't no corporate sponsored super-hero
Reality check for my fucking ego!!
A reality check came in the form of my history paper and a stupid nyonya invigilator whose name was Ridzal Chan Yi Meng

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
9:48 AM and they said..

Monday, June 21, 2004

Assalamualaikum everybody..I'm the new reformed Zainal Abidin and i feel so cleansed and pure after listening to Too Phat's Alhamdullilah Part 1 and 2. I hope that they come up with another remix complete with bonus holographic belly dancers so that thousand s of their fans will buy it and experience 5 minutes repentance .Just now i just finished my sembahyang maghrib. while fulfilling my evening prayers,i played Too Phat's Alhamdullilah as acommpanying music.During the course of my 2nd rakaat,my mother turned off my stereo,to which i immediately stopped praying,slapped her in the face,poured gasoline over her whole body,threw a lighted cigarette (like in the movies)and shouted,"KAFIR!! BURN IN HELL BIATCH!!!!"
Yeah..that's for messing with hiphop, God's medium of communicating with his subjects and dikir-loving creations.After burning my mother to a charred crisp,i proceed to finish up my bottle of Chivas Regal and listening to my dikir barat mp3s..As i was immersed in the heavenly sounds of rebana and generic templated Malay pride lyrics,i heard a few boys coming back from school,laughing loudly..What in tha name of Mamang do they think they are doing? Its maghrib and they're laughing loudly..Masyaallah..Takde adat betol budak-budak setan nie..I then took the botlle of Chivas Regal which was empty by now and threw it at them..It hit one of them in the head..I shouted," AH!! BODOH KAN! MAGHRIB PUN NAK KETAWA KUAT-KUAT!!"

I then proceeded to freestyle rap in Malay....

"yo,aku anak melayu jangan action tak tahu
korang anak setan mcm kepala batu
aku suka sembahyang dengan dikir barat
aku suka clubbing dengan pegi massage
aku suka gentel misai mr raj
Jangan takde adat.......BIATCH!!!!!!'

An Ustaz then praised me for my ability to rap in Malay and spread positive Islamic messages in my music. i'm seriously thinking of setting up a group and we'll rap about God and pump our music in local clubs..Anybody interested?

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
9:52 AM and they said..

Friday, June 18, 2004

A Reminder for Zainal Abidin.

1.To fake an authentic attempt at studying for the mid year exams
2.Buy these albums
- Anthony Hamilton- Coming Where I'm From
- Velvet Revolver- Contraband

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
6:46 AM and they said..

Wednesday, June 16, 2004

Recently,i was drugged and kidnapped..i did not know hat happened and who did it and for what purpose. I woke up to find myself in front of the Heeren specifically,in front of a stage. i looked up for details on what the fuck exactly was going on and i saw a banner that wrote Street Fest: POP IS HOT (like it hasn't always been). Curious,i stayed on to observe the interesting going-ons and the colourful crowd that surrounded me.The crowd was full of teenagers and i can see the blatant rage and discontent at being controlled by their parents and other authoritarian figures in their lives.The discontentment was clear in their eyes,Nike Air Jordans,dyed hair and baseball caps. The message potrayed was clear; "WE TEENAGERS ARE PISSED OFF!! AND HIPHOP'S OUR CHANNEL". whoa.no shit. An Indian man,who was trying to conceal the fact that he's balding by shaving his head, was apparently the host of the "Street"fest. His shaved head served a dual purpose of hiding the fact that he's balding and at the same time blending into the crowd of angsty,MTV-injected youth by having the same hair cut as Tupac Shakur thus showing that he "understands their pain".

I was slowly turning dizzy from the kaleidoscope of colours and hip hop beats. In the psychedelic wave of euphoria(maybe from the fact that i was drugged), i noticed that the teenagers have managed to achieve the ultimate paradox of dressing alike BUT still achieving the objective of looking unique..whoa. no shit.

Its about to get better. The Indian man introduced a group that was performing that night. From their unique clothes (caps,baggy jeans and oversized t-shirts),their deliberate bastardization of "the" to "da" in their group name and their menacing demeanor,this group was gonna "reprezent" their loyal demographic who was cheering for them. Then the group got down to what really mattered, their performnace. The beat kicks in. to my surprise,the group manage to balance out their 'not your average thug image' by sampling an old Malay song called 'Rasa Sayang' and turning it into a cutesy-wootsie beat.Confused,i tried to listen out for the lyrics...
This is what it sounded like "menyik menyik menyik my flow/menyik menyik fo sho..."
Okay.
Then the group dropped the punchline of the year and my nomination for most constructive use of hiphop ever.. Check this one out biatch..
"Put your rubbish in the litter bin/
Help keep Singapore clean and green..."

Whoa! I responded by clapping loudly,taking my pants off,dancing the hokey pokey and shouting "BIATCH! Da (censored group name) is gonna win MUFUCKAS!!!"To end the terrifc audio experience,they gave us a display of their gangsta dancing skills by making synchronized dance moves resembling Code Red(legendary hiphop cute gangsta boyband biatch!!) in their heydays.

I am so proud of our teenagers,specifically the Malays,for their appropriate use of their limited freedom of expression and their pure representation of the Hip-hop culuture which is synonymous with the Singapore Clean and green Campaign. The Man will reward you for your creativity.

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
8:43 AM and they said..

Monday, June 14, 2004

I've been working on editing pictures using Adobe Photoshop which was introduced to me by fellow Ninja Muscle, Sensei Ridzal. The piece above is called Lithium,inspired by a Nirvana song of the same title.And by the way,sheesha rocks my socks..okay buah pley..

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
12:51 AM and they said..

Friday, June 11, 2004

My Yoko Ono (Z.Abidin)

You didn't give two shits about my piece of mind
and you didnt care about how i was right about everything
You definitely didnt give a fuck about whether i could rhyme
and you would beat me up whenever i start to sing
Oh how i have a horrible voice
but when you chose me,you made sure it was a logical choice
one that somehow didnt make sense on the outside
a paradox,a mystery,that's what love's about right
well,you seem so far away at least in terms of distance
make it home in time i wanna ask you for the last dance
before the clock strucks midnight and i'm no longer Cinderella or a king
my glass sneakers turn back into into slippers by Tat Sing
Come back home and beat me up
Come back home and eat me up
Come back home and beat me up
Come back home and eat me up
She doesnt know the difference between stereo and mono
She's my Yoko Ono
She kicks my ass and burns down my dojo
she's my Yoko Ono
She could pluck out my eyeballs and destroy my mojo
She's my Yoko Ono

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
8:44 AM and they said..

Sunday, June 06, 2004

Ninja Muscle Sensei Zainal Abidin would like to express gratitude to the people who went to support him at the quarter-finals of Platform4 most notably Al-Azhar,Faezah,Shahirah,Yenny,her boyfriend Akmal,Kartika,Mumtaz and her boyfriend and Ibrahim. Sensei Zainal Abidin would also like to thank The F Word Productions for the excellent beat. Keep churning out those gems,FreakyZ. And everybody who applauded Sensei Zainal Abidin during his performance.
He had great fun. That's what it's all about. Isn't it?

The Ninja Muscle will be performing again at the semi-finals of Platform4 which will be held at Tampines-Changkat CC on the 19th of June. Nearest MRT station is Simei (or so i was told). Tickets at 5 dollars a pice. Cheaper than Linkin Park tickets.
In the words of JJ," Be there or be square!!"(Cute Japanese victory handsign)

My Yoko Ono couldnt be there...but i looovveee u stil..
"Cepat pulang..cepat kembali..Jangan Pergi lagi..Firasatku ingin kau cepat pulang..."

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
8:16 AM and they said..

John Lennon. Singer. Songwriter. Revolutionary. Rebel. Genius.

A mentally unstable fan(lets just call him Stupid Muthafucka) shot John Lennon outside of his New York apartment on December 8th 1980. In an attempt to get his name immortalised alongside Lennon's, Stupid Muthafucka deprived millions of music fans the chance to ever hear new material from John Lennon. Little did Stupid Muthafucka know that nobody would remember his name let alone his pile of crap for a face.

Across the Universe (J.Lennon)

Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup,
They slither wildly as they slip away across the universe.
Pools of sorrow, waves of joy are drifting through my open mind,
Possessing and caressing me.
Jai guru deva om.

Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world.

Images of broken light which dance before me like a million eyes,
Thay call me on and on across the universe.
Thoughts meander like a restless wind inside a letter box,
They tumble blindly as they make their way across the universe.
Jai guru deva om.

Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world.

Sounds of laughter shades of love are ringing through my open ears,
Inciting and inviting me.
Limitless undying love which shines around me like a million suns,
It calls me on and on across the universe.
Jai guru deva om.

Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world,
Nothing's gonna change my world.

Jai guru deva om,
Jai guru deva om,
Jai guru deva om...

*poison penis*
was rockin' on
7:24 AM and they said..