Rough night. Had a few more thoughts I wanted to add, and I'm sure more will come.
A few years ago, having guest-blogged a couple of times at Noz's cocaineblunts site on the topic, I decided to try and start fully documenting the Bay Area underground scene that I had been a part of in the 90s, ultimately with the aim of making it into a book. I talked to Matthew about it, as I did with other friends such as Oliver, Noz himself, Zvi, Billy Jam, and my old partner Bas, who goes way back in the Oakland scene and who I've since worked with very closely. I knew how deep Matthew was, but I don't think I realized how much better of a writer he was than me. I should've been far more humble than I think I was in reaching out to him, but he was ready to help - connecting me with people, fleshing out ideas, coolly pointing out blind spots (as was his way). He was the one that should have been writing about this stuff, but he never said that. As has been testified to elsewhere, Matthew had absolutely no need to lord anything over anyone. He was not only secure in himself, but eager to share. This in a world where everybody plays their proverbial cards close to the chest, be they records, connections, even basic ideas.
Funny thing is, Matthew hated that underground shit. "Dirt hustlers", he'd call us, pejoratively. He very much disliked the strong arm tactics that certain groups employed to get their stuff on KALX; he thought the beats were sloppy, the rhymes average at best, and he was unforgiving of the poor recording quality that was a mark of pride for some. I couldn't wait to get it all on tape; aided by a couple decades' worth of hindsight, I could laugh at myself, and laugh at his harsh but candid assessment of the scene. We always laughed a lot when we rapped about this stuff, I loved his dry humor, his sarcasm, and sense of irony. I was excited to pick his brain on a whole host of things. I'll never get to do that interview.
A few years ago, having guest-blogged a couple of times at Noz's cocaineblunts site on the topic, I decided to try and start fully documenting the Bay Area underground scene that I had been a part of in the 90s, ultimately with the aim of making it into a book. I talked to Matthew about it, as I did with other friends such as Oliver, Noz himself, Zvi, Billy Jam, and my old partner Bas, who goes way back in the Oakland scene and who I've since worked with very closely. I knew how deep Matthew was, but I don't think I realized how much better of a writer he was than me. I should've been far more humble than I think I was in reaching out to him, but he was ready to help - connecting me with people, fleshing out ideas, coolly pointing out blind spots (as was his way). He was the one that should have been writing about this stuff, but he never said that. As has been testified to elsewhere, Matthew had absolutely no need to lord anything over anyone. He was not only secure in himself, but eager to share. This in a world where everybody plays their proverbial cards close to the chest, be they records, connections, even basic ideas.
Funny thing is, Matthew hated that underground shit. "Dirt hustlers", he'd call us, pejoratively. He very much disliked the strong arm tactics that certain groups employed to get their stuff on KALX; he thought the beats were sloppy, the rhymes average at best, and he was unforgiving of the poor recording quality that was a mark of pride for some. I couldn't wait to get it all on tape; aided by a couple decades' worth of hindsight, I could laugh at myself, and laugh at his harsh but candid assessment of the scene. We always laughed a lot when we rapped about this stuff, I loved his dry humor, his sarcasm, and sense of irony. I was excited to pick his brain on a whole host of things. I'll never get to do that interview.
