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Jeff Gerstmann takes on Quake 4. The single-player campaign is great fun, but the uninspired multiplayer gameplay leaves much to be desired.
Star Wars Battlefront II is the sequel to last year's hit online multiplayer shooter. The 2005 version adds space-based dogfighting combat and improved single-player gameplay. Look for it to hit the PC, the PS2, the Xbox, and the PSP on November 1--the sa
For many, this is a dream collaboration between two of the most cherished artists in hip-hop, pitting the dusty, wig-twisting originality of Madlib's smoked out sounds capes against DOOM's nostalgic, visual rhyme style. Brothers from another mother, DOOM and Madlib have long admired each others work, first meeting face-to-face in Southern California in summer 2002, and since then they've shared a whole bunch of Cali-green, run through countless bottles of Grey Goose vodka and Heineken (well, that would be DOOM) and assembled over twenty tracks into a superb psychedelic romp of the highest caliber. The closest one can come to describing this beautiful chaos is a sublime companion piece to Madlib's previous evil adventure, Quasimoto's "The Unseen." But, as DOOM himself would ask anyone asking for a description: "He's the villain, so what about it?" In recent years the metal-faced maniac has released albums under the aliases of Viktor Vaughn, King Gheedora and Monster Island Czars. But rewind to 1993: DOOM (then Zev Love X) made his debut with the groundbreaking album 'Mr. Hood' as part of the group KMD, which has since achieved critical acclaim and cited as a key record in hip-hop's "Golden Age." Zev Love X, Subroc, and Onyx had just finished work on the follow up, "Bl_ck B_st_rds", a politicized commentary on the portrayal of race by the media, when their label Elektra decide to shelve the album over the controversial cover art which depicts a 'blackface sambo' character hanging from a gallows. Shortly after KMD were dropped and Zev Love X's brother Subroc was killed in a car crash. Like true-life story from the pages of a comic book, Zev Love X disappeared completely from public view, going back to the lab and fashioning new beats and lyrics, only to reemerge as the masked MF DOOM with the now classic "Operation Doomsday" in 1999. "Zev Luv X still exists, DOOM is a character, neither one of them is really me, they're a fa?ade I use to voice a certain view," Explains the MC behind the mask, Daniel Dumile. "Zev was like you're average nerd cat, might drop a jewel here and there, might tell you something you don't now, humble and modest. Whereas the DOOM character is more aggressive, on some real take over shit, but still trying to play likes he's a good guy. It's not so much I changed; I just took on another character." A string of creatively inspired singles on the influential Fondle 'Em label in the late 90's heralded DOOM's return. "Being from the underground, there's not so much bureaucracy, you can come out how you wanna come out. It's music straight up and down, if you're good you're good." DOOM sees himself as a conduit for his music. "I try not to tamper with it too much, I'm like the narrator or the spokesman. My music is raw, yet at the same time it can be easy listening." The spontaneity in DOOM's working process whether writing lyrics or building beats, calls to mind the spontaneous prose of Kerouac or the 'cut up' techniques of William Burroughs, in its praise of the purity of the original thought. Nostalgia is a central theme for DOOM: "I love cartoons, I still watch them to this day. I have an 8 year old son, he comes home and we just watch them together," smiles DOOM. "Dexter Laboratory, and of course all the Japanese shit, Dragonball Z, all them ill." DOOM's music harnesses the instinctive, inherent power of childlike thought; "There's no in-between with kids, they're so pure they can feel something if it's fat. As you get older you lose that innocence and purity of the original thought, so called 'growing up'," DOOM ponders. "I mean - you gotta keep that, that's the essence right there." Using his music to test the limits of his mind, DOOM finds creative inspiration in everything he does: "Any artistic genre feeds what I do as a musician, I do paintings, but music inspires my painting, and paintings or art inspires my music. Creativity and imagination is the key to what everybody's trying to figure out on Earth, it's the one thing that bridges everything together. It can solve a lot of problems with all this war and retarded shit that's going on." From the mellow keys of 'Accordion' with Madlib's deft tinkling to the bumping bass groove of 'America's Most Blunted' and the soulful beats of 'Fancy Clown' under his Viktor Vaughan guise, Madvillain sees Madlib on top form providing the freshest, most blunted foils for DOOM's ill flows. "Music is a universal language and I'm trying to show that all of us laugh at the same things, I'm trying to bring us all to more of an understanding. We need to bring this whole thing together," explains DOOM. With their Madvillain double-team, MF DOOM and Madlib have made a sure-fire classic sure to take the world by storm - will anyone dare step try and stop them?
Gaming preview: 'Halo 3: Recon'
"Halo 3: Recon" is a prequel of sorts to "Halo 3." In fact, you won't be playing as Master Chief at all. Instead, you'll take on the role of a Shock Trooper, who?s still on Earth in the city of New Mombasa. The game will also support four-player co-op. along with 1,000 available gamer points. "Halo 3: Recon" will be released exclusively for the Xbox 360 sometime in the fall of 2009.
The Last Shadow Puppets have released their latest single 'Standing Next To Me', taken from their recent album 'The Age Of The Understatement,' 'Standing Next To Me' features Alex (Arctic Monkeys) and Miles (The Rascals) on duel vocals, injecting a sense of flair and drama into a 2 minute 18 second pop gem.
Gaming preview: 'Battlefield: Bad Company'
"Battlefield: Bad Company" puts you in control of a renegade squad of delinquent soldiers who look to cash in on gold that's scattered around war-torn towns. 'Bad Company' introduces a comedic element to the game, a new approach at developing characters in the single-player campaign. 'Battlefield: Bad Company' is available now for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
Substance Abuse: "Night On The Town"
As opposed to groups who either force change or resist it, the hip-hop group Substance Abuse embraces a natural progression. The trio creates earnest hip-hop music, combining equal measures of intelligence, clarity, innovation, and polish to evoke the unpretentious consciousness of the Golden Age era, while avoiding corny retro posturing. After gaining much acclaim for their collaboration with MF Doom on the infectious "Profitless Thoughts," Substance Abuse is ready to drop their long awaited full length, "Overproof," a term signifying "more than ample evidence" of S.A.'s eminent dopeness. Group members Eso Tre and Subz grew up together in Los Angeles, where they became hip-hop fans at an early age. In high school, the duo could often be found in the audience at the legendary Unity events that have since come to define the progressive LA hip-hop scene of the early 90?s. Inspired by those shows emphasis on positive expression through creative art, the friends began working on their own music. Substance Abuse's first release was a 1998 EP with Santa Barbara's mic.edu called Brand New Crime on Rocketship Records. The project received extensive college radio airplay and critical praise, and led to the filming of a video for the track ?Spontaneous Egos?, directed by independent filmmaker Jesse Felsot. The clip became a favorite of underground West Coast video shows and is currently available for viewing online at Sputnik7 (www.sputnik7.com). This was followed by the filming of the video for ?Night on the Town? featuring Kool Keith, which can be viewed at www.threshrecs.com Throughout the next year, Eso Tre and Subz bolstered their reputations as crowd movers with a series of performances sharing the stage with mic legends such as Souls of Mischief and Aceyalone. In turn, the group's lyrical prowess earned them a slot on Sway and Tech's Wake-Up Show, where they premiered the lead track from their debut single, "What the Fuck You Rhymin' For?" Finally, S.A. was named in URB magazine's Next 100 last year as a new group to watch. The name doesn?t have anything to do with getting faded,? explains MC Eso, who adds that their name is commonly misunderstood. ?Abuse is a word which correlates with excess, and we are excessively concerned with interjecting substance in the music.? Overproof includes contributions from Saafir, Kool Keith, Motion Man, Kutmasta Kurt, P.E.A.C.E., Rasco, Thes-One, and MF Doom.
Gaming preview: 'Rainbow Six Vegas 2'
Tom Clancy takes us back to Vegas in 'Rainbow Six Vegas 2.' The follow-up to the 2006 classic promises more action, new weapons, and improved online multiplayer gameplay. 'Rainbow Six Vegas 2' gets dealt into stores on March 18 for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Amazon.com launches a Wikipedia-like site for music, Microsoft and Apple have new MP3 players on the way, and the Smashing Pumpkins bring a new single and old classics such as debut album Gish to Guitar Hero.
In addition to delivering solid sonics, the Zvox Z-Base 550 sets itself apart from competing single-speaker units with the unique capability to double as a stand for your TV.
