Above: Fat Tony, as seen and heard.
That impeccably attired, soft spoken ambassador of good taste who originates from and forever resides in Houston's Third Ward, Fat Tony, has pronounced the fish narc waxing frog pond [KLP298] his "Album of the Year." This rare and much sought after accolade from the radical rap and maverick hip hop legend is an annual, much anticipated event in Houston. Speculation abounds during the final weeks each year as fans and poseurs alike prognosticate what the fated folio could possibly be. This year it was no contest: frog pond [KLP298], like all of the fish narc catalogue, is too true to not shine above.
Fat Tony himself puts it this way: "There's an optimistic strain of melancholy throughout the record, with sentamentality that never feels saccharine; it just seems based (in the original Lil B sense, not in the bastardized incel version circulating the worst parts of the internet in the last few years). fish narc's emo intuition was working overtime on this record. And the lyrics feel poetic more often than not. I love that this album came out on K."
Fat Tony goes on to say "I'm a fan of rockers like fish narc; musicians with great punk sauce who choose to make great guitar music in a DAW (whether entirely or partially) because they bring a rap/dance/club music songwriting/arrangement perspective to their project.
"This album reminds me of who I am at my core, in my soul, in my past, and in my present. I'm a deeply curious rock'n'roll lifer who learned to love himself through the spiritual benefits of fellowship found in underground music (particularly rap and punk), DIY culture, and all the creativity and joy that comes from making something that is not meant to be commercial or requires an understanding of mainstream society to know its worth.
"Our world is supported by an entire underground ecosystem of willing participants who attend gigs, play on stages and floors, book shows, make zines, operate labels, welcome bands on the road to spend the night in their home, organize tours, run retail businesses to distribute what we make, and more. We should always empower ourselves to HAVE FUN and refine the artistic impulses that made us love all of this in the first place, even when the rest of society thinks we're strange, stupid, or both."
That was worth the wait.
Meanwhile, fish narc, frog song [KLP298] is available from The K Mail Order Dept.
Above: fish narc, frog song [KLP298] available now on long playing (LP) phonograph record.