SHABOOTY’S MOST ANTICIPATED ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Artist: Cage
Title: Depart From Me
Label: Def Jux
Target  Release Date: Spring 2008 [Summer 2008 is more likely]
Cover Artwork By: Alex Pardee [the above A-Pardee piece -isn't the cover]
Production: Daryl Palumbo, F. Sean Martin, [and in all, El-Probability]
Quoting Cage: Cage has told me that the album is coming along, and that it’s pretty different.

What…it’s been over 2+ years? (Sept 2005), since Cage’s last album (Hell’s Winter)? That was a long time ago. Since that time, the things that have happened in my life are countless: my 2G (2nd generation) iPod (which contained the said last cage album) died, I got a condo, stopped dating the broad of that time, interviewed countless artists, traveled to and fro’ [Vancouver to Toronto], went from zoom kobe 1′s to zoom kobe 2′s and am due for zoom kobe 3s, pimped da blog, n just outright doing my thing. What a departure from ME!!!

Anyways, any time this kind of time lapses between albums, I think it is fair to say, the quality will come correct. El-P and Amechi are doing something right over at Definitive Jux (DJX), because seems like whatever they sign off on, is a success on one level or another. Then again, what’s the overhead on saying, Hey Alaska, guess what? “You’re driving the tour-bus tonight, and hey, we’re all going to share the money from the door.” [I am assuming the artists get a piece of the door].

In the blogging world, such success stories are detailed here, but to use some phrasing out of context, see numbers and statements like: “The company does not appear to be staff-heavy, so it is imaginable that the margins on the business are 50%.  Would the business be worth 15x revenue or 30x operating profits? Could be.” Or, “Business should do at least $12 million and have a high margin, estimated at 60%. At a 12x multiple.” And, “The site is as much a personality cult as it is a destination. But, it probably runs with margins over 50%. That would put operating profit at $11 million. Founder is central to business. CPMs are low. Give it 8x operating profits.” To give you a clue, the latter statement is about PerezHilton.com. The point being, whether or not DEFJUX is the “Gawker” or “PerezHilton” of the indie record industry, it is definitively highly successful.

To further evidence this, I can think back to say… three days. Three days ago would be a Sunday. An Easter Holiday Sunday, and we have a DJX artist’s [Del The Funkee Homosapian] concert in Washington D.C. @ the 9:30 club*. To the point –and what do you see on a Sunday Holiday concert? A packed house was what I saw**. Them boys [@DJX] have a head of steam and momentum, and aren’t going to slow down. I think I am going to invite myself over to El-P’s Brooklyn studio and help myself to some of steamed lettucehead***, because well, I just wanted to make that play on words.

So, you have repeated successes, and the likes of Cage’s new album forthcoming; throw in the support of Daryl Palumbo and his Head Automatica/GlassJAw fanboys and girls, and it’s a wrap.
* P.s. the management at 930club are the biggest douchbags I’ve ever encountered.
** P.p.s. yes, D.C. does have a lot of degenerates, but I think they all work at 930club.
*** Head-of-steamed-lettuce-momentum-play-on-words.

In closing, I would just like to say that Tracy Morgan says, “my dick is shaped like the Darth Vader helmet.”

$

Permalink Posted in: art, cage, cardboard city, celebs, clubs, concert, dc, hip-hop, music, nyc, quotes, shabooty exclusive, shia labeouf, show, tv, ventilation March 26, 2008