ExitingARM
Encyclopedia
ExitingARM is the third full-length album from Oakland-based experimental hip-hop sextet Subtle
, released by Lex Records
on May 13, 2008.
Subtle's frontman and lyricist Doseone
explained that the title ExitingARM referred to the arm as the only way that ideas can exit the mind. "Since the first apes used a blade of grass as a tool on a comb of ants. The human mind started to make room for free time. And the arm became the only exit for the mind, in this world, as the mind developed. So you have war through the arm, and you have the various arts, all coming out through the arm. So as this develops, the free mind starts to expand, and nervousness enters the world, and fear of galactic proportions."http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/46235-interview-subtle
The lyric booklet to accompany the album appears to have pages torn out of it and there is an additional 20,000 words of written content to coincide with the album available online. According to the same interview, Doseone intentionally removed the word "I" from all the lyrics. ("I" does appear as the last word of "Providence"'s chorus.)
He cited Buckminster Fuller
, Dylan Thomas
, The NeverEnding Story
and Le Corbusier
's modular man as ideas which contributed to the creation of the album.
Band member Dax Pierson, who was paralyzed from the shoulders down after a February 2005 tour van accident has been able to contribute to the album, composing music in Ableton Live
. "It's hard to describe," said Doseone, "very easy to understand when you see it, but he has these braces that have cut-in-half pencils on them, and he types with them and uses this mouse that has single, double, triple-click and right-click all in separate buttons.”
The track 'Unlikely Rock Shock' is the first preview from the album and was released for free download on February 1 2008. In late March, the band released a second song from the album for download, entitled 'The Crow'. http://stereogum.com/archives/mp3/new-subtle-the-crow_008582.html
Subtle (music)
Subtle is a music group consisting of Adam Drucker, Jeffrey Logan, Dax Pierson, Jordan Dalrymple, Alexander Kort, and Marty Dowers. Although both Adam and Jeff have strong ties to the anticon. music collective, Subtle is not on the Anticon roster. Subtle started as an Oakland-based band in 2001...
, released by Lex Records
Lex Records
Lex Records is an independent record label founded by Tom Brown in 2001. The label was an imprint of Warp Records and run from their North London offices, until September 2005.Lex has a low volume of releases, rarely releasing more than three albums annually...
on May 13, 2008.
Subtle's frontman and lyricist Doseone
Doseone
Adam Drucker, better known as Doseone , is an American MC, artist, and poet from Idaho. Dose is known for his nasal, high pitched, fast polyrhythmic rapping style and abstract lyrics. He often simultaneously performs synth, sampler, or keyboard on stage. His words tend to express upon topics of...
explained that the title ExitingARM referred to the arm as the only way that ideas can exit the mind. "Since the first apes used a blade of grass as a tool on a comb of ants. The human mind started to make room for free time. And the arm became the only exit for the mind, in this world, as the mind developed. So you have war through the arm, and you have the various arts, all coming out through the arm. So as this develops, the free mind starts to expand, and nervousness enters the world, and fear of galactic proportions."http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/46235-interview-subtle
The lyric booklet to accompany the album appears to have pages torn out of it and there is an additional 20,000 words of written content to coincide with the album available online. According to the same interview, Doseone intentionally removed the word "I" from all the lyrics. ("I" does appear as the last word of "Providence"'s chorus.)
He cited Buckminster Fuller
Buckminster Fuller
Richard Buckminster “Bucky” Fuller was an American systems theorist, author, designer, inventor, futurist and second president of Mensa International, the high IQ society....
, Dylan Thomas
Dylan Thomas
Dylan Marlais Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer, Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 11 January 2008. who wrote exclusively in English. In addition to poetry, he wrote short stories and scripts for film and radio, which he often performed himself...
, The NeverEnding Story
The Neverending Story
The Neverending Story is a German fantasy novel by Michael Ende, first published in 1979. The standard English translation, by Ralph Manheim, was first published in 1983...
and Le Corbusier
Le Corbusier
Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, better known as Le Corbusier , was a Swiss-born French architect, designer, urbanist, writer and painter, famous for being one of the pioneers of what now is called modern architecture. He was born in Switzerland and became a French citizen in 1930...
's modular man as ideas which contributed to the creation of the album.
Band member Dax Pierson, who was paralyzed from the shoulders down after a February 2005 tour van accident has been able to contribute to the album, composing music in Ableton Live
Ableton Live
Ableton Live is a loop-based software music sequencer and DAW for Mac OS and Windows by Ableton. The latest major release of Live, Version 8, was released in April 2009. In contrast to many other software sequencers, Live is designed to be an instrument for live performances as well as a tool for...
. "It's hard to describe," said Doseone, "very easy to understand when you see it, but he has these braces that have cut-in-half pencils on them, and he types with them and uses this mouse that has single, double, triple-click and right-click all in separate buttons.”
The track 'Unlikely Rock Shock' is the first preview from the album and was released for free download on February 1 2008. In late March, the band released a second song from the album for download, entitled 'The Crow'. http://stereogum.com/archives/mp3/new-subtle-the-crow_008582.html
Track listing
- "ExitingARM"
- "Day Dangerous"
- "The No"
- "Sick Soft Perfection"
- "Hollow Hollered"
- "The Crow"
- "Unlikely Rock Shock"
- "Take To Take"
- "Gonebones"
- "Wanted Found"
- "Providence"