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* Georgia Straight, Vancouver. November 2006*Brainy white boy hip-hop from Calgary (!). Nothing about steers, queers, or beers, but lots to ponder in mainman John Creary’s idea-fuelled lyrics and postgrad production. By Shawn Conner*Beat Route November 2006*As comparisons are almost unavoidable when doing a record review, what first comes to mind while listening to this CD is if Consolidated collaborated with Buck 65, this is what it might sound life. But that’s just an inkling. Add to that DJ Shadow/Kool Keith opus stylings and industrial overtones with reflective and political poems and you get a good idea what lies within this little marvel. Ginsberg’s Inkling (aka John Creary) is perhaps one of the most refreshing hip hop albums I’ve heard in quite a while, reminding me as to why I listen to this form of music in the first place. The beats are well crafted with sharp scratching (supplied by Matt ‘Braille’ Cameron) and not for a moment does the album tend to fall flat, except for the long pause in between track 11 and 12 which leads into the title track. But dead air doesn’t count. While writing this paragraph I decide to throw on an Allen Ginsberg record to draw another comparison, but I don’t really think that’s necessary. He’s a Jewish poet and writer (and I’m a try hard at both) and the Halfpenny creator is a Maritimer turned Calgarian (yeah, it’s a local release) and I know he’s not Jewish. ‘Nuff said. – Krust-E*Challenging CD is a Treat* by Bill PolonskyGinsberg’s Inkling’s The Halfpenny Marvel has to be one of the most interesting releases I’ve listened to in quite some time. It’s one of those albums you realize early on will remain on the top of the CD shelf to be brought out and played with shameless abandon. The scope of the album is wide with large issues suffused over an audacious audio kaleidoscope. Ginsberg’s Inkling has forged its own path of sensual lyrics and rap-ego with a general unbalanced but not off-putting politics. The feel of the album is a mix of hip hop beats, sample culture and a testosterone-fuelled script, perhaps this the soundtrack for a yet to be produced film or a film score set apart from its moorings to drift visually dark forever. Something just around the next corner, after the next lyric, the next word: these lyrics keep the listener on their toes and running to keep up with the stream of conscience’s lyrics emanating from the commanding voice of Creary, the main inkler and overall creative force of this collective. Creary intimates or tickles the inkling: a clever device to keep us listening. What comes forth is a barrage of thought speech, word rhymes and well-enunciated verbal pointillist soundscapes that acts as a whole only from a distance but, when you get to the phrases, they work under a whole new set of rules. This album is much like quantum physics in that way in which the act of observing somehow informs the actions and changes the results....Or I could be wrong. My ability to decipher rapid lyrics comes from a basic premise of few thoughts and minor actions to wit: “I wanna rock and roll all night†easily and understandably forms my decision to “party every dayâ€. The similarity to the artist Buck 65 is superficial. The vocal inflection has resonances of Buck 65 and the subject matter is similarly working class but the overall feeling given to us by The Halfpenny Marvel is that of directed confusion, like an interesting day away from reality. The selection of eclectic samples that permeate the songs on this CD is enough to merit recommendation. With the added rap, arrangements and mixing, The Halfpenny Marvel is a treat to listen to and a challenge to understand.*EXCLAIM! SEPTEMBER 2006* CHECK IT OUT!Ginsbergs Inkling The Halfpenny Marvel ---If Buck 65 had never turned his back on hip-hop and remained independent, I imagine this is somewhat how he would sound today. A Maritime transplant now living in Calgary, Ginsbergs Inkling (aka John Creary) has obviously been influenced by Buck 65. The Halfpenny Marvel mixes Bucks older hip-hop-heavy production style with his newer spoken word raps (but without the fake old-man voice) to create the sound fans probably wish Buck was doing now. Ginsberg mixes coffee house artistry with b-boy posturing, adds a touch of the sex rap, and never scrimps on cuts and scratches (provided by Braille) from the first song to the last. The piercing horns of opening track Blips of Art bring to mind the early production from the Soul Assassins camp for a throwback boom-bap track, and then kicks in harder with some Sesame Street cuts, a heavy guitar beat and distorted vocals for Save the Ales!. And with those two songs you get a pretty good inkling of what Ginsbergs The Halfpenny Marvel is all about. Now, hopefully Bucks rumoured return to hip-hop will sound just as good as Ginsbergs impressive debut, which also happens to display plenty of future potential. (Pretentious Music, [email protected]) - Thomas QuinlanGinsbergs Inkling: Quick BioThe Maritimes are pretty, especially in the fall. But the beauty of falling red maple leaves werent enough to keep Ginsberg (John Creary) content. With no mustache, he packed the rusty Corolla and sought something bigger. Almost satisfied somewhere in Cowtown, he teaches English and Social Studies to youth at-risk, spending his free time traveling, reading, writing and making beats. These latter two creative yearnings collided into his debut release, The Halfpenny Marvel.......Way back in 86, Raising Hell and License to Ill set in marvelous motion an imperfect love affair. A romance with rhyme that involved reciting all the lyrics of these classics to grade six teachers and giggling schoolgirls. Two decades later, The Halfpenny Marvel is a self produced, juggle of orthodox hip hop and something more creative, uncanny, and humane. A bending collage of dusty breaks, spacey synth, pretty pianos, fluttering flutes, somber horns, electronic melodies, movie clips, and tight turntable scratches (courtesy of Matt Braille Cameron)........Ginsbergs words are mostly poetic musings, capturing moments and wandering over social sickness, ex-girlfriends, red balloons, teary eyed depression, and new haircuts. The mood is both dark and warm. Apocalyptic and playful. Cinematic, personal, and worn. And if nothing else, The Halfpenny Marvel shows wonderful potential marinatingGinsberg's Inkling - The Halfpenny Marvel album can be purchased around Calgary at the following locations: Fameless, Megatunes, Giant 45, Ghettoblaster, and The Source (on 17th). Online at www.phonographique.com.