Louis Ferrara, Comic

The following article, "Who is Joe Neckbone?" which features a conversation with Kool Keith appeared in the Spring 2007 Issue of Verbicide Magazine.

photo by Brian J. Kaufman

"Who is Joe Neckbone?"

by Louis Ferrara

Stared at the ocean in Dogtown, locked in a warm embrace. Stood gleaming in the center of the arch at South Fourth and Hooper, which is really the center of the world. Glided down the hallway from The Empire Strikes Back. Sped across Northern Nevada with an alien that looked like a preying mantis. And I shot dice with Keith Thornton aka Kool Keith aka Dr Octagon aka Keith Turbo aka Black Elvis aka Dr. Dooom aka Mr. Gerbik aka Crazy Lou, the man responsible for taking me to the aforementioned places, somewhere below the limits of the city, on the edge of the desert, while two men in a field flew remote control helicopters.

Keith guided us down a dusty track that encompassed the fairgrounds where we met. Then we skipped up this little flight of stairs embedded in a foothill that led to a small practice field adjacent to the stadium. Keith wanted to sit on the bleachers and watch the helicopters fly and spin and buzz by in a low hum. From the bleachers, a large jagged red mountain framed the horizon of our scene and all around us was desert and sky. Signs tapped into the dirt, roadrunners, neon lights, and nothing but space. Behind us, across the flat tracks, the Vegoose Music Festival was in full swing. On our walk from backstage to this strange and compelling location, we overheard The Raconteurs and Yonder Mountain String Band blaring in the distance, and, before Kool Keith’s phenomenal set, The Coup harangued a military takeover of the hip-hop tent.

Las Vegas, the city of endless stimuli, was the ultimate backdrop for this psychedelic meeting. However, Keith bemused, “Las Vegas has its quiet settings. It’s the original town of cactus and open land…I think there are unidentified beings here because of the spaciousness, the spacious mouth of nature,…it might be a guy with two heads.” We agreed that aliens are more apt to visit Vegas because of its proximity to Area 51.

Kool Keith is a rap astronaut and self-proclaimed king of alien records. “I am a poetic author and I can write professionally about space and do it the best.” Having become a classic fixture, in the world of hip-hop, Keith is able to maintain his various personas, however odd they may appear to the masses, with sincerity. This is no con. It’s a style.

Thornton was born in the Bronx but he started getting into nature and space and was inspired to create music that expressed this concept when he moved to Los Angeles. “I think that Prince makes so much amazing music because he’s from Minnesota and there are tons of open spaces there.”

Just then, one of the remote helicopters zipped by and caught our attention. And Keith kept improvising. “I don’t necessarily have to be the future. I like a 1975 Rolls Royce or a 75 Corvette or a GTO or 442 Oldsmobile. It still looks futuristic. I think people get futuristic mixed up.”

At that point, I understood, that Kool Keith spans more than a generation of hip hop. “I want my records to be timeless. Something you can pick up in ten years and it still makes sense.” His point lies in the truth that things that appear to be futuristic when they arrive on the scene are timeless because they become more relevant as time goes on. Strangely enough, Dr. Oct seemed blissfully unaware of current trends.

Proving that with quiet humility, he kept asking me about Myspace. I explained the wonderful concept of anyone being able to express themselves for their peers and also the pitfalls of an obvious advertising and marketing machine. But Keith didn’t get it. He is stuck in an old world where artists paid their dues before they were noticed. “Why is Joe Neckbone on the cover of a magazine?” Keith asked me, with a great degree of seriousness. “He doesn’t even have a story.”

On that note, he told me story about working with Ol’ Dirty Bastard. “We got some Kentucky Fried Chicken. I picked him up where he was staying in LA. We got some sodas and we made the song. It wasn’t like we emailed each other or I emailed him the track. He did it right on the spot. He didn’t need to write it down. No paper. He just worked it out in pieces, by himself.”

Kool Keith is an old fashioned man. He is demure and polite and his ego is non-existent. His flow is clear because he believes in his style. This man is unconcerned with fame and content to speak frankly about aliens, space, and gynecology. He is a poet.

I asked him if he ever wanted to be on television. And he told me that he wanted to be the Captain of the Enterprise on Star Trek. But with a cape.

photo by Brian J. Kaufman

BE MY FRIEND!!

	The following article, "Who is Joe Neckbone?" which features a conversation with Kool Keith appeared in the Spring 2007 Issue of Verbicide Magazine. photo by Brian J. Kaufman "Who is Joe Neckbone?" by Louis Ferrara Stared at the ocean in Dogtown, locked in a warm embrace. Stood gleaming in the center of the arch at South Fourth and Hooper, which is really the center of the world. Glided down the hallway from The Empire Strikes Back. Sped across Northern Nevada with an alien that looked like a preying mantis. And I shot dice with Keith Thornton aka Kool Keith aka Dr Octagon aka Keith Turbo aka Black Elvis aka Dr. Dooom aka Mr. Gerbik aka Crazy Lou, the man responsible for taking me to the aforementioned places, somewhere below the limits of the city, on the edge of the desert, while two men in a field flew remote control helicopters. Keith guided us down a dusty track that encompassed the fairgrounds where we met. Then we skipped up this little flight of stairs embedded in a foothill that led to a small practice field adjacent to the stadium. Keith wanted to sit on the bleachers and watch the helicopters fly and spin and buzz by in a low hum. From the bleachers, a large jagged red mountain framed the horizon of our scene and all around us was desert and sky. Signs tapped into the dirt, roadrunners, neon lights, and nothing but space. Behind us, across the flat tracks, the Vegoose Music Festival was in full swing. On our walk from backstage to this strange and compelling location, we overheard The Raconteurs and Yonder Mountain String Band blaring in the distance, and, before Kool Keith’s phenomenal set, The Coup harangued a military takeover of the hip-hop tent. Las Vegas, the city of endless stimuli, was the ultimate backdrop for this psychedelic meeting. However, Keith bemused, “Las Vegas has its quiet settings. It’s the original town of cactus and open land…I think there are unidentified beings here because of the spaciousness, the spacious mouth of nature,…it might be a guy with two heads.” We agreed that aliens are more apt to visit Vegas because of its proximity to Area 51. Kool Keith is a rap astronaut and self-proclaimed king of alien records. “I am a poetic author and I can write professionally about space and do it the best.” Having become a classic fixture, in the world of hip-hop, Keith is able to maintain his various personas, however odd they may appear to the masses, with sincerity. This is no con. It’s a style. Thornton was born in the Bronx but he started getting into nature and space and was inspired to create music that expressed this concept when he moved to Los Angeles. “I think that Prince makes so much amazing music because he’s from Minnesota and there are tons of open spaces there.” Just then, one of the remote helicopters zipped by and caught our attention. And Keith kept improvising. “I don’t necessarily have to be the future. I like a 1975 Rolls Royce or a 75 Corvette or a GTO or 442 Oldsmobile. It still looks futuristic. I think people get futuristic mixed up.” At that point, I understood, that Kool Keith spans more than a generation of hip hop. “I want my records to be timeless. Something you can pick up in ten years and it still makes sense.” His point lies in the truth that things that appear to be futuristic when they arrive on the scene are timeless because they become more relevant as time goes on. Strangely enough, Dr. Oct seemed blissfully unaware of current trends. Proving that with quiet humility, he kept asking me about Myspace. I explained the wonderful concept of anyone being able to express themselves for their peers and also the pitfalls of an obvious advertising and marketing machine. But Keith didn’t get it. He is stuck in an old world where artists paid their dues before they were noticed. “Why is Joe Neckbone on the cover of a magazine?” Keith asked me, with a great degree of seriousness. “He doesn’t even have a story.” On that note, he told me story about working with Ol’ Dirty Bastard. “We got some Kentucky Fried Chicken. I picked him up where he was staying in LA. We got some sodas and we made the song. It wasn’t like we emailed each other or I emailed him the track. He did it right on the spot. He didn’t need to write it down. No paper. He just worked it out in pieces, by himself.” Kool Keith is an old fashioned man. He is demure and polite and his ego is non-existent. His flow is clear because he believes in his style. This man is unconcerned with fame and content to speak frankly about aliens, space, and gynecology. He is a poet. I asked him if he ever wanted to be on television. And he told me that he wanted to be the Captain of the Enterprise on Star Trek. But with a cape. photo by Brian J. Kaufman BE MY FRIEND!!
	©2007 Louis Ferrara