Body Count (33 1/3) by Ben Apatoff
Ben Apatoff’s Body Count is a great addition to the
33 1/3 library. First, there aren’t many of these books about great metal
albums. I read the Slayer Reign in Blood, but I don’t think there are
many others (It is a great and fun read). Plus, I think many people may not be aware
of how controversial Body Count was in the early 90s, nor how revolutionary and
kind of unclassifiable they were at the time. Apatoff’s book helps to contextualize
Ice-T’s role in popular music, providing a brief biography, and showing how he
eventually got involved in music after a brief life of crime. I’ve always loved
Ice-T’s music and remember just how hard “Colors” was in 1988. “High Roller”
and “6 in the Mornin’” were some other favorites because, as Apatoff notes, Ice
was a storyteller, not just a rapper. He was like a poet and writer able to
create these characters and stories, often with a kind of dark irony, that were
just as appealing as someone I’d read in school like Poe or Shirley Jackson.
His were just shorter and set to really great music. I still don’t know what
some of the sounds were from “Colors”, but they were really haunting.
Ice-T was also one of the first rappers to really move into movies as well, although I don’t really remember his role in Breakin’. However, I remember when New Jack City came out—both the soundtrack and the movie. Apatoff’s book uses these events to show just how powerful and well-known Ice-T became in the media as someone who not only could popularize a kind of underground form of music (at the time), but also could make movies (and soundtracks—New Jack City, Ricochet, Trespass—some classic 90s films). Needless to say, Ice T was powerful, and people were listening to him. What is surprising, though, is that once Body Count came out, people began to distance themselves from him and his music. Apatoff also helps to contextualize the release of Body Count, providing great details and research about the times and the members of the band. Readers learn that Ice-T was also a fan of rock music, especially Black Sabbath, and he met some other musicians, especially Ernie C, who became the lead guitarist for Body Count, in high school. It was cool to learn that Ice-T, at the height of his power, reconnected with some friends to do some different music that people probably didn’t really expect. It was also brought about by Ernie C’s connection with Perry Farrell, who wanted to record with Sly Stone, but ended up recording his song from Gift with Ice-T, which I always thought was pretty weird. Regardless, this led to a booking on the first Lollapalooza, where Ice T decided to do a show half rap and half metal, with Body Count. It was great to read about this iteration of Lollapalooza, and how the Rollins Band (and probably Jane’s Addiction) influenced Body Count’s music.
The most interesting chapters of the book revisit the book’s first chapter where, in July of 1992, about a year and a half after the Rodney King Beating and about 3 months after the LA Riots, we learn that Ice-T intends to remove the song “Cop Killer” from Body Count’s debut album. It was really interesting to read about the controversy and uproar the album provided in the post-Rodney King video world of music. While some metal groups from the 80s faced scrutiny over their lyrics, it seemed like rap music in particular was in the crosshairs of conservative activists who were certainly not advocating for free speech. Taking the music literally, critics on both sides of the major parties like Dan Quayle and Tipper Gore took umbrage at Ice-T’s song, failing to recognize the criticism it leveled in how African Americans had been and continued to be brutalized by newly militarized police forces. Furthermore, they often failed to connect the lyrics of Body Count to Ice-T’s other music. Nevertheless, reading these criticisms today, where terms like “Black Lives Matter” and “Critical Theory” spark such outrage among supposed free speech advocates is a reminder of the utter hypocrisy that has been a large part of American politics. It’s not about furthering rights of all, but rather putting on a show for constituents, and often using fear-mongering, creating enemies and others to create a common enemy. As Ice-T’s earlier album would claim, Freedom of Speech…Just Watch What you Say!
The other chapters in this book explore the creation of the album There’s a brief chapter at the end that runs through all of the songs on the album and provides quotes from Ice-T and Ernie C about how these songs developed, and it’s worth the read, especially for Ice’s remembrances (or non-remembrances) of some of the songs. I also liked learning about the different punk and thrash metal bands that influenced Body Count, like Suicidal Tendencies, who I always thought sounded a lot like Body Count, not musically, but more like thematically/lyrically, DRI, and even Living Colour, who were part of the Black Rock Coalition, but didn’t really include Body Count in it. There’s another chapter that focuses on how Ice-T and Ernie C resurrected the band after a few failed albums that followed their debut. I remember hearing about some of the albums and learning about the different influences that Body Count had on newer, younger metal bands. Apatoff used a quote from Laina Dawes, whose book I’ve been meaning to read, to explain how Body Count were metal, but also funky. Ernie C’s guitar work has that kind of funk sound to it, where there’s some of the influence of P-Funk’s Eddie Hazel. A lot of times, these 33 1/3 books have a kind of tragic ending or we learn that the band never made more albums, but this one classic album remains influential. This book was different, and I loved seeing how the band came back and were still relevant. Although the social problems like racism, violence, and drugs are still around, it’s great to have a band like Body Count to document and criticize it in their own thrilling way. Part anger, part humor, all metal—Body Count is in the house!
One final note about Apatoff’s writing—I loved how he documented nearly everything from his research. Sometimes these books don’t include citations and documentation of their sources, but Apatoff’s research and extensive bibliography of books, podcasts, videos and articles has provided me with some great follow up reading! Many thanks!
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