"About Ta Blast" is the debut single by American

rapcore Rap rock is a fusion genre that fuses vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with various forms of rock. Rap rock's most popular subgenres include rap metal and rapcore, which include heavy metal and hardcore punk-oriented influences, resp ...

band

downset. Downset (usually stylized as downset.) is an American rap metal band from Los Angeles, California. Originally called Social Justice, the band's music blends influences from rap, funk, hardcore punk, and metal with "socially aware lyrics." Ba ...

It was released as a

seven-inch In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separate ...

single in August 1993 through Abstract Recordings. The song was later re-recorded for the band's self-titled debut album in 1994 under the spelling "About To Blast". In 2022, it was reissued with the demo version of "Breed The Killer" as a bonus track.

Composition and lyrics

"About Ta Blast" is a

song. The original version of the song is written in the key of B-flat major with a

common time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

tempo of 96

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

. The song's guitars are tuned to Drop D-flat. While parts of the song were previously written beforehand, the song is based around the aftermath of the

1992 Los Angeles riots The 1992 Los Angeles riots, sometimes called the 1992 Los Angeles uprising and the Los Angeles Race Riots, were a series of riots and civil disturbances that occurred in Los Angeles County, California, in April and May 1992. Unrest began in S ...

and the lack of progress and change in

police brutality Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, but is not limited to, ...

following the riots. It was also written about his friend, Scam, who was forced to leave his home in

Watts, Los Angeles Watts is a neighborhood in southern Los Angeles, California. It is located within the South Los Angeles region, bordering the cities of Lynwood, Huntington Park and South Gate to the east and southeast, respectively, and the unincorporated comm ...

due to the consistent

harassment Harassment covers a wide range of behaviors of offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behavior that demeans, humiliates or embarrasses a person, and it is characteristically identified by its unlikelihood in terms of social and moral ...

by the

Los Angeles Police Department The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially known as the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the municipal police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 police officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the third-large ...

. "You would think that after all the riots and the rest of the turmoil that has happened in this city that the police would change their attitudes towards people, but he told me how cops continually harass people and set people up for no reason. People that live in these

ghetto A ghetto, often called ''the'' ghetto, is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, especially as a result of political, social, legal, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished t ...

barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residenti ...

places can only put up with so much harassment. He had to leave his home because the harassment was too much and jail just for being or living there was not right." Rey also made clear the simmering tensions in Los Angeles following the riots that was getting worse even after the riots; "

818 __NOTOC__ Year 818 ( DCCCXVIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Vikings known as Rus' (Norsemen) plunder the north coast of Anatolia ...

about to blast!

213 Year 213 ( CCXIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Calvinus (or, less frequently, year 966 ''Ab urbe cond ...

about to blast!

310 __NOTOC__ Year 310 ( CCCX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Andronicus and Probus (or, less frequently, year 1063 '' ...

about to blast! It can happen again."

Release

"About Ta Blast" was released in August 1993 by Abstract Recordings. "About To Blast" was included on the band's self-titled debut album the following year. In February 2022, it was announced that the single would be re-issued alongside " Anger / Ritual" by

Nuclear Blast Records Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label mov ...

with a demo version of "Breed The Killer" being included with it. "Breed The Killer" also received a music video.

Track listing

2022 reissue

Personnel

Adapted from

Tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...

.{{Cite web , last=Tidal , date=February 18, 2022 , title=Credits / About Ta Blast / Downset – TIDAL , url=https://listen.tidal.com/album/215424568/credits , access-date=2022-06-12 , website=Tidal downset. * Rey Oropeza – vocals, songwriting * Chris Lee – drums, songwriting * Rogelio "Roy" Lozano – guitar, songwriting * Roger H. Ramirez – bass guitar, songwriting * James Morris –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

, songwriting (on "Breed The Killer") Production *

Roy Z Roy Z (born February 1968) is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer, best known for his work with Bruce Dickinson (from Iron Maiden), Halford, and Judas Priest. He also is the founder of Tribe of Gypsies, a Latin-influenced har ...

– producer (all tracks), songwriting

References

1993 debut singles Rapcore songs 1992 Los Angeles riots Downset. songs