Damn It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta

We keeps it steady moving

2008-12-05T14:26:00.001Z

Re-energised, reinvigorated, re-envisioned...

Go 'head and switch the style up

2008-05-12T20:59:00.003Z

Here's a few songs with little in common other than that they're remixes (and of course, I think they're awesome songs!):

Will Ferrell as Jackie Moon ft Lil Wayne - "Love Me Sexy rmx"

Will Ferrell puts all the sexy r'n'b cats out there to shame...Barry White would be proud.

G-Dep ft Diddy, Ghostface, Keith Murray & Craig Mack - "Special Delivery rmx"

As close as a Bad Boy posse cut has or ever will get to topping Flava In Ya Ear, every verse (even the Puffy adlibs) is classic and the beat inspired many a shameful attempt at the Harlem Shake on my part.

Nas - "Life is like a dice game" demo rmx

In truth, I never heard the original version of this, but the remix is that classic '90s mellowed-out, chiilin'-like-a-villain sorta music.

Lenny Kravitz ft Jay-Z - "Storm (Just Blaze rmx)"

A major contender for my favourite Just Blaze beat, it's hard not to get swept up by these strings, Lenny smooths it out on the hook and Jay's verse is swagger personified. Warrants repeat listens.

Madonna ft Pharrell & Kanye - "Beat Goes On rmx"

Last but not least, I've been in full guilty pleasure mode of late and this Madonna collabo with my two favourite beatmeister-fashionistas typifies my state of my mind...like that really sweet popcorn at the cinema you just can't get enough of...

Flying Lotus - "July Heat"

2008-05-12T20:45:00.002Z

Went to see RZA supporting his new Digi Snax album a couple of weeks ago and it was awesome. Bobby dropped jewels in a pre-show Q & A and performed some bona fide classics, but the highlight for me was discovering a DJ/producer from LA called Flying Lotus, who opened the show. His futuristic, synth-laden, bass-heavy production was reminiscent of Dilla, Black Milk, Madlib and Sa-Ra. He was really entertaining too; rather than crouching over the decks with his headphones on, he was dancing around, singing along, interacting with the crowd and generally having a great time. He played some Wu classics and some quality electronic music, accompanied by a pretty impressive light-show.

Anyhoo, it's always good to discover a dope artist and I've been trawling the internets for his previous material. "July Heat" is an instrumental compilation I hope you'll enjoy (click the picture above to d/l).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Lotus

http://www.myspace.com/flyinglotus

http://www.flying-lotus.com/attack/

Theme Music

2008-05-12T20:05:00.007Z

Soundtracks I've been listening to of late:

James Carter and The Prisoners - "Po Lazarus"

Another stroke of oddball genius from the Coen brothers with great music throughout. This song struck a chord with me, as Killa Cam rapped over a sample of it on Dead Or Alive from "Come Home With Me".

Jo Yeong-Wook - "Look Who's Talking"

The main theme from the excellent Oldboy; a movie you need to see if you haven't watched it...and probably watch again if you already have. Kidnapping, romance, live-squid-eating, hammer-beating, self-de-tonguement and an awesome twist at the end. What more could you ask fo'?!

Mobb Deep - "Dirty New Yorker"

Classic Mobb shit from the new Grand Theft Auto. Haven't got my hands on the game yet, but the soundtrack's as sweet as I've come to expect from the series.

Brian Reitzell & Roger J Manning - "On The Subway"

A personal favourite: Bill Murray's a genius, Scarlett Johansson's a fox and I can describe it with cliche terms like "heart-warming" and "bitter-sweet" without feeling like an insincere twat.

Kool G Rap Blog Part 2

2008-05-10T11:40:00.003Z

More knowledge and wisdom courtesy of my man Stretch Nav the G.O.D.:

G Rap is one of the fastest, most versatile rappers ever. Not just a rapper, more like a poet. A voice of the streets. This is poetry at its best. Here are five examples:

Kool G Rap - Ill Street Blues (1992):

"Ah yeah word up, word to mother".

Big Punisher F/ Kool G Rap, B-Real & Fat Joe - Wishful Thinking (1997):

Posse cut produced by Showbiz from DITC. Was the B-Side to the first official single of Pun's '98 "Capital Punishment" ("I'm Not A Player"). Hits hard while G Rap comes with one of his hottest 16s ever. "No doubt, I be the crime story of all ghetto territories...."

King Tee F/ Kool G Rap & Tray Dee - Nuthin' Has Changed (1998):

An East-West thang from King Tee's unofficial '98 album "Thy Kingdom Come". More rewind button ammo from G Rap.

Kool G Rap, Papoose & Tony Montana (?!?) (1999?) - Freestyle:

Recorded from Marley Marl & Pete Rock's Future Flavas Show. Papoose does his thing on one of his earliest appearances, but G Rap runs away with it. "Flip on you the way Montana did to Manolo"

Ghostface, Kool G Rap & Cappadonna - Da Connection (2001)

Rare Beatminerz track. Ghostface kills it with the "Samuel Jackson/Action Jackson/ Mike Jackson Staten/Dusthead niggas that will have you laughing", then G Rap does what he does best. The beat then gets flipped for Cappadonna to lay down some rhymes. "Ai-yo a bathe in the tub with guns (?!?)"...thats got to be a bit uncomfortable though Ghost.

Half A Klip album is out now

Visit Kool G Rap's myspace: www.myspace.com/therealkoolgrap

Download Kool G Rap's music from www.koolgrapsite.com

30's the new 20...

2008-04-21T19:20:00.003Z

...so I couldn't neglect the veteran rappers for long:

Ludacris - "Stay Together"

Fair dues, Luda is Mr Consistency. The punchlines here are pretty funny, if a leeettle bit predictable.

Jay-Z - "Ain't I"

Jay-Z and Timbaland work so well together...maybe they can collaborate for Hov's next concept album; perhaps 12 tracks of Jay tongue-twisting over Timbo club tracks? This one maintains tradition and there's a genius beat switch about half-way through.

Busta Rhymes - "Don't Touch Me"

This has me looking forward to the new Busta album. His flow is "dungeon dragon" and the beat's so funky it stinks. Sweet!

State Property - "Ocean's 7"

This song deserves about the biggest compliment I can hand East Coast rappers these days: it wouldn't sound at all out of place on a Ghostface album. Plus, as a posse cut, it's very reminiscent of Wu-Tang. Missed the boat on SP the first time around, so hopefully they've still got a quality album or two in them.

50 Cent - "Rowdy Rowdy"

Classic track from the unreleased "Power of The Dollar" album. Curtis at his best, spraying that "aggressive content".

Synthesiser Shit + how "Hipster Rap" Saved My Life

2008-04-21T18:19:00.004Z

"I roam like a cell phone in Italy, in search of the real shit.." - Phonte

...& as I can't always depend on aging rappers for the hook up, I've been listening to some rappers closer to my own age...& loads of electronic stuff:

Seal - "Amazing"

Justice - "Tthhee PPaarrttyy"

The "Stay Fly" sample is lovely.

Cansei de Ser Sexy - "Acho Um Pouco Bum"

I've posted tracks from their self-titled debut before, but I like them more now than I did then, so here's to Japanese Brazilians!

Kylie - "Heart Beat Rock"

I'd normally consider myself too much of a snob to post Kylie Minogue songs, but in fairness her album's got much better beats than anything any hip-hop folks have had to contribute this year. Plus Calvin Harris produced this and I'm a big fan.

Chromeo - "Tenderoni"

These guys are stuck in the '80s, but then so am I; a match made in heaven.

Usher ft Jeezy & T.I. - "Love In The Club rmx"

No "Yeah", but it sounds great played loud.

Janet Jackson + a buncha rappers - "Feedback rmx"

Lil Wayne - "Lollipop"

The fact Weezy starts the track with a "no homo", like some kind of disclaimer, cracks me up...and should prepare you fully for the song that follows. I'm all about homoerotic hip-hop humour, but this takes the biscuit like Ja in his prime. As guilty pleasures go, this song might get me life. Sounds good, though :)

Kidz In The Hall - "Driving Down The Block"

Kinda biting the Cool Kids' style production-wise, but that's probably a good thing.

Mickey Factz ft NERD - "Don't Be Light"

Not listened to dude before, but I'm a big NERD fan and he drops a few jewels here.

CRAC Knuckles - "Activate Too"

Funky little interlude from "The Piece Talks", for the sake of which I must retract my earlier statement regarding Kylie Minogue and hip-hop beats.

Wale - "Strings"

His raps fall somewhere between Weezy and Lupe and I'm working my way through his catalogue of mixtapes at the moment (hate catching on late & he's been around for a minute).

Fricky-Fresh

2008-03-31T15:57:00.003Z

G-Unit - Hollow Through Him

50 loves nothing more than a fight where the odds are stacked in his favour and his "beef" with Fat Joe, though pretty pointless, seems to have rejuvenated him musically, just when he was starting to come across a little jaded.

Young Buck - The Strip Club

More from The Unit. The beat really makes this song. It sounds so much like Timbaland, I'm almost disappointed when there isn't an eerie space-age beat-switch towards the end.

Snoop Dogg - Cool

Wholesale Prince-shark-biting on a major scale - not that I'm complaining. The beat's uberfunky, but Snoop could do with working on some of those high notes.

Camp-Lo - Lumdi

stream of consciousness, dadaist Luchini rhyming over massive drums and an infectious sample.

Big Boi ft Andre 3000 & Raekwon

Southernplayalistic beat & rhymes, with Dre stealing the show as per usual.

The Game - Big Dreams

Good song, but is it just me or is Game doing a Ja Rule impression by the 3rd verse?

The Knux - Cappuccino (rmx)

Production sounds straight outta the Umma/Hiero era, even better than the original

Nas - Stay Chiseled

'90s song I found on a mixtape. If ever I quit bumming around and hit the gym, this'll make the workout plan playlist.

Ice Cube ft Scarface & Nas - Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It rmx

Now if I only I could get all the folks constantly hating on my hip-hop to sit down and listen to this...

Q-Tip - Midnight '08

Love the way Cool and Dre keep the original boom-bap drums, then stick all the synthy syrupy southern stuff on top. Plus 'Tip hasn't lost a step.

The Cool Kids - Action Figures

My favourite rap group at the moment.

The Prodigy - Who The F**k is Eddy Cochran?

And Now For Something Completely Different...

2008-03-31T15:11:00.002Z

Album-wise, not too much to get excited about as of the moment, so I've been cheating on H.E.R. with some '70s psych-rock albums. The self-titled album from Brazilian group "Karma" and Japanese group Happy End's "Kazemachi Roman" have got a mellow, melodic folk sound that's definitely worthy of some sample love.

Karma - Transe Uma

Karma - Você Pode Ir Além

Happy End - Kaze Wo Astumete

Fat Joe - The Elephant In The Room

2008-03-31T14:59:00.003Z

About half of this album is pretty damn awesome, making the mediocre, lowest-common-denominator filler tracks that much more frustrating, like he couldn't have just recorded 3 or 4 more quality songs to make this a dope album. As it is though, it's a not a bad collection of songs, and I really enjoyed the last couple; something of a throwback to Joe's Diggin In The Crates roots:

My Conscience (ft KRS-1, prod by Alchemist)

That White (prod by DJ Premier...will he ever fall off?)

Variations on a familiar theme

2008-03-31T14:46:00.003Z

Some samples always seem to produce awesome songs and this one's got a 3-0 winning record over the last few years:

MF DOOM as King Geedorah - Anti-matter

Mos Def - Undeniable

RZA as Bobby Digital ft Inspectah Deck - You Can't Stop Me Now

Can't Knock The Hustle

2008-03-10T22:04:00.003Z

"9 6 and Forever..."

Jay-Z ft MJB and Swizz Beatz - "You're Welcome"

MJB ft Weezy & Swizz (again!) - "Just Fine rmx"

19-vintage.

Laziness, cheapskatedness, global warming; a number of reasons why I'm not driving yet...but I kind of regret not having a ride to bless with tracks like this:

Rick Ross ft Jay-Z - "Maybach Music"

Jay hasn't kilt a rapper on his own shit like this since Bleek didn't even make it onto the best track from his 534 album.

"It ain't nothing but more hot shit...

2008-03-10T21:12:00.012Z

...Another classic [MP3] for y'all to vibe with" - The Good Doctor

Main Source - "Looking at the Front Door"

Pete Rock ft Papoose - "Comprehend"

Given in to the temptation of using the pun rock solid to describe New York's Finest, Pete's new album. This isn't a standout track, particularly, but the 10cc sample is one I've intended on using myself for a few years now...when I invest in a sampler & start making 5 beats a day for 3 summers...perhaps with John Legend resinging the hook..I digress.

Fat Ray & Black Milk - "When It Goes Down"

Love this Detroit shit!

Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings - "Keep On Looking (Kenny Dope rmx)"

Might go see this soul sistah in April.

J-Live - "Don't Play"

Madonna ft JT - "4 Minutes"

Must say Timbaland's on pretty good form at the moment...though I hope Madonna doesn't insist on cringe-worthy near-nudity in the videos this time around.

Mighty Joseph - "Legend"

Madlib production + Super Mario sfx samples = a classic song.

Assholes By Nature (Trae & his cousin Z-Ro) - "It is what it is"

Some nice shit to ride out to...on chrome...& low-lows...top down on the slab, candy paint & all that other stuff the kids are into.

Kanye, Lupe, NERD & Rihanna - "The Glow In The Dark Mixtape"

2008-03-10T21:01:00.002Z

Kanye dropped this tape as promo for the US leg of his world tour a few weeks ago. Some really good tracks here and I'm hoping they've put in some CRS recording time on the tour:

Lupe - "What It Do"

N.E.R.D. - "Locked Away"

DJ Felle Fel ft Kanye, Ne-Yo, Fab & JD - "Finer Things"

Erykah Badu - "New Amerykah Part One"

2008-03-10T20:52:00.003Z

Dope album. No skippable tracks, great content, fresh production and Ms On-&-On Badu's eccentric self. at least a 4 out of 5 :

The Healer (prod by Madlib)

Soldier

The Winter of my (somewhat) Discontent

2008-03-06T21:14:00.011Z

Around this time of year, there's always a few good mixtapes out, plenty of leaked singles worth a few spins, but after the buzz of all the 4th quarter releases has died down, when the 1st quarter releases have been pushed back to April or June or Nevuary, there does seem something of a void to be filled. It's at this point that I dust off the old 19-vintage Tribe, Wu-Tang and Biggie CDs. It doesn't hurt if you can mix that up with a few dope new tracks aswell:

Reflection Eternal - "2000 Seasons"

The Roots - "75 Bars"

C.R.A.C. - "Love Don't"

Saigon ft Grand Puba - "Who Can Get Busy"

(apologies; couldn't find any non-homo-erotic pics of Sai...still a great rapper, though.)

Pete Rock ft Papoose - "Comprehend"

EMC - "Once More"

Common - "The Light 2008" (prod by Just Blaze)

Trendz of Culture - "Valley of the Skinz"

Jay-Z - "I Know"

2008-02-26T22:34:00.002Z

Prettiest fiend I ever did see.

Re-up Gang: "Got It For Cheap Vol. 3"

2008-02-26T22:16:00.003Z

Another quality addition to my favourite mixtape series. Not quite on a par with Vol.2 (though I mainly blame that on hip-hop's failure to provide enough dope beats for the R-E-U-P to rip up over the last year; case in point), but immense nonetheless and far superior product to most rappers' albums:

Good Morning

Pusha's verse, dedicated to his own lyrical greatness, claiming a spot in the pantheon of true hip-hop greats is swaggerific (yes, it is cool enough to justify such corny-ass terms!)

Rainy Dayz

They do justice to the Cuban Linx classic and Mal's almost sing-song flow on the closing verse stands out for me.

Certainly worth a download (they upped it for free).

G-Unit - "Return of the Bodysnatchers"

2008-02-26T21:59:00.005Z

After a pretty shambolic '07, I feel some sympathy for Curtis...felt the same for Ja in '04. He hasn't completely fallen off, but I wouldn't begrudge him a successful comeback of sorts if it involved dropping a really good album. In the mean time, he might want to try rebuilding his buzz through mixtapes, as it worked the first time round:

Rider for Real

Make Me Feel Good

Never thought I'd get so much joy from a Tony Yayo for-the-ladies song! It's super-catchy, though.

Freezepop - "Future Future Future Perfect"

2008-02-26T21:46:00.002Z

One of my my "guilty pleasures" I'm not all that guilty about is poppy electro music and these folks certainly fit the bill...if you're into that sorta thing:

Ninja of Love

Brainpower

Listening to this, I picture myself off-my-face drunk, boogying down in Shibuya with Japanese chicks (of legal age) dressed as school girls (them, not me)...that just does it for me.

Amy Winehouse: "Frank"

2008-02-26T21:34:00.002Z

Amy's 2003 debut was awesome. Nearly as good as Back to Black, and she certainly looked a lot healthier:

Fuck Me Pumps

In My Bed

Salaam Remi used the same "Apache" loop on this track - I'd argue to equally good effect - as on Nas's "Made You Look".

Fresh

2008-02-25T22:10:00.002Z

Jean Grae - "Love Thirst"

Mark Ronson - "Just (Primo rmx)"

Jim Jones ft The Game - "Love Me No More rmx"

The Pharcyde - "She Said (Dilla rmx)"

Skyzoo - "The Necessary Evils"

Termanology - "Who's The Nicest"

Starski ft The Cool Kids - "Stunnas On"

Three 6 Mafia - "I'd Rather"

Tribe Called Quest - "The Hop"

Q-Tip - "Go Hard"

Murs and Slug - "Felt 2: A Tribute to Lisa Bonet"

2008-02-25T19:47:00.005Z

I wouldn't call this a spectacular album, but it's shortcomings are more than made up for by naming it after my favourite Huxtable - she was like Rosario Dawson before Rosario Dawson...but I digress - and by a couple of real standout tracks:

Woman Tonight

Seldom have lullaby, love song, soul-baring and phat hip-hop song come together so well in the space of 3 or 4 minutes.

Morris Day

Morris and his valet Jerome stole the show recently at the Grammys and The Time are my favourite Prince side-project, so Murs and Slug get kudos from me just for naming the song after him. Even better than the title, though, is the laid back groove on the track.

DJ Premier A Retrospective 2000-Present part 1

2008-01-31T21:55:00.000Z

Courtesy of Stretch Nav the god:

The reason why Preemo is one of the best producers ever is the fact that he has been able to keep his style fresh. As long as hiphop exists, his music is relevant. He embodies what hip-hop stands for, even if it is very difficult to describe how this is possible. His music makes you nod your head as you sing along to his scratch-laden choruses. Like all the big names (Dre, Timbaland, Neptunes) you can spot a Preemo song because he has his own, signature sound. In the new millenium, he stepped up a gear, more of the same in quality terms while not being afraid to experiment, whether it be with the artists he collaborates with or the sounds he creates. Check these five out:

Gangstarr: The Natural

Big 12" only release (B-side to Skillz) from late 2002. This really should have been on the duo's "The Ownerz" album, but was mysteriously left off. The Source used the word "Hitchcock" to describe this one. Elevating the style of beats.

Snoop Dogg F/ Lady Of Rage: Batman & Robin

It was either this or "The One And Only". Both are lifted off Snoop's 2002 "Paid Tha Cost..." album, but I chose this because of Premo chopping up the old Batman TV theme tune to great effect (check the horns)...and because Snoop namedrops Marvel comics and the fact that Snoop and Rage assume the roles of a pimped-out Batman & Robin respectively (w/ a cameo by RBX as Commissioner Gordon). East meets West with the "Batmobile on threes"

The NYGz: Giantz Ta This

Release from 2002/2003 on Premier's Year Round label. Basically starts with a disgruntled Preemo complaining how "A lot of y'all muthafuckas lost your ear to the street", then proclaiming "so as usual, I'm back" and how he's "gutter as ever"... and then he gives us another example of how to chop up an over-used sample ("7 minutes of Funk" used previously by Jay-Z & EPMD) and make it sound fresh again for some hard NY rhymes from Panchi & Shabeeno. We wouldn't have it any other way Preemo.

Freddie Foxxx: Lazy

I heard this off a Premier mix CD from 2003. Great tune, I can't really say much more than that. Oh and that Foxxx is as hard as nails.

Agallah: NY Ryder Music

Next time I'm in NY, I'm riding to this. From 2006, the artist formerly known as "8-Off" gets an understated banger from Premo. "Its that NY Ryder Music!"

Jay Electronica - Act 2

2008-01-31T21:39:00.000Z

Just an appetiser:

Departure

Not A Disturbance

R.I.P. Pimp C

2008-01-31T21:33:00.000Z

Three 6 Mafia ft UGK - On Some Chrome

This Week I Have Mostly Been Listening to...

2008-01-06T13:11:00.000Z

Nah, not really:

Lady of Rage ft Snoop & Dre - Afropuffs Rmx

An extended chronic-fuelled remix with an awesome freestyle from Snoop.

Foxy Brown - Fame

Definitely one of the better songs I've heard so far in '08 and off the back of this and a coupla other leaked tracks, I'd look forward to hearing her next album...if it ever drops.

G-Unit - I'm Leavin'

Curtis fell off so bad last year I feel the same kind of sympathy for him I felt for Ja circa 2004/05, so I'm happy he's got back on the bike. It's formulaic and unoriginal, but they do the mixtape posse cuts so well.

N.E.R.D. - Everybody Nose

A sequel of sorts to She Wants To Move, this bodes well for the upcoming N.3.R.D. album. The Pharrell solo album was slightly underwhelming, but as a group these guys are 2 and 0, so I'm very much looking forward to their 3rd release.

Torae - Callin' Me

Nicely looped vocal sample, sweeping strings and some heavy drums. Nuff said. Oh, and the rhymes are pretty sick, too.

Swizz Beatz ft Drag-On (remember him?) - Hard Knocks

Not too many jewels dropped here, but it's hard not to nod your head to this. Ghostface fans might find the sample sounds a little familiar..

Ghostface ft Meth & Chef Rae - Yolanda's House

..and speaking of Ghostface, I should've posted this a month ago, as it was my favourite song of '07. Perfect in every way and I can't remember the last verse I blessed with as many rewinds as Meth's contribution here. Witty Unpredictable genius.

Kool G Rap: A Retrospective part 1 (of 2)

2008-01-06T12:53:00.000Z

More knowledge from the god Nav:

The Kool Genius of Rap. Says it all really. Certified OG in this hiphop game, the hustlers know this. Klashnekoff knows this (check his latest LP as he, Kyza Smirnoff and G Rap get busy over a Joe Buhdha banger). RA the Rugged Man knows this. Shit, even my Cuz knows this and he doesn't listen to any hiphop that is after 1993 (taking hiphop snobbery to new levels)! He influenced many of the 90s spitters; Big Pun got on his knees when he finally met him! If you haven't heard of him, then you need to know asap....and in terms of content, G Rap is the opposite of Talib Kweli. Take that however you want. Reppin' Corona, Queens, you can feel the realness through his trademark lispy raps. This is thug rap done well and where you truly believe the artist lives the lyrics. Below are five tracks from different times in his 20+ year career. An awesome, raw talent who made his mark on hiphop music. Salute!

Big Daddy Kane feat. Kool G Rap: Raw (Kool G Rap Remix)

Rare remix of Kane's '88 classic. Juice Crew flava. Early potential is evident. You could even go as far as saying that G Rap outperforms Kane. There is a story that G Rap rhymed for so long for this recording that the reel had stopped half-way. BTW Juice Crew film is being made, "Vapors" with Cuba Gooding Jnr as Marley Marl. I can't wait.

Kool G Rap and DJ Polo: Bad To The Bone

This is a personal favourite and for those living the fast life. Balling without any Puffy ethos. Has a ruthless playboy feel to it. G Rap steps up a gear for a career high performance off the classic Wanted Dead Or Alive LP. Large Professor contributed a lot to this LP but didn't get the recognition he deserved because Eric B insisted on taking credit for the production on the album. "profile's kept low/more dough than Barry Manilow" Brilliant....he name-dropped Barry Manilow! Now that's gangsta.

Kool G Rap & DJ Polo: Death Wish

1990's Wanted Dead or Alive was G Rap's second album and the maturity of the artist is on display. He grew as an artist by the time of this release and Death Wish highlights a nastier, harder, more gangster side to the former Juice Crew member that had now emerged. Another big performance.
"run for your life when I'm starting/suckers are getting turned into missing muthafuckas on a milk carton". Hard.

Kool G Rap Freestyle on Sway and Tech's Wake Up Show

If there was one performance that epitomises Kool G Rap, it would have to be this rare freestyle from the Wake Up Show archives. Circa '99, he messes up, recovers and still kills it....and Tony Touch has the unfortunate job of rhyming after him. How is Toca going to top that?

Kool G Rap feat. G Wise: My Life

From 2001, I played this a lot when it was released. A good combination of being radio-friendly while still remaining hard. Produced by the Mighty VIC (Beatnuts, Big Pun), this has a chorus you would sing when you are drunk...but I haven't tried it yet. CNN did a remix of this with G for Soundbombing 3 and this track was one of the singles for G Rap's planned Rawkus release. Vocoders are gangsta.

"This week I have been mostly listening to..."

2007-12-20T21:01:00.000Z

I've been working overtime the last month (literally) and my two great passions (lists and mp3s) necessitate that I put you up to speed with my listening activities during my absence from the blogging realm:

Jay Electronica - Uzi Weighs A Ton

I'm not ashamed to acknowledge I'm kind of jock riding Jay Electronica at the moment, as I'm expecting big things from him in the next year. Not only is he Black Thought meets Doom meets Nas on the mic, but he's surrounded himself with some pretty cool people - at least in my books - aswell: Erykah on-and-on Badu's crazy ass, Just Blaze, the late great Dilla, Young Guru, Sa-Ra and God's Son have all co-signed. D.O.C.'s writing an album on which Jay'll perform the lyrics, he's been working with Nas, Just Blaze and Saigon and I'm expecting some classic material, don't disappoint me Jay! This joint's from the Style Wars EP, raw aggression.

Busta, Papoose and Cassidy - Psycho

The strings! The strings! Sacre bleu, Dilla outdid himself on this one. Heard it a couple of years ago and assumed it was the good Dr (Dre, of course) with those nutjob violins, but I should've known better. This is from Busta and Mick Boogie's quality "Dillagence" mixtape. Hope there's a humungous stockpile of Dilla beats lying around and they give it the full Shakur posthumous treatment.

Frank'n'Dank - Puff Puff Pass

Speaking of whom, this tribute track from the usually mediocre Frank'n'Dank's a bit of a head nod classic for me at the minute.

Black Milk - Broken Wax Outro

Can't get enough of that Detroit shit at the moment and this outro from Black Milk's "Broken Wax EP" is nothing less than I've come to expect from dude. He seems to save his catchiest beats for his instrumental tracks...though the ones with vocals don't half bang either.

Lupe Fiasco - Paris Tokyo

The man who never has and never will listen to Tribe Called Quest wholesale biting the Hieroglyphics? I don't get it, but the song's awesome and I love "The Cool".

Playaz Circle - U Can Believe It

Great song. This and "Duffle Bag Boy" are great singles. Did notice, the same sample and a near identical beat appear on Hov's "American Gangster" track "Say Hello", though DJ Toomp gives the Jay-Z track the heavy "Can't Tell Me Nothing"/"Big Brother"/Stadium Status drums. Not sure whether he sold the same beat twice, but anyhoo, it's got a sweet soul sample on it.

The Doors - Roadhouse Blues

A little change of direction; I'm totally loving The Doors at the moment and Morrison's vocals are monstrous on this song. Makes you want to sex-drugs-and-rock'n'roll your way to oblivion.

The Who - The Kids Are Alright

I've also been spending quality time with The Who. There live performances are legendary and like all great '60s rock acts, they wear rock's blues roots proudly on their sleeves...not something I can say about too many modern day acts (I'm not too big on the emo...how you say? It has no cojones!)

Wyclef ft Sizzla - Welcome To The East

One of the better songs from the new Wyclef album. Like his other post-Ecleftic, his collaborative streak plays as both its great strength and great weakness. With so many features, it feels like a producer album, lacking cohesion and is a veritabe gumbo of styles and genres. This is quite admirable and there are songs that will appeal to disparate musical tastes...but also, conversely, songs that each type of listener will find cloying.

Ms Keys - Teenage Love Affair

The Kevin Garnett of female r'n'b singer/songwriters f**ked around and got another triple double (see Ice Cube's "A Good Day"). Not too many artists guarantee a great album everytime around anymore and Miss Keys' specialness needs to be recognised by wrapping her in cotton wool and locking her away in a safe till her next record's ready, what with her being a global treasure and all that. Prince, Stevie, Aretha...so many awesome influences you can hear in this album, but it's also incredibly fresh-sounding and sounds better by the listen.

Freeway - When They Remember

The most pleasant surprise from the Roc being back like cooked crack this 4th quarter is how good Freeway's album is. Back in '03 when his 1st record dropped, I slept on it because he sounded "annoying" (never mind me, my dumb ass previously felt the same about Ghostface, Jay-Z and The Clipse...go figure, they're all personal favourites now). However, I more tahn appreciate Free's growling, emotional delivery now, and along with Hov, he's really brought the soul sound back to East Coast gangsta rap.

The likes of Styles and Beanie went for southern keys/west coast keys that didn't really work on a lot of their tracks, but "Free At Last" is a throwback to Roc-a-Fella in its prime. Bink shines with his production on the track above and "Still Got Love" and it's a solid effort in the best possible way (the one exception is by-the-numbers for-the-ladies track "Take It To The Top" featuring - surprise, surprise - Curtis and produced by J.R. [bastard responsible for Sean Kingston] (sc)Rotem.

I'm not as young as I used to be and feeling kinda pooped...will resume this post on the 'morrow. Peace.

DJ Premier A Retrospective: The Nineties Part 1

2007-12-20T19:09:00.000Z

First and foremost, I must give muchos grazias to mon frere Stretch Nav who's put together the in depth coverage on a true legend of the hip-hop game. With no further ado:

People know Gangstarr....or are familiar with his work with nearly every major hiphop artist: Jigga, Nas, Snoop, Mos Def, MOP, Rakim, KRS, Common, BIG, Gangstarr Foundation...and/or have heard his recent output with NYG'z, Blaq Poet, Christina Aguilera, Termanology and the Nike "Classic" track. My point is, is that Preem has always been nice with his.

Here is the first of a few entries on Primo's lesser-known moments. Below are five sureshots from the nineties that not a lot of peeps know about. This is some NAV tha G.O.D. hiphop knowledge being dropped here..........nah'mean. How many people knew that Emma Bunton had one of her early solo tracks remixed by Preemo? I kid you not....and it's dope. I was trying to get it played on hospital radio when it came out in '99 but the haters (my co-presenter) did not want it. He did insist however, on playing "Mambo Number Five" on every show. Anyway, DJ Premier-we salute you.

D'n'D Allstars feat. Mad Lion, Doug E Fresh, KRS One, Fat Joe, Smif N Wessun, Jeru The Damaja-1,2 Pass It

A song that epitomises the term, "posse cut". A classic from 1995 with some of the hottest acts of that year. Who do you think rips it? I would say Fat Joe, KRS One and Jeru....Mad Lion is one of the funniest artists I've ever heard.

Group Home-Livin' Proof

Title track from their overlooked debut album from late '95. This is a head-nodder: A signature, stripped-down Primo number, complete with scratches on the hook that sample Inspectah Deck from C.R.E.A.M. A lot of his tracks were very minimalistic around this time and the samples and sounds he was using were unheard of (see Jeru's Come Clean). Melachi Da Nutcracker and Lil' Dap aren't the best rappers, but this is definitely a gem. The album is definitely worth investigating, one of very few albums entirely produced by Premier outside of Gangstarr.

Jeru The Damaja-Me Not The Paper Remix

Great, hard-to-find remix from early 1997. Nice usage of piano keys. Primo's music became more accessible in the late nineties, but he was able to move with the times.....

Freddie Foxxx-Part Of My Life

...as this track from early-mid 1999 shows. I bought this record from Major Flavas in London when it came out. It was, and still is, big. The chorus is ill and Freddie is intense on the mic on this one. Foxxx does justice to the beat and is one of the best to rhyme over any Works Of Mart.

Emma Bunton feat. Guru-What I Am (Gangstarr remix)

How many people would have believed this collaboration then? How many would have believed this collaboration now? Lol. Released in 1999, this is surprisingly good...Guru's verse and the violins are just right. After I heard this, I had a new-found respect for Emma Bunton.

And there we leave it friends and colleagues, jaws agape at this marvelous man whose mystical powers lend freshness to even the stalest of pop stars. Britney, take note. Thanks again to Nav and I'll get on him (pause) to hook up more Primo rarities ASAP.

Alicia Keys - Like You'll Never See Me Again

2007-11-14T16:56:00.000Z

Wow, this sounds like a really good Prince ballad (I'd link to Diamonds and Pearls or something on Youtube, but the Purple One's not a big fan of that - or any other - video site) and I must compliment Alicia on being virtually the only mainstream r'n'b songstress around I'd give the time of day at the moment (not that the male artists are all that better - right now I'd settle for Sisqo over this).

As for the video, the concept's kind of been done already by the likes of Toni Braxton and R.Kelly, but it's cool to see Common return the favour Alicia did for his last video and it goes without saying, getting to ogle Miss Keys for four and a half minutes is no bad thing.

R.I.P. Dr Donda West (1949 - 2007)

2007-11-12T12:44:00.000Z

Deepest condolences to her family and friends.

Damn It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta

2007-11-12T12:33:00.000Z

Replicating this at some point has become a life goal it is imperative that I achieve.

Office Space - Damn It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta

December 4th is...

2007-11-09T19:46:00.000Z

...a big day for hip-hop - and not just because Jay-Z will be turning 40 or 50 or something. Quite a few noteworthy albums are coming out on that date, including:

Far East Meets West (RZA v Kanye) Part 2

2007-11-09T19:04:00.000Z

This is the long overdue sequel to a beat comparison/favourite-producer-jock-riding post in collaboration with Stretch Nav the Sword Swinger. With no further ado, over to the Wu-disciple:

G-Deini and Bobby (w/ Rae on the chorus...check his pronunciation of the word "champion") from '96. Another Wu banga off the Great White Hype soundtrack. We can take it there/settle it son/who the champion!

RZA representing with Bjork from 1997. Very rare remix, it took me some time trying to find it, but it was worth the wait. Another reason why I think he is one of the best producers of all time-Brilliant use of orchestra/strings. Further evidence came later on "Fatal" off the Blade Trinity soundtrack.

Another of the talented Killa Beez over some digi electronics, circa 2002. "Bobby Digital shit" indeed.

RZA, Skinnyman, Blade, Mr Tibbs & Tim Westwood(!)-Boing Boing

Personal favourite off the 2003 "World According To.." album. I rinsed this tune when it first came out. Westwood on the intro (brilliant), some of UK's best and RZA-recta over a crazily-constructed beat (check the bass). For me, this defines the term, "Wu Banga". Boing Boing-don't know what it means, but its catchy and Randy and I seem to be using that term too much.

I couldn't do a blog on the Abbot without some kung-fu samples. The use of the samples (check the last two minutes) and RZA's verse are great. From 2003. Btw 9th Prince is RZA's younger brother. 5th Brother!!!!

From the grimy street-level business over to metrosexual fashionista theme muzak. Kanye's been a real perfectionist working on his last couple of albums and you can hear it. For the most part I take it as a positive, but at times it all sounds a little too polished. That being the case, I went for mostly mixtape tracks here, as he still allows a little (good) sloppiness to creep into those beats.

A reworked version of this song featuring a Chris Martin hook appeared on Graduation and exemplifies how much his sound has evolved over the last 4 or 5 years. Not so much of the soul or boom-bap now, but a grander more epic sound in search of "stadium status".

Awesome strings and funny as hell.

Back in '03/'04 he recycled these drums to within an inch of their life...but I still love them. Term's Bad Boy time line verse is highly impressive - if not a little nerdy.

The beat's simple but effective and Cons rips it.

Is it the Feist sample? the innovative drums? my affinity for '80s synths? I don't know, but me likey. And Twista complements the bass drums so well.

Mixtape Madness

2007-11-09T18:23:00.000Z

Some highlights from a busy week for mixtape releases:

I'm not the biggest Cam'ron fan as, though I appreciate his swag and witty lyrics, I find it takes a really good beat to make his lazy delivery sound anything but boring. Glad to say these tracks off his new double-mixtape certainly achieve that. Also, Penz contributes some great verses to the tape.

This tape's all about Black Milk's awesome production and he really outdoes himself on the first of these tracks with a real "wtf?!" bassline.

The best saved for last: despite comments from Rae shedding an ugly light on relationships within the group, the new material on this tape raises my anticipation for 8 Diagram. I think there have been sample clearance problems with this track, which is a shame as Eli Wallach's "if you want to shoot, shoot, don't talk," line is genius.

"Don't try' play me, Fuck work, I'm Biggie Smalls...

I lazy." - Cam'ron

The Raw

2007-11-09T17:19:00.000Z

For the head-nodding. 'Nuff said:

L'chaim!

2007-11-08T09:13:00.000Z

Jay-Z - Roc Boys

The Questions

2007-11-06T10:55:00.000Z

Mos Definitely inspired by some Common Sense...

1. Why do Timbaland’s backing vocals on these tracks sound like Chewbacca?

2. Why does Shawn Carter recycling old material ten years later sound so much fresher than Curtis Jackson doing it after four years? Is it down to execution? passion? talent?

3. Why is Lil Wayne expecting people to pay for a collection of songs they’ve already been downloading all year for FREE? I know it’s a Xmas release, but nobody’s going to be feeling that generous.

4. How many emcees are going to drop painful vocoder rap songs before the trend goes the way of hip-house and Lil Jon? I might be slightly ahead of the curve here and hope it fades into obscurity before it can do any more harm.

5. Whatever happened to Mr Used-to-be-prolific: MF Doom?

6. Why do I suspect the Big Doe Rehab might just be a get-out-of-contract-quick rush job? Not sure about a couple of the producers credited - not that a half-assed Ghostface album wouldn’t still be one of ‘07’s highlights.

7. Is Lupe Fiasco trying to sabotage his new album?

8. Is Tony Yayo’s presence - let alone singing the hook - on a song “for the ladies” not about as inappropriate as casting Mel Gibson in a holocaust movie? I hate to hate, but he’s such a creepy dude (that applies to both of them).

9. Why can I only think of two or three (or four) rap albums from the 1^st half of this year that still warrant a listen?

10. Wouldn’t Rik Cordero hooking up with Raekwon for a bunch of cinematic viral videos for Cuban Linx 2 be awesome? [This idea’s been jacked in most part from Wu brother no. 1]

Common ft Mos Def - The Questions

Worth a listen...

2007-11-02T16:37:00.000Z

Simply, the best Southern rap album I've listened to all year. Trae keeps it True and Real, Trill (word to UGK, whose album is also very good, just too long...like every double album ever) with some great introspective verses.

A great producer-album, with guest verses from the cream of East Coast hip-hop.

One of my favourite mixtape rappers and I look forward to him eventually getting some shine from a major label.

(from the Style Wars EP) I'm quite excited about this dude as I've been listening to him a lot the last few weeks and from the limited material I've heard, I'm pretty sure he has some great albums in him.

A great song from another solid LB effort, enhanced once you've watched Jamie Foxx virtually eviscerate Doug Williams (who?).

What can I say, I've a soft spot for ign'ant, hype Southern rap of the 3-6 Mafia variety. Screw snap-vocoder-ringtone rap, I say bring back crunk music, stupid party music you can really bang your head to.

The quality control on his mixtapes seems to be spiraling downwards as his album approaches (is that a good or bad sign?), but there's still always a few tracks like this one to make it worth the bother of downloading (how lazy does that sound? Like I might bruise a finger mouse-clicking!)

An audible Timbo/Neptunes influence in the minimalist beats and the rhymes about fly sneakers and general all-around freshness are right up my alley.

Cam'ron - Public Enemy No. 1

2007-11-02T10:17:00.001Z

Cam's officially reached R.Kelly levels of weirdness with this video. Lovely.

When 50 Cent was the future

2007-10-29T20:02:00.000Z

Before the hubris and constant beefing started to get on everybody's nerves, before he had a bunch of megahits he couldn't possibly live up to, before he started acting like a weirdo, Curtis was the business. The aggression, the flow, the backstory, Em and Dre's backing, even the Makavelian post-diss-track monologues; he was the most exciting new gangsta rap artist in years. Artistically, he's lost some momentum in recent times, but his importance in developing the mixtape scene is undeniable. Here are a few songs from his 24 Shots mixtape, which got a lot of burn from me in '03:

Originally on his unreleased Columbia debut Power of the Dollar, this is a lot more lyrical than his usual fare, reminiscent of Jay-Z's Friend or Foe. Also notable is his delivery, sounds like he'd been listening to loads of DMX.

The beat and the hook really do the trick on this one and the punchlines aren't bad either.

Great party and bullshit joint.

Makes my non-cap-popping ass feel like a gangsta.

This sounds more like a Big L or Nas track than 50 Cent . A proper underground NY track with a beat in the tradition of Primo and Pete Rock, with great chopped Jadakiss and Jay-Z samples on the chorus.

"Hate a liar more than I hate a thief.
A thief is only after my salary, a liar is after my reality." - Fif'

And the winner is...

2007-10-26T17:57:00.000Z

American Gangster is AWESOME! So much so that my bootlegging ass is actually gonna pay for it when it drops officially. Common, Wu-Tang, Jay-Z (and hopefully Nas)...the veterans are really doing it in '07...

...to the extent Puffy's Hitmen, No I.D. and (on this track) Jermaine Dupri have dusted off their samplers and helped Hov really bring back the soul on this album. Only given it a couple of listens, but his flow and delivery and the production are on point on every song and the lyrics sound like they are going to merit numerous listens. There's no better feeling than the shock of a smack to the head from an unexpectedly dope album.

Li'l Wayne: "Kiss me Baby" (pause)

2007-10-26T15:28:00.000Z

Is the title of this track a Freudian slip? a defiant gesture? a mere coincidence? Whatever the case, it's arguably the best piece of unintended homo-erotic hip-hop humour in dog's years (at least since the last DMX album - pun intended).

...The song's not bad either.

Justice: "D.A.N.C.E." live...

2007-10-24T17:39:00.000Z

...with the greatest backing band ever assembled:

New Wu Tang: "Take it Back" (prod. by RZA and Easy Mo Bee)

2007-10-24T12:17:00.000Z

"Bring back the life that you thought was lifeless" - U-God

Three leaked tracks deep I'm ready to award The 8 Diagram classic status. This beat's on some Daytona 500 business and the verses are so effortlessly good it's incredible.

"Dope beats, dope rhymes, this hip-hop ain't that hard!" - Phonte

Plus, a properly mixed version of The Heart Gently Weeps that sounds even better than the original leak:

"[3] degrees of separation and I'm Kevin Bacon" - Hov

2007-10-24T11:40:00.000Z

Common: "I Want You" Video

Great video; really cinematic, without the stupid "majestic" slow-mo shots and jewellery close ups that are (pun alert) far too common in videos this swanky. The hotness of the female cast (and the song) don't harm the visuals either.

As a sidenote, I wish Will.I.Am (who collaborated on the track with Comm) used his considerable powers of production for good rather than evil more often. I'm about halfway through listening to his new solo album and it definitely has a few gems. This one stands out for me:

Very disco, kind of reminiscent of Daft Punk or Jamiroquai, but still his own sound. Maybe influenced by Timbaland and Kanye's recent leanings towards eurodance.

[edit: this track is even better:

Serious conga-line rump-shaking music. Pharrell's been influenced by the Miami Bass sound and M.I.A.'s notably borrowed from Baile Funk, hope this sort of experimentation becomes more popular.]

Speaking of Daft Punk (in yet another spontaneous segue), must big them up for a song with that rarest of qualities: making me simultaneously want to do cardboard spins while rocking out with an Eddie Van Halen guitar solo:

It's a couple of years old, but I've only just got my hands on it and as a bonus it benefits from one of their seemingly endless line of dope music video concepts:

Freshness

2007-10-15T15:52:00.000Z

"L'chaim!"

Great that Kanye resurrected Babyface for this, would probably prefer it minus Weezy (his rhymes aren't bad, but don't add too much to a great beat and hook).

Perfect combo of futiristic beat with old skool, "hip-hop-and-you-don't-stop" rhyme style.

Goes to show Jay-Z vocal samples aren't played out and still make for a great hook.

Kanye's drum pattern's pretty out there and the Feist sample is awesome.

More Otherness

2007-10-15T13:26:00.000Z

Proof lies in this here pudding that Pharrell needs to kiss and make up with Chad Hugo. Production sounds like In Search Of/Clones-era Neptunes (in a good way).

...Though, to be fair, Pharrell deserves props for making Madonna sound this good. Guilty pleasure is an understatement.

I've heard several interpretations of this song and this is by far my favourite one. Funkiest bassline this side of the JBs.

I've never been a big Radiohead fan, but In Rainbows and it's ingenious distribution have really grabbed my attention. Intend to give OK Computer a listen (you know I stay way ahead of the times!)

This is gorgeous...Prince in his pomp being channelled (covered) by his royal funkiness George Clinton. C'est magnifique.

Cinematic

2007-10-14T17:14:00.000Z

I've mostly been listening to movie soundtracks this week. Mostly. Thought I'd up a selection of excellent songs that contribute to excellent scenes in great movies. Not so much hip-hop, but super fresh nonetheless:

Wes Anderson soundtracks are always a good listen and this one's no exception.

Because work sucks and I'm sure it does feel good to be a gangsta.

Incredible emotional depth in JB's performance. A palpable sense of loss; some real grown-man-cry music.

This plays at the climax of the movie, with the protagonist facing a life or death decision (true story) and works incredibly well in the scene. The guitar is immense.

This plays as Kurt Russell's lucky ass receives what must be the single greatest lap dance ever committed to film...gives me goosebumps, people. Goosebumps! Tarantino's a genius and the movie's worth watching simply on the basis of this brilliant three and a half minute sequence.

ODB - Drunken Master

2007-10-05T16:38:00.000Z

Genius at work (word to GZA).

"..Ason, I keep planets in orbit!.."

New Wu-Tang: "The Heart Gently Weeps"

2007-10-05T15:58:00.000Z

8 Diagram's shaping up to be a classic...

Funky Fresh

2007-10-05T15:11:00.000Z

Last couple of weeks were boring, hip-hop-wise, but glad to say a few new (at least to me) tracks have popped up this week, right on time for the 4th quarter album rush. A few I'm feeling at the moment:

Don't think this is a new song, as the American Gangster album version's supposed to feature Beanie Sigel. Good track regardless.

The drums on this track kill me, so much so that I'm even willing to forgive Verbal's wack flow and dodgy Transformers simile (anyway, he shouts out Tokyo, so if he's Japanese and rapping in his second language I can't really hate).

I know mashups got boring a couple of years ago, but Bullion's Pet Sounds in the Key of Dee Dilla/Beach Boys album is quality. Can't get this track in particular out of my head.

More Dilla-influenced music as Spinna and a very Dwele-esque Phonte smooth it out, with Phonte crooning a collection of classic Jay Dee hooks. A great tribute, worth sticking on The Get Back, maybe as a bonus track.

I've heard a couple of Jay's tracks on Just Blaze's blog and been impressed. Ditto with this track over (surprise surprise) J Dilla's spacey sonics. Very reminiscent of MF Doom; shame he and Dilla never collaborated on an album/EP.

Backpack Classics

2007-10-05T14:02:00.001Z

Due to various reasons, not least my lack of a desire to ever be the designated driver, I am yet to get a driver's license and travel mostly on foot or by bus, more often than not with my trusty backpack in tow, and the experience is most pleasurable when the sun shines on my shoulders and heavy boom-bap drums reverberate in my head. As such, I thought it a good idea to post a few favourites...all pretty obvious choices, but all headphone classic theme songs for the discerning hip-hop listener:

Pete Rock and CL Smooth - "Troy"

Tupac - "Old School"

A Tribe Called Quest - "Electric Relaxation"

Mos Def and DJ Honda - "Travelling Man"

Common - "I Used To Love H.E.R."

Chubb Rock, OC and Jeru - "Return of the Crooklyn Dodgers"

Big L - "Put It On"

Real Talk

2007-10-05T12:07:00.000Z

"What they eat don't make us shiiiiit!! Real talk!" - R.Kelly...genius:)

When hip-hop 's not so hot...

2007-10-03T16:05:00.000Z

It's always good to have a plan B. As of late for me, it's been '80s-electro-retro-throwback/indie music (I like to be genre-specific) :

The New Young Pony Club have restored my faith in young folks (as opposed to 30-something rappers) to drop good albums I don't need to skip through. Great basslines, synths and vocals, with the bonus of loads of bright colours and a hot chick on lead vocals making for more than tolerable music video viewing.

Started listening to CSS (Cansei de Ser Sexy) ["I'm tired of being sexy." - Beyonce Knowles] about a year ago because they're Brazilian, again they have bright colours and a hot chick on vocals as a bonus for the music videos and as a megabonus their bassist has an awesome 'tache...I then also discovered, in passing, that their music was pretty awesome too.

He's unfortunately not a hot-chick-on-lead-vocals, but Calvin Harris does also boasts bright colours in his music videos and has a great album title to boot: "I Created Disco". Dude and his synthesizer are pretty much attached at the hip - in a good way - so the album's very '80s. A lot of the beats are reminiscent of the Neptunes, Timbaland and Daft Punk to me; great to bounce around to.

In hindsight...

2007-09-28T20:06:00.000Z

I was initially quite dismissive of Blue Magic and - though I hate to contradict myself - after the first few dozen listens...I'm kinda liking it. I'm growing to appreciate the throwback minimalist beat (though I still think both the drums and the keys could have been better), Jay's verses sound better with every listen (haven't felt that about too many rap songs, let alone Jay-Z songs, since The Black Album) and (probably most important) I really wanted to like it.

American Gangster as a concept album is a great idea. After failing to prove with Kingdom Come that rap-moguls can age gracefully, here he's given himself an excuse to revisit his Reasonable Doubt-era cold-hearted-hustler persona in depth (with a few post-crack-rap modifications I'm sure) without being widely accused of rehashing old material. Also, the fact that it's something of a vanity project (like Best of Both Worlds, Unfinished Business and Collision Course), made for the fun of it as much as anything, will hopefully lessen the scrutiny placed on this album from overzealous fans (such as myself, to some extent) who felt robbed of a happy ending when he came out of retirement with an album that wasn't classic.

In stark contrast to the $15m marketing budget for his last album, Jay's announced this one to little fanfare, just 6 weeks ahead of the release, and the decidedly non-club-banging lead single suggests that he's not too bothered about massive sales/media jock-riding here, but genuinely just doing it because he felt inspired. Not sure what to expect, but the verses are sure to be tight, so worst come to worst, if the beats all suck, he can put out an a capella album and I'm sure a few decent remix albums will follow.

"What more can [he] say?" - Good question courtesy of Shawn Corey himself.

Ballin' on a budget

2007-09-28T19:19:00.000Z

I quite like simple/low-budget music videos (assuming the song is dope) and I've caught a few good ones over the last week or so:

Lupe Fiasco - Dumb It Down

Best/bravest lyrical performance I've heard on a lead hip-hop single for a while...will go over a few heads, though.

Peedi Peedi - Fall Back

Been looking forward to a solo album from this guy for a while after dope features on the last Beanie Sigel, Roots and Jazzy Jeff albums. This is sooo much better than "Oochie Wally" and the video clip's well directed.

Jay-Z - Blue Magic (Trailer)

You know you've made it when you can get peeps to make promo videos for your promo videos. Sick DJ Babu beat here, hope it makes the album. Like the underground, street-level feel Jay's gone for, both with the beat and the video, but it'll probably be back to grown-and-sexy for the "Blue Magic" video, as Hype Williams is directing it.

"All we need in this life is Peace, Prosperity...

2007-09-26T12:32:00.000Z

...& a little paper." - Q-Tip

'Cos non-gunclapping/ kufi-rapping/ vegan-backpacking emcees chase paper too:

Common - Rich Man v Poor Man

"Having money's not everything, not having it is." - Kanye West

"Every 4th Quarter...

2007-09-21T08:46:00.000Z

"...I like to Mike Jordan 'em..."

But off the back of this evidence, son might be eating bench this year. As a disclaimer, only given it a couple of listens & maybe it'll grow on me. The first 20 seconds got me excited, then P really dropped the ball with a lameass beat. Jay's verses are quality as always, but Pharrell's totally fallen off the last couple of years. Aside from the last Clipse album, he's been working sans Chad production-wise and, in a word, it's boring. Hopefully, he'll do a Timbo, get a(nother) decent co/ghost-producer & reinvent himself.

Hov's beat selection's usually second to none & I hope this is just a filler track or better yet doesn't make the cut...then again, I didn't like H to the Izzo the first time I heard it, so what do I know?

[edit: damn, I swear dude's totally biting/borrowing from the Clipse on this...though that might just be the beat making me think that]

Who got next?

2007-09-15T17:24:00.000Z

All due respect to KRS & co, but too many of the main competitors in the hip-hop game - by whom I'm referring to people who record decent albums & not just annoying ringtones...which some folks think are now worthy of awards, but I digress - are kinda getting on a bit, relatively speaking. Jay-Z, Nas, Snoop, Kanye, Dre, Eminem, 50 Cent, Kanye West, Common, UGK, Luda...all 30+ & I've been hard pressed to think of rappers who haven't peaked yet (I hope), both critically & commercially, who are likely to take on the mantle of being tha shiznit once the current crop cease to be relevant and become hip-hop pensioners like Cube, Flava, Ice-T etc.

Forever an optimist, thought it might be worth listing a few peeps with the potential to elevate to Best Rapper Alive, if not necessarily G.O.A.T. :

Saigon ("P" ft Kool G Rap, prod by Just Blaze)

Termanology ("So Amazing", prod by Primo)

Papoose ("Publicity Stunt")

Skyzoo ("Long Way to Go", prod by 9th Wonder)

Lupe Fiasco ("Failure")

Black Milk ("Sound The Alarm")

Clipse ("The Funeral")

Lil Wayne ("Shooter" ft Thicke)

& of course, The Bawss:

...nah, just playing on that last 1.

Noone here I envision going mainstream enough to sell tons, but I believe/hope/pray there'll be a few albums turned out by this bunch that I'll still be bumping when I've got a pension plan & a mortgage.

"My lyrical you hear it, you fear it, you can't get near it" - Kris Parker

"My next album might be my last..."

2007-09-15T17:19:00.000Z

Good. losing has Fif' all down and dejected & hopefully being in the pits will spur him away from his cookie-cutter album template & inspire him creatively. Case in point:

This song has more genuine emotion and - forgive the hackneyed phrase - "real talk" than the whole of Curtis put together. Soul tracks seem to put him in confessional mode & "plain old Curtis" is way more intriguing than superthug, superhustler or supermack. There's nothing wrong with being macho, but a little vulnerability can take you a long way.

Depending on his approach, Before I Self Destruct could be his chance to go out with a bang. After Curtis, Fif' stands where Ja Rule was after The Last Temptation, where DMX stood after Grand Champ: down, not out, but suffering serious diminishing returns. He doesn't care about his label, he's no longer the biggest draw in rap & he clearly doesn't need the money, so he has every reason to go into the studio trying to make a classic.

If you can't beat 'em join 'em; I'd like to hear duke over some Kanye West production...matter of fact, why not go for the Blueprint reunion & throw on some Just Blaze as well...and while he's at it, hook up with Hi-tek & Needles again, maybe Pete Rock, Primo...make an underground 50 Cent album. That's just wishful thinking on my part, but in an environment where he can't control whether or not people buy his album, he might as well work to solidify his legacy, like Jay did (kinda).

"Throw your hands up in the sky!"

2007-09-15T16:41:00.000Z

Justice D.A.N.C.E. video + booming Toomp production + Michael Jackson's PYT + Teddy Pain doing his '07 Roger Troutman thing = Audiovisual sugar rush.

A Salute to Weed Carriers...

2007-09-13T01:05:00.000Z

...mostly consisting of songs about weed. Dope songs by the not-so-dope rappers that all the big-name rappers hang with to make themselves look comparatively good:

Tony Yayo - I know You don't love me

Not surprisingly, a couple of G-Unit flunkies here, Memph Bleek, whose been one of the top weed-carriers for over a decade, DOE repping for Timbaland in Magoo's absence & Stat-Quo keeping the Shady-Aftermath Ratio up.

I'm sure they all agree with Busta:

"Knowing as a shorty, I was always told
That if I ain't gon' be part of the greatest
I gotta be the greatest myself"

Sweet Sample

2007-09-13T00:37:00.000Z

Willie Hutch has provided some great soul samples used on hip-hop tracks & one of my favourites is from Baby Come Home:

I first heard it used on 9th Wonder & Tightman's Underdogs. The lyrics focus on the everyday struggle & Tightman really bares his soul on this one. The production is minimal & 9th's signature snares & bassline keep your head nodding without taking the focus off the verses, with Willie's vocals in the background adding that extra bit of emotion. I feel I can really empathise with the rhymes & at the risk of sounding corny, it really tugs at the heartstrings...in a man-ass hip-hop way of course.

"What u doing?
Why u broke?
Where tha hoes?
& where that dro & all that Remy XO?
When the show?

Tell 'em I don't really know...
there's more to life than just me & my flow." - Tightman

Ghostface Killah's Back Like That takes the sample in a different direction with live instruments providing a bigger more expansive sound, mixed to sound squeaky clean. Though the subject matter's not so joyful, Xtreme's beat is uptempo & definitely for the clubs & in stark contrast to the introspective, almost mournful sound 9th produces.

July '05 Theme Music

2007-09-13T00:10:00.000Z

It's crazy how music marks time. I've just been listening to a few old CDs & got some major nostalgia off some tracks that are only a couple of years old:

Slug & Murs - Morris Day
Great title to start with & this is the perfect summer song. Really captures the feel of lounging outside in the sun, not doing too much

Jay Z - December 4th rmx
This is definitely 1 of the better efforts of the innumerable remixes & mashups of tracks off the Black Album. The soul sample's nearly as good as the 1 Just Blaze used on the original & the chipmunk vocals are uplifting &, more importantly, don't get annoying.

Gucci Mane ft Jeezy - Icy
For a little contrast to the soul feel on those 2 joints..

Ying Yang Twins - Whisper Song (70s mix)
More Rich Harrison than Snap Yo Fingas, I love it when a rmx sounds this different to the original (assuming it still sounds good).

Zero 7 & MF Doom - Somersault (Dangermouse rmx)
More summertime music, more lounging in the cut laid back cold lamping with a tall cool glass of O.J. Nice.

Not sure if my taste's evolved much, as I still like all these. What I did notice is I was really into rmxes a coupla years ago.

A Few Gems...

2007-09-12T10:27:00.000Z

...I picked up trawling my RSS feed:

Raw and aggressive, with a great heavy metal guitar riff. If MOP were Southern & could rap fast...they wouldn't be MOP - but they would also sound a lot like this.

In stark contrast, here's the title track from my favourite emo-rapper's new album.

Dilla had a deep & meaningful relationship with his jewelry judging off this! Poppy, catchy hook, but with Primo-esque drums & bassline keeping it gutter. Dope.

Weezy, Akon, Snoop & Rick Ross need to start a feature-rapping agency, with buy 2 get 2 free offers going into the 4th-quarter-tax-write-off-album season. Can't complain if they keep the quality level this high. Raekwon features on the rmx, with a C.R.E.A.M. sample. Sweet.

Hi-tek kills the beat & the always impressive Dion is sublime on the chorus. His haunting vocals have helped define Hi-tek's sound in recent years (e.g. Running on The Documentary & a buncha tracks on Hi-teknology 2) in a similar manner to John Legend's contribution to Kanye West circa 2003/2004. Would love to see them both get that kind of recognition.

The Cool

2007-09-11T00:40:00.000Z

Once the Kanye/50 business quiets down, we'll have a rush of 4th quarter tax write-offs and hopefully a couple of gems. 1 artist who I expect to drop a dope album is young squire Fiasco with his sophomore effort The Cool. I enjoyed his 1st album and expect more of the same off the strength of these leaked tracks:

I really like the Soundtrakk beat, the song concept and the pure lyricism (though the hook sounds like something off a bad Kweli record).

Here he features on an Emily King track and runs away with the song, with a flow that Marshall Mathers'd be proud of.

I think this is a great song and hope it's as big a single as Kick Push was. Sounds like Lupe was green with envy over the hipster kudos Jay-Z and Kanye got for their Coldplay features, so he roped in his boy Matthew Santos to do a (very impressive) Chris Martin impression. Great keys and Lupe's always reliable for a few hot 16s.

"A fresh cool young Lu
Trying to cash his microphone check 2, 1, 2
Want to believe my own hype but it's too untrue
The world brought me to my knees
What have you brung you?" - Lupe

Rise and Fall

2007-09-10T22:46:00.000Z

The Curtis v Graduation sales battle (kicking off tomorrow) has had the most - the only? - major hype of any hip-hop releases this year. They're out tomorrow and I look forward to hopefully seeing Curtis flop, so much so that I'm gonna forego my usual Long John Silver approach to acquiring music and pick up a copy of Graduation tomorrow.

The Kanye album's great. He's technically a better rapper (& probably producer) than he was on the 1st 2 instalments in this trilogy, but I miss the soul loops which are less prominent here & also I think he's gotten to be enough of a big deal that he's lost some of his everyman appeal. I'm sure he'll stay a loveable asshole, but beyond this 50 rivalry I can't see him ever taking on the mantle of underdog he wore so well on the Dropout again.

Sonically, I can't fault the album at all. He's been brave enough to expand his sound. I think inspired by Timbo's electro-renaissance last year, the sound here is more 80s synths than 70s strings, typified by the single Stronger. DJ Toomp makes a massive contribution to the album, producing singles Can't Tell Me Nothing & The Good Life & the last track Big Brother, which 'Ye accurately describes as "stadium status". T.I. really should've got duke to help out with his last record. Toomp's Southern sound adds to the electronic vibe & after Kanye helped usher in the resurgence of the soul sound, the beats here are likely to play a part defining what rap sounds like over the next few years.

You can tell listening to the verses here that dude's rewritten his rhymes over & over to get them perfect and by today's standards, there's a very impressive ratio of quotable rhymes. There's a few clangers (e.g. Flashing Lights' hate paparazzi more than Nazis & can't roam without Caesar lines), but he's got to be 1 of the most improved rappers over the last few years. The only major stumbling blocks are that Li'l Wayne gets the album's only feature rap verse on Barry Bonds...& it's kinda wack & that Kanye sings through Drunk & Hot Girls. It's forgivable when he's serenading his Moms on Hey Mama, but not for 3 whole verses & a hook. To be fair though, the track does kinda capture the drunk, tryna-pick-up-chicks-at-2am ambience quite well.

'Ye makes theme songs for people, & quite trim at only 13 tracks, I must say this album's a great collection of them. I remember him sayig this would be his Blueprint &, regardless of whether or not 50 outsells him, I feel he has now got to that 2001-Hov level of importance to hip-hop. Hope he enjoys being on top & that he's prepared for the inevitable backlash.

Enough about Skywalker, how does the big homie rate? I didn't want to like Curtis & after the 1st listen thought it was utter bilge. However, after a few more listens I must admit it's not that bad...just not that great either. Posterboy gangsta rappers who don't evolve don't stay relevant for long (see all the rappers Fif's spent his career dissing for falling off) and after this the title of his next album (Before I Self Destruct) takes on greater significance.

If I could listen to this objectively (i.e. if I hadn't listened to 2 solo albums, 2 group albums, a buncha mixtapes & loads of features over the last 5 years) I'd like it more, but the oversaturation had me hoping he'd either "switch the style up" or stick to Formula 50, but bigger & better. He does neither, there are good songs, but nothing mindblowing & quite a bit of filler. Even the standout tracks (I Get Money for 1) lack freshness. He's not trying as hard as he did on his 1st record and the beats and hooks aren't as impressive as on The Massacre.

That being said, though, I enjoy about half of the album. Fire is a cheesy poppy guilty pleasure for me with that hot Pussycat Doll on the hook, Hands Up High is the uptempo outro, featuring a surprisingly good Tony Yayo hook, All Of Me sounds like Hustler's Ambition (a personal favourite) with Mary J Blige doing her thing/going nuts on the chorus & the street tracks are mostly predictable, but still well-executed.

Some hit and (mostly) miss r'n' b features from the likes of Timberlake, Akon and Thicke and a lack of ideas mean the album's good enough, but not what it could have/should have been. The album's title suggested a more introspective approach and on tracks like Hate It Or Love It, Many Men and God Gave Me Style, that's something Fif' has done well in the past. Instead it's the usual generic mix of fucking, killing and dancing, but without the the superior production values G-Unit used to have as their ace in the hole. Looks like son's reached his highwater mark, peaked and is about to fall off in a major way if he doesn't rethink his approach to making records.

Ultimately, the big winner will no doubt be Universal Records, who'll rake in muchos denari from both albums when cheapskates like me go out and pay for the record for once.

WU-TANG! WU-TANG!

2007-09-10T09:48:00.000Z

New leak, don't know if it's a single. No Triumph, but it is grimy as hell and has me excited for the album. Tom Breihan says it sounds good and Billboard have written about it too.

"Grow like a fetus with no hands and feet to complete us
and we return like Jesus, when the whole world need us!" - The Abbott

[edit: word to Just Blaze]

Shady: A Mini-retrospective

2007-08-28T19:35:00.000Z

On a similar tip to the Outkast post, just a little compilation of Marshall being funny, being angry and generally tearing your favourite rapper a new one:

The title track from his first album/mixtape/demo - not sure what to call it as they only pressed a few hundred copies - sounding more like philosopher-Nas than nutjob-Shady. Apparently he hadn't gone crazy yet in '96, but you can hear the delivery's there.

Rock Bottom (Slim Shady LP)
Never been one for depression, but this is the perfect song for wallowing in self-pity. You can feel Marshall's pain on this one!

Role Model (Slim Shady LP)
Dre beats perfect & punchlines seldom hit harder.

Remember Me (Marshall Mathers LP)
Ideal for angst-ridden teens, Sticky Fingaz kills it.

Marshall Mathers
Title track on the MM LP. Em at his best: venting about all the bullshit.

Drips (The Eminem Show)
Pretty disgusting, but definitely the best safe sex PSA I've ever come across!

Yellow Brick Road (Encore)
One of the all-time best story-telling raps i.m.o., over one of his better beats. Says more in five minutes than most rappers over the course of a 16 track album.

...Though he did kinda fall off on that last record. To be fair, he did say:

"full of controversy until I retire my jersey,
'til the fire inside dies and expires at thirty"

and no matter what Hov says, thirty is kinda old in rap terms. Still, can't say I wouldn't look forward to another LP.

Outkast : A Mini-retrospective

2007-08-25T19:23:00.000Z

Outkast are perenially cool, so I thought why not go on a little audio-trip down memory lane:

Talk about inspirational: a coupla months ago, listening to this song motivated me to get off my lazy ass and go get a job...which I kinda hate - but that's not the point.

Seems like whenever the Dungeon Family get together in the studio, they have an all-out jewel-dropping session...and I'm an avid jewel-picker-upper.

"We just, shoot, game in the
form of story raps now (yeah)
It's like that now, it's like that now!"

So Fresh & So Clean (Stankonia)
Wanted to avoid overplayed singles, but this one's still going strong for me after the 1st few hundred listens, so I had to show some love.

Big Boi - Reset (Speakerboxxx)
Mellow as a buddhist monk getting transcendental.

Dre - A Life in the Day of Benjamin Andre (The Love Below)
Another great example of the art of storytelling. Genius.

Hollywood Divorce (Idlewild)
Albumwise, not their best work, but had its highlights like this gem.

"Tenth grade, the way was paved
for me and Dre to create
like Dr. Frankenstein of arts and craft
Now could we make a a a difference
Antwan Patton and Andre Benjamin.."

...as of now, just waiting on that comeback album.

Far East meets West (RZA v Kanye) part 1

2007-08-25T18:23:00.000Z

No worries, not a dodgy mashup mixtape I'm plugging, but rather Stretch Nav and myself showing love to a couple of producers we hetero-jockride by uploading a few tracks. I picked the 'Ye tracks and ma man supplied the Digi Snacks:

Supercat ft Meth - Scalp Dem

why RZA's music can be sometimes described as eerie. In a good way though.

More RZA/reggae collaborations...this time with Lex Diamonds and Bounty Killer. Original has Killarmy and a choice vocal snippet from Full Metal Jacket.

Raekwon, Masta Killa, Streetlife, Inspectah Deck - Execute Them
From the Killa Bees Swarm album.....the Chef, Masta Killa, Streetlife and Inspectah Deck. Beat is crazy...digi sounds.

Lord Superb and Solomon Childs over some RZA soulful chamber loops.....more Wu killabees talent, off 02's Killa Beez The Sting album

Think this was supposed to be on the Kill Bill 2 soundtrack...more Wu collabos.

"...My beats travel like a vortex
through ya spine to the top of your cerebrum cortex
make you feel like you bust a nut from raw sex..." - Bobby

Jay-Z - This Can't Be Life
Always best to start from the beginning and this, 'Ye's 1st contribution to the Roc, to quote him on the Dropout, helped start the resurgence of the "soul sound".

A few years down the line and dude's spitting on mixtape tracks like this. Nice track, but to be honest, in '03 I was thinking dude NEEDS to just stick to making beats.

T.I. - Doin' My Job
Also in '03, Kanye contributed this track to T.I.'s breakthrough "Trap Muzik". Great song from a great album.

Slum Village - Selfish
Sick drums and a great John Legend hook on this one. I have great memories of this track, as it was my theme music at my best mate's high school leaver's party...got superdrunk, threw up, was thrown out of the club and passed out in the back of someone's pickup truck. Good times :)

Mobb Deep - Throw Your Hands
The Mobb do like to keep it all the way gangsta and here Kanye does a good job of hooking them up with a track that can be both danced to AND mean-mugged to. No mean feat.

"...If y'all fresh to death, then I'm deceased
And this one here, is a heat rock
Spit like a beat box, the way the beat rocks
New version of Pete Rock..." - K.West

AAAAAAAArrrrrrrrgggggghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!

2007-08-21T17:46:00.001Z

Only just came to the realisation all my Zshare links go down after 2 weeks, so everything I've uploaded thus far's gone now. Anyhoo, sucks ass but suffice it to say will be using Divshare as of now (click on the logo to d/l).

Not posted for a minute, so to catch up here's a bunch of songs with little relation beyond their dopeassedness:

The Game: My Bitch

Leaked a few months ago, this is 1 of several Dre tracks recorded for the Dr's Advocate that got pulled. Shame, the beat's sick & Game kills the track, dedicating a verse apiece to 50, Hov & Suge...& what bitches they are.

Rick Raws: Trilla

Ricky Rawss (usually rhymed with Bawss) doing what Ross does here. New collabo with Cool & Dre that sounds like any 1 of the cuts from his debut last year...wich isn't a bad thing as I've developed an affinity for duke & his manass beard.

Teriyaki Boys: Large ft Pharrell

Teriyaki Boys: What Time Is It ft Primo

Thanks to Nigo's Bape money & connections, The Teriyaki Boys' 2005 album "Beef or Chicken" - what a title! - had some quality producers, including Pharrel & DJ Premier on my favourite tracks.

I Can't Feel My Face: The Bad Side

Weezy & Juelz over a killer beat that Santaza struggles to keep up with, but Wayne more than does justice to.

8Ball & MJG: Ridin High

Boss-basic southern-bounce track that NEEDS to be cranked up to full volume. 1 for your Cadillac.

O.Trice: Cry Now

More trunk-volume music. The beat is immense & Obie's flow is impeccable on this one.

Will.I.Am: I get it from my Mama

Far from a guilty pleasure, I really don't like this song...but it just won't stop playing in my head! Thought I'd share my pain.

Jay-Z: In My Lifetime rmx

Great pre-Reasonable Doubt track, reminiscent of "Dead Presidents" & "Regrets".

Busta ft ODB: Where's Your Money

Great track that probably would have made it onto "The Big Bang", but it kinda captures a similar mood to Goldmine

Primo makes hip-hop sound so easy...

Great track. 9th Wonder brings the soul & Smitty's delivery - somewhere between Scarface & Beans here - is heartrending stuff.

Ghostface recorded this Beatles-sampling track a few years back & I think it's served as inspiration for a cover of "While my guitar gently weeps" on 8 Diagram.

Classic Nore, just pure energy! Have to big up Swizz Beatz here. Sounds just like all the other hype club bangers he's produced, but I do tend to like them, so I can't complain.

Finish off with a classic. A fitting conclusion for me personally...

"Today I didn't even have to use my A.K.
I got to say it was a good day."

Soul Food Part 2

2007-08-03T16:48:00.002Z

Another Nice track is the Sylvers' Only One Can Win. Dilla lifted the hook for my favourite track from my favourite instrumental album (& I don't even generally like instro albums): Two Can Win from "Donuts".

On Donuts, Jay Dee also sampled Rubber Band, more famously used by Cool and Dre for "Hate It or Love It". I give Curtis a hard time, but the first verse on this is some pretty powerful introspective ish. Feels kinda like a 2pac verse:

Speaking of whom - this is about as creative as my segues get! - probably my favourite 'Pac song, which samples In All My Wildest Dreams by Joe Sample (how apt), is "Dear Mama". Though not for want of trying, few songs have captured so well the feelings pretty much everybody has for their Moms. Great video too:

Another great sample on a 2pac song is from What You Won't Do For Love. Originally a Bobby Caldwell song, I've put up my favourite version of this, by Roy Ayers (absolute legend!). Due to his incarceration and unfortunate death, I'd imagine there are as many 2pac videos that don't feature him as there are that do, but his presence on the records is just as powerful. "Do For Love" is a great animated video that really captures the spirit both of the song and of the man:

Another track on the more mellow tip is William Devaughn's Be Thankful For What You've Got In all honesty, until about 5 minutes ago I'd always assumed this song was by Curtis Mayfield - who isn't a bad guy to sound like anyway. Luda used it on the supercool "Diamond In The Back", which I think is impossible not to like - unless you got no soul that is!

Back to marvelous Marv for T Plays it Cool from the "Trouble Man OST". Proof he didn't even need to sing to create a mind blowing song. Jazzy Jeff updated it with some scratches and hip-hop drums on A Touch of Jazz. Sort of song I would breakdance to if I knew how to spin on my head.

Kool and The Gang - probably my favourite jazz/soul/funk/disco/r'n'b/allthatgoodstuff band - had their excellent Summer Madness (feels like sipping lemonade laid back in the shade) sampled by Jeff & the Fresh One on pretty much the ultimate summer tune, Summertime. It was also used by Aaliyah on A Girl Like You feat Treach from Naughty By Nature which is "cooler than a polar bear's toenails" to quote Big Boi. More recently Punjabi MC sampled it, by way of Summertime, on Raat Da Na Bole - crazy track. Long may it be popular amongst the sample-happy, if only to keep Kool & co. seeing the royalty cheques. They deserve it.

To finish off, a supersick joint that NEEDS sampling! Gloria Gaynor (I will survive) is absolutely incredible on Casanova Brown & the beat bangs. Until I've honed my MPC skills sufficiently to do it justice, I can picture Just Blaze or Pete Rock maybe doing something with this track. Most important though is that I hear Ghostface rap over this here beat before I die. Can picture the Wally Champ rapping the B'Jesus out of this joint. Need to get in touch with his A & R peoples, maybe bring me in as a creative consultant for this one.

Seeing as I haven't put up any of his tracks, had to show love to Isaac Hayes, being the supercool cat that he is. He has a great line on his Wu-Tang collabo I Can't Go To Sleep:

"Don't get mad...'cos it ain't that bad..."

No matter the situation soul children, truer words were never spoken.

Soul Food part 1

2007-07-31T18:28:00.000Z

Much of my favourite hip-hop is sample-based and most of my favourite samples are from soul songs, so I thought why not put together an epic mega-post of some of my favourite soul tracks and their usage by my favourite rappers:

I'm starting with Sunrise by the originals, a group I don't know too much about, but who really brung it on this track. 70s soul compositions always seem to have the most amazing string arrangements and often some killer keys, which is the case here. KanYe jacked the opening bars of this for Guess Who's Back, a standout track on Scarface's excellent "The Fix". Great Jay-Z & Beanie Sigel features here; the Roc in its prime.

Another great 70s beatjack - again from Kanye - is from Gil-Scott Heron's We Almost Lost Detroit for Common's recent single, The People. 'Ye can't chop up a beat like Primo or Pete Rock, but his ear for a dope sample is something special. A little synth here, a little xylophone there, some of Gil-Scott's vocals and some kickass drums make for 1 of my '07 favourites.

Can't talk samples without showing some love to the godfather. My mate Imran reminded me of how well James Brown's The Big Payback complemented Big Poppa back in the 90s:

His Paid the Cost to be the Boss then made for a classic loop on Nas' "Get Down":

next up is an all time fave, The Stylistics' One Night Affair, looped up lovely by 9th Wonder on Little Brother's "Lovin' It", which Weezy F murdered on his Dedication 2 mixtape track This What I Call Her. In a good way.

Need to show some love to Marvelous Marvin Modern Marvel. Come Live With Me Angel comes from "I Want You", his seduction album which I believe conceptually, though not chronologically, precedes Let's Get It On (the consummation album) and Here My Dear (the "we want prenup!" album). The song's superpimping, so no surprise it was used on G-Unit and Joe's I Wanna Get To Know You. It's Curtis at his most cringeworthy, but the sample's so good I just can't hate (plus I've got a soft spot for I-wanna-know Joe).

More Marvin: from the same album, After The Dance was sampled by Scott Storch on Hip-hop is Dead's Play on Playa, the most un-Storchish Storch beat ever. In a refreshing way. Nas in philosopher mode while Snoop provides another dope feature doing what he do. Great beat, great rhymes...this rap shit really ain't all that hard.

Carmine Coppola - can't accuse Francis Ford of nepotism - scored the Godfather soundtracks and his Marcia Religiosa was used to great effect by Nas and Jay on Black Republicans. In a word: MAJESTIC. Some real royal shit.

I first became aware of "40 days" by Billy Brooks - which I can't find. - when it was sampled on ATCQ's debut album on the track Luck of Lucien. I then heard it on Styles P's Testify and more recently on Havoc's I'm The Boss. Having listened to them looped a 1000 times, it's funny how many songs I find I recognise in an instant, though I've never heard them before.

[edit: here's the Billy Brooks track, courtesy of mi amigo.]
"Got some soul on blast in tha cassette
Food for my brain
I haven't stopped learning yet" - Big Gipp, "Soul Food" (the Goodie Mobb)

More mp3-sized morsels on the morrow.

No doubt R.Kellz is the king...

2007-07-30T18:46:00.000Z

...of unintended humour after Trapped in the Closet, but doubling up with Usher on "Same Girl":

...has taken homoeroticism to levels I've not witnessed since Batman was REALLY gay.

Their sweaty game of basketball and their cozy convo by the fireplace is jokes. The song focuses on a love triangle, but the video clearly shows these guys have way more love for their own (and each other's) R'n'B swag than they do for any run-of-the-mill hoochy. They're like the new George and Tony.

Brace yourself for the R. to spin this out into a 12 part saga where this girl turns out to be getting with every R'n'B lothario evar. I quite like...

the second installment.

"She's gonna be lookin so stupid when she see us together!" - Kellz to his new bosom buddy.

[edit: Trapped in the Closet Ch.13, The Recap:

The man will not be stopped!]

"Woop-woop!...

2007-07-30T18:32:00.000Z

...That's the sound of da police!"

Really like this new Chamillionaire vid for "Hip-hop Police". It's funny [-er than most rap videos], the J.R. Rotem beat is very Scott Storch-cum-Dre and God bless all rappers who feature Slick Rick. I also like his vid for "Evening News" and his having the ballsiness to put out a single on the social commentary tip. After "Ridin' Dirty" and Hip-hop Police, it's clear dude's got no love for the punk police and after watching this I can't blame him:

Good Cop, Baby Cop

enough to make a grown man cry.

[edit: Chamillionaire in whiteface is sooo Gary Coleman!]

Theme Muzik

2007-07-21T13:38:00.000Z

Some of what's in my headphones right now:

Black Milk - "Luvin' it", from Popular Demand. Even though he's 1 of the better rappers from the rapper/producer set, I'm kind of stuck on this instrumental track. Short and sweet.

Common ft Lilly Allen - "Drivin' Me Wild". Great song: Comm' in storytelling mode, Lilly doing her thing and an infectious Kanye beat that reminds me a bit of "Heard 'Em Say". Really excited about Finding Forever. So much so that I'll bypass the leak and wait for the official release - that's a big deal for me!

Little Brother ft Kweli - "Grown Man". Listening to these dudes on the same track, I realised I'd make the same criticism of both LB and Talib: great lyricists, but very limited in terms of what beats they sound good rapping over. Like Guru sans Premo, Kweli's hit and miss for me without Hi-Tek on the boards giving him that jazzy/soulful backpack ish (bring back Reflection Eternal!). Eardrum's good, but the production on some tracks lets it down, I.M.O. I can see LB suffering similar consistency problems post-9th Wonder (though, to be fair, he'd probably peaked), but hopefully the other Justus League producers'll cushion the blow.

Cilvaringz - "In the Name of Allah". Killah Priest, Masta Killa, Meth and RZA feature on this and don't disappoint. CR's album is proper Wu shit, but the non-stop preaching gets on my nerves like Immortal Technique with an Islamic Fundamentalist chip on his shoulder the size of a boulder. I have nothing against his religious beliefs per say, but his hatred of Americans, Brits, Christians, 5-percenters, Jews (of course), & any Muslim brothers that don't like him (of whom I'd like to think there are many) takes painting everyone with the same brush to scary levels. Can't hate on the music though; he does have some valid points, the beats are dope and he's a good rapper.

Termanology - "Watch How It Go Down"

Somebody hurry up and sign this guy!

Saigon ft Swizz Beatz - "Come On Baby". Just doing what Just does on this one. Somebody needs to coin a name for this hip-hop subgenre of epic, hype tracks with hard drums, live instruments and sick samples that JB's pretty much cornered the market in.

Last but not least, Hezekiah ft Bilal - "Looking Up". Don't know too much about this guy, but this is a great tune. Inspirational joint. I'll be looking out for more from him.

"Even if the clouds are grey and the sun is gone, I'll keep on looking up." - Bilal, sounding very John Legend.

Ding-ding!

2007-07-21T12:39:00.001Z

"On Thursday (July 19), sources confirmed that Kanye West's Graduation LP has now shifted from September 18 to September 11. You might remember that, not too long ago, Interscope Records pushed 50 Cent's album Curtis back one week from September 4 to September 11. Let the games begin." - MTV News

Sweet! Clearly Jay-Z's playing "chess not checkers" at Def Jam and going all in to knock Fif' off his pedestal. Curtis has always used his superior sales to claim that he runs hip-hop, so it's a put up or shut up type of situation. If 50 "loses" by selling less than Kanye, by his own standards, it'll mean 'Ye's more of a big deal and could officially mark a decline in his relevance.

Kanye doesn't have the same pressure to sell, as his bragging tends to relate to the quality of his music more than to his album sales. Also, unlike Curtis, his 1st couple of singles have generally had a positive response.

Whatever happens, it should be interesting to hear how Curt tries to undermine his opponent in the next few weeks. Don't know if it quite qualifies as irony, but the 'Assacre was the last new album I bought - put me off paying for music - while in this case I'm hoping the boy gets egg on his face. Will defo kop Graduation, if only for that purpose.

Royce da 5'9 - Ding Ding
Canibus - 2nd Round Knockout

"...your main objective out here is to do nuttin' but eat eat eat eat MC's, for lunch, breakfast..." - Iron Mike to Canibus

That's better...

2007-07-17T19:17:00.000Z

...nice sample and I like the ticker...

...but Curt is still lacking freshness...

"You can call this my new shit
but it aint new tho" - He who gets it

Fresh as Funk part 2

2007-07-12T20:29:00.000Z

The hip-hop's been a bit quiet for a minute, but there's still plenty of goodness to go around:

Sa-Ra are the future as far as I'm concerned and their "Hollywood Recordings" (which is only meant to be the album before the album) is as good as anything I've heard this year. Glorious is arguably the standout track.

Back to the old school with Stevie's funky-as-hell "You Ain't Done Nothing", addressing Nixon I believe, but universally applicable to dodgy politicians everywhere. Genius.

Got into Stereolab after hearing Pharrell mention them in an interview and I'm sure glad he did. Wouldn't class them in any particular genre other than good music. Les Yper-Sound from "Emperor Tomato Ketchup" is poppy, infectious and sublime when it's sunny.

Madlib's "Uno Esta" is another great summer tune, this one an instrumental off the 1st Yesterday's New Quintet album.

Fade by Joe Beats is another great instro; real mellow and chilled out.

And to close it out with a bang, I'll end on an afrocentric tip with some Kwaito music from South Africa; ideal for the rumpshaking:

Hip-hop Pantsula - Lefatshe Je (Kentphonik Mix
Pitch Black Afro - Matofotofo (I like to think of this as Woohaa meets Kick in the Door)
Kabelo - Pantsula for Life (Cadillac music for folks that don't drive cadillacs).

Fresh as Funk part 1

2007-07-12T18:30:00.001Z

Sharing is caring, so I thought I'd spread the love with some of my current theme music...

Camp Lo's "Uptown Saturday Night" mixed R.D./In My Lifetime-era Jay-Z production (courtesy of Ski, who produced Dead Presidents) with Wu Gambino stream-of-consciousness raps and flows Pun'd be proud of. In short I liked it, with Sparkle my favourite track. They've leaked a new single: Black Hollywood & I'm looking forward to the comeback.

Big Narstie v Coldplay - Spun A Web remix is a beautiful example of what happens when you mix grime and piano rock, taken from Narstie's "What's the Story Brixton Glory", where he also raps over the likes of Oasis, The Verve and (gulp) James Blunt.

j_dilla-say_it_feat_taraach_and_exile is from duke's mostly instrumental "Jay Loves Japan" EP. Like James Brown and Ray Charles in recent times, I had love for Dilla while he was alive, but sadly didn't fully appreciate how important he was until he had passed on. Phat Kat's "Nasty Ain't It" has another sick Dilla beat. It's from his new Carte Blanche album, which along with Black Milk's Popular Demand shows Detroit repping in '07.

Mobb Deep's "The Illest" was off their "Free Agents" mixtape in 2002, which for me was 1 of their better efforts this decade. Like too many rappers these days, P and Hav seemed more comfortable here, making the songs they wanted to make, than on their albums 2nd guessing what record buyers want and ending up producing mediocre common-denominator music. It's an epic song that, played loud, has a similar impact on me to "P.S.A." and "What U Know": makes me feel like I'm THA SHIT. A great quality for any song to have.

R.Kelly feat Snoop - Double Up. As recently as "Chocolate Factory" and "Happy People" I enjoyed Kells' albums, but since then either he's fallen off or I've outgrown him (my favourite Boondocks episode might have something to do with that) or both. Still, this track, though predictable, picks up where "That's That" left off and is hard to hate.

My favourite song right now...

2007-07-12T18:18:00.001Z

...Preme found the new Guru...

Big Shug - Play It (Produced by Premier)

It's beauty for me lies in the simplicity of the beat, the hook and the overall premise: just "let the music play...everyday".

I'll leave it at that.

A Review & A Half

2007-07-07T14:59:00.000Z

Some new ish, starting with the reigning monarch. Great beats, great hooks and the flow's impeccable. Shame about the verses though. Sonically, I think this album's dope, but the content never roams far from how good it is to be Cliff right now and/or how lame it is to be any other rapper/hustler/whatever. No rhymes that blow your mind, but it's fun.

The split personality theme worried me going into the album, but it doesn't sound too fragmented. Would say though that I enjoyed the TIP songs more than the TI ones.

If this guy's the Jay-Z of the South, then the last couple of albums've been Vol. 2/Vol. 3 level fare: very good, but I'm waiting on the Blueprint.

My favourites:

Help is Coming. Reminds me of the title track from Kingdom Come, not least for the epic Just Blaze beat.

Tell 'em I Said That. Timbaland can take a break if Danja's going to be producing tracks that bang like this on the reg'.

Respect This Hustle. Another Danja track, but on a laid back tip here. (Didn't intend that pun).

Slept on Dizzee's first 2 albums - schoolboy error (I'm on a roll!) - but fortunately appreciating this 1; perhaps too much. Started listening to this 4 or 5 times but only ever gotten about halfway through. 1st half's so good I'm gonna assume it doesn't lose momentum and call this a dope album.

Didn't like grime production and this previously put me off, but I'm acquiring a taste for it with help from Stretch Nav the G.O.D. Beats, hooks, flows, rhymes...all there and really sick:

Old Skool

Sirens

"Stand up for something or for anything you'll fall
But definitely know when not to lose your cool
Cause it ain't what you show its what your conceding
Put a smile on the deepest negative feeling
Stand tall even when they're hating and they're scheming
Yeah watch your money rise right to the ceiling" - Dizzee Rascal

Nuff said.

Clan in the front

2007-07-07T14:18:00.000Z

Been a busy week and not posted in a minute so thought I'd put up several at once.

This one consists of a few of my favourite remixes, starting with the 9 Milli Bros. Went to see them last night and it didn't disappoint...Meth stagediving, GFK threatening the scallies in the crowd, GZA filming a documentary and a Bob Digi DJ-set consisting of tracks from the forthcoming "8 Diagram" were some of the highlights for me. As such, Wu's been my theme music the last 24 and I'm feeling Da W remix right now.

The crowd was rowdy as hell, which was no surprise. Not too many producers bring the ruckus like the RZA, but Marley Marl's NY Shit remix is some virtuoso elbow-throwing music.

More mellow, but still pretty sick is Kwame's remix of Lauryn Hill's Lost One...miss them good old days before she was just another rapper with a wack live show.

Also got mad love for Dangermouse's version of It Ain't Hard to Tell. I know it's blasphemous, but I think I like it more than the original off Illmatic.

"How can hip-hop be dead if Wu-Tang is FOREVER?" - Good question, courtesy of The Abbot.

It's Will Smith/Ice Cube time for Curtis

2007-06-29T20:40:00.001Z

"The general who thoroughly understands the advantages that accompany variation of tactics knows how to handle his troops." - Sun Tzu (The Art of War)

So not only is the Unit kinda dead, but Fif's pushed back his album, having realised that young folks have outgrown him as well as his crew. It was inevitable, as the mainstream market's always looking for something fresh. He applied a "don't fix what ain't broke" mentality for a few years and had a lot of success with it, but now he's got so repetitive that listening to his new records gives you déjà vu:

Fully Loaded Clip. Here he disses every rapper he can think of in the hope somebody with thin skin responds and and gets him some buzz (see Piggy Bank).

Amusement Park. Magic Stick/Candy Shop style fare where he cleverly compares his sexual prowess to a fairground ride (as opposed to a stick or a lollipop). He could create a whole subgenre here, based solely on crude references to anything with a passing phallic symbolism...so many fruits and vegetables he could work with!

Straight to The Bank. Dr Dre club banger with infectious hook, a la In Da Club/Outta Control rmx. Unfortunately, Yayo's contribution to the chorus here is infectious like syphilis.

So far he's tried controversy, sex, money...none of them have grabbed people's attention and I can't see anything Curtis can do that will. He's destined to flop and after the numerous occasions he's dissed rappers for having wack sales, I look forward to dude eating humble-pie in September, October, Nevuary...whenever the album does drop. Dude might have to stick with the movies after that. Don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed some of his music, but one-trick ponies do tend to get boring, word to Ja.

Preach!

2007-06-29T20:01:00.000Z

Jay Smooth keeping it all the way Holyfield with regards to Russell Simmons and negative lyrics i.e. harsh poetic realities.

"Music is a mirror, and hip-hop is a reflection of the environment that we grew up in. It's the harsh realities that end up in the music." - Courtesy-Curtis Jackson.

Kanye- "Stronger" video

2007-06-27T11:01:00.000Z

"Awesome, the Christian in Christian Dior"...looks expensive in a good way, cool that Daft Punk are in it, but Hype spends waaaaaay too much time focusing on 'Ye's wack dancing (& ham-acting). Otherwise, me likey.

Would probably like it more if I saw the "making the video" to get the gist of what's going on, though. Looks like a mish-mash of In Da Club [surgery], Boy (I need you) [Tokyo], Promiscuous [wall posing], Toxic [motorbikes]...and random Japanese folk protesting summat or other.

[edit: preach!]

Common-"The People"

2007-06-24T16:55:00.000Z

My favourite walking-around-with-a-sick-tune-blasting-in-ma-earrrphones music right now are the leaked tracks off Finding Forever and this vid increases the anticipation. Makes me wanna holla at the good folks of Bradford as I pass them by; give 'em pounds, cuddle their babies...but the likelihood of assault litigation, paedophilia incarceration and eventual deportation put me off slightly. Still, a bangin' single.

This is my favourite one of the leaked tracks: "Misunderstood". Great Nina Simone sample, produced by Devo Springsteen who did the beat for Diamonds on Late Registration. More power to him.

"Nobody believe, until I believe me"-Common, The People

hip-hop ain't dead, it's just wearing mascara and a leotard (pt. 2)

2007-06-24T15:36:00.000Z

I'm an optimist, hence the comparison of rap music to rock, as I quite enjoyed '90s rock, from the grimy:

to the...not-so-grimy-&-kinda-wack...

...though not as wack as what happened to jazz. Comparing rap to soul would be difficult, as whether that story had a happy ending or not is largely dependent on where you stand on disco and cupcakin'...so I stick with rock'n'roll.

To my mind, rock's recovery from hair-metal needs to get mirrored by some of the urban music folk..but who'll drop the rap equivalent of Nevermind? Who'll play captain save-a-hip-hop?

...probably not him.

Can't be certain who'll spark it, but with a few good, new, preferably New York (-sounding) producers and a few good, new artists who can pull off the miracle of being original and commercially successful (so the sheep bite rappers I actually like)...

...we'll be back like cooked crack...or the Smashing Pumpkins.

To conclude, I've failed to come up with any concrete solutions to the fight against lyrical wack juice, and to quote Kurt Cobain:

"We have no right to express an opinion until we know all of the answers."

However, it's been a lovely exercise in (cerebrally) interfering with myself and made me feel quite perky.