Archive for September, 2011
late pass: this mix (aka swag memorial 2011) that lunice made for the FADER last week is pretty stinking great. stream/download below, and look after the jump for the tracklist.
Hip Hop has no shortage of references of an intimacy with street life, but rarely do artists bring the musicality of the streets into the beat as Mr. Green, a.k.a. Aaron Green of Highland Park, NJ does in his Live from the Streets series. Based around showcasing street musicians and turning their performances into hip hop beats, new episodes will be released every two weeks. Mr. Green’s cinematic headnodic sounds have notched collabos with C Rayz Walz, Matisyahu, Slaine of Coka Nostra fame, and pre-eminent Irish emcee Rob Kelly.
In the first episode of Live From The Streets, you find yourself in Rittenhouse Square with Brenda, a super cool lady who was singing along to her radio in the park. “Man with a Broken Heart” is available on itunes and at greenhiphop.com. A full Live from the Streets hip hop album is in the works.
Mr. Green is also accepting artistic input, so if you know of a street musician or sound that you would like to see in a future episode, contact: livefromstreet@gmail.com.
what’s up scion? are you trying to convince me to buy a car or something? after releasing dam-funk’s easy-on-the-ears ep innafocuseddaze last week (it took me a day to realize it was free), scion is offering up, along with adult swim, {UNCLASSIFIED}, a collection of 18 rare and/or unreleased tracks from the leading lights of electronic music (kode9, burial, ikonika, starkey). for free. that’s 140 MBs! one hell of a business model you’ve got going there. stream two of the standouts below, head here to stream the rest, and go here for the music.
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ikonika – “world on mute”
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boxcutter – “waiting for the lights”
It’s been a hot minute in internet time since last we heard from South Africa’s dapper don, Spoek Mathambo. Luckily for us (aka you), the man is back, and he’s giving you something for free.
“Put some red on it” is the lead single off of Spoek’s upcoming release, and to commemorate/promote the occasion, duders combined forces with some of the baddest asses in the game – namely, Machinedrum, Telepathe, and LxNxM faves Shabazz Palaces – to give you a series of remixes that whet the appetite for more.
The catch: it’s a short-term deal! You want this music in your life? Yes you do. Get on that thang thang.
h/t to Sir Andrew of Matson.
This a cool, slightly surprising collaboration I stumbled upon last night. Toddla T and Skream, a couple of youngbloods outta the UK, cranked out a smooth and bass-heavy riddim (good speakers, please) and managed to get the legendary singjay Wayne Marshall to speak his mind on it. Riding the bassline and using the beat as his pulpit, Marshall soulfully denounces the senseless violence, corrupt police and crooked politicians that have taken over his native Jamaica to the point that they have “become the norm.” It’s a powerful track.
What strikes me most is that the lyrics could apply just as easily to the US, considering how police brutality and impunity have increasingly become the norm throughout the country in our post-9/11 world. And with all the controversy surrounding the Troy Davis execution recently, the lyrics couldn’t reflect the current state of things in the US any clearer. “Who is to be trusted, the witness or the sarge?” I think anybody who follows the news, and most people who have heard about the Davis case are probably asking themselves the same thing.
Ironically, the album that the single is from, Watch Me Dance, came out while the London riots were going on a few weeks back, which makes the lyrics poignant on so many other levels.
If there’s one rapper out there who consistently delivers quality material track after track, yet is rarely acknowledged for it, I’d have to say it’s Phonte. He’s always nice with his lyrics — and his Twitter personality, and his new album, Charity Starts at Home, is sure to hit people in their sweet spots when they hear it. For now, check the newest single off the album which is actually tri-coastal when you consider Evidence is from the West Coast, ‘Te is from the East Coast and K.R.I.T is from the Gulf Coast.
Phonte Ft Evidence & Big K.R.I.T.-The Life Of Kings by dehiphopadviseuse
Yeah, I know what you’re thinking: “Really, Tang? Another Frank Ocean video?” But let me stop you before you get all bent out of shape. There’s no need for all that kerfuffle. Just hit play and watch the damn video. It’s good. Although the song seems to have nothing to do with the visuals, the video itself actually has somewhat of a cohesive plot, unlike the other video that we posted earlier today, which I didn’t really get (still like the song).
It’s been a busy weekend (yadda yadda etc), but I finally got around to getting the photos from last week’s edition of Soundsystem up and running.
In case you weren’t there, it was a good old fashioned party, one of the best in a minute.
Plus, Zuzuka Poderosa did a special performance, aka did her dang thing, bringing more Carioca funk than Moe Bar has ever seen before (that feels like a safe statement), and Darwin’s guest set was beauty in motion.
Add beautiful people into the mix, and you’ve got yourself a great night. Oh yeah, and happy birthday, Arielle!
It’s a movement, people.
Pictures are always worth a thousand words, and we’ve got pics. Enjoy!
Many more below the jump…
As most folks know, last week the music world lost a legend when Parisian producer/dj/all around nice guy DJ Mehdi fell to his death in a freak accident at his own apartment. Today, Busy P, one of Mehdi’s closest friends and the head of Ed Banger records, released a 2006 mix made by Mehdi himself following the passing of J Dilla. The mix, Loukoms, is in the style of Dilla’s Donuts, combining the odds and ends of Mehdi’s abundant creative life into forty minutes of choppy bass, snapping drums, and pure Mehdi vibes. RIP to a legend.
