Archive for the ‘soul’ tag
I’ll be damned if “Sunshine” isn’t one of the funnest dance jams I’ve heard in a while. Just try to get the thumping dusty drums, honey vocals, and that whistle out of your head, or better yet don’t. Portland based Adam Forkner (sounds) and Justin Leon Johnson (voice) sum their collective Purple and Green steez up rather well as PSYCHEDELIC LAZER FUNK & FUN TIME JAMS. ’nuff sed. Enjoy people!
Spending the last couple days volunteering at the rapidly growing, 2nd annual Seattle City Arts Fest, I’ve witnessed some real gems. One of the standouts was this Seattle-based soul man Allen Stone, backed up by an airtight band. Yes, there are many would-be bohemian soulsters in the wake of the success of folks like Aloe Blacc, Jamie Lidell, and the laptop bluesman James Blake. Stone, first developing his vocal chops in the church community of Chelewah, Washington, stands out with a full soaring voice and a smooth earnestness to his spin on modern soul. Don’t sleep on the brother Stone now, get his recently released self titled album here, and don’t miss your boy as he graces Conan O’Brien’s stage on Oct. 26th!
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.
The Medulla Transmissions is the soundtrack for your long overdue inner-space road trip. Your navigator is Renaissance man Jahon Mikal; a classically trained pianist, dancer, singer, producer, and reader of auras.
Throughout the decidedly future-funk, electro orchestra of Transmissions – Jahon Mikal’s other artistic confluences can be heard – from the fundamental hip hop mastery of his big bro/hip hop vet Vitamin D to his current work with the up-and-coming Seattle based Hip-Doo-Woppers The Heartfelts. The album also features vocal support from emcee/dance artist Maxie Jamal.
The complex beats and lyrical harmonies are so polished but maintain an organic vibe that is autonomic like the functions of the medulla, kinda like the art behind the simple act of breathing. Fresh.
Please show love and offer what you can, for this this pay- what-you can download album.
It’s only fitting that LxNxM pay homage to the cultural phenomenon and rituals that originated our namesake. It’s pretty amazing listening to Nas kick knowledge and narrative around the creativity and community people built around the mixtape. It’s a trip thinking that those of us in our late 20′s have seen the music we love evolve in mediums from vinyl-tape-CD-mp3.
“What more could I say? I wouldn’t be here today if the old school didn’t pave the way” – [Grand Puba].
One Love.
Some of you may be up on this mix already, but for the rest of you I feel obligated to put you on to this here hot ish.
By the tasteful selection and mature vibe of the mix, its hard to believe that Greene is just 21 yrs old. The mix has all of the nostalgic warmth and soulful sonic foundation of the house and garage you fell in love with- but weaves in the creative blippage and vocal experimentation of the new school.
Overall it feels like a smooth but high energy contrast to the epic and raunchy booty tech sound that seems to be carrying the banner for house at the moment. Look out for Greene’s upcoming album “The Look” in just a few days on Jan 5th, released on NYC label LuckyMe also home to LxNxM faves Lunice & Hudson Mohawke. Download the mix, check out the teaser for “The Look” the below, tracklist for mix after the jump.
After grubbing on some crucial Ethiopian food with homie/206 emcee Gabriel Teodros, GT played me this amazing track by Toronto emcee Ian Kamau.
I was pleased to find out Kamau’s obvious love for the T-dot manifests through some amazing youth work with Toronto’s Remix Project, an“arts, cultural and life skills incubator serving vulnerable young people located right in the heart of Toronto”. It’s dope that dude is so grounded in community, staying level headed even with the co-sign from Canadian heavyweights like K-os and Knaan.
Here’s a video with some beautiful footage of Toronto, off Kamau’s latest mixtape Love and Other Struggles: Volume 3, download the whole thang – and look out for an album from Kamau in the near future. Over this contemplative banger, Kamau’s flow evokes jazz horns – smooth, melancholy and urgent – all at the same time.
Since the mixtape is free, think about donating a little scratch toward the Remix Project or your local youth arts programs that are making space for future arts brilliance.
Que pasa? here is another choice mix from the homie Dj Chorizo Funk, posted up a few days back – an “all vinyl” mix recorded live at Body Rock in Austin, Tejas. For our seattle based folk- Chorizo will be en la cocina tonight at the dj100proof / DJ Sean Cee / DJ Darwin Birthday Bash! @ Nectar, FREE SHOW! Buen provecho.
Named after The Love Unlimited Orchestra classic, BBE created The Strange Games compilation series to represent the blueprint for modern R&B and hip hop. Crate diggers will recognize most of the tracks right off the bat, and dedicated listeners will recognize them, perhaps after a couple spins, for the songs that relied on them for their samples – and in some cases the whole damn song. In other words, this compilation is for music lovers that grew up on hip hop and R&B and appreciate and respect the roots of the music. You know, grown folk.
The fifth volume in the series, which BBE started in 1997, comes out on August 28th. Sure, these aren’t the rarest of rarest tunes that nobody or their mom has ever heard of, but it’s good music that you’re never gonna find all in one place at the same time anywhere else. Go on and purchase this compilation from the nice people over at Barely Breaking Even and help ensure that this music will live on forever. Do it.
Oh yeah, I should also mention that DJ Spinna expertly blended the songs from this compilation into an awesome mix. You can stream it below or download it here, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t buy the actual album with the entire songs on them, okay? Okay.
