Wed, 30 June 2010
"If I die, my seed'll be ill like me..." - Ghostface First birthday, yay! It's encouraging to look back on the back catalogue of episodes and see all the tracks I've been putting people up on...every time someone tells me they've chased up some stuff based on something from the podcast it's a great feeling. I started this month in New York - fantastic trip, so many memories I'll carry with me. Shout outs to Pami, Jerry Beeks, Black Robb, Selina, everyone at Tools Of War, David, and both Crumbs Bakery and the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory for causing me to owe a lot of pull-ups and rowing machine time... Playlist/Notes Mantronix : Needle To The Groove An 80s classic given to me by the man Jerry Beeks on wax, so only right that I open up this month's show with it! Serious vocoder-type action on the outro, so just had to play the whole thing :o) Brand Nubian : Don't Let It Go To Your Head (Remix Instrumental) Not a typical Brand Nubian track but certainly sounds like the Neptunes production it is - never heard this outside my house, I don't know if that's because no-one knows it or everyone else hates it? Lord Tariq & Peter Gunz : Deja Vu (Uptown Baby) (Pro-Black Mix) Not a well-known remix - I've lost the info sheet I had with the record but I've heard Ayatollah produced this one; I like it just as much as the original, but in a different way. Trivia: I heard that Steely Dan took 100% of the publishing on the original for the uncleared "Black Cow" sample - once it blew up. One note though; "N****s in the Bronx call me Lex, 'cos I push a Lex, and I rock a Rolex, and I lounge on Lex', and I love sex?" No they don't. I bet if Peter Gunz dropped his wallet walking down the street, and someone picked it up and shouted after him "Hey Lex!" that he wouldn't turn round :o) Gang Starr : The Place Where We Dwell So many Brooklyn tunes I could have gone for (Biggie and Jay-Z's "Brooklyn's Finest" sprang to mind) but I settled on this short and sweet dedication to the borough from one of Hip-Hop's greatest duos; it was good enough to be sampled on "Crooklyn," so who am I to rate anything above it? Onyx : Shiftee The funniest thing I heard about these guys when they came out was from a Hip-Hop Connection reviewer who said their voices sounds like they had been "gargling with peanut butter!" The "Bacdafucup" album is definitely worth searching out for a listen if you don't know it and aren't easily offended, but it certainly won't get any play on Smooth FM... Wu-Tang Clan : 7th Chamber Part II Monster track at the end of the first Wu-Tang album - loved this from the first listen, RZA with the vicious bassline going through the ASR-10 Van Der Pol filter and guitar amp, the dirty drums...perfect base for the Wu MCs to get busy. They don't make 'em like this anymore...well, at least not with rhyming and the drums in time! Cocoa Brovaz ft. Tony Touch & Hurricane G : Spanish Harlem Low-key headnodder from the period when Smif-n-Wessun had to change their name due to a trademark complaint from Smith & Wesson. To be fair, I wouldn't want any legal trouble with a gun company myself... Hurricane G always seemed to be shouted out loads by EPMD but was rarely heard, and Tony Touch does some moonlighting here from his usual DJing and sounds better than 90% of the rappers I see on TV right now! DJ Cam : Voodoo Child (Instrumental) Non Phixion ft. DV Alias Khrist : 5 Boros (Remix) That's DV Alias Khrist on two straight episodes now. Best name in Hip-Hop perhaps? The funniest thing about it is that I've never heard anyone call him just "DV" or "Khrist" - you have to say the whole thing :o) Anyway, I'm getting distracted - love this tune, the pianos make it sound grand, drums are banging, the vocal sample is appropriately dark and while the verses are very decent, I can't get enough of that hook! Mega Banton : Sound Boy Killing (Smoothed Out Remix/Original Dancehall Mix) One of those tracks from the 90s when it looked like dancehall was trying to stage an invasion into the US - didn't blow up huge but it was good to see some impact, and back then I loved the combination of dancehall vocals with Hip-Hop beats. Thank you Salaam Remi for the remix, but I just had to sneak a little of the original in there too. Al Johnson & Jean Carn : Back For More 1980 track, but not an overpowering synth anywhere in earshot. Classy soul number, a really nice duet - someone must have sampled that intro, it's crying out for it! Mary J. Blige : Be Happy Even back in the day when I had little time for R&B, this track just could not be denied - 1994 soul flavour here from the Yonkers legend, with a Curtis Mayfield sample just riding nicely underneath. Hotness. GZA : Fame (Instrumental) Not 100% sure who produced this - for some reason the vinyl of the single I have doesn't have any credits on it at all! Anyone know? Nicholas R. Flawless ft. Camp Lo : Cheetah This seems to never have had an official release, and I've seen different credits in different places for it - the vinyl has this as strictly a Camp Lo track but I think that's wrong. Anyway, I paid some horrible amount to get this on wax, and the sound quality isn't the greatest but that's always the chance you take with unofficial pressings - I think the track shines through all that though! Braintax : Rational Geographics Regardless of where he's based now, I always like to let it be known that Braintax started in Leeds! This is taken from "The Travel Show" EP, from the solo incarnation of Braintax, after the departure of DJ T.E.S.T, and a record which has been sitting undisturbed in my collection too long! A nice airy tune longing for a simpler, freer lifestyle, and maybe a bit of sun! Pete Rock & CL Smooth : Sun Won't Come Out ...better not come here then! As an aside, this track gives us the second mention of Castro on the podcast, purely by accident! Hard-drummed, big-bassed trunk rattler from Pete Rock with CL Smooth doing what he does best - rhyming on a Pete Rock beat. Sadly, we've probably had as much of that as we're going to get...do yourself a favour and run to buy "Mecca & The Soul Brother" and "The Main Ingredient" if you don't already have them - thank me later. K-Def : The Magnum One of the great underrated (if not completely unmentioned) producers/beatmakers, K-Def was half of Real Live and has done tracks for the likes of Ghostface/Theodore Unit ("Paychecks," biiiig!), Lords Of The Underground, ODB, and more. This is taken from an instrumental-only release, "Beats From The 90s Vol.2" - one for the Hip-Hop DJs to own! Donnie : People Person Amazing modern soul - the production/instrumentation works well with a singer who's got a fantastic voice, great lyrics, and doesn't fit the MTV mould. Thank goodness for that! Please support the artists if you hear anything on here you like! Check stuff out on Spotify, and of course do buy the vinyl/CD/downloads, and go to see live performances whenever you can! Comments[0] |
Sun, 23 May 2010
"Shine on me." - CL Smooth Twelve episodes, a complete year! Been a hectic month but managed to get just enough time to give you another podcast of audio goodness - here's to more of the same next year! Playlist/Notes Ras Kass : Release Yourself New track available for free on Bandcamp! The Carson, CA veteran MC links up with Rhettmatic of the Beat Junkies crew for an energetic, offbeat track from his upcoming "ADIDAS (All Day I Dream About Spittin')" album. After a difficult time with his career in the past he seems to be making moves with the new digital distribution model, nice to see some artists taking more control. Twisted Rootz : Samurai Mind Control Great beat from a young producer coming out of Manchester - we were both demonstrating at a workshop organised by In The Loop, and after we played each other beats as part of the session he passed me a CD; I played it in the car and this was the standout for me! You can hear more of his stuff at twistedrootz.com. Trigger Tha Gambler ft. DV Alias Khrist : Hitman For Hire Does anyone other than me think of DV Alias Khrist as the East Coast, underground version of Nate Dogg? Anyway, been looking for this one for a long while ever since I heard it played on Radio 1 - by Westwood, I believe! Trigger attacks the mic with an approach similar to that on the aggressive classic "Broken Language," and whoever did the beat - I tip my hat to you! Got this on white label, so no credits on it at all... Pete Rock & CL Smooth : Shine On Me 2002 single on Fat Beats, long after the original split between Pete and CL - just shows that whatever their personal feelings towards each other, they bring the best out of each other musically! Plato : New Born New Manchester duo who have just put out their first EP "Ease The Word," Plato consist of Pitch on production and Francophone MC Bedos on the mic. This is one of my favourite tracks right now; this was played on Agent J's Groovement show a few weeks ago when these guys were guesting and I bothered the hell out of them asking when it was going to come out! That beat...killer. Bedos' flow is ill but I have to admit my French isn't good enough to understand most of the lyrics! Knucklehedz : All She Wanted Erick Sermon on the beat, this is an early 90s funk bomb of the type they just don't seem to make any more - lyrics on the vocal version aren't anything spectacular but I could read my council tax bill over this beat and sound like the man :o) The Squeeze #1 : Diamond & The Psychotic Neurotics - Stunts, Blunts, & Hip-Hop Trying out an idea, basically trying to summarise the feel of an album. At first I thought this could be done in three or four minutes - pretty quickly found out otherwise! Every track from the album is in here somewhere, if only for a note or two in some cases. For the record (no pun intended) I've heard a DJ track end before with "so put that in your pipe and smoke it," probably on one of the "Return Of The DJ" albums; only sprang to mind when I'd finished, but it was also the only part of that Diamond track I could work out what to do with! DJ Jazzy Jeff : BossyNova Lovely summery track with a nice bit of low-end keyboard work from Jeff's "Return Of The Magnificent" EP - not on the album, so you'll have to look a little harder to get your hands on this one! The Clipse : Mr Me Too Shout out to Jon K (then of Fat City Records) for putting me up on this when it was very first released - spacey and bassy, love it. I think The Clipse definitely have mic skills and I do keep an eye on what they put out, but I personally could never look at them quite the same way after they dropped the line "Deep like the Hutu, you cockroaches" on the "Wamp Wamp" single... All City : Priceless Illlll! Pete Rock on the beat on this monster B-Side to "The Actual," I know some people who've had trouble finding a copy of this so here's something to get your head nodding on the way to wherever you go to make money! ODB : Brooklyn Zoo (Instrumental) Not a RZA beat as most people would assume, but the work of True Master - who also did "Fish," one of my favourite Ghostface tracks. This is definitely one of the all-time great Hip-Hop party starters! Alicia Keys : Girlfriend Based around the "Brooklyn Zoo" piano line, I hadn't heard this until recently; I was re-reading Joseph Schloss' "Making Beats" and he mentioned it, so I had a listen and thought it'd be worth including here for anyone else who missed it the first time round! Platinum Pied Pipers ft. Neco Redd : 1 Luv 2 U Waajeed of Bling47 on production, heard this floating around on MP3 for ages and then found a vinyl of it by accident while on a flying visit to the record shop - result! Marco Polo ft. J*Davey : Relax Not usually one for Hip-Hop remakes but this kind of works for me - nicely produced by Marco Polo and J*Davey gives a gender-reversal aspect to the original. The ARE : Eclectic Relaxation Love the heavy, slumping rhythm on this cut from the free (and excellent) "Manipulated Marauders" instrumental album, which takes the original samples from each track on A Tribe Called Quest's "Midnight Marauders" and does something with them - sometimes close to the originals, sometimes not...definitely worth a download! Thirstin Howl III ft. Sadat X : I Can't Dance I laughed when I stumbled on this on Spotify and had to get a copy! I quite like having a bit of a dance in a club but records about not dancing are always amusing, this being no exception - Thirstin Howl III (of the Lo-Lifes, of course) always brings humour to the proceedings and he combines well with Sadat X here. Of course the track is based around Bowie's "Let's Dance" - if you ever wondered why that track is so good, the reason is that it was produced by the great Nile Rodgers of Chic, who is scientifically proven to be incapable of creating weak material! Please support the artists if you hear anything on here you like! Check stuff out on Spotify, and of course do buy the vinyl/CD/downloads, and go to see live performances whenever you can! Comments[0] |
Wed, 21 April 2010
"All praises due, if you know what I mean..." - Guru (By the way - no, that photo isn't Photoshopped - that's really how the sky looked that day!) This is about as close as a lot of people have got to flying recently, the volcanic eruption in Iceland has stranded a lot of people, including some of my listeners - hope you get home safe soon! As promised in the episode, here's the link where you can get the info on this week's Neighbourhood party - hope to see you there! The sad news was just announced yesterday that Guru passed away, apparently after a long and painful illness. RIP Baldhead Slick...above the clouds... Playlist/Notes J-Zone : Flight 212/Bullshit City I thought I'd start off with something on the airline theme and could have gone a few different ways (Ice Cube's "My Summer Vacation" and "Altitudes" by Little Brother spring to mind). I love J-Zone, he's not only a fantastic producer but has more personality than the next ten MCs in line combined - humour and individuality on the mic are greatly underrated these days! Air Adam : Ground Effect Another beat from my vaults, got this one pressed onto a dub plate as I liked it so much! Burning things onto a CD to play just isn't the same...especially if you don't use CDJs anyway :o) Mobb Deep ft. Noyd: Scam Unreleased track from 2000, can't remember where I first got an MP3 of this but I love it - very dark and minimal, lots of little touches you might not pick up on straight away, very Mobb. After much searching I managed to find an unofficial vinyl pressing of it to play this month :o) There's a "Mark The 45 King" remix of this track on the B-side but it's nowhere near as good - this is the one. Cormega ft. Ghostface : Tony/Montana If you didn't know, the title comes from the fact that this track is by Ghostface (aka Tony Starks) and Cormega (aka Mega Montana); totally forgot about this one until I went for a good root in the collection. Is Mega's section about the Sprewell trade awkward or genius? Blahzay Blahzay : Sending Dem Back Of course when you talk about Blahzay you think about "Danger" and "The Pain I Feel," but I've loved this track since the man DJ Greenpeace hit me with a cassette of the album preview back in my salad days. Tanya Brewer is the singer on this, for anyone who wanted to know! Faith Evans : You Used To Love Me (Ali Mix) The original track is great too but this is a nice reworking, airy and spacey, giving Faith's vocals plenty of room. I edited the intro to this slightly to make it a bit longer and better for blending with, then used Serato to mix it live; got to love all this modern technology :o) Jake One & Freeway : Know What I Mean (Instrumental) The "Stimulus Package" album is hot right now and not only does it sound good but the packaging and ability to download an official digital version of the album and instrumentals perhaps point the way to how people can be persuaded to shell out for the physical copy of an album in these downloading times! The Roots : Proceed V (Beatminerz Mix) Philly. New York. Nice. Johnnie Taylor : Somebody's Gettin' It Taken from the 1976 "Eargasm" album, which has some top tracks on it. If you don't know who Johnnie Taylor is, you may just recognise this track which borrows from one of his tunes heavily. Picked this one up in Manchester's King Bee Records, great spot for digging for old vinyl and worthy of support, as are all good independent record shops - don't let them disappear! Ultramagnetic MCs : Raise It Up From the Wild Pitch era of Ultra, the "Four Horsemen" album is a quality 90s New York release - no frills, no R&B, just straight up Hip-Hop. Used to play this one heavily on cassette back in the days, but finally got a vinyl copy of this track on the "Hi-Phat Diet" compilation. Guru : The Anthem It would have been too easy to go to the library of big Gang Starr classics here, and I'm sure there will be some fitting tribute mixes popping up all over the net this week. This is from the "Baldhead Slick & Da Click" album which was mixed overall but certainly had a few gems on it. DJ Roach on production here, and of course the one and only Guru Keith E handling the mic in his unmistakable style. Outerspace : 151° (Instrumental) / The Cutthroats ft. Guru : Stop Looking At Me Outerspace are part of the extended Jedi Mind Tricks family and part of Army Of The Pharaohs, and this serious beat was produced by 7L - I got it on a 12" with "Divine Evil" on the other side but it's apparently taken from the "Blood And Ashes" EP. I just had to play that bit of the Cutthroats/Guru track - for light relief if nothing else!
Prince Po : Holla Self-produced track from the former Organized Konfusion MC, from the "Prettyblack" album but also on the B-Side of "Mecheti Lightspeed" - that tune got a decent amount of play in these parts but I felt like this one was overlooked; yes, it's clubbish and all that, but is that a crime? Joe Budden ft. LL Cool J & Dutchess : Focus (Remix) Shout out to DJ A-Up who wanted to know about this tune when I played it out a few months ago! It's called a remix but the beat is just the same as the original, which is good since there was nothing wrong with it :o) Dutchess I don't know anything about I have to say, but LL is of course one of those guys who just kept on going and always seemed to be able to keep up as the era and audience changed; respect for that! Missy Elliott ft. Jay-Z : Wake Up Missy is definitely one of those artists who's done so many things you forget! I hadn't heard this tune for so long but heard it the other day while going through some things and then played it a few more times in a row! 1st Infantry : The Midnight Creep (Instrumental) Nice crime-story Alchemist production: Havoc and Twin are on the vocal version of this, worth having I think! The Coup : 5 Million Ways To Kill A CEO Even if the revolution isn't televised, at least it'll have a soundtrack! 2001 track here from the deeply political Oakland duo (Boots Riley on the mic, Pam the Funkstress on the wheels); also notable for having the great Bernie Worrell on the Theremin! Please support the artists whenever you can if there's anything on here you like; go to see them live, check them out on Spotify, and buy their output too! Comments[0] |
Wed, 17 March 2010
"We be listening to beats to keep the cipher complete..." - Guru Going into double figures this month! I managed to fight off a nasty sore throat for just long enough to get all the voiceover done, and in response to Coxy I think I've turned my voice up so it's not so quiet compared to the music - I'm sure he'll let me know if I've hit or missed the mark! Big shout out to Guru who as many of you know is currently in hospital after suffering a heart attack and (reportedly) being induced into a coma. Best wishes going out to you from the Hip-Hop Nation, get well soon!
Playlist/Notes Brand Nubian ft. Redd Foxx : Black Star Line From the great "In God We Trust" LP - as much as I love this track, it's not my absolute favourite on the album - but then where else but here would I get chance to play an album cut about Marcus Garvey and have people actually listen? Air Adam : Street Kingdom An old beat of mine - for some reason I was in a club where Ja Rule's "Living It Up" (which I hate) was playing and thinking to myself how you could flip the intro and turn it into something with a very different feel, which turned out to be this. I might re-do it on the MPC sometime with new drums to make it thump a bit more, but then I'm not looking to sell this beat so maybe not :o) And the title? Well, that's from the incredible book by Doug Century - absolutely worth a read, or ten! Greg Osby ft. CL Smooth : Raise (Ali Shaheed Muhammad Remix) Jazz meets Hip-Hop here as it often does, but in this case you have a top player live on the track rather than sampled - the saxophonist Greg Osby was on Blue Note for years so you know his credentials are correct. This is one of those tracks where the version I knew isn't the one on the album; I first heard this on "Yo! MTV Raps" years ago and loved it, but the original version on the "3D Lifestyles" album just doesn't quite do it for me. Check the "Speak & Spell" sounds in the background too! OutKast : Players' Ball (Remix) The B-side of the "Players' Ball" 12" from their first album, before anyone had any idea of some of the craziness that would follow in later years...it's pretty sped up but I like it like that. DJ Faust : Mind Over Matter Forgot all about this one competely - pulled from the "Fathomless" EP by Faust, Craze (before his incredible streak of world domination) and Shortee, released just when turntablism was starting to bubble up in the public consciousness. Faust isn't the first name that comes to the mind of many when they think tablism but he's certainly respected among those that know. Large Professor : Liveguy Saga Biiiiig! One of my favourite B-sides of all time! This on the flip of "Bout That Time" - which truth be told is pretty blah. This tune is serious though, and I'd consider giving my kingdom for an instrumental! Minimal, but not crazy minimal, just bumps nicely. Zion I : Luv (Instrumental) Amp Live bringing a killer beat - very underrated producer for sure. Search out the vocal version of this as it's a very good track, I've certainly given it lots of play before. In fact, look out for any Zion I stuff you can pick up... Easy Mo Bee ft. Gang Starr : Soul You don't know it do you? Ha! Well, it's all about sharing so you do now :o) This was originally released on Easy Mo Bee's little-known "Now Or Never : Odyssey 2000" album, a producer-driven project from the man who brought us, amongst other things, the mighty "Flava In Ya Ear" which is one of my all-time favourite beats. I had this track on the album, bought the 12" hoping to get an instrumental and then found they'd accidentally missed it off - gutted! Que D : In Your Face Dilla on the beat which was probably the reason I picked this up originally to give it a listen as I didn't know much about Que D beforehand - even now, all I really know is that he's one of the MCs out of Detroit in the extended Slum Village/Dilla family, and he rides this beat well. Strange Fruit Project : Soul Clap Texas Hip-Hop with a difference! Got this for a bargain price the other day - put it on the listening deck in the record shop and decided I had to have it. The group of course are named after the famous song. En Vogue : Hold On 90s classic, dug this one out after forgetting I had it in the first place! I heard Kid Capri use this on a mixtape once, so if it's good enough for him it's good enough for me ;o) Oh yes - check the sloppiness of the snare on beat 4 of each bar! Didn't notice that until I had to mix into it... M.O.P : G-Building (Instrumental) Self-produced, D&D studio-recorded, thumping banger from the Brownsville hardrocks. One of my favourite MOP beats and also blended nicely with the En Vogue cut - who'd have thought? Michael Jackson : Pretty Young Thing (Demo) (U-Tern Edit) Newness - well, where new=old but little known :o) This has been slightly re-edited for length but the main composition is unchanged; this is the original demo version of "PYT (Pretty Young Thing)" by Michael Jackson. The song was later massively reworked into a more untempo number by MJ, James Ingram and Quincy Jones, and it's that version which appears on the Thriller album. On the one hand, I *think* I prefer this version, but on the other, listen to the instrumental of the album version...when those voices come in on the lead-up to the hook it's just illlll... Aya : Put Your Faith In Us Another Naked Music killer, taken from Aya's "Strange Flower" album. I've been absolutely caning this song on Spotify lately so it was only right that I buy a copy and let you hear it too. For some reason I kept thinking it would have been great if Michael Jackson had recorded a version of this song; it sounds like the kind of thing that would have fit him like a glove (no pun intended). Also notice what it does to the tension in the track to have no kick drum on the first beat of every bar - subtle but effective! Tim Dog : Step To Me (Instrumental) Maybe not the obvious track to go into from the previous one, but where would the fun be in being predictable? I thought the drum break sounded good here and also provided a springboard to launch into the next track... Eric B & Rakim : Teach The Children Second track on the oft-overlooked "Check The Technique" album, definitely worth a pickup if you've not already got it in your collection. That little four-bar change in the piano riff in the first verse starting at the line "I approached it slow..." still puts the chills up me eighteen years since I first heard it. Lyrically, when I listen to something like this, and then some of the alleged rappers coming out now...well, maybe they should have spent more time listening to stuff like this and less playing video games...and yes, I know that makes me sound like an old man. Wildchild : Code Red (Instrumental) Oh No on production, this was flipping wigs like crazy in Manchester when it came out a few years back and as soon as all the DJs found out what is was, we all bought it and played it heavy; it's been a while so time to bring it back! Gang Starr ft. K-Ci and JoJo : Royalty When this came out I'll admit I was skeptical about having K-Ci and JoJo guesting on a Gang Starr track, but it works and it's a classic. Production-wise, DJ Premier kills it with an amazing sample chop which sounds impossible even when you hear the original track. Guru brings his unique flavour on the mic, and it's the complete package! If you do hear anything you especially like then do get in touch and let me know, and please support the artists - find more output of theirs on Spotify to get a feel for it, go to live shows if you can (that's where they really get paid) and buy the stuff you like the most! Comments[0] |
Mon, 15 February 2010
"Gazing at the worldly things like a showcase..." - Killah Priest Podcast podcast number nine... been a quiet month for me but a bad month or so in music with Teddy Pendergrass, Sha Lumie and Apache all passing away due to illnesses. Appreciate your favourite artists while they're here! Playlist/Notes Ghostface Killah ft. Raekwon & Cappadonna : Camay A love song, Wu-Tang style, from Ghost's "Ironman" album, which is actually still my favourite album of his! This samples the late great Teddy Pendergrass' "Can We Try?" Jamal : Fades 'Em All (Pete Rock Remix Instrumental) One of those beloved 90s Pete Rock remixes pretty much unknown to those outside the Hip-Hop scene. Jamal was one of the MCs in the kiddie-but-not-kiddie group Illegal whose album "The Untold Truth" had one of the most amazing lineups on the beats you can imagine - Lord Finesse, Erick Sermon, Diamond D, and more...how did they pull that off? And while I'm asking questions, anyone know what Malik is doing these days? Sunz Of Man : No Love Without Hate An old favourite of mine from the extended Wu camp, I got a RealAudio (remember that?) file of this from the net, recorded it to tape and had it on my walkman heavy - perfect soundtrack to those nighttime walks trying to get my head right. Not sure how other people will feel about this tune but this is almost the poster child for the podcast - a track I loved which I never get chance to play anywhere! Scritti Politti ft. Lee Majors & Mos Def : Tinseltown To Boogiedown (Pete Rock Variation) Green Gartside & co have always had an affinity with Black music so it's not totally surprising to see this collaboration. Some of you will remember the track they did with Shabba Ranks ("She's A Woman") and Roger Troutman worked with them on the "Provision" album, there's a nice bit of trivia for you. I love Scritti Politti actually, will have to play some more in future - not even remixes, just straight up 80s pop styles! Masta Ace & Stricklin : The Hitman Produced by Create & Devastate, a nice little 2006 12" release, shouts to Reptile of the Assmatics crew for putting me up on this one when it was first released. I've just given this one a little edit to make it two verses and then instrumental just to let the beat ride by itself for a few bars :o) Not sure if the producers have done much since but Masta Ace continues to put out good music today a full twenty years after "Take A Look Around" - how time flies... Da Beatminerz ft. Sha Lumie : Hip-Hop (Da Essence) Truth be told this is not my favourite Beatminerz production by a long way, but I always liked the lyrics and they're even more striking now with the passing of Sha Lumie this year. "Stay in tune to the game 'til my heartbeat stop..." Those who knew him and have spoken about him publicly will say that he certainly did. Hyenas In The Desert : Concubinez (Instrumental) As far as I'm aware these guys only released one EP on Chuck D's Slam Jamz label and then pretty much disappeared. There were a few decent tracks on it but this was the clear winner, just a big pounding tune which moves a big sound system (get a copy and try it)! J Sands : Southern Lady This is one I do actually play a bit in clubs, taken from the "Hip Hop Love Soul" compilation on Fat City; I love that quasi-Charleston flavour with a bit of added bump! Someone called Beats Fa Daze (90s-style phonetic spelling there) did the production on this one - can't find credits on any other releases, but would be interested to hear more! DJ Jazzy Jeff ft. J-Live & every DJ ever : Break It Down There's another version of this floating about with a different beat which I don't think suits it, but this is the one on my vinyl copy of DJ Jazzy Jeff's "The Magnificent" album on BBE and I'm glad for it! Teacher/MC/DJ J-Live skips in and out of the beat and there's a huge roster of DJs on this track giving you a few quick cuts each; great idea! Bet there were a few wreck crossfaders behind this one... MC Serch : Here It Comes Again From the "Return Of The Product" album comes the much-improved version of "Here It Comes," drums galore and the former 3rd Bass frontman on the mic in his pre-executive days. You barely hear any Hip-Hop this speed these days - whether that's a good or bad thing depends on your taste! Fun-Da-Mental : Tribal Revolution (Homeland Mix) A UK 12" from an Asian and Black crew which I picked up for a bargain price many years ago, before I was DJing - this is an instrumental, and a good one, but their lyrics are always political and forthright, which is to be respected! DJ Shadow ft. Chris James : Erase You A track I initially overlooked from Shadow's "The Outsider" album, only to discover it when my iPod was on shuffle one day. This is some of the most outrageously good drum programming you'll hear anywhere, a brilliant production job all round to give it that live performance feel - right down to what I assume is an artifically-inserted feedback squeal partway through the vocals, have a listen out for it! Chris James of the band Stateless (Leeds stand up!) is the featured singer and I'll be checking for their own material. Gaelle : Separate Rooms Does anyone remember a late-90s house track called "King Of My Castle" by Wamdue Project? Well, this is the same vocalist, several years later and with some very silky production. If you like this kind of thing at all, you must buy her "Transient" album because not to put too fine a point on it, it's pure quality. I've been waiting for a chance to slot this tune in and this segment of uptempo tunes fits nicely. D-Train : You're The One For Me 80s classic! Big club track from 1981 (no, I'm not old enough to have been clubbing back then, unless you count eating Club biscuits or clubbing people with soft toys), keyboard overload with a real sanger over the top, no Autotune here! Exile ft. Ta'raach : Move On 'Em 80s through the looking glass :o) Exile flips a strangely familiar groove, adds some serious Moog and lets Ta'Raach get busy on the mic on this selection from the "Dirty Science" album. Nature : Don't Stop (Instrumental) Trackmasters production on this instrumental of a track from the "For All Seasons" LP. Nature's lyrics on the vocal version of this are a little forgettable, but he will always get props from me for his opening of Noreaga's "Banned From TV." DJ Spinna ft. Jigmastas : New York Monster tune with one of those sample usages that makes you wonder why you never thought of doing it! I'm a big Spinna fan but it was my man Gez who originally let me know about this one by sending me a link to the video which immediately made it into my list of all-time favourites; just check the camera, editing and colour work! I think I'll do a post on favourite Hip-Hop videos of all time in a blog post sometime... As I say every month, if there's stuff on here you like then do support the artists - look into their catalogues and buy some of their work and/or go to see them live! Whatever you can do, it all helps fight back the forces of wackness... Comments[0] |
Sun, 17 January 2010  "Weapons of mass percussion." - Invincible Happy New Year! Welcome to the first episode of the decade, 50+ minutes of audio gems for your headphones, car, shop... Big event of the month has unfortunately been the tragic earthquake in Haiti - if you have a little spare cash, please donate to any of the many organisations trying to help out there. Playlist/Notes Fugees ft. A Tribe Called Quest, Forte & Busta Rhymes : Rumble In The Jungle One of those tracks which did make noise even commercially right when it came out but then seemed to disappear altogether; very underrated track as far as I'm concerned. Sample is of course Abba's "Name Of The Game" - I heard somewhere that this was the first time they ever cleared a sample, so the Fugees beat Madonna to the punch on that by a long way :o) Mobb Deep : Extortion (Instrumental)Havoc on production on this instrumental of the track from the "Hell On Earth" album. Portishead : Revenge Of The NumberI know hardly anyone listening knows this one :o) Top remix of Portishead's "Numb" (so the title isn't pronounced how it looks) from the Rebirth Of Cool Phive album, also on the B-Side of the "Numb" 12" I think. The original is great and so's this...I wouldn't necessarily say better but different and just as good. Nas : Book Of RhymesAn underrated gem from the "God's Son" album, Alchemist on production. I don't know if these are definitely rejected rhymes or not, but I love the idea and execution, right down to the sounds of flipping pages. The 'new' verse where he talks about being jealous of his baby daughter is gold. Mos Def/Pure P : Ms. Phat BootlegAs you can probably guess from the title, this is a remix of Mos Def's "Ms. Phat Booty," from Pure P's "On My New York Sh*t Pt.2" 12". A bit summery-sounding for the vicious cold weather we've had lately, but maybe that's a good thing... Air Adam : Relief (Instrumental)Something from my archives (originally titled "Seer" until Manchester singer Aileen wrote lyrics to it), keeping the vibe gentle for a few before turning up the heat on the next track! Ta'raach & Invincible : Bombs AwayFrom Waajeed's "War" LP on Fat City Recordings, big stomping track. Ta'raach is definitely dope on this but Invincible just smashes it with her mic time. Detroit come through with a winner. Marco Polo ft. Large Professor : The Radar (Remix)A thing of beauty - hardcore, unapologetic Hip-Hop. Hard drums, dope rhymes and some excellent cuts courtesy of DJ Linx who I've never heard before but whose name will certainly ring bells for me now. Attention music industry: more like this please! Kardinal Offishall : Husslin'Coming in from Toronto is the firestarter himself! He's a very underrated MC who has the ability to blend the Caribbean style with classic Hip-Hop and can hold his own on the mic with anyone; if you heard Episode 1, you'll have heard him sharing vocal duties with the incredible Pharoahe Monch, and in a situation where many MCs would have been annihilated he showed he belonged! If you can get a copy of "Firestarter Vol.1 : Quest For Fire" then pick one up - and if you can get vinyl instead of CD, they're worth a fair bit now... Tek : Nothing's Gonna ChangeGerrard C. Baker on production, for the record - not heard of him previously but this is on the B-side of the "Number 1 Sound" single - "G Walking" rounds out the selection of reggae-flavoured Hip-Hop on that essential 12". O$$ Bo$$ : Wu-TingDancehall riddim borrowing from ODB's "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" and Wu-Tang's "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing Ta F' Wit." The vocal track on the other side of this 7" ("Camel" by Dolce & Gabbana) doesn't add anything at all to it truth be told, so the instrumental gets the nod - and usually gets a great reaction when I play it out! Slick Rick ft. Raekwon : FrozenFrom Rick's 1999 "The Art Of Storytelling" LP, his first full project after his release from prison in 1996 - it should be noted here that he was eventually given a full pardon. In the 80s he was fly and here...still the same! Raekwon guests on this and represents well - maybe after/if the rumoured Kool G Rap & Raekwon album happens, these two should do a project together? "We Will Rob You" was just a tease... (and as an aside, check out this video which came up in the same Youtube search, and watch from 20 seconds in - an inspiration maybe?) Ice Cube : Jackin' For BeatsI feel really old realising this tune is 20 years old this year! This is the first Hip-Hop track of this type I can remember, taking beats from popular Hip-Hop records of the time and stringing them together for this instrumental. The last beat is X-Clan's "Heed The Word Of The Brother," sampling Zapp's legendary "More Bounce To The Ounce" which was also famously used on... EPMD : You Gots To Chill...back in 1988. Nothing much to be said about this classic single but if you want a smile brought to your face, watch the video :o) They don't make 'em like that anymore! DSP ft. Chill Rob G : BullshitFrom DSP's "In The Red" album on Ninja Tune, only came across this recently despite it coming out in 2002 but there's some interesting stuff on there and this stood out for me - nice to hear Chill Rob G in the modern day! If you didn't know, he was badly ripped off on Snap's "The Power" - summary of the story here. Freddie Foxxx : Hey Ho (Instrumental)Oprah's favourite Hip-Hop track...well, maybe not! 2004 12" on Wildlife records, Amed on production and on the vocal version (which you can also find on the "Street Triumph" mixtape), the always-abrasive Freddie Foxxx aka Bumpy Knuckles on the mic. The 3rd Generation Band : Because Of Money1973 track from a Ghanaian army band, the African flavour is in full effect but you can here the influence of funk/soul of the time. I got this on a great compilation called "Ghana Soundz," if you're into something a bit different it's worth picking up! Remember, if you like any of the artists' work you hear then please try to support them in whatever way you can! Showing that the quality material has an audience willing to put their hands in their pockets to show support will help the constant struggle against the cheap knockoffs that currently take up the radio and TV time... Comments[4] |
Sat, 12 December 2009 
"Everybody else on the Earth don't exist."- Crooked I I suppose this is the Christmas episode, not that I've got any Christmas records to play! I did think about putting sleigh bell sounds behind some of the tunes but decided against ;o) Ah well, time to close out 2009 with this one, and looking forward to heading onwards and upwards for 2010! Playlist/Notes Camp Lo : Son Of A... Great
track - if a little short - from Camp Lo's new album "Another Heist,"
setting things off with a funk vibe. Ski is back on full-time
production for them on this album which will please many - personally,
I actually liked a good chunk of the Apple Juice Kid production they've
had lately (*ducks*) and I love the stuff they've done with Tribeca in
the past, hope he makes a return too! El Michels Affair : Glaciers Of Ice / Raekwon: Glaciers Of IceModern
funk maestros with a version of the classic Raekwon cut from the
original "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx..." - this is taken from the album
"Enter the 37th Chamber" which is a collection of instrumental
interpretations of Wu-Tang tracks, definitely recommended - it's on
Spotify if anyone wants a listen! Ghostface Killah ft. Trife & Twiz : TheodoreI don't know if anyone else likes this track, but oh well :o) The bells, the bells... Genius : Words From A Genius (Prince Rakeem Remix)Yes, it's that
Genius, aka GZA from the Wu. This is the (almost) title track from his
first album "Words From The Genius" on Tommy Boy a couple of years
before the Clan emerged on the scene. I first heard this on Pete Tong's
Rap Selection on Radio 1 when it came out in 1991, taped it off that
show and loved it - with no idea of who this guy was or the huge impact
his crew would eventually make on the scene. And Prince Rakeem? For
those who don't know, that's the man better known as RZA, the producer
and prime mover behind the Wu-Tang movement! Termanology ft. Royce Da 5'9", Crooked I, Akrobatik, Consequence : The Music Industry (Remix) I said on the voiceover that Term is from Boston, but in fact he's from nearby Lawrence, Massachusetts - oops! Anyway, rarely do you see so many guests on a single track, or at least on one that's any good which this certainly is. Fizzy Womack of M.O.P is on production and Statik Selectah adds some very nice cuts. Patrice Rushen : Remind MeClassic
80s single from the multi-talented
singer/songwriter/pianist/composer/musical director - and it's been
sampled plenty of times. Even if you don't recognise her name, you may well know her hit "Forget Me Nots," famously sampled on Will
Smith's "Men In Black." Pharcyde : Drop (Instrumental)One of those "Dilla before everyone (including me) knew who he was" beats,
though that's not to say that when this came out everyone wasn't loving
it, and it still moves floors today. The video is also a classic - bit
of trivia, they actually had to rhyme all their lyrics backwards to
make it work visually, which is quite a feat! Shara Nelson : Friendly FireTitle track of the second solo album from the former Massive Attack vocal lead, if you see a copy it's definitely worth picking up! Tajai : Who Got It?Solo excursion for one of the Souls Of Mischief MCs, one of those B-sides I never get to play anywhere! Foreign Beggars : Black Hole Prophecies (Jehst's Wild Wild East Remix)A gem from down London town! While
there was a little run of American artists using Asian music samples, I
always thought it'd be more natural for UK producers to do it since we have
a large Asian population and you do hear the music a lot, depending on
where you live. Shout out to DJ Reptile of Assmatics who put me up on this track. Byata : Byata Is The IllestI think there's someone rhyming on here, but I'm not sure because my word, that beat is dominating!
DJ Premier on production for this absolute banger - it's also one of those
beats you couldn't mistake for having being done by anyone else (To be fair, Byata puts in a solid performance as the track goes on). I don't know much about her other than that she's of Russian descent and that she's apparently been on a Wu compilation; if she's done anything else like this, do let me know! Mark B & Blade ft. Phi Life Cypher : Ya Don't See The Signs (Phi Life Cypher Remix)I
think this is better than the original, which is how a remix should be;
the beat is much darker and Phi Life, as always, absolutely destroy their
verses and provide a complementary vocal textures to Blade - all three MCs
on this are hall-of-fame level when it comes to British Hip-Hop. Kool G Rap & Ma Barker : Bout That (Instrumental)Produced by VIC and Mike Heron of the Ghetto Pros, diggers extraordinaire! Jerry Beeks : Microphone MingusFrom the home of Hip-Hop! Coming out of the Bronx, Beeks shows the skills over production from Touche on this album cut from "The Crop Report." Still got some stuff we've done together stashed away in the vault, will let you hear some on a future episode if you eat your vegetables ;o) Roy Ayers : I Did It In SeattleFrom "Virgin Ubiquity", a collection
of unreleased recordings from the late 70s to early 80s. Picked this
one up on a day off work in a sale at King Bee Records down in
Chorlton, a familiar spot for Manchester diggers - if I'd not got there until the weekend, it'd have been looong gone! Roy Ayers is an amazing musician and his tracks have provided the backdrop for many a quality Hip-Hop release over the years so it's worth searching out whatever you can find. Royal Flush ft. Noreaga : What A ShamePS - I'm not sure what he did in Seattle! Mid
90s Queens thug flavour from Flush's "Ghetto Millionaire" album,
speaking on life locked up. Smooth track produced by EZ Elpee,
with the first verse and closing by Nore, who is famously a man
who knows of what he speaks... Kaze : Locked In Chains (Instrumental/Clean)Khrysis on the boards for this one, this is on the B-side of "Last Laugh" - the uncensored version is only on the "Spirit of '94:Version 9.0" album I think. Not heard much else by Kaze but he rips this one! Insight : Visual Audio (Instrumental)Even though I'm just playing the instrumental here, it must be noted that Insight is multi skilled - he's an MC, producer, DJ, does engineering I believe and I've heard he's a software developer! If he learns to take photos too, none of my jobs are safe... DJ Jazzy Jeff & Big Daddy Kane : The GardenOne of the standout tracks from Jeff's
second solo album "Return Of The Magnificent," and one of the very few five-star tracks on my iPod! A lot of people just
think of Jazzy Jeff as that guy that got thrown out of the house a lot
on "Fresh Prince," but as well as being a pioneering and influential DJ
he's a very gifted producer and has coached a lot of other
up-and-comers via his A Touch Of Jazz studio/company. A quick aside - I'm no expert but when I listen to the actual sonic quality of this track, I feel like there is nothing at all that could have been done better!
As I always say, if there are things on here you like please do search out other material from the artists, buy the best of it and even better, try and catch them playing live! Comments[0] |
Sun, 15 November 2009 
"Don't be shady, just pay me" - Roger Wow, it's been half a year already! It's a challenge to keep coming up with stuff but the feedback I get makes it all well worth the effort, especially when people are discovering something new. Anyway, let's have a look at this month's offering... Playlist/Notes Little Brother : Atari 2600 A very limited release 7" single out of the Justus League crew with a hilarious take on what a promotional piece for the vintage console would have sounded like if endorsed by RZA and a similarly vintage singer... Air Adam : Bench PressureA little beat I dug out from a few years ago; I did this in a Swedish hotel room on a little Korg Electribe ES-1 sampler, and as such it's on my "Swedish Hardcore" beat tape which I might make available sometime if people want it! Goldfrapp : You Never KnowI was really, really late on Goldfrapp but thanks to the wonders of the internet started checking them out and found some stuff I really liked on the "Supernature" album, including this track; the "We Are Glitter" remix project has some good tunes on it too. Alison Goldfrapp's voice and those synths go together nice like chicken and rice... Jay-Z : This Life ForeverNot a massively well known track by Jay, but I managed to pick this one up in a local charity shop on 12" - this is from the soundtrack to "Black Gangster," based on the Donald Goines book of the same title. Interestingly though I'm not sure the film was ever made - the soundtrack was done first with a view to making the film if it took off! The soulful backing track is provided by Ty Fyffe, someone who's not a huge name compared to many others but always seems to pop up with something good. Blak Twang : Real EstateA classic UK Hip-Hop single from 1996; Tony Rotton aka Blak Twang with a tough track about the runnings of the inner cities of the UK. It's our own State of the Nation Address, and it's nothing nice. Thirteen years later and a new government later, has anything really changed? Jacky Jasper ft. Roger Troutman : Mad GameIf there was a Devil, and he had a car with a big system and listened to Hip-Hop, he would play this on repeat - super dark production for real! I've played this tune for a few people and got great response, but no-one seems to have it or even have heard of it, so it was an obvious candidate for inclusion at some point. Turn it up! Black Moon : Buck 'em Down (Remix Instrumental)Took me a while to appreciate this in its own right after being such a fan of the original but this is a must-have 12" - if not for this, then the killer (no pun intended) B-Side "Murder MCs." Black Moon : Buck 'em Down (Original version)Grimy Brooklyn Hip-Hop from one of the great groups of the 90s. Perhaps besides the mighty "Who Got The Props?" this was my favourite track on "Enta Da Stage" and I played my vinyl copy of this every day for months... Rae & Christian ft. Veba : All I AskThis somehow didn't properly penetrate my consciousness when it first came out, but a couple of friends played it for me last year (shout out to The Mojos!) and this time I was ready; gorgeous track, if you close your eyes and turn the heating up it could make you believe it's summer...quite an achievement for a song coming out of the heart of rainy Manchester! DJ Quik ft. Mausberg & Raphael Saadiq : WellFrom the underrated (even by Quik) "Balance & Options" LP, a brilliant piece of laid back production with plenty of flourishes - instrumentation is courtesy of the South Central Philharmonic Orchestra. Cormega : Soul FoodA very different track from Cormega to the one I played last month ("No Equivalent"), I've been meaning to play this for a while and found a spot for it here. Erick Sermon : Hittin SwitchesBlast from the past - though it doesn't seem like that long ago! 1993 track from the "Who's The Man?" soundtrack which also ended up on Erick's debut solo "No Pressure." Craig Mack : Get Down (Q-Tip Remix Instrumental)Q-Tip is so well known as an MC (helped by his distinctive voice) that it's sometimes easy to forget his production work; in the early- to mid-90s he did some great beats outside A Tribe Called Quest, with the kind of smacking drums you often don't hear these days! Souls Of Mischief : MedicationSoM are best known for their incredible debut single "93 Til Infinity" but this is a great single from their "Trilogy: Conflict, Climax, Resolution" album with a different but yet somehow familiar sound. Their extended crew, The Hieroglyphics were not just ahead of their time with respect to their music but with their recognition of the potential of the Internet in promoting themselves and operating independently. Edgar Allen Floe : Floe Almighty (Desperado Remix)Excellent MC name :o) Anyway, when you twig to this tune it ought to smack you in the face how genius it is. On first listen I thought "hang on, did he just repeat the first verse?" - then the lightbulb went on and I gave him a mental standing ovation! Floe is part of the North Carolina Justus League collective and certainly shows some super MC powers on this track. Red Rat : 40 LegPicked this up in a big stack of reggae/dancehall 7" singles on eBay and it's a bit of a jewel to me - can't get enough of that Jamaica meets the Scottish Highlands flavour! I just have visions of a traditional pipe and drum band skanking along in a dancehall style... Ludacris : Southern Hospitality (Instrumental)Booming Neptunes production on this B-Side to "Area Codes" - almost forgot about this tune until I came across a used vinyl copy! DJ Revolution & KRS-ONE : The DJGets bonus points for (coincidentally) using a line I once did a T-shirt design for - "A DJ is not a jukebox!" On the spiritual sequel to his 1996 track "The MC" from the "I Got Next" album the legendary KRS-ONE (for those that don't know - "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") breaks down the proper place and conduct of the DJ, with particular respect to the culture of Hip-Hop which was of course started by DJs - rhyming came along later, not that you'd think it looking around these days! One of his central points is that it's the job of the DJ to break music to the people, not to just reflect what they think they want to hear - in some small way, I'd like to think this podcast honours that. Comments[2] |
Thu, 15 October 2009  "I love this game." - Cormega This is the first month I've had to go into my boxes of cassettes to find a particular tune for you, hence the title of this episode! Thanks to the wonders of modern technology I recorded it into my computer and can manipulate the sound with the turntables via Serato - very space age. Ironically, I think this is the first episode which isn't quite short enough to go on one side of a tape... I've got a bit of a bad cold this month, but have tried to do a decent job on the voiceovers - bear with me! Playlist/Notes Count Bass D : Junkies One of the best all-round musical talents in Hip-Hop, shout out to Mathmatics for putting me up on him back when the "Dwight Spitz" album came out. Paul Wall : Sittin' Sidewayz (Inst)Yes, this is one of my all-time favourite beats. Most people think immediately of the huge bassline as the main focus but I actually think the track is centred around the little bluesy guitar riff - have a listen and see what you think! The Cool Kids : Black MagsBefore this record, there were acute shortages of Hip-Hop tracks about BMX bikes. Problem solved :o) Massive Attack : Inertia CreepsI was really late on these guys, and while not all of their stuff is to my liking this tune is very heavy - deceptive in its simplicity I think! From the "Mezzanine" album. Piece of background trivia, as told by producer Neil Davidge - apparently the guys used to carry tape recorders everywhere and record whatever might be interesting; this track is based around a snatch of a recording from a Turkish (or was it Moroccan?) market - you can hear it bare just before the main beat comes in. Cormega ft. Tragedy Khadafi : No EquivalentI read someone on a message board recently say that Cormega is "too manly for this generation", which made me smile - I think a better way to describe him is "no-frills" - he's steadily worked at his craft for years, doesn't have a gimmick and gives a great interview. This is from the Special Edition pack of "The Realness" and "The True Meaning" - which is a top notch album. Camp Lo : World HeistLow key headnodder from the Bronx slang-editorialising, diamond heisting, 70s dressing duo; from the B-side of their first single "Coolie High" which is of course a classic - run to hear it right now if you never have before! Shyne : More Or Less (Inst)Fierce instrumental, produced by Kanye West in his pre-"College Dropout" years. The original version of this track was called "When I Die" - not sure why it was changed for its appearance on the "Godfather Buried Alive" album but the dubbing over of the hook was pretty weak... Roc Raida : One Man BandRIP Grandmaster Roc Raida. Check out his title-winning performance here. Michael Jackson : Sunset DriverUnreleased track from the "Off The Wall" sessions - I don't know how this didn't make the album, but this offcut is fifty times better than a lot of other peoples' best track. Zapp : I Can Make You DanceIt's true, you know. Just one of Zapp/Roger Troutman's killer dancefloor movers. For a funny sampling of this, check out Compton's Most Wanted's "I Don't Dance." As it happens, that tune is really danceable as well! Gap Band : Beep A FreakPS "You dance in the morning when you eat your cornflakes" - lyrics. Wilson, Wilson & Wilson with a treatise on communication problems in male-female relationships circa 1984. Orbital : InitiationI had to convert this from tape - the version on the "Gap Band VI" vinyl is better sound quality of course but a quite different mix, and the beeper noise runs through the entire song and would have driven a lot of you mad... From their 2003 soundtrack to a film called "Octane" - I only found out about this record a few weeks ago myself! Grandmaster Melle Mel & The Furious Five : The TruthTaking it old skool for a minute. Note to youngsters - Pete Rock, Biggie, and Tribe are not old skool. This is definitely one of my favourite F5 tracks, tough tough tough! I've never heard anyone else mention it until I found a fellow appreciater on this blog. Eric B & Rakim : I Know You Got SoulOne of their best known tracks of course, playing this one as a special request for the man Mr Mari - enjoy! EPMD : The Big PaybackEPMD (Erick Sermon and Parrish Smith, for those who don't know) are without doubt one of the greatest MC duos of all time and this is probably my favourite track from the 1989 "Unfinished Business" album, although "Get The Bozack" is another killer on there which unlike this was never a single. Zero 7 : Light Blue MoversThis was on the vinyl of the single "Somersault" and is just an irresistible head-nodder; that bassline just sticks in your head. Raekwon : Canal StreetFor the Manchester listeners - no, not the Canal Street in the Village... The "Cuban Linx Pt.II" album has barely been out of my car stereo since it was released and this is one of the many gems on it - if I hadn't played this, it would probably have been "Surgical Gloves" which is one of the most relentlessly evil beats I've heard in a long time (courtesy of The Alchemist), with Raekwon on the mic coming off almost MF DOOM-ish. As for this, it feels like it came out of a 70s crime film soundtrack, and in a world of autotune and snap beats, thank goodness someone is making tracks like this! Comments[3] |
Fri, 11 September 2009  "Sometimes you gotta do right." - Garrett Been an interesting month, from hanging out with the guys at Non-Stop sneaker store in Madrid to playing at the first night of Neighbourhood for a top crowd - oh, and assembling this of course! Still not used to the sound of my own voice on the voice-overs, maybe I should just prepare statements and have them read by a lawyer? :o)As Columbo would say, "just one more thing" - after many years of waiting, Raekwon's "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...Part II" is finally out this month - do yourself a favour and grab a copy! Playlist/Notes Natural Elements : Paper Chase 2005 Natural Elements are some of the most talented MCs you'll hear in your life; unfortunately, record company politics meant they never quite got a fair shake. This track is one I personally like (which of course is why it's on here) but it's not even their very best work...find everything you can they've ever been on! Jan Hammer : Tubbs & ValerieFrom the "Escape From Television" album, made up of music taken from Hammer's brilliant work on the "Miami Vice" TV series. Everyone knows "Crockett's Theme" and the TV show theme, but this album is well worth picking up. Reks : Say GoodnightSpacey DJ Premier beat (but with the usual rock-hard drums), and Reks doesn't waste it! Apani B-Fly Emcee : EstragenThat third verse has multiple MCs on it and goes on for a while so I cut it short this time; the full list of guests for the whole track is (deep breath) - Lyric, Helixx C. Armageddon, Ayana Soyini, What? What?, Pri Da Honey Dark, Yejide The Night Queen, and Heroine. Chuck D : NoOf course, Chuck D is one of the elder statesmen of Hip-Hop (and has been since he started - released the first Public Enemy album at 27) and can always be counted on to bring an adult voice to proceedings - literally and figuratively. Above The Law : Harda U R Tha Doppa U FaalSeriously overlooked crew from Pomona, California, these guys spent years in the metaphorical forest smashing down every tree in sight, but with not enough people to hear the sound. They were doing the G-Funk sound before Dr.Dre, Cold 187 and KMG were a fantastically complementary mic tag team and overall they were just ahead of their time. This is one of those album tracks which I love but have never heard mentioned anywhere, ever. 9th Wonder : Unreleased InstrumentalAllegedly "Volume 3, Beat 5" on a bootleg-looking pressing. If this has been used, let me know! Brand New Heavies ft. Q-Tip : Sometimes (Ummah Remix)Common ft. Erykah Badu, Pharrell & Q-Tip: Come Close Remix (Closer) ft. Dilla (& Q-Tip) double bill! Two of his best smoothed-out remixes - but *do not* sleep on the bassline of that Common track. Try it out on a decent car system if you have one! It's worth noting is that there's also a Dilla remix of BNH's "Saturday Night" which is serious dancefloor business. The Away Team : Scream Out!The Away Team are Justus League affiliates out of North Carolina, made up of Khrysis (producer) and Sean Boog (MC). I found this online while browsing around for Sean Price stuff I hadn't heard (he features on the same album this track is from, "Training Day") - this plus the track "Awesome" had me ordering a copy the same night! Gang Starr ft. WC & Rakim : The Militia IIJust one thing though - "month" and "us" do not rhyme... The original was a classic of course (with the killer Bumpy Knuckles third verse) but this is a worthy sequel; solid Primo beat and three quality verses. Torae : SwitchKiller "impersonation" track where Torae takes on the flow of a different MC every 4 bars; some of them are absolutely dead on! Can anyone name them all? J-Zone : Prima Donna (Instrumental)J-Zone is one of the most original, inventive producers out there as well as a highly entertaining MC. He doesn't actually rhyme himself on the vocal version of this but do seek out his stuff if you like good music and have a sense of humour :o) Tommy Tee : AerosoulOne of the standout tracks from Bomb Records' "Return Of The DJ Vol II" - not a super-technical turntablist track but a great piece of production with solid, tight scratching and excellent choices of samples. If you do hear anything you especially like then do get in touch and let me know, and please support the artists - find more output of theirs on Spotify to get a feel for it, go to live shows if you can (that's where they really get paid) and buy the stuff you like the most! Comments[2] |
Thu, 10 September 2009 
Neighbourhood The place: Saki Bar, Wilmslow Road, Manchester The time: First Friday every month, 9pm-3am The tax: £4 before 11pm, £5 after Facebook group: http://groups.to/neighbourhood There's a new night starting up in Manchester, bringing the finest in Hip-Hop, Reggae, Funk & Dub on the first Friday every month! It's split over two floors - "The Block" and "Yard", each taking turns to bring in a headline act in the appropriate style. We're all about finding the best talent even where that means not going for the biggest name, and above all creating an environment for the good party vibes! The resident DJ lineup is one of the strongest you'll find, including; Joe W - Mind On Fire band member and organiser http://www.mindonfire.co.uk Myself; Air Adam - Family Gathering/Assmatics http://airadam.com DJ Mischief - The Pinch / MyFirstMoth Records http://www.myfirstmoth.co.uk Ed Speed - Dub Smugglers Sound System http://www.dubsmugglers.com/ Louis Longshot – Drum Music/Longshot http://www.longshotsoundsystem.com http://www.drummusic.org Omas – At Large http://www.myspace.com/atlargeprodu Next party is Friday October 2nd, with MEGA RAS and WIZZY DAN headlining for Yard; come down and party with us! Category: general -- posted at: 7:34 PM Comments[0] |
Wed, 12 August 2009 
This episode's title is a quote from "At War" by Snowgoons - it's been tickling me since I heard it a few months ago :o) Anyway, here's another podcast of audio goodness for you, just about the right size to fit one side of a cassette if you're so inclined...hope you all make some discoveries this month, let me know what you think. Quick mention - thanks to Coxy's Blog for the article on the podcast last month! Playlist/Notes Chic : Sometimes You Win Quality album cut from the "C'est Chic" LP. Five Deez : Latitude (Instrumental) Lisa Shaw : It's Been Awhile There's a real clarity to her voice which I love; this is from her first album "Cherry" which is excellent, and the new album "Free" is out at last - definitely worth checking out. Ice Cube ft. Das EFX : Check Yo Self ("The Message" Remix)Am I the only one who remembers that the very end of the video for "It Was A Good Day" lead into the start of the video for this one? Top idea. This was in the days of only seeing stuff at a friend's house on "Yo! MTV Raps" though, so I only saw it once or twice myself. However, thanks to the joys of modern technology, someone's put them together for your retro viewing pleasure! DJ Quik & Kurupt : Do You Know? This is from the recent collaboration album "BlaQKout," which isn't consistent all the way through but there are definitely some serious high points, of which this is one - and you know with Quik on production that there'll be some originality coming to the table. Sadat X : The InterviewI think I heard this on Radio 1 (on Westwood's show when he still played good stuff) before the "Wild Cowboys" album came out and spent a lot of time rewinding my taped-off-the-radio copy until I got a better one! DJ Spinna : Spirit Of '94 From the B-side of the "Dillagence" 7" Jedi Mind Tricks : Monolith Zion I : Inner Light (Icey Mix) This is from their first album, "Mind Over Matter." Zion I are a very interesting group; they're always musically and lyrically interesting and inventive and have managed to carve out a very respectable multi-album career despite not been widely known in many circles; do seek out their stuff. Redman : SyrinxAmerican Cream Team : It's Not A Game (Inst) Slum Village : Conant Gardens A dedication for Titus "Baatin" Glover. Mark B & Blade ft. Rodney P : We Stay RoughTwo British Hip-Hop veterans on the mic here. Trivia for those who don't know: when Blade wanted to put out his first LP, he didn't have the money to record and press it, so he appealed for people to order it in advance of it even being made, and they did - mailing him the money strictly on trust. He got the album done, sent all the pre-ordered copies out and thanked all those people individually in the liner notes! Pumpkinhead ft. Archrival : SwordfishSkhool Yard (sic) : Here We Come (Inst) Phi-Life Cypher : ABC Top-notch verbal onslaught; after you pick your jaw back up off the floor, have a look at the lyrics written out here. They've made some mistakes transcribing it but it seems like all the lyric sites have just copy/pasted from each other so they're all just as bad! If you do hear anything you especially like then do get in touch and let me know, and please support the artists - find more output of theirs on Spotify to get a feel for it, go to live shows if you can (that's where they really get paid) and buy the stuff you like the most! Comments[2] |
Sun, 12 July 2009  Hi, I got a really good response to the first episode (thanks everyone!) so here we go with the second; you can expect a new one every month. I'll be aiming to keep it an easily digestible size every time, and to make it something to look forward to! Can't let this post go by without wishing Michael Jackson a peaceful journey - that was definitely one of those "where were you when you heard?" moments. I just had to include one of his tracks this time around... Playlist/Notes Peanut Butter Wolf ft. Encore : The Undercover Not a club tune; definitely glad to get a chance to play this one as it'd been on the shelf for years. Hammadi : Love To The WorldQ-Tip : Dance On Glass Coppershot : Hesitate Chester Copperpot with LongShot on the mic (see what they did there?) De La Soul : Respect Originally available on the Japanese release of the "The Impossible: Mission TV - Pt. 1" compilation of unreleased tracks, though this is on a 12" press. Erick Sermon : Music (Instrumental)Mobb Deep : Clap (Instrumental) The "Infamy" album wasn't a popular one but when the weather turns cold and the nights get longer, this is an essential headphone track. Kombo ft. Krondon : The WriteI got this 12" for 99p without even listening to it - winner. The other side, "Sands Of Time" is excellent too, though much more laid back. Rakim : New York (Ya Out There?)From the post-Eric B "The 18th Letter" LP, DJ Premier on the production for some classic boom-bap. Mic Geronimo : UnstoppableThe "Vendetta" album wasn't all that but this track cannot be denied. Anita Baker : How Does It Feel?From the 2004 "My Everything" album on Blue Note; definitely one of my favourite female vocalists, and the title links nicely with the next vocal track in the mix... Nas : The World Is Yours (Tip Mix Instrumental)Michael Jackson : Stranger In Moscow JS-1 : Move Like This (Instrumental) Foreign Exchange : Theme AZ : Sugar Hill (Remix Instrumental) N.O.R.E : Cocaine Cowboys Dark and bright all at the same time, this killer track has been getting a lot of play on my iPod lately; the documentary of the same name is well worth checking too, I got it for £4 on DVD the other day. If you do hear anything you especially like do let me know, and please support the artists - find more output of theirs on Spotify to get a feel for it, go to live shows if you can (that's where they really get paid) and buy the stuff you like the most! Comments[4] |
Tue, 16 June 2009  So without further ado, here's the first episode! Hope you enjoy it - do leave comments! Playlist DJ Spinna : Nostalgia Large Pro : 'Maica Living Zero 7 : You're My Flame (Dabrye Remix) Dela ft. Talib Kweli : Long Life Jean Michel Jarre : Oxygene 2 Jake One w/ Pharoahe Monche & Kardinal Offishal : Hurt Platinum Pied Pipers : Shotgun (Inst) Torae, Marco Polo, Masta Ace & Sean Price : Hold Up Nas : Where Are They Now? (90s Remix) Black Ivory : I Keep Asking You Questions Prodigy & Alchemist : Return Of The Mac (Inst) Jerry Beeks & Air Adam : Back To England (Part 2) Slum Village : Climax (Inst) Kool G Rap & Polo : Cars Gary Numan : Cars J Dilla : Trucks Comments[10] |
Tue, 16 June 2009 Hi everyone! This blog page is about to be the home of my new podcast. Some of you will already know me from my DJing and production, while others might know my photography work. Those that don't know me will have have picked up on the fact that I have my fingers in a lot of pies! So why am I doing a podcast? Well, I wanted a way to widely play some tunes I was interested in! Commercial radio is inaccessible to most would-be hosts of course, and while online radio shows can be good, you're relying on people to be able to tune in at a specific time on a specific day. That's not even taking into account the fact that it locks you into playing at that specific time, or all the streaming problems that seem to pop up! Playing in clubs is cool but restricts you to how many people you can get into the venue, and of course you need to keep it danceable so there's a lot of stuff which is difficult/impossible to fit into a set. Besides all that, mixtapes are harder to sell than they have been in the past, as the market has changed and there's more of an expectation of getting things for free. With a podcast, I can use a radio-like format, go on at length or keep it brief, and everyone can download easily/automatically and listen at a time of their choosing! Putting all the "technical" considerations aside, it's really a way for me to share and get into discussions on music. I grew up in the pre-internet era (cue Hovis music or EPMD's "Strictly Business," whichever you prefer) - at that time, there was little if any Hip-Hop on TV or commercial radio, and so for a kid with a limited budget wanting to learn about it there were three main sources of music and info; tape swapping, pirate radio and magazines. The pirate stations would play whatever they thought was good - the DJs weren't in anyone's pocket, and were playing records they'd bought with their own money - and over the years I got the chance to hear a wide selection; some of the records they played came from artists who went on to become legends, while others were one or two-hit wonders, but wonders all the same. The variety of stuff they played allowed me to develop and define my taste - finding an artist or record you liked lead to searching for info on them in the magazines, seeing who they were associated with or might be similar to, and then trying to get hold of some of that, and so on...then exchanging tapes of albums you'd bought with friends would send you on another path. This kind of cycle meant that records could become underground hits in one particular area while being pretty much ignored elsewhere. Somehow, despite the explosion in media availability and speed of access in the modern era, this seems to be happening less and less! The DJs I grew up with very much kept a balance between playing stuff that people would obviously like and playing things they personally liked themselves, and so the range was very interesting. This is what I'm going to try and do with this podcast; I guarantee pretty much every episode, someone I know will say "I was really into (song x) that you played" and then go on to say "but what was up with that bullshit (song y)? You actually like that?" There'll be a mixture of Hip-Hop and music more generally, "underground" and "commercial," the somewhat known and the utterly forgotten, new and old, the conscious and the ignorant, and the straightforward and the slightly bizarre! I hope you'll find it interesting and entertaining, and that it leads you towards discovering and enjoying some music that's new to you :o) Stay tuned - first episode soon come! Peace, Adam Category: general -- posted at: 5:44 AM Comments[0] |
