10.4 Rog, the producer behind a grip of quality hip-hop and electronic music out of Seattle, dropped a new collection of instrumental tracks called The Vibe Continuum back in July. Worthy of unwinding while you twist that good, play at a reasonable volume as the sun sets on an amazing Seattle summer.
Raz Simone’s latest video entry, “Oh Lord,” finds the rapper speaking truth to power in a natural setting that looks conspicuously like the one Macklemore and Ryan Lewis used in their “Otherside” video. Raz name checks Macklemore in the third verse, noting the pop star’s as-yet unreleased “White Privilege 2,” a song rumored to be part of Mack and RL’s upcoming sophomore LP. (Some questions, though: How can a track called “White Privilege 2” be anything but reductive in an ongoing conversation about the very topic? At what point does Macklemore speaking openly about his privilege become more about him and less about the actual issue? After all, in about 99% of discussions about race it’s more productive for white folks to just shut the fuck up and listen than it is for them to ramble on about what it means to them.)
In any case, Raz’s output this year has generated more words-per-post from your loyal blogger than any other Town hip-hop artist, which means he’s either really good at pushing buttons, or he’s on to something much larger and provocative than his peers. It’s probably a bit of both. “Oh Lord” finds Raz at his best, reserving valuable bars for conveying concerns both communal and personal (see also: “They’ll Speak”). In other instances he can be frustratingly confounding — though no less visceral and inciting — which, I’ve mentioned before, engenders multitudes. That’s hip-hop, though.
Thraxxhouse | The Crocodile | September 2, 2015
Photos by Rafael Ochoa
Tracing Kung Foo Grip’s rise from entertaining rap cypher scene-stealers to their newest — and most accomplished — album, The New Flesh, is to witness the veritable growth arc of a duo of uber-talented MCs right before your very eyes. It’s like one of those fast motion scenes in a nature documentary: the caterpillar emerging triumphantly from its cocoon. Or something.
The New Flesh finds KFG making stylistic musical turns without losing its lyrical style which remains deeply embedded in the acrobatic. Once part of the new guard themselves, Kung Foo Grip now helps set the pace for the kiddos coming up behind them.
Gifted Gab — the best rapper in Seattle (yeah, you heard us right) — released this video for “187” back in June and forgot to tell us about it. We forgive her, though. From Gabby’s Girl Rap LP which is aging like a fine wine.
Graves33 and Diogenes — practiced executors of subterranean rap, par excellence — engineered a slamming six-track entry right underneath your feet. Life On Other Planets is worthy of all the invariable head-nods given by approving headphone critics the 2-0-6 over. It matches this gray overcast more than that global warming shit we had back in July.
Ronnie Dylan’s new track “Suite Life” documents the hustle-hard philosophy of a young rapper on the come-up over a spacious, radio-ready beat. Producer Jake Crocker adds a dramatic vocal touch.
La emerges from an extended musical absence to drop The Golden Gun EP, produced entirely by Pacific Northwest native, turned Tokyo-based label head Marcus D. The lean, polished, sample-based production suits La’s visceral street-oriented boasts and trademark strings of ill metaphors. “Killin’ n-ggas with shit I wrote in oh-ten,” is probably the most apt declaration La makes here, as his writing often feels like it could outlast any rapper in the Town. Golden Gun is only five songs long and begs for a sequel.
Raz Simone has been on a creative tear for the last two weeks, matching the frenetic pace in output he set earlier this year. “Plottin,” is his third music video to drop this month and the tenth overall with Black Umbrella cinematography maven Jacob Hill. The new video is dark in a Wes Craven (R.I.P.) type of way, and seems to suggests Raz fighting off a horde of unwelcome soul-suckers.
Dynamic and currently thriving in the Seattle hip-hop scene, One Above Below None dropped this four-song EP treat in advance of their Bumbershoot debut this Saturday, 9/5/15, at 1:45 PM on the Rhapsody Stage. The four man crew stands out from many of their Town peers in that they’ve prioritized their live stage presentation, folding expert live instrumentation into their tight, engaging performances. OABN can be counted among the new wave of Seattle acts poised to define the city’s current rap movement.
A SEATTLE HIP-HOP BLOG 