Sub Pop’s latest signee, Shabazz Palaces, is on one. Again. “Barksdale Corners” is dense, atmospheric and esoteric as hell. Download/listen and then spend the next 30 days deciphering it.
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Category: Downloads
DOWNLOAD: “Lumiere” (Blue Scholars)
The name of Blue Scholars’ upcoming LP is Cinematropolis (set for release in Spring 2011). If the title is indicative of the album’s conceptual bent, then we may be in for a sort of film/music amalgamation, which wouldn’t be surprising given Geo’s love (and talent for) movie criticism and Sabzi’s own interest in visual media (check out the DJ/producer’s recently launched multimedia project, Townfolk.)
On the group’s recent drop, “Lumiere,” Sabzi samples The xx track to great cinematic effect. Geo’s vocals are understated and would probably win an emo rap battle, if there were such a thing. Click the image below for the D/L link.
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VIDEO: “Moonlight” (Lace Cadence)
I’m not really feeling this track by Lace Cadence; in fact, I feel like it barely constitutes an actual song. What I am feeling, however, is jazz singer Isabella Du Graf. Goodness gracious, gorgeous. Someone get her some guest vocals on a track, pronto.
Once again it’s the hardest working man in Town videos, Jon Augustavo, with the visuals. Download Lace Cadence’s very Mike Posner-ish Launchpad Mixtape, here.
DOWNLOAD: “Milk On Wax” (Todd Sykes & EvergreenOne)
Todd Sykes and EvergreenOne strike me as dudes who would be just as content freestyling over Pharcyde instrumentals in the back of a broken-down tour van, as they would rocking a stage in front of a couple hundred college kids in McMinnville, Oregon. Okay, maybe not just as content, but throw some quality greenery in the back of said van and it would be close.
Still, to discount the Tacoma emcees simply as two blunted-ass slacker kids with a knack for clever rhymer-y would be selling them short. Check out their refreshingly fresh LP, Milk On Wax, available for the price of nothing, here. The three-song sequence “City Hall,” “90’s Shit” and “For Real” had me nodding my head in unashamed approval in a car full of NYC subway commuters today. “2-5-3 does hip-hop too, ya know!” I wanted to exclaim.
And the video for “90’s Shit”:
DOWNLOAD: “Wake Up (Viper Creek Club Remix)” (Sol)
The Viper Creek Club Hip-Hop Remixes — collect ’em all!
Here’s the latest: a dramatic redux of Sol’s “Wake Up.” Somnambulant synth and plucky electronic keyboard invoke a different form of hypnotic stasis than the original’s ethereal new wave.
(Wouldn’t an entire album’s worth of VCC’s electro-pop remixes be dope? If only…)
Click here for the download link.
DOWNLOAD & REVIEW: “The Blackest Brown EP” (D. Black & B. Brown)
Sportn’ Life’s D. Black partners with producer B. Brown for The Blackest Brown EP, the follow-up to 2009’s transformative Ali’Yah. Click the album cover below for the FREE download link.
Most of the recent talk surrounding D. Black has been about his metamorphosis from a gangsta-oriented street hustler (as embodied on his debut LP, The Cause and Effect) to a yarmulke-wearing holy man (as revealed on last year’s Ali’Yah). His “re-birth” is further documented on The Blackest Brown EP, a short nine-track affair that deals strongly in God and religion.
Black’s Jewish faith is even more pronounced now on tracks like “My Mitzvot” where we find Black not rapping, but singing (as he does on a number of tracks) over a simple acoustic guitar progression. And “Shabbat Table Cloth” might be the only hip-hop party track to be about, well, a Shabbat table cloth. The production is disappointingly bland and derivative but the track stands out because of the unlikely subject matter.
Black collaborates with other Town emcees on about half of the album. We hear about God from some artists who don’t normally speak on religion or faith. Grynch and SK expose their spiritual sides on the angelic “The Light.” The best track is “Special,” a soulful, rolling hip-hop gospel exercise, blessed by a commanding Fatal Lucciauno. Rap music about God is rarely effective when thinly woven, lyrically or compositionally, and “Special” benefits from two emcees who demand attention based on their voices alone.
When the elements are right, rap as gospel can stir the soul like a good church service. On The Blackest Brown EP, D. Black moves his congregation more than he puts them to sleep, which is a good thing. The Seattle hip-hop movement is benefiting from his new unique voice.
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DOWNLOAD: “My Volvo (Sabzi Remix)” (Grynch)
As a wee lad, our boy Grynch dreamed of someday pushing a ’67 Pontiac GTO along the streets of his native Ballard. Unfortunately the fates were cruel and his dream never came to fruition. We all know how the rapper’s future vehicular escapades turned out. The rest, as they say, is (206) history.
Check this remix of “My Volvo” by Sabzi. The sh-t hops so giddily out of your speakers you’ll think your iTunes raided your stash of happy pills last night. A song about a damn Volvo shouldn’t sound any different.
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VIDEO: “I Just Wanna Beat” (The Physics)
Great looking video for “I Just Wanna Beat,” my least-favorite track off the otherwise stellar High Society EP. Director Jon Augustavo is staying busy in the Town.
Now where’s that Love is a Business LP, fellas?
DOWNLOAD: “Got Ya Numb (Viper Creek Club Remix)” (Wizdom f/Grynch)
Viper Creek Club give “Got Ya Numb” the electro once-over. VCC’s Mat Wisner matches frenetic synth with Wizdom and Grynch’s frenetic vocals, but the best part is the emo keyboard element that slides in and builds during the chorus. Hip-hop, meet club music.
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DOWNLOAD: 3 New Tracks from “The Blackest Brown EP” (D. Black & B. Brown)
What retirement? D. Black is back (this time with B. Brown) with The Blackest Brown EP, dropping Tuesday, 8/31. As it was on Ali’yah, positivity is the rule of the day on these three advanced tracks, but don’t expect anything soft. True, the beats are soulful, but they still knock hard. And Black’s ringing demand for a positive uprising in his community is more vigorous than ever. Hip-hop in Seattle needs D. Black — let’s hope he delays that early retirement.
Download “Special” (featuring Fatal Lucciauno), here.
Download “You’re The Light” (featuring SK), here.
Celebrate the release of The Blackest Brown EP at Neumos, on August 29th.
A SEATTLE HIP-HOP BLOG 