Elastic Flows

The new Red.

New Yorke

The Twilight New Moon soundtrack is interesting.

The drum kick on Thom Yorke's "Hearing Damage" smashes.

Villainy!

Madvillain sequel coming soon.

Billy Vera & The Beaters

I've seen and heard many incarnations of this song. Michael Buble actually does a cover of it on his new album. I don't think Buble's version does the original much justice because his vocals just doesn't fit with how this song should be sung. It just doesn't have that soulful bottom to it.

As far as love songs go, "At This Moment" is one of my all time favorites. The live performance is really what I enjoy hearing the most because Billy Vera's vocals express the sentiment of the song so perfectly. Again, I've seen him perform this song many times and he always delivers.

Diamond District

Oddissee talks production.



By the way, Diamond District's In Da Ruff is extra-spectacular...

And the bonus cut they dish out for the official retail release is beautiful. I'm saying, Oddissee is one of my favorite beatsmiths doing it right now.

"Hologram"

Speaking of tracks:

Clipses' "Popular Demand (Popeyes)" is bananananas! Pharrell is no chump when it comes to programming those drums. Throw Cam on the track aaaannnddd...

In The Music

In The Music is not available in the U.S. yet although the U.K. has had it since mid-September. I haven't had a chance to sit down with it yet but the title track isn't bad.

Low Budget

New Kev Brown. Cop that Random Joints EP.

Another Random Joint - Kev Brown from Humble Monarch on Vimeo.

Mos Def Embedded

(by way of Nahright)

"Spit some wizdom"

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Ghostface is for the ladies!

I really thought this album was going to be terrible. It's not that I mind Ghostface doing R&B tracks coupled with contemporary R&B artists, but the thought of an entire album of them made me want to throw up. And hearing a couple of leaks from the album didn't necessarily help. But the two songs I heard prior to listening to the whole album didn't tell the whole story because I'm liking what the Wizard of Poetry has to offer. I mean, Ghost did say that he was going to do an all R&B album dedicated to the ladies and he definitely followed through. And it doesn't entirely suck either. As a matter of fact, it's vintage Ghostface material here and it's on display in typical Ironman vernacular fashion, if that makes any sense.

Lyrics-wise, Ghost is always going to deliver and that's not what I was really worried about when I first heard he was going through with this. I was more worried about the tracks, the beats, the producers. Most of the producers on this are unfamiliar to me save maybe Sean C & LV (who Ghost has worked with before and who produced some tracks for Jay-Z's American Gangster). Otherwise, never heard of Skymark ("Stay"), Clyde & Harry ("Forever"), Anthony Acid ("She's A Killah"). But the tracks work and, as far as R&B production go, are solid.

Here are couple that really work:

"Let's Stop Playin" feat. John Legend
"Paragraphs of Love" feat. Vaughn Anthony & Estelle

De La and EA?

So it looks like De La Soul's got a track for NBA Live 10. Hip-Hop and videos games are nothing new but I was a little surprised to hear that De La would do something with EA Sports. No matter cause I'm always happy to hear something new from them considering it's been um-teen years since their last official release.

As for the track, I wasn't sure I liked it at first listen but it's grown on me.

De La Soul: "La La La"

Classic?

First off, great cover. If Rae's going for the sequel this is the way to go.

So now that I've heard a few leaks I'm convinced Cubin Linx 2 is going to be a mixed bag. Although I'm not convinced the current track list floating around will be representative of the final product, I'm pretty sure it's going to disappoint. "Broken Safety" featuring Jadakiss and Styles P and "Have Mercy" featuring Beanie Sigel (and Blue Rasberry sings like shit), sound like mixtape throwaways.

"House of Flying Daggars" is good. Vintage Wu-Tang with Dilla providing the stampede. Can't say much about the video though, a little too cartoonish for my tastes.

"Catalina" , one of Dr. Dre's productions on the album, is nice. Doesn't blow my hair back but consistently effective, like all of Dre's recent work. As always, no change up on the tempo.

I think it's safe to say that if you're promoting your own album and you're not calling it a "classic", you're basically shitting on your own project. No? I may be premature. Maybe the rest of it is classic material. And don't get me wrong because I want this album to meet and/or exceed all expectations because Raekwon's no slouch with his mic skills. But if he's saying that the strength of this album is it's production then the product should hold true to that. So far my reaction is...meh.

None of what I've heard is on par with this and I don't even think its going to be on the album. He should get in the studio with Pete Rock and bang out a whole album because they definitely have a chemistry that works. Now THAT would be a classic collabo cause the PR has consistently churned out bangers for various Wu-Tang artists.

Thank You Letterman

Great band. And great, great song.



Grizzly Bear's Veckatimest is my album of the year...so far.

Classic Al Green

I discovered this live acoustic version of "Simply Beautiful", taken from a VH1 special that I should have never missed.

And on another random video note, I didn't even realize that there was a video for my favorite track on TVOTR's Return To Cookie Mountain.

Space Oddissee 3000

Oddissee has consistently been churning out quality material for years. I'm a fan of the whole Low Budget collective which includes Oddissee, Kev Brown, Cy Young, Roddy Rod, etc. It's not that they're creating mind blowing material either. It's just consistent, quality beats and rhymes that don't necessarily hit the mark every time. But the sound is coming from a very authentic place and is put on display, albeit under the radar, exceptionally well.

Oddissee is both producer and MC and very apt at wearing both hats. I thinks his production has steadily showed growth and improvement as far as arrangement and diversity of sounds. I hear his influences - Pete Rock, J-Dilla, Premier... But, like his Low Budget co-hort Kev Brown, the sound is distinctly his. As an MC, he's always been impressive. He is hands down the best of his peers.

Let me break down the Oddissee flavors that don't miss:

Kev Brown feat. Phonte & Oddissee: "Beats & Rhymes" - From Kev Brown's excellent I Do What I Do released in 2005 and the first time I ever heard Oddissee. His verse is last of the three and the only one to leave an impression. Phonte delivers but Oddissee closes this track out like a veteran champ.

Oddissee: "Gentrification" - Great production by Kev Brown and the content is more on the reflective side as he speaks about the gentrification of D.C., where he rests his head. From his mixtape Foot In The Door.

J-Live feat. Posdnous & Oddissee: "The Upgrade" - This is probably my favorite Oddissee production. The fact that J-Live brought in Pos of De La Soul to drop a verse was a treat but Oddissee's beat is tremendous. It's the horns kid!

Little Brother feat. Oddissee: "Delusional" - Produced by Oddissee with a lyrical cameo as well. Love the theme and the hook.

Oddissee feat. Buckshot: "Where I Be At" - From Pete Rosenberg Presents: A Rosenberg Oddissee EP. Can't really go wrong with Buckshot over an Oddissee track, especially if that Oddissee track is as flavorous as this one.

The Diamond District: In The Ruff album - Oddissee's trio featuring XO and YU. It's my favorite Hip-Hop album released this year. The beats are reminiscent of 90's eastcoast Hip-Hop, heavy on the drums and kicks. "Streets Won't Let Me Chill" is my anthem right now.

Michael Jackson

I thought I'd have a lot to say considering how his music dominated the airwaves throughout the decades, but the only thought I can muster is that I feel really sorry for the guy. Otherwise, his music (that includes the music he recorded with the Jackson 5), will never get old or outdated.

Instead of throwing the MJ5 favorites out there, I decided to share his music as it was flipped for some memorable Hip Hop cuts:

Nas: "It Ain't Hard To Tell"
De La Soul: "Breakadawn"
LL Cool J: "Hey Lover"
Pete Rock & CL Smooth: "Appreciate"
Ghostface: "All That I Got Is You"
Rhymefest: "Dancin' Machine"
Naughty By Nature: "OPP"
Kanye West: "Good Life"

Gimme Summer Dat

Songs for the summer heat.

The Beach Boys-"God Only Knows": You know The Beach Boys are synonymous with summer. It's probably not the song from their catalog that someone might expect to put on a summer mixtape but this tune is the breeziest to me.

The Gap Band-"Outstanding": I'm an 80's product, shaped and molded by the music of that era. The Gap Band's "Outstanding" always held down my summers and I never tire of it. Classical summer soul. And as a bonus, Matthew Africa liberates "I Found My Baby" to throw on at your BBQ this season.

Ibrahim Ferrer-"Bruca Manigua": There's no other voice like his on this planet and this tune is a perfect summer sizzler, complete with groovy percussion, horns, violin, and background vocals. Ae!
Bonus: You have to see a live performance to really appreciate Ibrahim Ferrer's vocals.



Brother Ali-"Real As Can Be" and "Begin Here" instrumentals: Not that Brother Ali's presence on these tracks is bad. It's just that the tracks (produced by Ant) are simply two of the best produced tracks I've heard so far this year-the smoothest shit I've heard in a while.

Ghostface-"Forever": Ghost lamenting over something soulful trying to get her to understand. Summer's definitely here folks.

Krumbsnatcha-"Yesterday": What is summer without songs that reminisce and conjure memories of the good 'ol days. The meloncholy track is produced by Pete Rock and fits snug with Krumb's theme. I'm really digging the hook PR has strewn in there.

Red & Meth

Truthfully, my expectations came in low for "The Blackout 2". Not that I wasn't looking out for Redman and Method Man material. Sequels seldom hit the mark, especially in Hip-Hop music. "Blackout 2" has probably 2 really strong tracks that I'd take with me and the lead single "Ay Yo", produced by Pete Rock, is one of them. The other, "Dangerous MC's" produced by Erick Sermon, is the other. Lyrically, Red and Meth are always going to impress. It's the scattered and anemic production that makes this album such a wash.

I forgot to mention the Cookin Soul Remix of "Dangerous MCs" is RIDICULOUSLY good.

Check Your Heads

The Beastie Boys were on Jimmy Fallon last night. His show airs way too late for me to check but here's their performance of "So Whatcha Want", backed by the incomparable Roots crew.

M-Def The Flavorous

Mos Def - "Casa Bey" - The Ecstatic - 6.9.09