[I have been back on my digitizing grind as of late, so I thought I should share the fruits of this labor as well. Introducing - "throwbacks".]
Lord Finesse was just a few years out from his critically-acclaimed debut with DJ Mike Smooth, when he dropped this track. It came out on the b-side of a single by J.R. Swinga (who?) called “Chocolate City”. The label was Mad Sounds, better known for their Trendz of Culture singles, but not much else. 1994 was post-Golden Era and at the time, New York rap was making that rough transition into the East Coast hardcore response to Snoop, Dre, and the rest. Mobb Deep, Biggie and the Wu were starting to shine, but many rappers from the late 80s and early 90s had blown up and embraced New Jack Swing as the next evolution, which quickly fizzled in the rap community. Record label (Giant) collapses didn’t help either. In the midst of all this turmoil, Finesse managed to squeeze out this “reality rap” gem that probably only the Stretch Armstrong Show diehards (and some DJs) have had a chance to hear. Check it out:
Lord Finesse – Shorties Kaught in the System | Mad Sounds
Posted in throwbacks.
Tagged with soul-rap.
By needles
– 2010 May 4
Once again, yours truly is jumping up with old beef. I know the now-well-publicized intra-Roc rivalry is nearly half a year old, but this song knocks so hard, I just couldn’t resist sharing it with you all. Also, I have never posted anything from Beans from before, and I really need to hook him up for a bit. 50 is hanging on tight to any chance he can cause trouble… but this is from the man who wants to make a dance album (Black Magic) next – In da Club 2, anyone? Nevertheless, enjoy the Broad Street Bully in top form:
Beanie Sigel – I Go Off (f/50 Cent) | mixtape
Posted in good music.
Tagged with hardcore-rap.
By needles
– 2010 May 2
Mad Skillz has been working on some new material lately that sounds like a refreshing return to form. “Up All Night” has been playing in my head continuously for nearly a week. I think it’s Chaka’s vocals making it sticky. Rik Marvel loops up Rufus’ “What Am I Missing” for the beat – simple, but it works well here, given the subject matter of the track. This is apparently slated to appear on his forthcoming Infamous Quotes which at this time is hard to tell whether it will be a full album or a mixtape. In the meantime, check out the new Skillz:
Mad Skillz – Up All Night | ???
Posted in good music.
Tagged with rap.
By needles
– 2010 March 31
I was one of those brontosaurus in the ’90s who slept on E-40. I’ll admit it. Hate him or love him, Fortywater introduced a lot of slang, not the least of which most rap fans attribute to other Doggs in the game. In the ’00s he continued to push the envelope as he attempted to take the Yay’s hyphy movement national. Unfortunately, we were merely left with the snap-crunk residue at the end of the day, but don’t hate on Charlie Hustle… he keeps it movin’. Witness the first single from his upcoming double-album, Revenue Retrievin’, “The Server”. I recently DJ’d a wedding for two good friends of mine (with my mello, Jon Oliver). With a Senegalese groom and a bride from Jersey, I took it upon myself to embark on a two-week crash course in West African music, learning everything I could about soukous, zouglou, mbalax, coupé-décalé and a pound of other styles. My untrained ears perked when I heard the new E-40 joint, and although I can’t place the style, let alone the song that the producer (Rick Rock?) used here, it definitely caught my attention. So, let me know what you think, even if you aren’t grippin’ the block like flyers. I just wish Jay-Z would have put half as much effort on his 11th album as E-40 seems to be doing here:
E-40 – The Server | Sic Wid It / Warner Brothers / BME
Posted in good music.
Tagged with hyphy-rap.
By needles
– 2010 March 10
I think this New York City group is about to release their second album this month, but I have only recently heard of them. They seem to be very jazzy, trippy and electronic; however, I would probably categorize their latest single, “This Love”, as neo-soul (no, it’s not dead!). The version I’m posting today is a remix that flings the track right onto the disco floor… and I’m a sucker for a good, new slice of the uptown-funk. If you don’t believe me, peep the Joyo Velarde and Whitney Houston posts from September. But for now, check out Si*Sé:
Si*Sé – This Love (The Crystal Pharoah Remix) | Si*Sé
Posted in good music.
Tagged with uptown-funk.
By needles
– 2010 March 4
I posted Oddisee’s previous mixtape, Odd Summer, last August. With it’s groovy, laid-back, summery grooves, it didn’t disappoint. Oddisee came back a bit harder in January for the third in his Odd [season] series (how did he know it would be such an odd winter?). We had 3 feet of snow just two weeks ago here in DC, the town that nurtured Oddisee and the DMV crew. There are a few guest MCees on this effort, but it’s the instrumentals that are the standouts, as usual. Check out “Blizzard of ‘09″ below or download the whole mixtape yourself here from the Bandcamp website.
Oddisee – Blizzard of ‘09 | mixtape
Posted in mixtapes.
Tagged with rap.
By needles
– 2010 March 2
I was digging through a “crate” of new stuff from last summer and I stumbled on this track that I had forgotten to share with you all. Goapele, Yay Area siren of soul music with a hip hop heartbeat (sounds cheese, but y’all know what I mean), is back in the studio working on a new album. It was supposed to drop a while ago, but these things happen, and I’m sure it will be worth the wait.* I ain’t mad at the auto-tune on this either. When you use it as icing on a cake it can be a beautiful thing. But don’t take my word for it, check it out for yourself:
Goapele – Milk & Honey | SkyBlaze / Columbia / Sony BMG
*Sade’s Soldier of Love on domestic vinyl – March 30th…
Posted in good music.
Tagged with electro-soul.
By needles
– 2010 February 27
This doesn’t fit into my usual area of coverage, but… the Muppets celebrated their 40th anniversary in 2009. To celebrate, they got together at the end of the year to cover Queen’s classic “Bohemian Rhapsody”. If you haven’t seen it, you need to check it out. This is nothing short of amazing. Animal steals the show… da-da?
Posted in videos and docs.
By needles
– 2010 February 5
Let’s keep the Wu moving… I feel like I’m listening to a Nas + AZ track produced by L.E.S., but this is the Rebel INS. Maybe he was inspired by brethren Ghostface rhyming over all those non-looped R&B tracks, but Deck kills Anita Baker’s “Mystery” on his own right. Apparently it’s from a mixtape called Traveling at the Speed of Light while Standing Still that was supposed to drop back in September, but I never saw the mixtape. Or maybe he is still eating his pasta with the lobsta sauce…
Inspectah Deck – Dreamcatcher | mixtape
Posted in good music.
Tagged with rap, soul-rap.
By needles
– 2010 February 1
It seems that I keep on having reasons to say “I’m back!” and “Hello again!”. So it is with great pleasure that I say HAPPY NEW YEAR… I’M BACK! Short and simple – OB4CL2 was probably one of the best rap albums of 2009, but definitely a piece of work that was greater as a whole than in parts. Isn’t that what buying an “album” is supposed to be about though? I’ll let Raekwon wish you all a happy new year as well… but before I do that, my brother sent me something interesting earlier today. What do you think: the craziest double-off-beat genius flow ever or some crazy-wack off-beat mess that should have embarrassed PtheG into hiding? Now I’m hungry… feed me Chef:
Raekwon – Happy New Years! | web only
Wu-Massacre – Meth vs. Chef II | bootleg
Posted in good music.
Tagged with hardcore-rap.
By needles
– 2010 January 27
[I have been back on my digitizing grind as of late, so I thought I should share the fruits of this labor as well. Introducing - "throwbacks".]
