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 recommended 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
Well, it’s been a little while since I posted. Unfortunately, that has been a trend for me lately. I have moved a few times and have had a small bit of trouble getting Internet access at the new crib…but that problem is now solved! What better way to reenter the scene then to put my man LEO37 and the PPF House crew on blast. I first met LEO37 when I was gigging in Taipei. We hit it off instantly. The cat has a nice flow and is type ILL with the freestyle. The PPF hail from Canada and cover a wide range of artistic talent, from music to visual arts. Check out their website here. They continue to pump out new material on a regular basis. This particular mixtape actually hit the web this past spring, but it is my favorite so far. Check out two of the tracks below and judge for yourself:
PPF House – Glorious (f/MAGNOLIUS) | mixtape
PPF House – Sometimes Things Go Wrong (f/LEO37, The Worst Pop Band Ever) | mixtape
Posted in recommended mixtapes.
Tagged with cool-rap, jazz.
By needles
– 2009 December 9
I think this post is much more for me than anyone else, so apologies in advance. I just broke a fever yesterday (rather rapidly actually) and I was not able to listen to any music on the subway today, it just hurt my ears too much. I got home and threw on some house music that I had recently reviewed from Giant Step, and surprisingly I just had to keep making it louder and louder… what therapy! A bit of background: Roy Davis Jr. is from Chicago, but his sound is currently a pleasant mix of soulful house and electro-house. God Life Music is his second solo album. It seems to be working getting my brain reoriented, so let me share:
Roy Davis Jr. – Hold U | Nice + Smooth Ultramedia
Roy Davis Jr. – I Have a Vision | Nice + Smooth Ultramedia
Posted in good music.
Tagged with soul-house.
By needles
– 2009 November 2
It has been nearly a month since my last post, and I’ve been through more “life changes” than I have room to shake a record at, so I’ll spare you the details. I have written about Wale before and will continue to put on blast new artists that are willing to reach outside of their comfort zone. The track is short, but sweet… After picking it up in August, I read that Wale wanted to make something that paid homage to the West African parties he used to go to as a kid. I’m not sure if this is going to find it’s way onto his upcoming album, Attention Deficit, but if it is a sign of his creative direction, the album is definitely going to be worth copping. Apple Juice Kid loops up Bunny Mack’s 1979 calypso single “Let Me Love You”, which was a hit in the UK and in New York’s post-disco scene. I encourage you to check out both Wale as well as Sierra Leone’s own Bunny Mack with the original:
Wale – My Sweetie | Allido / Interscope
Bunny Mack – Let Me Love You | Rokel
Posted in good music.
Tagged with calypso, rap.
By needles
– 2009 October 14
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:
