Swollen Members are back with a new album, Dagger Mouth, dropping this March. I’m a hell of a lot more optimistic for this than their 2009, Armed to the Teeth. Sounds more like the SM I’ve grown to smoke to.
Check out their second single, “Mr. Impossible”. Another beat to pillage and conquer by Rob the Viking with Mad Child & Prevail tearing it up with a few fresh cuts – Love the Cudi reference, lol –
[audio:Mr-Impossible.mp3|titles=Mr. Impossible]
When I first heard Lifesavas around five, six years ago, I liked ’em so much I had to find anything else like ’em. That group was Libretto or so I thought. For all these years I thought Libretto was a group, but now that I researched a little, I find out the ‘group’ was actually just one person. I guess it just shows what I thought a group could do one man pulled off.
What he pulled off would be the funkalicious album, Ill-Oet: The Last Element, back in ’04. Libretto’s also releasing some new singles soon, but until we can get our hands on them we’ll stick with his first album.
Ill-Oet: The Last Element has the quality of a Lifesavas album with two exceptions. Lyrically, Libretto doesn’t stack up to what Vursatyl & Jumbo, the two MC’s of Lifesavas, can do. Libretto’s Ill-Oet: The Last Element also doesn’t have the consistency that each Lifesavas LP does. He may not have the amount of hits that Lifesavas does, but he does have a few. Check out the two best, “Last Drop” & “Volume” – the latter actually features Lifesavas, and see what impressed me so much by this one-man band.
[audio:Volume.mp3,Last-Drop.mp3|titles=Volume (feat. Lifesavas),Last Drop](Download Link in Full Article)
I haven’t heard anything that breakthrough in hip-hop lately, so I thought I’d dig through my collection and find something noteworthy. Blackalicious, along with the rest of the Quannum crew, were a main reason for my first interests in hip-hop. Their West Coast, laid-back vibes made me rethink what hip-hop was all about. Nia may have had some killer tracks, but Blazing Arrow created a vibe that marked the Blackalicious sound.
Blazing Arrow may not be the most acclaimed album of its time, but it had a strong following and pushed hip-hop forward across The Bay. Gift of Gab put out some cunningly crafted rhymes, but without the backup of Chief Xcels beats, his words wouldn’t have flowed so freely. I put up some of the best from the album, but its entirety is well worth a listen.
If you’ve got anything fresh that reminds you of these two, post it up in the comments below.
On a side note, in case some of you’ve notice my site has been down for a couple of days. I’ve resolved the issue with my host and hopefully this shit doesn’t happen again. It was a pain in the ass, and I’m hopin’ for some smooth sailin’, at least for a while.
[audio:MakeYouFeelThatWay.mp3,4000Miles.mp3,BrainWashers.mp3|titles=Make You Feel That Way,4000 Miles,Brain Washers](Download Link in Full Article)
What first got me into underground hip hop was its eclectic use of instrumentals. Nothing but Silence is an interesting example of this, with a beat that I can best describe as gothic or horror-like… horror hip hop Anyone want to help me out on this one Anyways, the beat is tight and drops on key several times (e.g., check out 1:24). Ethic & Sapient, as well as the featured Grayskul members, lay down some rhymes that were made for this beat (makes sense ;)). I wish I knew a little more about Debaser’s style, but their new album just dropped this last May, so maybe that’ll give me a better understanding of ’em. Check the song, love it, do whatever with it.
You know, after listening to Crown Control another time ’round, I’m starting to like some other songs off it, so I thought I’d include another track – Less Human – just because… and the sick beat.
[audio:NothingbutSilence.mp3,LessHuman.mp3|titles=Nothing but Silence, Less Human](Download Link in Full Article)
First, I gotta say a little on AbCreole before I get to the featured song. Back in the early days of this site, I featured an album by AbCreole, Sexy Beast. It is, without a doubt, one of my favorite hip-hop albums of all time. I wanted to get their music out, again, because I feel most of you probably haven’t searched that far back on the site, and they are definitely worth mentioning, again… and again. Unfortunately, they haven’t created anything new since, other than collaborating on some solo projects, so I decided to put a favorite of mine from Sexy Beast. If you like this one then check out their others in my original post on Sexy Beast. And so with that I present you the feature, “The Beautiful” by Abyssinian Creole…
The reason I chose “The Beautiful” is because of the lyrics (if I wanted to go for the beat, it would’ve been “Unconfined”). Although, every track on Sexy Beast has its own deep meaning, this one especially rings true for me. The two MC’s, Teodros & Khingz, spit such inspiring lyrics that seem to flow more fluid than syrup on waffles (they’re the lyricists, not me). Most of their music, including this one, deals with their African roots, but like I said in the original post – their music may not directly relate to everyone, but it can be appreciated by anyone.
Another funny note about my post on Sexy Beast – Khingz from Abyssinian Creole commented on the article, pointing out my mistake in thinking they were under the Mass Line Media label. Let’s just hope my research skills have improved since then…
[audio:TheBeautiful.mp3|titles=The Beautiful](Download Link in Full Article)
I wanted to feature another song from Lifesavas’s latest album, Gutterfly: The Original Soundtrack (2007), but I already featured “No Surprise” a while back, so I wanted to go with something from their first album, Spirit in Stone. I haven’t been listening to these guys as much lately, mostly because they haven’t come out with anything new for a while, but this feature, as well as many other tracks by ’em, are a must have for any hip-hop head.
So, I was debating between two songs from Spirit in Stone – one with a better beat, one with the a better storyline – and unlike my usual self, I went with the lyrical selection. Sorry “It’s Over“, maybe next time, this one goes to “Hellohihey” for its well crafted story and witty dialogue. The song portrays an egotistical MC, played by Vursatyl, who thinks he is God’s gift to hip-hop. Typical rapper right… well, the story comes together in the end with a humble closing, which is refreshing to hear amongst all the misogynistic rap coming out these days.
[audio:Hellohihey.mp3|titles=Hellohihey](Download Link in Full Article)
Another group from Seattle… I think I may be a little bias in geographic locations, but the Northwest really is coming out with the best emerging hip-hop (which I like to mention over and over again). Cancer Rising may not be the top acts from the region, but they do have some top quality MC’s. Both Judas & Gatsby take on different rap styles, both working well off each other and DJ TilesOne’s beats. I especially love Judas’s style.. or maybe Gatsby’s… I really don’t know who… whoever’s @ 1:10. The dude simply has character, the #1 thing I look for in an MC: character, character, character! It’s by far the one thing that sets great MC’s apart from the rest of the mess… and gets ’em featured on this site!
Bruce Illest (featured on this track) may be an even better example of character in rap; he definitely gives Judas & Gatsby a run for their money. Although, one thing that bugs me about him is how reps his name every so often (even if it’s only a couple of times). I understand that artists want to get their name out there, but it starts to get tedious after a while. Maybe not in this case so much, but I’ve seen it overused a couple of times, and it really ruins it for me (for some reason). Doomtree is a good example; I respect the group, they’re from my home state of Minnesota, and they’ve got a bunch of talent, but listening to ’em shout off their name every ten words gets annoying, I know your damn name, I don’t need it repeated in my head. I guess it’s not that big of a deal, I just need shit to talk about (and I love to ramble… on… and on…. and on (ok, I’m done).
Check it, listen up, and tell me who brings the best out of three… my vote goes to Bruce Illest (love his name, by the way).
[audio:WatchYrStep.mp3|titles=Watch Yr Step](Download Link in Full Article)
I don’t need to say much for this song, it speaks for itself, especially the video (in the full article). But i’ll say a few words (it’s what I do best)… First, I gotta say, look at Sabzi in the video bumpin’ to his own beat, what a balla! (haha) He’s got to be one of the best producers out today. Producing with two soulful MC’s, Geologic in Blue Scholars and RA Scion in Common Market, as well as a host of other side projects, the guy really spreads his talent far. If I could be taught under anyone, it would be him …or Rob the Viking of Swollen Members …or K-Murdock of Restoring Poetry in Music & Panacea (i’m not picky, any would do :p). Just listen to this damn thing, and experience why the Blue Scholars, among many other Northwest artists, make their place the hip-hop scene. Oh, and post a comment or I won’t know what y’all think of Blue Scholars. And then i’ll never post any of their material again! 8-O
[audio:Loyalty.mp3|titles=Loyalty](Download Link in Full Article)
I’ve recently had a falling out with Swollen Members. Our relationship hasn’t been doing so well lately. Mainly because of their new album, but prior to that they’ve been one of my favorite groups. Swollen’s got a style all their own, blending Mad Child’s intense, high paced rhymes & Prevail’s cool-headed wit with Rob the Viking’s innovative, dark trip hop beats. The group is originally from Canada, which brings up another reason why I love ’em… they’re of the few Canadian rappers I know that don’t have the, although humbling, annoying accent; I hear enough “aboots” here in Minnesota, and it makes me laugh if I hear it come out of an MC. Another cool lil’ factoid about ’em is, among maybe a handful of others, Swollen has taken their music and independently created a successful business out of it, which I give them mad respect for.
The reason I chose Go to Sleep as my second feature from ’em (the first found here), was because of Barbie Hatch’s stunning voice in the chorus, and a stellar beat by Rob, as per usual. In fact, check out a feature I did of Rob’s, Go for Mine, on his solo-album, Beats to Pillage and Conquer by, found… wait for it… here! (a classic beat, literally)
[audio:GotoSleep.mp3|titles=Go to Sleep](Download Link in Full Article)
Boom Bap Project is a group based out of Seattle, Washington. The group signed with Rhymesayers Entertainment back sometime in ’04, but I checked Rhymesayer’s website and they weren’t listed, so I’m not actually sure if they’re still with ’em (their website & MySpace haven’t been updated in a while). My best guess is that they’re pursuing solo acts for the time being. But who really cares, let’s get to the good stuff…
Another one from the “Nogood” vault (i.e. i’ve had this one for a while), but it’s a goodie (I promise). Gotta say my favorite part is the chorus, done by… oh wait, they didn’t give her credit, so I have no idea, but she’s damn good nonetheless (edit: with a lot of digging around, I found out the featured artists, Chocolate & Snafu, though I’m not exactly sure who they are, and which one she is… I’m gonna go with Chocolate). Anyways, the other two performers are apart of Boom Bap, Karim & Destro, rappin’ back ‘n’ fourth with “straight Northwest” style (love it!). I’ve never been much of a fan of the Eastcoast style, other than a few exceptions (e.g. Jedi Mind Tricks). I just like the more relaxed, carefree style of the Northwest. Give it a listen, but unlike every other post, do not post a comment. Please! I beg of you! ;)
[audio:Reprogram.mp3|titles=Reprogram](Download Link in Full Article)