Sunday, 11 December 2011
Slick Rick and Premier together for The Sitter Soundtrack
Saturday, 19 November 2011
Gullyvers Christmas Party December 3rd
Wednesday, 9 November 2011
R.I.P. Heavy-D
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Premier + Nas + Berklee School of Music Orchestra = Amazing track
As part a groundbreaking project called RE:Generation which takes producers outside of the genre to work with artists from other genres has brought in DJ Premier to produce a classical track with Nas and the Berklee School of Music Orchestra. In addition to DJ Premier, the project, co-produced by the Grammys and directed by Amir Bar Lev (The Pat Tillman Story, My Child Can Paint That), brought in Pretty Lights, who did a country song with Leann Rimes and Ralph Stanley; the Crystal Method, who headed to Detroit to spend two days recording a R&B tune with Martha Reeves; and Mark Ronson, who teamed with Erykah Badu, members of the Dap Kings and Trombone Shorty for a jazz cut in New Orleans.
DJ Premier was given Classical and began his immersion into the genre with Bruce Adolphe, a former classical music professor at Juilliard. They met at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music not far from DJ Premier’s home in NY. After learning about classical music theory, the inspirations of some of the genre’s most profound composers and how traditional pieces are structured, DJ Premier went out and bought tons of classical symphonies on vinyl to remix his own creation. We then took that track and orchestrated it for sheet music. In the first step of the actual recording process, DJ Premier partnered with Stephen Webber, a professor and conductor at the Berklee College of Music. Steven taught Premier how to conduct and helped him in studio with the 58-piece Berklee Symphony Orchestra you hear on the track. Of all the takes, the one you hear is the “wild” version (which means they recorded it without the metronome in their headphones) DJ Premier conducted himself. Then DJ Premier brought that instrumental track back home to NY and Nas laid down his rhyme on top of it.
The outcome is an amazing track which has Premier's style running right through the center of the track like a stick of rock with Nas dropping a pitch perfect flow alongside beautifully orchestrated strings and horns. premier even puts some nice scratches towards the end of the track. Hopefully we can get Premier and Nas back together for that long overdue reunion project.
The project should premiere early in 2012 and will be a big part of Grammy Week next year, with the artists involved doing “Remix Labs,” as well an event at the Grammy Museum and screening that week.
http://www.regenerationmusicproject.com/
Click here to download the track.
Sunday, 4 September 2011
Evidence and DJ Premier - You
Friday, 12 August 2011
Jay-z & Kanye West - Watch the Throne Album review
Jay-Z and Kanye have been talking about this project for quite sometime now and its finally here. Originally intended as a five-track EP by the duo, Watch the Throne was revealed by West to be a full-length album in an October 2010 interview with MTV. At the time he said that they planned to record in the South of France. However strangely enough production for the album began in November 2010 in Bath, England (of all places not exactly what I would call a Hip-Hop Hotspot ) and continued during available times in Jay-Z's and West's respective schedules in Australia, Paris, Abu Dhabi, New York and Los Angeles. In a number of interviews, Jay-Z said that they often recorded in hotel rooms and that the album went through three iterations, as he and West had scaled back from their original musical direction for the album. Although originally rumoured to be entirely produced by Kanye the duo drafted in the help of other Hip-Hop producers including; The Rza, Pete Rock, No ID, 88 Keys, Q-Tip, The Netptunes and Swizz Beats amongst others. The guest list for the album is quite short and only includes Frank Ocean, Beyonce and Mr Hudson.
The album opens up with ‘No Church in the wild’, which is a joint production from Kanye and 88Keys. The beat features an upbeat drum break an organ sample, which work well with Jay-Z’s precision lyrics and Kanye’s braggadocio rhymes. However Kanye’s obsession with auto tune doesn’t seemed to have dulled since the atrocious ‘808s and Heart breaks’ and this song would have benefitted from a more suitable bridge for the chorus instead of his dreadful auto tune singing. The next tune, ‘Lift off’ however does not improve the prospects for this album being a classic when Jay’s Missus Beyonce appears on the next track but she wasn’t the real problem on this track once again it’s the auto tune. Which is really strange when Jay-z recorded his diatribe on Auto tune a couple of years ago with the classic ‘Death of Auto tune’. The production duties on ‘Lift off’ are mainly handled by Kanye & Q-Tip and to be honest the beat is decent enough it’s the damn auto tune that forced me to hit the skip button.
The third track on the album is a bore double time effort called ‘Ni**as in Paris’ where Kanye drafts in someone called Hit Boy to help behind the boards. Jay-Z still shows that its difficult for him not perform despite the track but Kanye however seemed like he was struggling to keep up with his lyrical mentor. With the fourth track however things improve somewhat with a little helpful from Otis Reading on the Kanye produced ‘Otis’. For this track Kanye extensively samples Otis’ soulful classic ‘Try a Little tenderness’, in fact he samples it so much so that the track is listed as featuring Otis Reading. Despite the extensive use of the Otis sample on this joint its good fun and Jay-Z once again shows how strong a lyricist he is but at the same time Kanye shows that he has a long, long way to go before he is near Jay.
The Neptunes provide a signature electric soundscape for ‘Gotta have it’ which works well especially as Kanye starts the track off with a more mature verse expanding beyond his usual bragging themes. Jay backs him up well providing a strong sparring partner for Kanye to bounce his rhymes off. Put simply the unorthodox beat provided by the Neptunes works well and so does both emcees lyrics. However the next track ups the ante by bringing in the Wu Tang Grandmaster, The Rza to assist with the beat. Although the song features plenty of auto tune the maturity shown by both emcees on the song makes it a little less irrating. The lyical focus for the album is fatherhood and it so good to hear it handled so well especially as both emcees acknowledge their strengths and weaknesses as fathers and prospective fathers. The track even has some nice strings and horns towards the end.
Q-Tip joins Kanye behind the boards for the upbeat ‘That’s my Bitch’ which although obviously misogynistic works well. Kanye resorts to his usual subject matter money and women alongside Jay’s expert flow on this subject matter. The song features some nice bongos’ taken straight from Michael Viner’s Incredible Bongo Band’s version of Apache. Despite its flaws the song works well and will, I expect be a floor filler in the clubs. ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ is’nt as the name would suggest a Gun N Roses cover but a Swizz Beats produced banger where bother emcees go hard. Jay continues to show a lyrical prowess often lacking from his own releases and Kanye on this track merely drops some adlibs and not a whole verse.
The ninth song on this album is ‘Who Gon Stop Me?’ and is produced by Kanye and Sak Pase, who I have to be honest I have never heard of. The song uses an electric organ heavy beat that at times slips into double time. Kanye shouts as the chorus “This is something like the Holocaust” and Jay drops suitably hard lyrics underlining the overall sound of the beat. The next joint ‘Murder to Excellence’ is really two different songs stitched together with the first part, ‘Murder’ produced by Swizz Beats and the second section ‘Excellence’ produced by S1. On this track both emcees shine with politically inspired rhymes and both beats work well alongside these rhymes. This is one of the strongest songs on the album and the sort of thing I think Hip-Hop could benefit from; two of its biggest stars highlighting black on black murder and the lack of black representation the higher one goes up the corporate ladder. A whole album like this is what we as Hip-Hop fans deserve to show the level of intelligence and social responsibility the music can have.
Kanye and Jay continue on from the last track with a mellower track produced by Sak Pase and although some would say this track borders on cheesy I thought it was a more heartfelt track from both artists. In fact at times the beat sounds like it could have been produced on a Casio or perhaps Binatone organ. It also features the soulful sound of Frank Ocean, which also works well. Kanye describes the early days of his career and his decisions about who he gives his beats to. Whereas Jay describes his struggle and the decisions he had to make whether bad or good. This is another strong track that highlights both artists and their lyrical skills. The next track is the Mr Hudson featured ‘Why I Love You’ which I just could’nt get with despite trying numerous times. The Lyrics are perfectly good its just the beat seems at best boring at worst annoying.
The last four track I’m reviewing are on the Deluxe Edition of the album and aren’t available on the iTunes version that was released on the 8th. The first of these tracks is ‘Illest Mo**erfucker Alice’ which to be honest is pretty much a generic 2011 Hip Hop track featuring a nice piano loop that is overshadowed by extensive organ samples and some what boring lyrics. Jay is still the stronger of the two and does have some great lines including the Charlie Murphy inspired “F*ck your Couch” line but other than that there is little memorable about this track. ‘H.A.M.’ is the next joint and is produced by Kanye and Lex Luger. It appears to be an attempt at a Dirty South styled track with some unnecessary opera like singing where the chorus should be. Neither the beat nor the lyrics from either emcees do anything to stop me from skipping to the next track.
Chicago legend No ID provides the beat for ‘Primetime’ and it features a nicely simple piano loop alongside some crisp snares. In fact I’m sure this samples a song by Orange Krush whose name escapes me at the moment. Both Jay and Kanye stay within their respective comfort zones lyrically for this track but that works with the straight up beat from No ID and helps this to be one of the better tracks on the album. The last joint on this deluxe version is the Curtis Mayfield samples Pete Rock produced ‘The Joy’. This track actually slipped out onto the internet via Kanye’s website late last year and Pete Rock has since given the same beat to West Coast group Strong Arm Steady. But it is good for such a soulfully dope track to get a proper release. The beat is slow and mellow with both Jay and Kanye reminiscing over their younger days. It’s a lovely track and works very well especially given the Curtis Mayfiled samples running heavily through the album.
Overall this is not a bad album but considering the people producing it and the lyricists its should be a better album. Jay-Z is still clearly the stronger of the two emcees but at times Kanye shows real growth. The subject matter tends to stay on the money and girls side of things however when they do move away from that area the results are strong. The beats at times seems like an attempt to capture other audiences and although this should be commended the results are often poor a perfect example being the track ‘H.A.M.’ where they seem to be trying to capture that Dirty South vibe. At other times the beats work so well especially the contributions from Pete Rock, The Rza, No ID and surprisingly Swizz Beats. Fans of both Jay-Z and Kanye will love this album and I’m sure its will sell loads but as a Hip-Hop fan for more than 25 years I am a little disappointed to be honest. If I had to rate it I would say a 6.5 out of 10 but had there been no auto tune on it that would have risen to a 7.5.
Sunday, 7 August 2011
Pete Rock, SMiff N Wessun - Monumental
Pete Rock , Smiff N Wessun – Monumental
Pete Rock is a legend in Hip Hop circles; trained by Marley Marl and second only to DJ premier when it comes to production skills. Rarely does he produce entire albums for artists, in fact his last was 2004’s ‘My Own Worst Enemy’ with Edo G and even that wasn’t entirely Pete Rock produced. However 2011 brings us Pete’s collaborative effort with Smiff N Wessun, Monumental which is released on BCC’s Duck Down label. Fourteen tracks entirely produced by Pete Rock and featuring such guests as; Raekwon, Rock, Sean Price, Buckshot, Styles P., Bun B., Memphis Bleek, Freeway and former Hit Squad member Hurricane G.
The album starts off with a pretty unmemorable intro and then jumps into the title track Monumental which features lyrics from Pete Rock and a a nice albeit simple horns loop over a plodding drumbeat. This wasn’t too bad until the poorly sung hook comes in sung by newcomer Tyler Woods. The singing adds nothing whatsoever to track in fact a nice little bit of scratching for the chorus would have made the song so much better. The lyricists try their best but to me this just seemed like poor attempt to get additional radio plays because it has some singing, whereas all it succeeds in doing is encouraging me to skip it. The next track Prevail featuring Raekwon, which was released as the first single back in September of 2010. This joint is nice, a well made track that features two different beats; one sounding like a typical Pete Rock beat and the second sounding like a Rza beat. Throw in a few scratches for the chorus and you have the recipe for a good tune.
The next track, ‘That’s Hard’ features BCC favourite Sean Price and the most underrated member of the LOX, Styles P. The track is made up of a dark cello loop over a slightly upbeat drum break with nice crisp snares. Lyrics are on point and the rappers all compliment each other well. Although as per usual Sean price steals the show with Styles P coming in a close second but this is’nt a bad things as it makes for a good track. The next joint, ‘Top of the world’ features long-time Jay-Z cohort, Memphis Bleek an emcee I have always felt was overshadowed by Jay’s skills but he is in fact a capable emcee. The beat is one of the best on the album and reminds me of Camp Lo’s beats, who are another group that Pete has said he will drop an album with this year. It’s an upbeat joint with all emcees dropping nice lyrics and ad-libs all over the place; it works well with some nice strings and the upbeat pace of the song.
The next joint is ‘Feel me’ featuring fellow Boot Camp member Rock and Dirty South legend Bun B. This is one of the harder sounding tracks on the album featuring a nice piano loop, a far cry form the horns laden tracks of Pete’s early career productions. The beat is reminiscent of Hell on Earth era Mobb Deep with Rock handling the chorus duties as well as dropping a verse and Bun supplying a trademarked dope verse. Freeway joins the Cocoa B’s for the track ‘Roses’ which is a slower almost marching track featuring a haunting vocal sample but the shouting chorus from Freeway seems out of place with the rest of the track.
Fire is the next track and its one of only three on the album that doesn’t feature a guest. The beat is darker than the typical Pete Rock joint but with more going on than some of the previous tracks on the album. It features a nice piano sample and some other instruments I can’t name combined to sound almost like a late 90s Rza joint. The lyrics are pretty much up to par with what you would expect from the duo.
Pete then tries his hand at a little reggae Hip Hop fusion, something we know that Smiff N Wessun can handle well but its outside Pete’s comfort zone. The track itself is interesting and although clearly an attempt at a slower dancehall riddim it has some strong hip hop influences. Smiff N Wessun easily hold their own with the slight Jamaican tinged rhymes and the chorus and final verse are supplied by Top Dog And Jahdan Blakkamoore. The track works and I have to admit that I actually liked it, obviously don’t expect some deep lyrics this is a dancehall hip hop track and therefore the usual gun talk is rife.
The next joint, ‘Do It’ seems a bit lazy on Pete’s part as he simply samples the classic break The Mexican by Babe Ruth. Although it is indeed a lazy production job the break is still so sick after all these years that it works well and its nice to hear Smiff N Wessun rhyming fast for once. They also resurrect the long lost Hurricane G to drop a verse and unfortunately I can’t say her return adds a lot to the song she simply is there and is neither bad nor good to be honest. The next track, ‘Night Time’ should be one of the best on the album as it features Buckshot and he has always had such good chemistry with Smiff N Wessun but it falls short. The beat is plain and even boring at times, a simple guitar loop over a plodding drum break. Smiff N Wessun sound uninspired, Buckshot provides a boring hook for the chorus and Pete’s verse is well its a Pete Rock verse.
The next track, ‘I’m a Stand up Guy’ features Black Rob over a sinister sounding beat with some nice strings and some horns that sound like they could come off a 70’s cop show theme. I was surprised by Black Rob’s lyrics they were better than I would have expected from the man who brought us ‘Whoah’. In fcat you might think he outshines Smiff N Wessun.
The last two tracks on the album feature no guests and I was hoping that these would be classic Smiff N Wessun joints and although they’re not what I would call Classic Smiff N Wessun they are strong tracks. The first of the two is ‘Go Off’ and it’s a dope track with some nice samples and a decent bit of scratching for the chorus. The last joint on the album is ‘Time to Say’ which is slower track with some nice orchestral strings, paino stabs and a slightly sped up vocal sample that works really well. Their subject matter on this one is more introspective than the rest of the album but it gives us an insight into the minds of the duo. This is a nice mellow closing of the album
On the whole it’s a strong album but in all honesty it should have been better than it was considering the combination of lyricists and producer. To a certain extent it seemed that Pete Rock was unsure of what sort of sound Smiff N Wessun needed and in an attempt to give them a sound suited to their style he dropped too much of his own style. I wanted to hear Smiff N Wessun over trademarked Pete Rock beats but instead I got Pete Rock trying to mae Smiff N Wessun beats (Beatminerz perhaps). Its not a bad album its just not what it should have been. Although fans of either side of the combination will probably enjoy it. If I had to give it a rating out of 10 it would be 6.5 and as my teachers used to say “Must try harder”
Thursday, 28 July 2011
DoomStarks - Victory Laps
Two of my favorite Hip-Hop artists are back together again, MF Doom and Ghostface Killah with the first track from the DoomStarks LP due later this year on Nature Sounds. The first official release from DOOMSTARKS is the limited edition picture disc 12" with "Victory Laps" on one side (Vocal, Remix, Instrumentals) backed with Serato Control Tones used to DJ with Serato Scratch Live software. Expected ship date is September 13th. Available for pre order from Stonesthrow.com
DoomStarks
Saturday, 23 July 2011
Amy Winehouse RIP
Amy Winehouse has died aged 27. She was found in her Camden, London home today. She was an immense talent with a unique voice but had sadly struggle with drink and drug issues for a number of years. My thoughts go out to her family at this difficult time. People should show her and her family the respect they deserve, regardless of everything she was someones daughter. Below are two Rehab remixes she did with Jay-Z and Pharoah Monch.
RIP Amy.
Wednesday, 20 July 2011
Gullyver returns Saturday 6th of August
Gullyers Returns on Saturday the 6th of August at Alibi in Dalston, London. MK and Acyde will once again spin some of the funkiest music in London ranging from Hip Hop to Reggae to Pop with sprinklings of Jazz, Soul and Ecletro thrown in for good measure. This month they will be assisted by the Piff Gang. Turn up early as it gets packed quick especially as its free.
Thursday, 23 June 2011
Gullyver returns 2nd of July
Gullyvers return on Saturday the 2nd of July at the Alibi, 91 Kingsland Street London E8 2PB. DJ MK and Acyde on the decks spinning Classic Hip Hop, Breakz and everything in between. Free admission 9pm until late.
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Diss tunes part 1: Evidence - The search for Bobby Fischer
Back in probabley '96 I ordered a bunch of records from Hiphopsite.com and following their recommendation I included a 12" and an E.P. by a new rapper called Eminem. As a white dude who had been into Hip Hop for a very long time I was sceptical about the hype that Eminem was starting to get. There was talks of various labels starting a bidding war trying to sign him but at this point the only material he had put out the 'I just dont give a fuck' 12", the Slim Shady E.P. and the Infinite LP. All of which were produced with help from The Bass Brothers and fellow D12 members Kon Artis, Proof and Eye-Kyu, along with fellow rapper Three. Eminem was the rising star on the indie/underground scene. But at the same time there was another white dude making a name for himself on the same scene, Evidence.
Evidence was a part of Dilated peoples an Inide group with strong credentials. Its members, DJ Babu from the DJ crew Beat Junkies; Evidence; and Rakaa had joined together in 1992 and released "Third Degree" (1997) and "Work the Angles"(1998) on ABB Records, developing a solid fan base in the underground hip hop community. They had previously recorded an album titled "Imagery, Battle Hymns & Political Poetry" that was never released (1995), although many fans still have it on bootlegged tapes. The group eventually signed with Capitol Records and released The Platform (2000) to more critical acclaim.
Around the time that the group were rising they Eminem was signing to Dre's Aftermath and a beef was brewing between Em and House of pain front man Everlast. Eminem was notified while on the Anger Management Tour that former House Of Pain member Everlast had mocked him on a song. Everlast claimed that while passing by Mathers in a hotel lobby, Mathers gave him a "weird look." In all honesty its a stupid reason to start a beef but things soon got even more silly. Everlast was featured on a Dilated peoples B side; 'Make your ear drums pop' remix where he kind of dissed Eminem, check the verse below;
I read the New Testament and gave it up for Lent
All the places I went just to pay my rent
Used to keep me bent, on a ritual daily
Cock my hammer, spit a Comet like Haley
I'll buck a three-eighty on ones that act +Shady+
I'm original like Grady, check my Sanford, Son
You know you ain't the one that rep peckerwood status
I'll bust that ass, keep your eyes on the floor
What you comin here for, son you know the law
Let's take it back to the house, slide off your blouse
Lift up your skirt and expose your panties
For the world to see, you can't rep it like me
I'm Communist, terrorist, vandalist
Catalyst, scandalous, masacous, never miss battalist
You must be crazy, or just plain dumb
You might catch a beatdown now where I come from
It's like that
Yep apparently thats all it takes to be called a diss, I figure if its going to be called a diss for something as silly as that why not diss him for real? Taking offense to this, Eminem and D12 quickly began work on a retaliatory song, "I Remember." This prompted Everlast to record "Whitey's Revenge." Eminem and D12 then responded with the song "Quitter." Then Eminem and D12 came forth with a song called 'Girls' which had the lines below aimed clearly at Dilated Peoples just because Everlast happened to diss Eminem on a Dilated track. Remember that no one from Dilated at this point had dissed Eminem;
I'd have never involved my crew if it wasn't for Pupils
Peoples, whatever your backpackin cypherin name is
Had I not opened a magazine and seen what you sayin and
I'da never involved you, but you had to add your two pennies
Now I gotta go grab my shitlist and add some new enemies
Hit the studio and I'll admit, I had a few in me
F*ck it, I roasted you, I ain't mad at you any
But let it be known that song was never released, it leaked
I'da never gave you that much attention intentionally
So Eminem went and dissed Dilated despite Eminem and Dilated having freestyled on the Wake up show years before together. So Evidence then felt he had to diss Eminem and diss him he did. No half arsed, is he or isn't he dissing for Evidence. He went and tore Eminem a new ass hole, check the lyrics below;
[intro: rakaa iriscience]
Yo.. it’s like this man
Every once in a while when motherfuckers pop off at the lip
Somebody get brought into this shit
That don’t have nuttin to do with this shit right?
But none the less
You wanna start lettin off buckshots, cats gotta retaliate
Y’all callin out ev? well you got him
[evidence]
Yo, a blonde fag took my kindness for a weakness
But instead of comin hard threw a weak diss
Twelve of his friends at first I was speechless
Is it cause you lack pussy or lack uniqueness?
It’s always your type, itchy and quick to bust off
Ruin the party, "soliloquy of chaos"
In this verse, jumpin jacks a little warm up
There’ll be no bullshit, there’ll be no hit chorus
Diss my crew? yo, you won’t go far
The truth is I’m about as much from detroit as you are
I’m rackin up points, shit cat I’m scorin
You ain’t a true tiger, liar, you from warren
A trailer trash town where daddy stuck it to ya
That’s why you hate your mother cause she never tried to stop it
Twenty years later you’re still out of luck
I met this chick you took home on tour, but couldn’t get it up
Alert! alert! you internet geeks
Eminem is just like you, weak between the sheets
Dr. evil, tryin to steal my mojo
I’ll fuck you up, plus look better in photos
I know what it is, you envy what you hate
I’m what you used to be, you was me in ninety-eight
Hungry for props, and ready to rock
Except your stage show is so weak you always just ready to rot
Fuck your pace walkin forth at best
(at) that rate on tour dates, hope you never run out of breath
It’s such a shame your uncle ronnie’s not listed
I’m a geek? you jock fred from limp bizkit
Production time; I heard you’re makin beats
But don’t program the drums, don’t program the keys
Don’t program the bass, producer? liar!
Doin that shit’s like hirin a ghostwriter
You might as well you little fake chino xl
You’re target practice - strictly blast these empty shells
{*crowd roar* it’s an upset, you lose the title!
But first lose the haircut, you’re bitin george michael
Next topic, time to stick the knife in
Slaughter your daughter, ah fuck it throw your wife in
I’ma do ’em, do ’em ’til nothin left
The way I’m murderin you now they probably avenge your death
You blind bitch, I’m about to rub it in
Go sell millions of records, you still don’t own your publishin
You ain’t hip-hop, you pop; extra popular to little girls,
Kids, and the trenchcoat mafia
So here it comes, a blast from my crew
You bout to get chopped by a man named babu
The funniest part? let me say this ’fore I’m through
I haven’t even begun to start, I saved the best for part two
{*babu cuts and scratches these samples*
"faggot, no comp rapper on a quest" -> ll cool j
"hi!" -> eminem, "bitch shut the fuck up!" -> eazy-e
"if you take offense fuck it, got to be that way" -> krs-one
"i thought I oughta tell you, better yet warn" -> mc lyte
"suckers get eliminated fuckin with dilated" -> cypress hill
"nevertheless, I’ll say it again" -> slick rick(? )
"bitch!" -> n.w.a.
"soundclash with us, you flirt with disaster" -> dilated
"trick or treat..."
Well as you can see Evidence didn't fuck about, he just came out and dissed Eminem for real. Surprisingly enough Eminem didn't reply and I think the reason for that is that he knew he had met his match. Evidence killed it with track and Babu's cuts just made it even worse. For so many reason Evidence was right but the main one being that Eminem had sold out he sumarised it perfectly with the line "I know what it is, you envy what you hate, I’m what you used to be, you was me in ninety-eight". Eminem had sold out to Dre and I can't blame him to be honest I would have done the same had anyone offered me the sort of money he got from working with Dre. However I would have loved to hera Eminem had he not gone to Dre and stayed in the underground. Can you imagine a Hip Hop scene where Eminem was underground and produced by the likes of Premier, Pete Rock, El-P, Havoc, Large Professor, Rza, Madlib, MF Doom, Jay Dee or even someone like Necro who would have been so suited to Eminem's style. Either way the Evidence diss track; 'The Search for Bobby Fischer' was never officially released and I only managed to pick it it up on a bootleg 12" which I have ripped and uploaded for your pleasure. Check the link below for the DL.
The Search for Bobby Fischer.
Friday, 17 June 2011
Bad Meets Evil Scary Movie
As Eminem and Royce prepare to drop the Bad Meets Evil album I thought now would be a good time to showcase the first 12" these guys put out together back 1998 on Game records. The tracks on this 12" are the fantastic examples of the chemistry that exists between Eminem and Royce.
Listening to this 12" again I can't help but wonder how things would have turned out had they not had beef for a number of years, would this collaborative album have dropped in 2002 and would Royce have gone onto become as big a hip hop star as Eminem? No doubt that Royce has made some seriously dope records over the course of his carear most notably the Premier produced banger Boom. But apart from the numerous Premier produced joints he has also ripped up beats by Just Blaze, Alchemist, Jay Dee, Kanye, The Neptunes and Dre too. Some of those producers I would love to hear produced for Eminem, especially Premier.
The tracks on this 12" are produced by Reef and Scary Movies is certainly the better of the two but Nuthin' to do is still dope. Lyrically they both spit fire on this 12". Even though I am not a great fan of where Eminem's carear has taken him and would love to hear him over the likes or Premier, Pete Rock and Large Pro amongst others there is no doubt he is a tremendous lyricist. Check the link below for the 12" rip including the instrumental of Scary Movie.
Scary Movie.
Monday, 6 June 2011
New Dj Premier and Royce Da 59
A new DJ Premier produced Royce Da 59 track taken from his new album Success is certain. Nothing more to say really, hit the link for the download.
Second Place
Saturday, 28 May 2011
R.I.P. Gil Scott Heron
This is a really sad news, yesterday, the 27th of May 2011 Gil Scott Heron passed away. Rest in Peace to a true Legend and Warrior, Gil Scott Heron.
Follow the link for two NY is Killing me remixes.
R.I.P. Gil Scott Heron
Wednesday, 9 March 2011
B.I.G.G.I.E. A.K.A. B.I.G. get it Biggie
Christopher George Latore "Big Poppa,The Black Frank White, The Notorious B.I.G., Biggie" Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997)
Follow the link below for a Live recording of Biggie's classic London concert held at the Hammersmith Apollo in the mid nineties.
R.I.P. B.I.G.
Sunday, 6 March 2011
EPMD Live in london
EPMD are one of my favorite groups of all time but until recently I had only seen them once at a disappointing concert at the Sherpherds Bush Empire in the late 90s where they had performed 5 track then left the stage only to be sent back on stage by a security guard to do his favorite song. When I heard they were coming back to the UK again I got myself some tickets and hoped this time they would give a more satisfying performance.
Veteran London MC Rodney P and Skitz took the stage before EPMD and warmed the crowd up nicely dropping some dope UK flavor and reminding us of how dope UK artists can be. Rodney displayed his mic skills and Skitz showed how well he can handled the wheels of steel. The it was back to the DJ until EPMD hit the stage a bit later than I would have liked, once agin US artists don't feel the need to display the level of professionalism that the likes of De La Soul, MOP and the Roots do every time but this is soon forgotten when Erick and Parish rip into Its my thing which sends the crowd insane.
They drop all the early classics that you would expect them to; Please listen to my Demo, Gold digger, You Gots to Chill, Rampage, Crossover, Headbanger, Rampage, Richter Scale and Never seen before. They also did a couple of solo joints too but to be honest they were never as good separately as they were together and the same goes for their solo joints performed live.
DJ Scratch was there too and he did an entertaining little DJ routine which featured the obvious moving the crossfader with his mouth and the not so obvious picking up the turntable as he mixed a "Pick it Up" sample. Although Scratch didn't get too technical he had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hand.
Erick did a couple of lines of "freestyling" but to be honest it wasn't that good and I never came to see him freestyle. I came to see them do as many EPMD joints as possible and that was the problem. Although what they did do was great and performed well it simply wasn't enough for a group with such an outstanding back catalogue. Where were the other dope tunes I wanted to hear? Knick Knack Patty Wack, Jane, I'm Mad, Rap is outa Control, Manslaughter, Give the People and Hardcore amongst others? But after only an hour E & P left the stage, with no encore.
Would they have done this in the US ? I doubt it. Then again if they were in the US they would have probably been on the bill with a load of other rappers so maybe in that situation an hour on stage is acceptable but when you are the main act and not being supported by Redman, Das Efx or Keith Murray an hour is not good enough.
To summarise what they did do was great and they moved the crowd, no doubt, however for a duo with such an amazing back catalogue an hour is not enough.
Saturday, 5 March 2011
Rae & Nas on Wu Tang Vs Shoalin
It seems like Raekwon is out to knock Ghost of the top sport as Wu's most productive member and this continues with next week's release of Wu-Tang Vs Shoalin. Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang is the fifth studio album by Raekwon, scheduled to drop on March 8. Confirmed guests for the album include Black Thought, Busta Rhymes, Ghostface Killah, GZA, Inspectah Deck, Lloyd Banks, Method Man, Mobb Deep, Nas, and Rick Ross, among others. With production from; Scram Jones, Erick Sermon, Havoc, Bronze Nazareth, The Alchemist and Evidence amongst others.
Rae began writing the album in early 2010, and finished latter that year, with the album's completion being announced on December 7, 2010, on the Shade 45 Morning Show. Although a number of artists such as Scoop DeVille, Pete Rock, and Kanye West, were reported to have worked on the album at one time or another, their contributions did not surface on the final version.
Check the track-list below and a link toa sample track, Rich and Black featuring Nas
01. Shaolin Vs. Wu-Tang
02. Every Soldier In The Hood feat. Method Man
03. Silver Rings feat. Ghostface Killah
04. Chop Chop Ninja feat. Inspectah Deck & Estelle
05. Butter Knives
06. Snake Pond
07. Crane Style feat. Busta Rhymes
08. Rock N Roll feat. Ghostface Killah & Jim Jones
09. Rich And Black feat. Nas
10. From The Hills feat. Method Man, Raheem DeVaughn
11. Last Trip To Scotland feat. Lloyd Banks
12. Ferry Boat Killaz
13. Dart School
14. Molasses feat. Rick Ross & Ghostface Killah
15. The Scroll
16. Masters Of Our Fate feat. Black Thought
17. Wu Chant (Outro)
Rich and Black
Sunday, 30 January 2011
Its Coming Feb 3rd, DMC Online DJ Championship
Everyone know theres is only one DJ championship that matters, only one that truly the showcases of the world's best DJs and thats the DMC. Now the DMC, pioneers of the WORLD DJ CHAMPIONSHIPS, have announced a brand new online competition which will be open to DJs anywhere in the world at www.dmcdjonline.com
DMC launches the ONLINE DJ CHAMPIONSHIP on 3rd February 2011, an annual event which promises to secure the art of the DJ for years to come placing it before a global audience and opening the DMC competition up to every DJ in the world.
As well as the impressive title, trophy and prizes, The 2011 DMC ONLINE DJ CHAMPION will win an all expenses paid trip to the 2011 WORLD DJ CHAMPIONSHIPS in London where they will be eligible to enter the live event taking on the rest of the world's national DJ Champions on stage.
There will be no limitations on the equipment the DJs wish to use in their performances, however should they win the ONLINE DJ CHAMPIONSHIP they will be required to abide by the equipment stipulations of the live DMC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS (which for the first time will allow DVS ) in the September/October Final.
The basic dynamics of the DMC ONLINE DJ CHAMPIONSHIP will commence with contestants uploading their filmed two minute performance followed by public voting which will deliver fortnightly winners. The public's short list will then be judged by DMC World DJ Champions who will put a winner and a runner up through to the Final.
In the August Finals, the last DJs standing will be required to perform a full 6 minute set with public voting leading to the ten most popular who will then be judged by former DMC WORLD DJ CHAMPIONS. The world's most creative DJs are now preparing to take part in the biggest DJ Championships in the world!
Tony Prince, DMC's founder explains: "Even though we attract over 30 nations to enter the DMC's each year, we are painfully aware that lots of wannabe DMC World Champions live in countries where we have no representation. Having recently changed the rules to allow DVS (Digital Vinyl Systems) into the live event, we are aware that this will open the door to DJs in places where vinyl by passed them in clubland in favour of CD"
Sally McLintock, DMC's Events Manager announced: "DMC has always responded to the DJs which is why we're now entering our 27th year. The Online Championships is set to be the biggest online DJ creative journey the world has yet witnessed. There are no limitations on equipment and because of this we can enter into a creative expansion with the DJs who can finally use any equipment they like whilst they may enter a pure vinyl turntablist set if they wish. A truly exciting time for DMC and the DJ! The DJ world's greatest creative journey is about to take place!"
Thursday, 27 January 2011
KRS ONE & Showbiz Presents Godsville
February the 15th is the day the KRS ONE and Showbiz album, Godsville drops on D.I.T.C. records. Showbiz handles the beats and KRS brings the rhymes. Sounds good to me follow the link below for two sample tracks and buy the album when it drops.
Check the promo video below
SHOWBIZ AND KRS ONE "GODSVILLE" pt 2 from A/V PRENEURS on Vimeo.
Godsville Sample tracks
Tuesday, 4 January 2011
Ghostface Killah - Apollo Kids review
As anyone who has seen my Last.fm chart (the blue list on the right hand side of this page ) will tell you that Ghostface is my most played artist (Closely followed by Al Green and Gangstarr.) that is why when I heard he had a new album dropping I started to look forward to December the 21st. When I heard the album was named after one of Ghostface's best tracks, Apollo Kids I knew it had to be a dope album just to pay homage to the original song from Supreme Clientele.
For a fan of NY Underground/ crime rhyme / Wu-Tang music Apollo Kids does not disappoint. Although there is an absence of The Rza and some of the other Wu producers the album's production works very well. I was hoping to hear another MF Doom beat or two but Ghostface opts for some newer producers whilst picking a few choice underground beatsmiths; the Chocolate Boy Wonder Pete Rock along with up and coming producers Jake One and Scram Jones. The rest of the production duties on the album fall to; Frank Dukes, Shroom, Sean C & LV, Chino Maurice, Big Mizza & Anthony Acid.
The album kicks off with 'Purified Thoughts' which features a welcome return from Gza and Killah Priest over a Frank Dukes banga'. The track is straight fire featuring a nice guitar loop and a vocal sample taken from a track called 'Am I a Good Man' by them two if I'm not mistaken. Ghost drops his verse, followed by Killah Priest both building anticipation for the lesson in lyricism that we all know Gza is going to drop. As usual Gza does not disappoint but neither do Ghost and KIllah Priest all dropping verses better than most commercial and underground artists, a clear reminder of what the Wu was and can still be.
Next up is the fantastic 'Superstar' produced by Shroom, who I dont recall ever hearing of before this joint but what an introduction a sick beat on a Ghostface album featuring Busta Rhymes. The beat is a fast joint and utilises a Roy Ayers sample taken from 'He's a Superstar'. Theres all sorts of things going on in this joint a nice fender rhodes keyboard sample along with some flutes and a 70s guitar riff. It even has some cheesy ladies singing 'He's a superstar' which surprisingly isn't half as annoying as one would image. Even Busta avoids being annoying and gives us a slice of fast paced detailed lyrics. One of my favourite joints on the album.
Then we have Black Tequila featuring Cappadona and Trife over the second Frank Dukes produced track on the album. This one utilises a sample from what sounds like a 70s Bollywood detective thriller and it suits the Mafioso styled lyrics of the three Wu Gambinos. Ghostface and Cappadonna work so well together, despite the fact that their pretty much talking undecipherable nonsense, But Trife comes through with a dope lil' verse that actually has a little story telling element to it. Another strong track.
Following on from Black Tequila is the slower paced Drama featuring Joell Ortiz and the Game over a Sean C & LV produced track. As I said the beat is slower and perhaps sparser than the previous joints on the album but I feel that is because we're dealing with more intricate lyricists here. Joell Ortiz and the Game are lyricists of a higher Calibre than the likes of Cappadonna and Trife but Ghost steps up his game to match these two spitting line for line some of the best rhymes on the album. You may not get down to this one in the club but its lyrics will draw your attention more than some of the other tracks on the album apart form the Gza joint and the Black Thought one of course.
2getha is the next joint on the album and this one is a solo Ghost joint produced by Yakub and contains samples of "Together" performed by The Intruders. Its simply a classic Ghostface joint that could have easily been of Ironman, Bulletproof Wallets or another one of the classic Ghostface albums. It has the trademarked dusty sounding loop with the 70s soul vocal sample for the bridge and Ghost dropping lines like "Yo I roll on bitches like a skateboard". What more could you want ?
The next joint, Starkology uses numerous samples from the Dave Matthews disco version of the Star wars and an ill placed Tears for Fears vocal sample. I loved the original Dave Matthews joint with ist crazy R2D2 samples so it was kind of pre ordained that I would love a Ghostface version of it and I do.
In Tha Park features another one of my favorite lyricists; Black Thought. Black Thought is someone I had always hoped I would hear alongside Ghost and this banging track using a sample from "I'm Alive" performed by Johnny Thunder works so well. Black Thought is a fast paced lyricist capable of rhyming at Kool G Rap and Big Daddy Kane speeds bu he slows it down a little for this electric guitar based track although he sounds just as furious. The track itself is an ode to the early days of Hip Hop in the Bronx and its good to hear two of its modern heroes paying their respect to the godfathers of the game.
Pete Rock provides Ghost with a nice if not understated track for How You Like Me Baby. Another solo Ghost joint which has a nice Syl Johnson sample take form "Different Strokes" from 1968 album Dresses too short. The Wu has always been fond of a nice Syl Johnson sample and Pete utilises this one to suit Ghost perfectly. Even Ghost's singing works on this joint. Pete though could have been a bit more adventurous but these days he tends to use well known samples but track works well anyway.
Handcuffin Them Hoes features Jim Jones and is produced by Chino Maurice. Although its enjoyable enough its not one of the stronger tracks on the album and it wouldn't be out of place on a Jim Jones album. Maybe its the fact that Jim simply pales in comparison to Ghost and the other lyricists on the album or the slightly candy flavored beat but it simply isn't gritty enough or intelligent enough to sit alongside the other tracks.
Next up is Street Bullies featuring Shawn Wiggs, Sheek Louch & Sun God. This one is produced by Big Mizza and contains a sample from "You Are Just a Living Doll" performed by J. J. Barnes. Although the beat on this one is much better than the previous song the lyricists are only slightly better than Jim Jones and I get the feeling that in keeping songs like this on the album Ghost is hoping to capitalise on some of fans. Good luck to him anything that brings Ghost some more fans is a good thing I would prefer it though if he went with some of the more talented thus NY rappers like Jadakiss, Styles P and the Likes of Fat Joe.
Ghetto is a fully formed Wu Track featuring Raekwon on Top form along with Cappadonna and U-God providing support for Tony Starks. The track is produced by newcomer Anthony Acid and features an obvious Marlena Shaw sample taken from her classic "Woman of the Ghetto" but the fact that it uses an obvious sample does not detract from the track. I enjoyed it a lot and its nice to hear U-God again back on form.
The album ends up a high point with the excellent Troublemakers featuring Raekwon, Method Man and Redman. The track is a horns laden Jake One banger throws a few bass riffs in for good measure. Its great gearing all of these dope emcees together on the track each one on point and bringing their A Game. The track starts off with Raekwon dropping that slightly threatening storytelling/boasting style, Ghost steps up to the mic next dropping another sick verses with different character verses too, Reggie reminds us why we love his style so much with lines like "my eyes looking like I learned how to sky dive" and finally Meth comes along ends it perfectly with a witty verse that sounds similar to his pre Riddler style which is a good thing.
I love this album and its no surprise that Premier listed it as his favorite album of the year. Even the weak tracks are good but the album as a whole just works well. I commend Ghost for giving so many new producers a chance and also those producers for giving him good reason to. This album above all others from 2010, apart form maybe Premier's album, deserves your hard earned cash, pick it up.
Check the link below for a sample track form the album and three of the breaks used on the album.
"Troublemakers" (feat. Raekwon, Redman & Method Man)
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