Hip Hop and Breakz

After the relatively disappointing Wu Tang album it was comforting to see that Ghostface was releasing his 11th (Damn) studio album on December the 9th.  This is a concept album based around Tony Starks' return to Staten Island after nine years away from the Island,  he is after a quiet life but of course that would not make for a good album.  The album itself is fourteen tracks long and released on Tommy Boy.  Production is supplied by a number on non Wu producers and features guest spots form AZ, Kool G Rap and Pharoahe Monch amongst others.  This album follows on from his 2013 concept albums "12 reasons to die" which was a strong original album that deserved numerous listens. The first track is called "The Battlefield" and is produced by MOP's Fizzy Womack and the Revelations.  Kool G Rap, AZ and Tre Williams all join Ghostface on the Mic for a heavy track.  It features a mid tempo drum break and a nice electric guitar loop.  Tre Williams ...

In late 1993 The Wu-Tang Clan unleashed their debut 12", "Protect Ya Neck" Bw "Method Man" on an unsuspecting Hip-Hop world and with the help of Nas brought back hardcore Hip Hop to New York after its long hiatus on the West Coast.  From there the Wu Tang Clan went onto own the 90s as far as Hip Hop was concerned with two group albums (One of them a double and it really was a double, not a single with a shitload of filler), more than fourteen solo albums, countless guest spots, soundtrack appearances and also side projects like Gravediggaz and The Redman and Method Man collaboration Blackout.  It is easy to forget how powerful the Wu-Tang Clan were in the nineties; artists never game themselves Mafioso pseudonyms until the Wu Tang came along, everyone was scrabbling to get a guest spot from anyone even closely associated to the Wu-Tang, they were independent before it was cool to be independent and that dusty distorted production was frowned upon until it wa...

One of the problems that comes with have an extensive iTunes collection is that you sometimes overlook or even forget you have entire albums and projects.  This collection of remixes is one such forgotten gem.  Back when Method Man first stepped out from under the Wu Tang Clan's shadow and dropped his solo effort he was very much in demand and all sorts of people were remixing his work.  Some of these were only released in Japan, were B sides on Wu Tang 12"s or on some obscure soundtrack.  This here collections collects up a lot but not all of the obscure tracks that were around at the time. I'll Be There For You (Razor Sharp Mix) (Feat. Mary J. Blige) is the first track on this compilation.  Originally this was the on the All I need remix 12" that dropped in 1994.  The 12" also featured the Puff Daddy remix and the Soul inside remix.  This however was in my opinion the strongest of the remixes featuring a nice saxophone loop and some crisp snares...

Twelve Reasons to Die is the tenth studio album from founding Wu Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah. It is a concept album based on a comic book of the same name, it is based around Ghostface Killah's alter ego, Tony Starks as he reads the comic and writes songs to it.  The story is set in 1960s Italy, in which Starks fights against a crime organization, falls in love with the kingpin’s daughter, and seeks revenge when he is murdered. The album is entirely produced and composed by Adrian Younge, and executive produced by the RZA. The album was released on April 16, 2013 by the RZA's Soul Temple record label. It is a relatively short album made up of 12 tracks and coming in at just under forty minutes. Ghostface has been my favourite Wu member since he dropped his first solo album prior to that he was really just another background voice on the multitude of Wu albums. With Ironman I really started to take notice of Ghost but Supreme Clientelle I became a major Ghostface fan an...

When you have a core member of the Wu Tang Clan, Inspectah Deck joining forces with underground Hip-Hop stars 7L & Esoteric you know that you will be left with an album that will appeal to true underground heads.  But does Czarface live up to the expectations of the underground fan-base ?  For those that are unaware Czarface is the collaborative studio album from Inspectah Deck, 7L & Esoteric which features many serious Hip-Hop generals; Ghostface Killah, Oh No, Roc Marciano, Mr. Muthafuckin’ Exquire, Action Bronson, Cappadonna and Vinnie Paz.  The album is released on indie label Brick Records and is produced by 7L, Spada4 and DJ Premier.  It comes in at just over 46 minutes, is 14 tracks long and is available on vinyl (for true heads), CD and Download. The album starts off with a sinister sounding intro featuring interesting vocal samples and Deck telling us what plan is for this album.  This slips straight into the heavy “...

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 fe...

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...

After the success of Raekwon's Only Built for Cuban Linx Part 2 and the untold amounts of leaked track that never made the album it was only a matter of time before a deluxe version was released. The Deluxe Gold version is currently only available on the US iTunes store but will hopefully make it over to Europe soon and maybe even get a vinyl release sometime in the future although I wouldn't hold my breath on that one. Below is the listing of the extra tracks the Deluxe Gold deluxe version; About Me (rmx) f. Game Broken Safety (rmx) Penitentiary (Travis Barker Remix) Never Matter to You f. Bun B New Wu (rmx) Rock Stars f. GZA & Inspectah Deck Check the link above for the MP3 of the New Wu remix. I like the idea of these extra tracks but surely he could have just combined them with some of the earlier bootlegs, mixtape joint and that rare purple 7" of Flawless Crowns to make Cuban Linx 3? In fact you can check out a number of these bootlegs...

The Wu-Massacre album has leaked and although a little bit shorter than I expected on the whole its a dope album. I'll be posting a review in a day or so when I've had a few real good listens. However as with any Wu album there is of course at least one track that was leaked that hasn't made the final cut, its a Raekwon solo joint so it could well have meant to be on Cuban Linx 2 or just one of those strange Raekwon joints that makes it onto the net either way here it is for y'all to enjoy. Pioneers

Meth, Ghost and Rae have dropped another dope joint from their new album. The track is called Dangerous and can be bought from iTunes , if you live in the US that is. For those of us not residing stateside you can find the joint to DL if you know where to look. This album is sounding better and better with each leaked joint, lets hope theres a vinyl version. What's the science?

Heres some more new joints from the upcoming Wu-Massacre album due out by the end of March. The first one is called Miranda and is classic Raekwon and could have come straight from either of the Cuban Linx albums. It features a dope piano loop and a cool vocal sample running through the whole track with Raekwon, Ghost and Meth dropping nice lyrics all of the tune. I have no idea who is behind the boards on this joint but its nice. The second track is Youngstown Heist f. Trife Diesel, Sheek Louch & Bully and is produced by the underrated Scram Jones. Its a dope track with a ice cymbal loop over a almost marching beat. All of the emcees drop nice short verses over the vocal samples that make up the background of the song. Its a decent enough track although not as good as the others we've heard so far from this project. I have also upped the dope Meth Vs Chef part two which is also from the album. Although the original version of Meth Vs Chef from the underrated Tical was...

Following the two leaked joints form the upcoming Method Man, Raekwon and Ghostface Killah album, Wu-Massacre I was already looking forward to what seemed like a return to form for the three Wu heavy weights and now to top it off they have leaked Criminology 2.5 from the new album. Obviously the first version of Criminiology was first released on the double A-Side 12" back in 1995 with Glaciers of Ice on the flip. This was the first 12" from the legendary Only Built for Cuban Linx. Upon hearing that 12" I began hunting for the break that Rza had flipped so magnificently and you can read about that here , it was of course the fantastic 'Why Marry' by The Sweet Inspirations. But Criminology became more than that with Raekwon performing it with the amazing jazz band the El Michaels Affair and then later making a Criminology Part 2. Criminology part 2 was supposed to be included on Only Built for Cuban Linx part 2 which of course dropped last year to very strong...

I don't usually post this kinda stuff but this made me laugh on an otherwise shitty day. Hope you enjoy it too Wu-Tang Lego: Da Mystery of Chessboxin' from davo on Vimeo .

Try as hard as I did I just couldn't get excited about that last Wu Tang album, it had a couple of dope tracks but was ultimately disappointing especially the weak ass Beatles cover. However these two tracks taken from the new Wu Tang album called Chamber Music sound dope. This claims to be an album of entirely new Rza produced material featuring live instruments with no B Sides, dodgy bootlegs or freestyles. Check the link below for a couple of tracks from its. The first is Harbor Masters which features Ghostface, Inspecta Deck and A.Z. and is dope track with tight drums and good verses from all three. The other track is called Ill Figures and features Raekwon, M.O.P. and Kool G Rap and is slower track with a nice organ sample. If these are a good indication of what the album holds then it should be worth checking out. My staten Island homies lay you down on pieces of ice.

Its late 1995 and although the year clearly belonged to the East Coast in particular the Wu Tang Clan no one was ready for the lyrical and musical onslaught that two cousins from Staten Island was about to release on the hip-hop world. Not only had Rza shown us the grimy underbelly of Staten Island's sound with the original Wu Tang album but he had gone on to smack the hip hop world in the head with amazing albums by Method Man, Old Dirty and of course Raekwon. But so far nothing had prepared us the the lyrical genius that was Liquid Swords. Without a doubt my favorite Wu solo album. We had heard rumors and comments from various Clan members about Gza's complex lyrical skills but nothing could have prepared everyone for the immense and complex lyrics that we were to hear on the Liquid Swords LP. Not to mention the dark, sample heavy, intrictae production supplied by the Abbot, Rza. The first 12" from the album was the title track Liquids swords with the double A side...

Heres a little joint dropped by Raekwon as a tribute to the Late Great Notorious B.I.G.. Its a slow joint with Raekwon showing off his lyrical skills in the form of a letter to Biggie talking about their friendship, squashed beefs and dropping classic albums around the same time. Raekwon is popping up a lot right now as I said last month is Cuban Linx part 2 going to finally drop or am I being a too hopeful. I shook your hand in Cali

So once again a few Raekwon joints are being leaked and we're all getting our hope us that Only Built 4 Cuban Linx part 2 may be finally ready to drop. Can this seriously be the case after at least four years of hype is Da Chef finally ready to unleash the sequal to one of the best albums of the 1990s. Last week we had the incredibly dope Criminolgy part 2 which had Rae and Ghost trading rhymes in a fashion similar to the early Wu-Gambinos tunes with Rza flipping the same Sweet inspirations joint, Why Marry albeit in a slightly different manner. Then today we had Wu-Ohh pop up online featuring Method Man and Ghostface and what sounds like vintage Rza again claiming to be from Cuban Linx 2. Raekwon has also been doing the usual pre album guest spots hoping to drum up some anticipation for an album that should have been here 3 years ago. In the last three years I have picked up and downloaded about 13 tracks all claiming to be from this much anticipated album and I have collected...

Ghostface Killah is back with a new album set to drop on December the 16th of Def Jam. The set will be available as a single CD or bundled with a DVD chronicling the artist's recent tour. "GhostDeini" is a compilation of rare, unreleased and new tracks similar to 2006's More Fish. It includes "Ghostface Christmas," a remix of "Be Easy" featuring Ice Cube" and a remix of "Kilo" with Raekwon and Pusha T. "Slept on Tony" is a new song. Also featured are remixes of "Run" with Jadakiss and Lil Wayne, "Back Like That" with Kanye and Neyo, the Ghostface-dominated version of the Amy Winehouse hit "You Know I'm No Good" and the Mary J. Blige-featuring "All I Got Is You." As usual it should be well worth picking up a decent addition to any hardcore hip hop fan's collection. Heres the listing "Slept on Tony" "Run" remix (feat. Jadakiss, Lil Wayne, Raekwon, Freeway...