40 Years of Recycled Music!

 

Surely this needs little, if any, introduction.  The image above should tell you everything you need to know, but if you don't know the history of the Incredible Bongo Band or their hit record Apache then I'd certainly recommend watching Sample This which documents the history, impact, legacy and continuous influence that the track has had over the past 40 years.

In the meantime, why not reflect on some of the different ways the Bongo Rock album has been sampled in this mix by Chris Read.  Full track listing after the jump:

 

Mi & Shecky Take It Way Back.

I’ve just been listening to this mix and thought that some of you would appreciate it.  DJ Might Mi (Smut Peddlers) and Shecky Green (co-founder of the The Source magazine) drop a two hour session of golden era hip hop.  “So what” I hear you say, lot’s of people do these kinds of mixes, why is this one any better?

Well, apart from it feeling like it was actually recorded 15 years ago, the track selection is top notch with a good number of forgotten gems thrown in, and the mix choices of instrumental and acapella kept my interest throughout.  But the cream of the crop has to be the Juice Crew vs Wu-Tang section.  On paper it sounds like it should be awful, but some of these mash ups work exceptionally well.  If only the radio was still like this….



Full track listing after the jump....

93 Culture

 

This is something a little bit different, but definitely worth a listen and download.  Imagine finding an an album of the dopest instrumentals from unreleased tracks that were made in the 90's, and you won't be far off imagining what this sounds like.  I've embedded the bandcamp player for ease of checking it out, but I'd recommend downloading it for a proper listen as it works much better as a mix.

 

In the words of the producer Jaz Infinite:

 

93 Culture is my ode to the golden era of boom bap hip-hop. To keep it authenticate as possible I created this album using only the techniques and tools typically used in the early 90s. DJ Chorizo Funk mixed the instrumentals in that classic mixtape format and Dinco D of the Leaders of The New School came through on the hosting tip to keep the vibe going.

Equipment used:
ASR-10
MPC 60II
Akai S-950
Mixed in ProTools, bounced to casette, then digitized again

***The bandcamp player adds gaps between songs when playing.  To hear the mix without the gaps, download the album and play it in your usual music player (iTunes etc.)***

Looking for a style like mine, you can't find it!

Yet more nostalgia has been dug out of someones personal collection during October, this time from Kenny Parker, (will we ever lose the fascination with this stuff?), and more reflections on the golden era were born.  Either way, it all provides new material to satisfy our thirst for traditional hip hop.  Here's a few of the better items that turned up during October.

The Parker Boys

If you missed this release from Kenny Parker (bigger bro of KRS-1) then make sure you catch it now. Kenny holds many old recordings of KRS and this particular snippet is from a very young KRS spitting some classic rhymes over various breaks, beatboxes etc.  It's a poignant reminder of just how great KRS was in his prime.

Who Got The Props?

Black Moon's debut LP Enta Da Stage turns 20 years old this year and to mark the occasion Duck Down Music have produced this mini documentary that reflects on how the album came together.  There's some nice tid bits of history in this.

Cold Chillin Megamix

Tizwarz The Real has put together a 40 minute Cold Chillin megamix which includes 89 tracks.  Do the math, that's a lot of dope tracks in a short time, but it's good fun to stick it on (without checking the track listing) and see how many of them you can name before the next one comes on :)
It's also testament to just how much work Marley Marl was putting in and the number of classics that label produced.

The mix can be streamed or downloaded here - http://www.mixcrate.com/tizwarzmegamixes/cold-chillin-records-megamix-89-track40-min-mix--916197

Crate Diggers - DJ Scratch

EPMD's DJ gives us some insight into his record collection and obsession for red coloured vinyl.  

History Continues To Be Uncovered

It feels like the resurgence of interest in pre 2000 hip hop just keeps growing and growing, as this months round up will testify.  Once upon a time we waited for what seemed like an eternity just to see something hip hop related grace our TV screens.  Now it feels like every month there is a new project that is turning out a new insight on a part of our culture.
I'm all for it, so long as we don't get saturated with recycled clips and retold stories, but so far, it seems like most of what is being produced is a fresh perspective.  And long may that continue!

Unstoppable

First up in the latest documentary-that's-soon-to-be-released category is Unstoppable  which looks at the evolution of London's hip hop scene.  I normally reserve judgement until the final film is released, but this looks quite promising as they're focusing on all elements of hip hop, have unearthed unseen footage and UK hip hop history that hasn't been properly documented yet.  

PTC Mix - Naughty By Nature

Zulu Nation's DJ Lord Ron keeps preserving the culture (PTC) with his latest mix.  This time he's done a special mix dedicated to Naughty By Nature.  It's a nice little blend covering Naughty's best tracks, and it's available for download too, enjoy.

Much more after the jump

Which Authority?

As the weather begins to heat up, so does the music.  With several decent albums having dropped this month (more on this in my next post), and potentially several more in the near future, hip hop is looking quite good right now.  The winter drought appears to be over, and here are a few pieces of interest from around the world wide webz that reflect this.

Somewhere In between 1 and 2!

Next month Marco Polo releases his follow up to his 2007 debut LP Port Authroity that is imaginatively titled Port Authority 2 (I guess it tells you what to expect from it!).  As expected nowadays, some early marketing and hype is required in the form of a mixtape, so Marco has released the free to download Newport Authority 2.  It's slightly confusing as there isn't a Newport Authority 1.  

Well aside the confusing and effortless titles, the mix contains some better tracks than I've come to expect from these promotional releases.  This is due to the fact that these tracks were only left of the final cut because of legal issues around sample clearances etc.  I found the Tragedy Khadafi track particularly head nodding (and it's good to see Trag back in action), but there's a few others that are worth a listen too, not to mention the already leaked tunes from Big Daddy Kane and Rakim.  

Zoned Out

I've been a fan of J-Zone's production from the beginning, so it was nice to watch this short clip of him crafting something new using a well known break and chop it up with some more unusual samples.  And if you've ever wondered where all those retro movie sound bites come from, well he answers that too!

Mister Warz Taking Over

If you're over 35 years old and haven't yet stumbled across the Disco Scratch site and its frequent radio shows, then you're missing out.  Disco Scratch is dedicated to providing suitable hip hop to B-Boy's of a certain age.

This month saw Mista Warz make his debut appearance on Disco Scratch with an eclectic showcase of music that was all held nicely together with crazy snippets and sound bites.  For me this show has that unique balance of playing classic cuts that are familiar, but still rare enough for you to say "hell, I've not heard that in ages".
Check out the show (embedded player or download link) and the full track list here: http://discoscratch.co.uk/2013/04/18/warz-takeover-show-1/.

An Educated Mind

A friend brought this to my attention, and whilst it might not be strictly hip hop, it's urban poetry which is only one step away.  I'd highly recommend you watch this as the message is delivered with good punchlines and thought provoking ideas that most of us can relate to.  This is the type of message that hip hop used to convey to the kids, what happened?

28 Days Later

There may only be 28 days in Feb (excluding leap years of course!), but the internet has been a busy place.  Here the latest crop of stuff that grabbed my attention over the last 4 weeks.  Follow the jump link after the first item for much more.

The People's Champ

R.A. The Rugged Man has begun promoting his new album (due April 30th) with this blistering track which sets expectations pretty high.  Despite his own Demigodz album about to drop, Apathy still finds time to get on the production boards and conjure up this perfect backdrop for R.A.'s tongue tying, verb flipping style.  

Its been 9 years since R.A.'s last official release, so he's had plenty of time to work on this long overdue (and long promised) follow up.  Let's hope this is a sign of things to come.

Free of Style

This is a great little mixtape for those golden age nostalgists out there.  Instead of being the usual mix of classic tracks from established artists, this mix infuses a number of short freestyles over a selection of both well known, and not so well known beats all mixed together by DJ Sav One and DJ Dyllemma.

Dubbed the FreeOfStyle Mixtape - The Underground Come Up: 90's Edition, the whole mix lasts around 45 minutes and kicks off with a nice Lord Finesse track.  There are other DITC offerings from the likes of Big L and A.G. (who goes over a classic Jeru beat to great effect), along with some unexpected inclusions such as Dead Prez and Children of the Corn etc. 

A couple of the freestyles will be familiar to some (hasn't every freestyle by Eminem, Big L, Biggie etc been used to death?), but nonetheless there are plenty of unheard or relatively unknown tracks in here too.  These are frequently coupled with beats that you wouldn't expect, but work well and make for an enjoyable mixtape.  Check Guru over Mobb Deeps Quiet Storm instrumental for example.  The embedded music player and full tracklisting is after the jump.

Mike Check

Month in Review

 

September has been a good month.  Maybe not for everyone, but for those of us who crave old school and golden era nostalgia, it's been a bumper month.  What's been most surprising though, is that much of this little collection is kind of new, despite being old (bear with me and you'll see what I mean).  Ah heck, to save me explaining it, just peep the first item and you'll see where I was going. 

 

Be sure to follow the jump link as there are mixtapes, break beats, new music and much more for your eyes and ears.  I told ya, it's been a monster month.

 

Bizarre Tribe

 

No, I've not found a previously undiscovered group of cannibals deep in the Amazon rain forest!  But if you haven't heard this mix yet then you must have been deep in the Amazon yourself.  Amerigo Gazaway (who previously fused Fela Kuti and De La Soul to critical acclaim) has been hard at work again, this time reinterpreting the music created by A Tribe Called Quest.  Using the original soul, funk and jazz samples, Gazaway recreates the instrumentals from some of ATCQ's classics, and then drops vocals from the Pharcyde over the top.

Funk, History & The God MC

Here is this months round up of interesting offerings from around the internet:

 

DJ Format - Hip Hop & Funk Mix

Thanks to Battlechaser for bringing my attention to this great mix by acclaimed DJ and produced, DJ Format.  A clever mix of Hip Hop and Funk that he put together to promote his live set with Simonsound on the 18th August.  Check it out.

DJ Format - Hip Hop & Funk Mix by Soundcrash on Mixcloud

Rakim - Mini Documentary

It's only 10 minutes long, but any amount of time with the god emcee is always an intriguing experience.  Some nice little clips of old freestyles on the streets of NY are included too.

Mixtape History

Unkut.com recently produced an interesting article that documents the origins and evolution of the mixtape.  Personally I never really gave a thought as to how the original mixtape came about, but having read Unkut's brief lesson in mixtape history, I've certainly had an enjoyable history lesson (which is more than ever happened to me at school).

I should make it clear, this isn't about the modern mixtape that unsigned artists use in an effort to get noticed, Think of the old Kid Capri and Ron G style of mixtape. 

Your lesson awaits you:
http://www.unkut.com/2012/07/40-years-of-hip-hop-tape-culture/

Demo-lition

 

Yesterday there was a lot of buzz around the web about this awesome mixtape from Rock Steady DJ, JS-1. It’s 3 hours of demo’s from major artists, most of which were big in the 1990’s. Don’t get me wrong, the line up looks stellar and there are quite a few that I’m eager to hear, but when you take a minute to consider some of these joints, I’m not convinced they are all true demo’s.

For example, we know from many different stories how Eric B & Rakim’s early material came to be, and there certainly wasn’t a Rakim demo tape kicking around. So what I think we really have here is a collection of tracks that are either cuts that didn’t make the album, unused remixes, or early versions before they were fully mixed down etc, with a few demos thrown in for good measure.

Don’t get me wrong, this doesn’t make the mix any less interesting (in fact it probably makes it better as demo tapes can, understandably, sound very amateurish), but it’s good to keep things in perspective. I’ve included the full track list after the jump, along with the download link.

And if hearing a demo from your favourite golden era artist is your kind of thing, keep an eye out over the next few weeks as I’ll be posting 30 more demo tracks, and this time they will be the proper original demo tapes!

Mike Check.

Latest Bloggings

Here is this months round up of goodness from around the web and bloggasphere.  As is often the case with my highlights from the web, it's a mixed bag of old and new, but hopefully it's still full of the realness that us true hip hop heads are in need of (if not, please let me know in the comments section).

Before I get into some of these gems, I want to welcome Moyinka to the FoaWP team. He's an experienced blogger who shares many of his old school rarities (1986-1991) over at the To The Break of Dawn blog (which I recommend you check out). I think he's got something slightly different planned for this blog, but I don't want to spoil any surprises.

Up North Trips Presents The 10s

The fella's at Up North Trips have paid homage to one of the most significant album releases of the 90's, Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth's Mecca and the Soul Brother which celebrated it's 20th anniversary earlier this month. 
They've picked 10 tracks from the album and focused on the samples and beat construction to highlight the complexity and ingenuity of Pete Rock's production and thus the major influence his work has had on other producers ever since.  The end product is a brilliant mix of the original samples blended with the finished tracks.
You can listen to the mix on the Soundcloud player below, but I'd strongly recommend reading the full article to gain the full appreciation of this mix. 
 

Large Professor - Part 2

Following on from last months update, Extra P continues to break down his classic records in part 2 of Complex's review.  He not only talks about his productions, but also the tracks he featured on as an emcee working with people like Nas, Pete Rock, Beatnuts etc.  He also gives insights behind Nas' groundbreaking track Rewind (the one where he tells the story in reverse). 
http://www.complex.com/music/2012/06/large-professor-tells-all-the-stories-behind-his-classic-records-part-2/

Kurious & A.G.

Kurious is back with a new joint which features A.G. on the mic and Diamond D on the boards.  It's not what you might expect from Kurious or the DITC veteran, but it's still funky all the same.  Thanks to the DJ Premier Blog for sharing this.



Mike Check

New Music, Major Artists, Free Downloads

I didn't think anyone would mind if I shared some new music, especially if that new music is free to download.  But most notable here is that the artists featured are well known, credible artists, and these downloads offer a great mixture of different styles and era's that I'm sure will appeal to the mature b-boy. 

There are 5 albums embedded here, so readers who follow this blog through an RSS feed may need to visit the site directly to see the embedded media players and access all the download links.

Gensu Dean - Jointz Mixtape

Gensu Dean has released this Jointz mixtape that has been mixed by DJ Chief-One.  It features tracks by Ed OG, Brand Nubian, CL Smooth, Large Professor, Roc Marciano and more.

Blogwatch - January 2012

Damn, what a great start to the New Year.  It seems as though bloggers and web masters are going crazy with their content.  Here's the usual monthly round up of the internet's best offerings. 


Fab 5 Freddy discusses Gang Starr's Just to get a rep video
The DJ Premier blog has come correct twice this month!  First off is an interview with Fab 5 Freddy about the iconic Gang Starr video for their single Just to get a rep.  Fab 5 discusses the production processes of casting the right characters, picking the right locations, avoiding MTV's strict cencorship whilst still delivering one of the best hip hop videos of all time.
http://www.djpremierblog.com/2012/01/24/director-fab-5-freddy-talks-music-video-just-to-get-a-rep/


W - The story of the Wu Tang
The Pie and Ears blog has shared this great documentary on the Wu Tang Clan.  With a running time of 1 hour and 20 minutes, this is the full on story of the Wu legacy.

Silver Anniversary Series - 1986 - The Wrap Up (Part III)

To end this 3 part edition of the Silver Anniversary Series wrap up for 1986, wouldn’t it be nice to provide you all with a superb mix of records that were all released that year?

Well, DJ K-Delight took the time and trouble to do just this, and it’s a cracking job he’s done too! Here’s what his own web page has to say about how the tape came about:

The 5 month labour of love that is 'Fresh For 86' by turntable scratch assassin and UK producer K-Delight. This mix has been recorded using all original 80's Electro vinyl. K-Delight has kept this mix as authentic as possible by recording the whole mix onto an old Yamaha multi track tape machine!!!!!!!! Yes that’s right, we said tape! Hell yeah.

K-Delight made his name on the UK hip hop scene in the early nineties with his dope 4 track mix tapes. Now with the UK Fresh 86 reunion happening this year, what better time to create a pure old school mix not only in sound but in the recording method too. Once 'Fresh For 86' was mixed it was then cut the hell up using Cubase to give some extra edit power paying tribute to edit king Chep Nunez and of course the man Mantronik. 

Throughout the mix there are cuts and samples from classic Mike Allen radio shows, audio from the original UK Fresh 86 event as well as sneaky snippets of Morgan Khan’s vocals and words of wisdom from Arthur Baker!

It’s clear that an immense amount of time, thought, preparation and love went into this mix, and I really respect K-Delight's dedication to it. It’s a fitting tribute to what has to be one of the most influential, innovative, creative and enjoyable years from hip hop’s great history.

And the best part is yet to come! You can either listen to the mix through the embedded SoundCloud player below, or better still you can download it for free to bump in your car, or to play at that retro New Year party that you’ve been planning.  The full track list is after the jump.

A big thank you to K-Delight for providing the icing on my 1986 cake! I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

Download here: http://soundcloud.com/k-delight/fresh-for-86-by-k-delight/download


FRESH FOR 86 by K-DELIGHT by K-DELIGHT

Tracklist
1. K-Delight - Fresh For 86
2. The World Class Wreckin Crew - World Class
3. Pumpkin - King Of The Beat.
4. Dr Jeckyll & Mr Hyde - Fast Life
5. 2 Live Crew - What I Like
6. The B Boys - Two Three Break
7. Davy DMX - One For The Treble
8. UTFO - Roxanne, Roxanne
9. Rapologists - Hip Hop Beat (Street Mix)
10. Man Parrish - Hip Hop Be Bop (Dont Stop)
11. B.O.S.E - Bass Overdrive
12. High Fidelity Three - B Boys Breakdance
13. Freestyle - Don't Stop The Rock
14. Sparky D v's The Play Girls - The Battle
15. Rock Master Scott & The Dynamic Three - The Roof Is On Fire
16. Hashim - Al-Naafiysh (The Soul)
17. Fresh 3 M.C.'s - Fresh
18. Kid Frost - Terminator
19. Mixmaster Gee & The Turntable Orchestra - The Manipulator
20. LA Dream Team - RockBerry Jam
21. Captain Rock - Return Of Captain Rock
22. Twilight 22 - Electric Kingdom
23. Real Roxanne & Howie Tee - Lets Go Go Go
24. Marley Marl feat. MC Shan - Marley Marl Scratch
25. Mantronix - Needle To The Groove
26. Word Of Mouth & DJ Cheese - King Kut
27. Aleem - Release Yourself

For your listening pleasure...

Here are some more blistering sounds that will leave you scrambling for the rewind button.  Ok, so finding a rewind button nowadays is like finding rocking horse doo doo, but a quick mouse click at the start of the embedded music player and you can be pleasured two or three time over, for free!

Up first, Chi towns finest....

DJ Soul x Okayplayer - Time Travelin (Best Of Common)

A few years ago, Okayplayer asked DJ Soul to do a Common mix which fans would receive (as a bonus cd) if they purchased Finding Forever on their site. With the buzz starting to build for Common's upcoming album The Dreamer, The Believer, now is the perfect time to

Free Downloads

[Note to readers using RSS etc - You may need to come to the site to see the embeded music players etc]

There's a ton of free music out there, but finding the good stuff that is worth listening to can feel like a full time skilled profession.  Well hopefully we can help out a little by providing you with some great new tunes to bump in your iPod.

Has-Lo
First up is a new joint from Has-Lo.  Hot on the heels of his highly rated LP In Case I Don’t Make It released earlier this year, he now releases the follow up Conversation B. 
This free promotional track Light Years has been remixed by J-Zone.  It's not quite the usual style of J-Zone production that we're used to (although it still has his trade mark sound to it), but it's just as distinct and inventive.  It's also great to heat that J-Zone has returned to the production boards, as the news that he'd retired was almost like a bereavement. 

Blogwatch - October 2011

Damn, what a blistering month its been.  The summer hiatus is over and now I feel like I'm getting high on all of the dope content that is circulating around the web.  There's been so many great finds this month we've been spoilt for choice, so I hope you agree with my selection.  Here's the cream of the crop (incl. a free download!):

MC Lyte & Positive K
Ever wondered what happened to MC Lyte?  Well, like many of the artists from her era she's still going strong, just not on everybody's radar.  She recently hooked up with Positive K for this collaboration:




And if this is a bit too soft for you, then have a listen to this one where Lyte shows that she can still kick it hardcore.



MC Lyte has a host of other tunes that can be found on her website: http://www.reverbnation.com/play_now/10434598.  She also has a free app that you can download for exclusive pictures, content etc.  It's so good to see one of the greatest female emcee's still in the game and still going strong. 


Jedi Mind Tricks Interview
On the eve of their new album Violence Begets Violence, Viinie Paz and Jus Allah talk about JMT's current sound and direction and the absence of Stoupe the Enemy of Mankind from the production boards.  They also reflect on nearly two decades in the game and a return to their earlier sound.

http://respect-mag.com/masters-of-lyricism-an-interview-with-jedi-mind-tricks/


Red Bull Music Academy - Slick Rick
Old School legend Slick Rick attends the Red Bull Music Academy's World Tour at the Bronx Paradise Theatre where he discusses his early hip hop influences, the development of his unique storytelling style and then revisits his classic debut album The Great Adventures of Slick Rick for a track by track breakdown, giving insightful recollections of their history.
The session lasts around an hour and a half and contains plenty of interesting history pertaining to Rick and some of his early associates.  Check the video out here:

http://www.egotripland.com/slick-rick-red-bull-music-academy-lecture/

Also, there are four more lectures like this from the Wu Tang Clan, Black Moon, Mobb Deep & Dipset.  Head over to Egotripland.com to see each video, although you might need some spare time as they're each an hour or more in length.

Murs Interview
Murs has got to be the most underrated and under recognised emcee from the west coast (feel free to disagree or suggest an alternative name).  Having just released his latest album Love & Rockets Volume 1, Murs takes time out to discuss this and previous releases as well as his attempts to have a greater understanding of homosexuality, working with O.C., family life and plenty more. 

http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/interviews/id.1781/murs-reveals-why-he-left-la-bluroc-family-life-and-explains-kinship-to-black-hippy/


Lord Finesse Breakbeat Mix
The microphone master takes to the decks for a mix of break beats and hip hop classics.  As one of the golden era's finest producers, Finesse has an ear for excellent beats and demonstrates that in this nice little mix.

  Lord Finesse - WFMU Mix 6 October 2011


New Masta Ace LP
Last month I gave you the heads up on the new Masta Ace and MF Doom (MA Doom) collaboration LP that's due for release real soon.  Well, to give you a taster of the new LP, Ace has released a free promo single on his website to get us all in the mood.  This single is an exclusive that won't be on released LP, so go grab it whilst you can.
When I first heard this track, I really wasn't too sure about it.  It felt a bit like a DJ mashup, but trust me, it's a real grower when you give it a couple of listens, and I'm now even more excited about the new project.

http://www.4shared.com/audio/sCSONcBH/MA_Doom-PBS.html

Peace out,
Mike Check.

Blogwatch - September 2011

Chris Marco - Dubplates
September got off to a great start with Chris Marco releasing his Dubplates - Volume 3.  For anyone who isn't familiar with these, they're a mashup of reggae instrumentals and hip hop accapella's, all mixed exceptionally well by Chris Marco.  And what makes this even better is, it's a free download! 
I'm not normally a fan of this type of mix (mostly because they're not usually executed particularly well), but this stuff is top notch and could easily be legitimate, alternative, remixes from the original 12".  Featuring classic tunes from Masta Ace, Special Ed & Buckshot, MC Lyte, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Mos Def and plenty more.

And if you like this, then check out volumes 1 and 2 that are still available for download.  Volume 1 is a King Tubby vs Wu-Tang mashup, and Volume 2 is a Bob Marley vs Jay-Z mashup.

http://chrismacro.com/vol3-available-now


Kool Keith Interview

Yup, the legend that is Kool Keith gives an insightful interview into how it all began for him, starting out with Ultramagnetic and he also breaks down many of his solo albums since. Check out the full interview along with a Flac download of the The Four Horsemen album over at Olas Un Bekons blog:

http://www.olasunbekons.com/2011/09/ultramagnetic-mcs-four-horsemen-1993.html


6th Annual Zulu Nation anniversary mixtape
I don't know what year this is from, but it's certainly going to take you a long way back in time. It features Cosmic Force, Sha Rock, Lisa Lee and the L-Brothers and lasts for about 30 minutes. It's a rip from an old tape, but for me that just adds to the authenticity of the sound, it sounds just like it used to when I was a kid!

http://old-school-hiphop-tapes.blogspot.com/2011/08/6th-annual-zulu-nation-anniversary-with.html


N.W.A. - Live from 1989
My boy Jsta has just uploaded a nice little rarity on his West Coast/Ruthless Records blog. Jsta is proving that he is still the king of the G Funk by uploading this rare concert recorded in 1989. He rightly points out that N.W.A. were banned from performing in most places, so any live recordings of their early material are very rare.

Even if N.W.A. isn't your thing, it's worth checking out his blog as you won't find a better source for old skool West Coast hip hop. He's also extremely picky (in a nice way!) about audio quality, so his rips are always top notch.

http://phuk-tha-muthaphukkin-police.blogspot.com/2008/11/nwa-live-in-anaheim-california-live.html


New Masta Ace LP
Masta Ace has announced that he's completed his collaboration album with MF Doom and it's set for a November release date. The project is titled MA Doom: Son of Yvonne (which unsurprisingly follows in the same naming style as MF Doom's previous collaboration titles). The format of the album will be MF Doom on production using beats that he previously released on his Special Herbs series, and Masta Ace providing vocals. This raises an eyebrow as to what Doom's involvement has actually been? Is this more of a mixtape or mash up than a true collaboration? I don't know, but I'm always happy to hear new material from Ace, so let's hope this doesn't disappoint.

When asked whether there will be any guest appearances on the album, Ace replied "only one, Big Daddy Kane, that's it". Is this a sign that Kane is upping his profile in preparation for a release date for his new album The Last Supper (his first album in 13 years!)?



Artful Dodger Presents - Get The Message
Style Warrior has shared this great little graffiti documentary from one of the UK's graffiti legends, Artful Dodger (aka A. DEE).  What makes this documentary a little different, is that it's not about showcasing Dodger's artwork, or a range of different pieces from around the UK.  Instead, Dodger explores graffiti culture as a whole.
The documentary lasts about 2 hours and contains many memorable clips from the past, such as appearances on Hart Beat, newspaper clippings, interviews etc.  I'm not sure when this film was produced, but I'd make an educated  guess at around 1995-1996.

http://stylewarrioruk.wordpress.com/2011/09/30/artful-dodger-presents-get-the-message/

Blogwatch - July 2011

Apologies for the brief hiatus, it's that time of the year where holidays get in the way of blogging :)  Still, it's better get something late than not at all, so here goes.

July was yet another month of blogging goodness, with lots of rare rap vitamins and golden era minerals for your consumption.  As usual, I've scoured the blogging fields to find the best organic produce and then I freshly picked it for that perfect flavour.  Enjoy!

Rare Mixtapes
DJ Manifest has recently started a blog to share his vast collection of mixtapes.  There's some pretty rare, and old, stuff on there (Kid Capri, Ron G, Lord Finesse etc) and a promise of plenty more to come, so instead of me listing it here, why not go and check him out for yourself. 
http://onestopmusicplace.blogspot.com/

From Mambo to Hip Hop
My man Battlechasers has found a copy of the film "From Mambo to Hip Hop" which in his own words is a "Documentary on the creative adoption of Cuban rhythms to create the New York salsa sound, which laid the foundations for Funk and Hip-Hop."  Its directed by Henry Chalfont (Style Wars & Spray Can Art).
http://pieandears.blogspot.com/2011/07/from-mambo-to-hip-hop-documentary-film.html

Pacewon & Mr Green
It's always nice to discover new releases that are worth sharing with others, and this new video from Pacewon is no exception.  Props again to Battlechasers for digging this one up.
http://pieandears.blogspot.com/2011/07/pacewon-and-mr-green-ever-since-2011.html
Also, if you didn't catch Pacewon's last single Can you hear me (A tribute to the people of Tunisia) then you need to catch that too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYGfxOP9dQs

Non Phixion Promo Tape
Philaflava over at T.R.O.Y Blog has shared this Non Phixion sampler tape.  It is essentially their debut album that they produced for Geffen but was never released.  The track listing is kind of strange as it contains old tracks like legacy (their debut 12", see my earlier post) and then Black Helicopters which didn't come out until their 2nd LP.  It's also got gems like 14 Years of Rap feat. The Arsonists and They Got which weren't on either of the albums.
http://www.thetroyblog.com/2011/07/06/non-phixion-the-past-the-present-and-the-future-is-now/

Fat Boys Documentary
This is a great watch for any old skool fan.  A 40 minute documentary on the Fat Boys that charts their beginnings, their rise and ultimately their
Commentary comes from many legends including their producer Kurtis Blow and band members Prince Markie D and (a very slim!) Kool Rock Ski.
http://pieandears.blogspot.com/2011/07/fat-boysthe-true-story-great-watch.html

The Conspiracy is back!
If you weren't a listener previously, then I strongly recommend you check out Mr Montana's show on Conspiracy Worldwide Radio.  The latest episode has interviews with: DJ premier talking about the early Gang Starr days, Canibus talking about his new album Lyrical Law, MOP, and much more. 
Conspiracy Worldwide Radio is dedicated to conscious underground artists with a so you won't find any of that mainstream bullshit we all run a mile from!  And the best bit.... if you can't check the show when it's live, the podcasts can be downloaded from the site or via iTunes.  So, what's your excuse for not checking them out?
www.conspiracyworldwide.podomatic.com