My God!

Pace Won and Mr. Green have just leaked a new track, entitled My GOD, from their long awaited forthcoming album The Only Number That Matters is Won which follows up their 2008 LP The Only Colour That Matters is Green.  The new album has been talked about for the best part of a year and feels long overdue, but it's now got a release date of September 4th 2012.  The album features collaborations from Snoop Dogg, Masta Ace and Lee Scratch Perry.

These guys are the perfect blend.  Green's retro sounding beats perfectly compliment Pace's authentic, old school, rhyme style, yet neither sound outdated.  The end product is real, conscious hip hop that's reminiscent of how things used to be, but still contemporary enough to be fresh, new and innovative.  If you need more proof, see my previous post which contains two of their best pieces of recent work.

In the meantime check out their new track which represents what we can expect more of when the album drops.

Mike Check

New for the New Year

Well 2012 is finally here, and as everybody talks about their hopes, dreams and ambitions for the year ahead, it seems more fitting for us to look at some new material instead of our main focus on the golden era and old school. 
There are always plenty of promises from artists about their forthcoming material, and plenty of critics citing a certain album to be 'the one' for this year, but in so many instances I find these claims to be huge let downs.  For example, how many releases did DJ Premier promise last year that never appeared?  I'm not hitting on Premo, he's a busy man and there are probably valid reasons for the delays, but as a fan I don't want someone to dangle a carrot that cannot be eaten!

So here are a couple of gems that I'm bumping right about now that might just be worth your further exploration.  These are available to purchase/download right now too, so you won't have to wait until Dre's Detox drops to own them for yourself.

Elzhi
If you haven't heeded my buddy Randy Mack's advice and downloaded Elzhi's (free) album Elmatic yet, then maybe this video will tempt you.  It's a beautiful video that really captures the specific era of Detroit when the then unknown emcees were battling for recognition and reputation.  Using rare and unique archive footage, catch glimpses of Royce 5' 9", Jurassic 5, Eminem, Proof and many more whilst Elzhi takes you down his Memory Lane.  It's a fitting tribute and compliments Nas's original.



Jedi Mind Tricks
This is the latest single to be taken from JMT's 7th album Violence Begets Violence.  Featuring former Outsidaz emcee's Young Zee and Pacewon and produced by Mr Green, this shows that JMT are still a forced to be reckoned with despite departing from Stoup the Enemy of Mankind.

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