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 - February 2012

I know February is the shortest month, but for me it just seemed to completely pass me by.  To much to do and too little time, and the net result is an all to brief monthly round up.  Sorry folks, but paying bills comes first, lol.

Anyway, here are a couple of highlights from my trips around the blogs, websites and twittersphere.

10 favourite sample flips
Egotrip continue their series of favourite sample flips from some of the best producers in the business.  This time the funky technician Lord Finesse takes his turn followed by J-Zone.
These two beat makers are a perfect example of the alternative approaches taken when producing banging instrumentals.  Whilst Finesse combines funky breaks, his trademark snares, and a signature DITC baselines, J-Zone opts for the rarest, oddest, most bizarre, retro TV and film samples which he combines with a sound that can only be described as organised chaos. 
Either way the end result is the same.  Head nodding, eyebrow raising hip hop.  But who do they think has made some of the best sample flips?  Find out:
http://www.egotripland.com/lord-finesse-sample-flips/
http://www.egotripland.com/j-zone-sample-flips/


1988 Mini documentary on the use of samples
Considering this clip is just under 9 minutes in length, there are some notable contributors such as Coldcut, Prince Paul and De La Soul.
What's most interesting about this footage (other than the retro clothing) is the reminder of the different views about sampling's legality at that time and how this era changed the face of DJing and producing forever.  Props to Battlechasers for digging this up.

What did your teachers teach you...

...well if your school was anything like mine, then probably not half as much as 'The Teacha' (aka KRS One)!  So why not take the time out to listen to some more of his wise words and interesting takes on a wide range of subjects? 

This is a lengthy interview, but its definitely worth watching.  KRS is one of the few artists that I would give up an hour and half of my time to hear what he has to say, and thinking about it, I've actually done this on several occassions.  Having attended one of his lectures I experienced first hand how good KRS is as a public speaker.  A lot of artists these days can't fill a 10 minute interview with anything particularly interesting, but KRS is always engaging and often causes controversy with his frank and honest viewpoints.  Enough said, just hit play.

Mike Check

Ace In Action

HipHipDX recently sat down with Masta Ace for an up to date interview that explores his soon to be released collaboration with MF Doom, the current state of hip hop and he reflects on the 10 year anniversary of his classic LP Disposable Arts amongst other subjects.  Check it out.

http://www.hiphopdx.com/m/index.php?s=news&id=17549

Mike Check.

Rapping graffiti characters!

It's been a while since we heard anything from DJ Format, but he's back, and if this teaser video is anything to go by the album looks like it should be a corker.  Due out on 27th Feb, the album features contributions from Edan, Mr Lif, Phill Most Chill, Sureshot La Rock and more.

I'm loving the artistic creation in this video and the representation of the wider elements of hip hop culture.  The video was created using animated graffiti art by and filmed by Jeff Metal.  Innovative videos aren't new to DJ Format.  If you're not familiar with his earlier material then I strongly recommend you check out Vicious Battle Raps feat Abdominal from his 2003 album Music for the Mature B-boy.  It's a clever single-take video that adjusts to cater for Abdominal's variable speed of rhyming, and is laced with crazy background cameo's to compliment his playful rhymes.
It's good to see DJ Format back, and representing good UK hip hop. 

Breakin' 'n' Enterin'

(This is the image for the OST, but it's the actual documentary being reviewed here)

In my recent Silver Anniversary post I reflected on some of Ice-T’s history in the game. I was specifically looking at his contribution from 25 years ago in 1986 but I also mentioned that he may well have been the first rapper/actor as he’d already had cameo roles in the films Breakin’ (1984), Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo (1984) and Rappin’ (1985).
But then I got an e-mail from my homie Jsta, a fellow blogger over at the Phuk-tha-muthaphukkin-police blog. He hit me up on the documentary Breakin’ ‘n’ Enterin’ (Yep, there are far too many apostrophes in the name, but it is the correct spelling) from 1983 which is Ice-T’s first on-screen appearance. Damn, this is nearly 30 years old!!!

Although Ice-T has a significant amount of screen time in this documentary, and this was my primary reason for checking it out, what’s actually most important here is the excellent cataloguing of the west coast break dance scene in the early 80’s. Ice-T is just one small contribution to this, so I’ll come back to him later.

There are hours of footage that document much of the early Rock Steady Crew battles and many more that catalogue the east coast scene in general, but this is a huge injustice to the west coast who had an equally vibrant, and some might say more varied, scene. That’s where Breakin’ ‘n’ Enterin’ attempts to redress that imbalance.

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.

Rewriting History?

Marely Marl & MC Shan in better times

Several months back I wrote about D-Nice's website, and in particular I suggested you might want to review some of his short documentaries where old school artists reflect on their rhymes, records and events from that era.

One of my personal favourites was from Masta Ace who gave his account of how Marley Marl's classic The Symphony came about (see the link above if you haven't yet seen it).  Well, in recent days, MC Shan has seen this clip and has decided to put up a response to it as he thinks Marley has misled Masta Ace and the others who appear on The Symphony and he wants to set the record straight.

Initially I was curious to hear the other side of the story and clarify the facts around this piece of history, but to my surprise what has started out as an attempt to set the record straight, has turned into something much bigger and in some ways it's more interesting.

Now I've never really been into gossip or hearsay, and I don't care much for hip hop beefs (unless of course they bring out the best in an artist and provide us with some banging tunes (Cool J vs Canibus and Jay-Z vs Nas spring to mind)).  But this is something different.  This is more about artist integrity.

Watch the series of clips for yourself and see what you think, but to me it seems as though Marley has something to hide.  Shan is explicit in his accusations towards Marley, yet Marley never calls Shan a liar.  Instead he attacks his skin complexion, who he hangs out with etc.  But aside the issue that started all of this debate, there are other interesting bits of history being shared, such as Shan's involvement with recording Rakim, Kane providing his own beats and plenty more.

Shan and Marley aren't going to acheive very much from these discussions, they'll no doubt end up agreeing to disagree, but whilst it continues I'm loving the little side stories that are embedded within this debate.
Shan also promises to record further (unrelated) videos that provide more hip hop history, and these are potential gems for us to look forward to.

Hip Hop Legends DVD (2007) - Repost

Update - I'm reposting this article as I have now found links to a downloadable copy of this documentary to replace the Megavideo version. 

This is an interesting documentary that is really worth watching. The production quality with its cheap graphics and basic editing isn’t the greatest, but what it lacks in presentation it makes up for in content.

Instead of seeing the usual bunch of contributors who always seem to be readily available to tell their version of the history of Hip Hop, the film makers made the effort to track down some of the less familiar (but often more important) names and get them to provide the commentary.

This results in the viewer seeing some insightful claims and memories, such as Pow Wow claiming that Lovebug Starski invented the term Hip Hop and Bambaataa decided to use it as the name for the evolving culture.

It also steers away from using the same archive footage that any long term Hip Hop fan has seen 100’s of times before. So I can reliably report that you won’t have to watch Kool Herc driving through the Bronx with his ‘Herculoid’ speakers in the back seat of his convertible, or hear Malcolm McLaren talking about his 'first experience' of Hip Hop, nor will you see any mention of Blondie, Fab 5 Freddy or the Sugar Hill Gang!

Instead we’re presented with many new and original clips. Ok, the clips aren’t anything to write home about and the producers haven’t managed to uncover any unseen clips of Kool Moe Dee battling Busy Bee, but what they have got helps to give the film a different feel to the usual trip down Hip Hop’s memory lane.

The main focus of the film is about how the whole culture got started during the 1970’s (which seems to be slightly at odds with the films title). It explores Kool Herc bringing the sound system style from Jamaica to the Bronx, Bambaataa working with gang members to form the Zulu Nation, how breaking, DJing and MC battling evolved and it gives us a timely reminder of what Hip Hop culture was originally all about. The narrators repeatedly express their concern for what Hip Hop has become compared to it’s original intentions and foundations (but keep in mind that this film was released at a time (2007) when the phrase ‘Hip Hop is Dead’ was in wide use).

The main contributions are from DJ Skribble, DMC, Bambaataa & Grandmaster Caz. But there are also many appearances from rarely seen pioneers such as Pow Wow from the Soul Sonic Force, EK Mike C from Crash Crew, Busy Bee and old skoolers Rob Base & EZ Rock.

Download is 700mb in two parts:
https://rapidshare.com/files/3341468394/Hip.Hop.Legends.2007.DVDRip.part1.rar
https://rapidshare.com/files/590620252/Hip.Hop.Legends.2007.DVDRip.part2.rar

Mike Check

Do it like a G.O.

Just as J-Zone launches his new book Root for the Villian - Rap, Bullshit and a Celebration of Failure he avoids shameless promotion, but instead shares his top 5 Favourite Rap-A-Lot Albums from the 1990's (and mentions his book!). 

Root for the Villian is available to buy right now, and is a highly recommended read.  For those who might not be familiar with J-Zone's music and lyrics, he has insanely funny punchlines, speaks his mind in a refreshingly different way and he's one of the few people that is happy to self criticise and laugh at his own misfortune.  It's a rare talent to to be able to turn a negative into a positive in the way that J-Zone does. 

Now instead of interviewing Mr Zone about his new book, Ryan Proctor had the great idea of discussing with him his 5 favourite albums from the Houston based label Rap-A-Lot Records.  It's a great interview that also provides a solid reminder of a unique style and brief era in hip hop's history. 

http://oldtothenew.wordpress.com/2011/10/30/do-it-like-a-g-o-j-zone-selects-his-5-favourite-90s-rap-a-lot-albums/

Also, if you're a fan of J-Zone's production style then you might like to read his Top 10 tracks that he produced but didn't rap on.  It's an interesting and diverse selection of work from his extensive catalogue, with some rarities that you may not have heard before (and it's nice to see Al Shid getting the props that he deserves).

http://upnorthtrips.com/post/13158477670/upnorthtrips-presents-the-10s-dont-let-me-get

It's a good thing J-Zone has written his book, because if nothing else, it's made me include him in this blog much sooner than I would have done if it had been left to me (I should be ashamed for not including him much sooner!). 

Mike Check.