A mixed bag of treats

Ive been getting into this genre where its borderline rock/electronica/indie. Bands like Unkle, Infected Mushroom, Ghostland Observatory, God is an Astronaut, and Air. Each group has more of one genre than another, but all achieve the same goal for me. A softer, more melodic sound that I can listen to to contrast the crazier electro stuff I love like Boyz Noize, Teenage Bad Girl, Bloody Beetroots, etc.

The new track from Unkle, entitled Restless, encorporates a nice riff along with some catchy twangy lyrics. I added an older song from them featuring Thom Yorke which sounds great as well (Rabbit in your headlights).

This group out of Ireland called God is an Astronaut caught my ear after looking through some myspace music sites. I found the track grace descending and fell in love with the subtle sound of it. It combines some smooth piano melodies to go with a nice drum beat that keeps the song moving yet retains its smooth, melancholy feel.


Restless
Rabbit in Your Headlights

Grace Descending

Top 10 Hip Hop Tracks of 2007: #7 "Uh Oh" by Ja Rule ft. Lil Wayne

Straight out the fuckin’ dungeons of has-been rap, “Uh Oh” took many (read: all) by surprise. If the fact that Ja Rule released a single in 2007 didn’t shock you, then the fact that the song is fire did. While Ja’s verses are good enough to get us to almost (almost) forget about all those piss-poor collaborations with Ashanti, a more than stellar guest verse by Lil Wayne and the Disco D production bring the song together.

Behind the boards, Disco D, who died at 26 a year ago next month, creates a machine gun of a hip-hop track. As the keys on the beat rapid-fire and stutter over the subdued Ghettotech drums that he created in high school, the MCs alternate ‘uh ohhh’s to the beat. Guns blazing, Wayne bursts into the song on the second verse. The self-proclaimed frantically spits out each line, cramming in every bit of swagger and lyrical precision that fastens the crown on top his head. Likening himself to a “Young Raekwon” early in his bars, he drops an absolute jaw-dropper of a punchline towards the end of his verse. “My pimp game propa/My if aim propa/So run and I will hit you like Jeremiah Trotta’.” Since he took over the hip hop industry nearly two years ago, Lil Wayne has normally outshone the beats he rapped on, making the songs with his oft-humorous, always incredible wordplay. On “Uh Oh,” the production makes even the imperial Weezy to another level. The only other time the public got to really hear Disco D’s genius on the radio was on 50 Cent’s haunting “Ski Mask Way.” At the time of his death, D was still a prodigy, having not yet exhibited half his potential. He was an artist who crafted beats that made rappers better and, on “Uh Oh,” the best rapper in the world even greater. 

"Uh Oh" (zShare)

Top 10 Hip Hop Tracks of 2007: #8 "I'm So Hood (Remix)" by DJ Khaled and friends

“I’m So Hood” was just another chapter in the reign of DJ Khaled-approved singles that have been a cut above the rest of commercial hip hop over the past 18 months. Juggernaut producer team, The Runners (“Hustlin”; “Money on My Mind”), helm an exceptional beat, a fuzzy array of sirens and sporadic drum rolls, while T-Pain vibraphones his way through an expectedly plain yet catchy chorus. But, it wasn’t until the Miami-based DJ decided to add to the already diverse cast of rappers that the song became a banger. Khaled makes the obvious right moves on the remix by adding Lil Wayne and cutting Plies. The new lineup collectively kills it, with even Fat Joe murdering his bars (“I should own a McDonald’s the way I bring the Mac(k)s out”). Young Jeezy, Busta, and Rick Ross spend their time convincing everyone, albeit colorfully and effectively, of how much weight they move. Baby drops a bunch of numbers relating to rim size and vagueties, per usual. Wayne uses his verse to further his campaign for world domination. In his surprising cameo, Big Boi channels his Stankonia-era self to remind us he’s still “nicer than MCs in your Top 3” and one of the original stalwarts in the Southern Rap movement. Ludacris is the champion of the song though, laying down his verse line by line as if every rhyme was another punch line. After his abysmal Release Therapy LP, Luda’s been stealing the show as a premier feature artist (see: Gucci Mane’s “Freaky Girl”) and a once-again effective taunting rapper, even taking jabs at Khaled (“I’m so hood that Ludacris shoulda been on the original version!”). In a time which radio hip-hop is watered down with Rap&B flops, the ensemble song has become a somewhat respectable pastime. And as vanilla as the T-Pain chorus and Fat Joe appearance may seem, the combination of The Runners’ production, MCs’ individual talents and DJ Khaled’s ability to gather the right rappers at the right time make this song more of a “M*A*S*H” ensemble than a “Rat Race” one.

I'm So Hood (Remix) (zShare)

Enkel Apa

After browsing through some youtube videos I indirectly found the myspace of enkel apa.


download all the tracks, they are the shit.

1love

a little indie

Some of my favorite indie bands have come out with some nice shit for 07. Indie is a loose term I like to use for anything semi-underground that doesnt appeal to the mainstream audience. Some of my favorite groups like radiohead, of montreal, and bloc party have come out with new shit this year and have experienced some pretty good success. Bloc party along with the other NME bands (sunshine underground, maximo park, mumm-ra,etc.) have a real UK pop sound and shouldnt really be considered, but it appeals to me for some reason so ill just lump it in with everything else.

First up, Bloc Party.
They released their new album, A Weekend in the City, in early 07. At first I was turned off by the album but i grew to like it. A couple key tracks off the album being hunting for witches, uniform, and i still remember.

Next up, Radiohead.
Radiohead "shocked" the world by putting up their new cd for a pay-your-own-price download. It seems like they care about music more than money. It reminds me of that south park episode where the famous band Moot led by the bandmembers Kyle and Stan protest illegal downloads. Leave it to Trey and Matt to put an rediculous satrical spin on the whole issue of illegal downloading. Back to radiohead, a couple key tracks id recommend are bodysncatchers, house of cards, and all i need. If you have downloaded this cd already youre probably a loser so theres no need for me to post the expired download link, but ill do so anyway.

Next up, a little Of Montreal.

The Of Montreal album, Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?, was pretty tight. The band is so whack with their outlandish song/album titles and the lead singers flamboyant appearances. However, the music is the shit and thats what matters most. Couple key tracks are cato as pun, gronlandic edit, and heimdalsgate like a promethean curse.

8 bit shit

Crystal Castles, out of Canada, have been throwing out a killer sound with their 80's video games -esque sound. Most songs combine yelling vocals with music that could be a theme for an atari game or commodore 64 game. They have been known to actually use an atari soundcard in their keyboards in order to produce this sound. Its unlike anything ive ever heard, but still sticks to the electro roots in the smooth, lush sounds created with this 8-bit sound.

alice price

trash hologram

XxzxcZx Me

Top 10 Hip Hop Tracks of 2007: #9 "Can U Werk Wit Dat" by The Fixxers

Longtime West Coast producer and Dr. Dre affiliate DJ Quik teams up with rapper and fellow obscure reference AMG on this subgenre-unknown track. Despite the Fixxers’ G-funk influence, “Can U Werk With That” falls closer to Tabi Bonney than Kurupt in the spectrum of hip hop. The rap itself reads light, with both rappers spitting game to an unnamed young lady. AMG opens with a verse aimed to introduce (“I got some grown man game for your Bluetooth/I’m hot, middle of winter, Coupe-no roof!”) and persuade the dame while, appropriately, Quik’s verse describes, err, the money shot. The brilliance of this song lies within producer Quik’s choice to place the haughty lyrics against an ice cold and arrogant beat, squeaky synths and snaps, punctuated by the pounding of an elastic-sounding gong. The Fixxers create a deliberate and proud atmosphere in the song, leaving the listener feeling convinced and warned, something most of their better-known, richer West Coast contemporaries need a gun to do.

Can U Werk Wit Dat

Top 10 Hip Hop Tracks of 2007: #10 "I Get Money" by 50 Cent

Despite having a hot/cold year, 50 put out one of the bigger, more over the top bangers of 2007. Out of the half dozen singles Curtis released this year, “I Get Money” is the only one laced with anything close to the swagger and teflon-mentality that made him the heir apparent to Shady/Aftermath’s King Mathers and New York’s King Jigga when he first broke through a few years ago. The track’s produced by Apex (?) and weaves a roar of synths and clanging trash can beats with 50’s (now) uncharacteristically effective one liners. He taunts to a point that it almost seems tongue-in-cheek, but its 50’s balance of his two demeanors, the yacht-riding executive (“In the south of France/Baby, St. Tropez/Get a tan?/I’m already Black/Rich?/I’m already that”) and the cocky hood-rat (“Gangsta, get a gat/Hit a head in the hat/Call that a riddle rap?/Shit, fuck the chitter chat”) that make the song work.

I Get Money

D.A.N.C.E. remixes

Pretty much every successful electronica artist has made a remix of the hit D.A.N.C.E.. You know a song is over mixed/edited/revised when the artist who originally wrote the song has multiple remixes of it. However, I cannot get enough of some of the remixes, especially the mstrkrft (synthy) , spank rock (hip hop spin), and cfcf (melodic) remixes which each add their own sound to it.

tittsworth
alan braxe
***mstrkrft
yusek
justice
***spank rock
stuart price
jackson and his computer band
***cfcf

Bloody Beetroots

Out of Italy, the Bloody Beetroots have been putting out a unique sound. Drawing elements from the popular French electro scene, they have created a sound that involves throbbing, pulsating beats that remind me of a lot of SebastiAn's shit (Ed Banger). Here are a couple tight tracks to listen to:

ill to destroy

ezekial eats red hoodie

i love the bloody beetroots


------spiderman------