New Cool Kids!

Here is a little preview off The Cool Kids new mixtape "Cool Ass Ninjas" which come out next tuesday. Posted this pretty quick, so I haven't listened to it too carefully. Just long enough to spot that it samples an old LL Cool J song called "Boomin' System". Sounds Pretty Dope.

Kid Cudi

Here is some stoned out Hip Hop from Cleveland MC/Singer Kid Cudi who was just rated Top 5 Indie Hip Hop artists to look for in 2008. He may have a sing-song flow but this definetly sounds nothing like Nelly. Not really music to bump at the club(at least not the original, several dance mixes have popped up) more, to quote Dr. Dre, something to "sit back and smoke a fat ass blunt to".

Rock The Bells Lineup Announced

Sat 7/19 - Chicago, IL
Sun 7/20 - Toronto, ON
Sat 7/26 - Boston, MA
Sun 7/27 - New York, NY
Sat 8/2 - Miami, FL
Sun 8/3 - Philadelphia, PA
Sat 8/9 - Los Angeles, CA
Sat 8/16 - San Francisco, CA
Sat 8/23 - Denver, CO
Sat 8/30 - Vancouver, BC

CRS (Kanye, Lupe, Pharrell) Featuring Thom Yorke

No need to explain this one.

From wikipedia.com:

Child Rebel Soldier, or CRS, is a Hip hop super group comprised of hip hop artists Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, and Lupe Fiasco.

Their first single, "US Placers," appeared on Kanye West's mixtape, "Can't Tell Me Nothing" released in May 2007. The song "US Placers" was #43 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2007. In December 2007, a noncommissioned music video to the song caught attention on the internet, and even features West's engineer and mixer, "Plain Pat."

According to an interview on sohh.com with Lupe Fiasco, there are plans for a CRS album in late 2008. He said the trio of C.R.S. would have three different elements to it: an album, music videos, and a third element he failed to elaborate on (speculation that what he was referring to at this point was the then unannounced "Glow in the Dark" Tour).

New Nas

From what I can tell this song was just released today. The lyrics are amazing on this one. Politically incorrect as it gets. Lets you know he is still one of the greatest. Only song I have ever heard where someone calls Eminem a wigger and it's not a diss. Fantastic! Thanks to Thcincy from cincyhiphop.com for the heads up.

Living Legends

Here is a new track off Living Legends new release "The Gathering". The Wu-Tang of the west coast does it again with this one. I am a pretty big fan of Murs so it's nice to get a new album from the whole eight man crew. I thought their last album was pretty hit and miss. This one is much more solid. Check it out.

Lil Wayne and Talib

Two songs on this post by two different artists. Both are very melodic songs that have been out for awhile and people hipped me to this weekend.


First up is some Lil' Wayne, who I haven't cared much for in the past, but have been coming to around here lately. This song is so far out there it's ridiculous. He had to be completely out of his mind when he wrote it. You would pretty much have had to of been there to know where he is coming from.


Next up is a track from Talib Kweli off of his Eardrum album. It's produced by Kanye and I think is one of his finest beats. Some really jazzy stuff mixed with his signature sampling. Enjoy

Talib Kweli

Just caught Talib live the other night. They really get hype for him here. Great show. So, in honor, here is a song from his new mixtape with Mick Boogie entitled "The MCEO Mixtape"

The Greatest

Since I put up that last post about my opinion on Ghostface, I figured I should post something positive in a hurry. Here is some Old School from the invincible microphone fiend Rakim. The Greatest.

Not Feelin' Ghostface

Tryin to start a debate , get SOMETHING going.......OK, I have gotten into many a heated debate with people whos opinion I respect greatly on Hip Hop music. I love the Wu-Tang Clan and can moderately enjoy Ghostfaces verses on their albums. But as a whole I basically cannot deal with him and will pretty much just leave the room if I am forced to hear anymore than three of his songs in a row. His shit just contains too much giberish. I know, I know, ODB says plenty of giberish, but I don't know, I think his shit is funny. And for people to be saying that Ghostface is the best rapper alive!? Come on! The best rapper alive!? That's like saying Lil' Wayne is the best rapper alive(oh, wait people do say that) Its just plain proposterous. I just don't get it. His song "Nutmeg" makes no sense what so ever.

Pase Rock

Here is a newish song from Five Deez member Pase Rock. It has a sort of Juke music or B-more Club sound to it. Not sure if he would agree with that labeling though. His stuff is always hard to label which is what is so refreshing about it. Check it.



Click Below to Download a live set from Miami about a year ago w/ assist from DJ Ayres, Cosmo Baker and DJ Contra

http://www.zshare.net/download/16182522f7f570/

The Black Keys

I loved them before, but with Danger Mouse (of Grey Album and Gnarls Barkley fame) they have a new waaaay out there sound. I love it! The banjo in this song is out of control. I've never heard anything like it. You have to check this one out.

Big Boi Featuring Andre 3000 and Raekwon

A little something to hold us over til the next Outkast album. Skew it on the Barbie and now this, Outkast should consider adding Raekwon to the group. Andre is crushing it on this track. One of his best verses. The beat is ridiculous too.

Heartless Bastards

I'm not usually into rock groups with female lead singers. The Heartless Bastards are an exception. Erika Wennerstrom has a sort of haunting bluesy sound. Check em' out.



Here is a little more background on them -

From http://www.wikipedia.com :
The Heartless Bastards, formed in Dayton, Ohio in 2003, is a garage rock band. They are often compared to fellow Ohioans and Fat Possum labelmates The Black Keys.
At age 22, Erika Wennerstrom moved to Cincinnati, and met Mike Lamping. Together they began playing gigs as the Heartless Bastards, which was originally formed as a five piece band with members Dave Colvin on drums, Adam McAllister on bass and Michael Weinel on lead guitar. They played their first live show at The Comet, a bar in the Cincinnati community of Northside, in August 2003. After parting ways with Colvin, McAllister and Weinel, the group reformed as a three piece with Kevin Vaughn on drums and Lamping on bass. The band was signed to Fat Possum Records in 2004 after Patrick Carney from The Black Keys passed on a demo he received from Erika. The 5-song demo was recorded in December 2002 at Ultrasuede Studios by Shannon McGee and featured Colvin on drums, along with contributions from Reuben Glaser on lead guitar and Jesse Ebaugh on bass.

Rolling Stone reviewed their debut album Stairs and Elevators and said, "the Heartless Bastards are a small-town band who are ready to show the big city no mercy".[citation needed] The Village Voice wrote: "deadeye accurate in pitch and message... what we've got is a hard, gnarled voice singing simple-seeming melodies that feel archetypal rather than ordinary, which is no easier to explain than it is to do". Stylus gave the group high praise, stating, "(Erika Wennerstrom) and her two band mates have created an album with more rocking songs and fat hooks than most bands can dream of. It’s not just that they rock, it’s that you believe what you hear, that they love the sound they make, that Wennerstrom lays her soul bare in her lyrics without sounding like Sarah McLachlan, that the women of rock who labored to make it OK for a girl to dream of playing guitar deserve far better than Avril Lavigne or Kelly Osbourne as their descendants."[citation needed]

The second full-length album from the band, All This Time, was released on August 8, 2006. The band road tested many of the tracks on the record prior to releasing it and received rave reviews from audiences. The album relies less on guitar riffs and belted vocals and more on musicianship, without leaving behind the group's unique sound. On the modern rock station WOXY, the band was ranked #12 on the 97 Best of 2005, putting the band among the likes of Spoon and ahead of blues rockers The White Stripes.[citation needed]

According to Wennerstrom, the name of the band comes from a question on a Mega Touch trivia quiz game at a bar. A question asked the name of Tom Petty's backing band, and one of the options was "Tom Petty and the Heartless Bastards." She thought it was funny, and used it when she later formed a band.

Kid Sister

More Juke music from Chicago. This shit is just fun, get down with your get down type of music. Just signed to A-tracks label and her new album is tentatively titled Koko B. Ware.





Here is some background info on her -
from http://www.wikipedia.com

Kid Sister (born Melissa Young in 1980, Markham, Illinois) is a rap artist based in Chicago, Illinois, best known for her single "Pro Nails", featuring Kanye West.

Kid Sister started rapping in October 2005, becoming an MC at monthly dance parties hosted by DJ duo Flosstradamus (she is the elder sister of one half of the duo, Josh "J2K" Young), which led to being featured in MTV's My Block.[1] She made URB's "The Next 1000" in April 2007,[2] and was signed to Kanye West producer A-Trak's label, Fool's Gold, who released "Pro Nails". She is also recording a mixtape with the DJ.[1] Her debut album is tentatively titled Koko B. Ware, and will feature work from producers such as XXXchange, Trackademics, and Diplomats producers Infamous and Develop. Kid Sister is also the niece of Beth Britel who teaches music class.[3]

Kid Sister was recently signed with Downtown Records.[4]

Gnarls Barkley

You already know who they are. So, check the new single. It's nothing at all like "Crazy"

Rainy Dayz Remixes

This is a fantastic remix album from West Coast producer Zion I. Simply put it's amazing and available for a completely free download. Get Hip, I don't think I have spoken to a single person who new about this before I told them and it's been out for a hot minute. These four songs are a small sampling and by no means are even the best on the album. Link as at the end of the post where you can download the album for free.

From http://www.grindthieves.com/ :

"With production style and quality falling somewhere around where Esoteric’s “Pterodactyl Tubeway”, Zion I’s “True & Livin’”, and any of the more electronic output from Radiohead might meet - Amplive’s “Rainy Dayz Remixes” serves up seven tracks of IDM and indierock infused hiphop refixes of material from Radiohead’s last outting, “In Rainbows”.
Apparently having originally faced some obstacles with getting this released, considering there was no official agreement for the remixes to take place, all parties involved reached an agreement and these tunes have thankfully been made available for free. With guest appearances on the microphone from Del Tha Funky Homosapien, Too $hort, MC Zumbi, Chali 2na, and Codany Holiday - this is not some throw away back alley garbage; rather it’s some top shelf slightly off center goodness that will, unfortunately, probably not gain the attention and recognition it deserves due to the original obstacles faced with getting it released and all that comes with that.
It goes without saying that fans of Radiohead, Amplive & Zion I, as well as the guest MCs, should definitely check this out. I think there’s amore far reaching appeal here, however, so everyone should take a chance and check this one out."

Click below to download the album for free

http://www.onesevensevensix.com/download/AmpLive_Rainydayz_album.zip

Thievery Corporation

Here is a couple of selections from The Thievery Corporation. I just got hip to them a few months ago and have been blown away by there sound. This is layed back, chillin' in the cut type of music. Get all of their CD's right away. These are all off of "The Outernational Sound" remix album.

Old Crow Medicine Show

Wagon Wheel is one of the most beautiful Bluegrass songs I have ever heard. I'm not sure if they are the original writers or composers of this song but i seriously doubt that there is anyone out there who does it better. If your not hip to Old Crow Medicine Show yet, you should be. Check em out.


Click below to download the song
http://www.mediafire.com/?f1fd9fjiidh

The Cool Kids

For those of you that are still not hip to The Cool Kids, it's about time you heard them. It's like fun goofy Hip-Hop from waaaay back in the day. They are all about just having a good time and aren't scared to look a little silly. Not all comedic punch lines and metaphors like say Little Wayne, just plain fun for the hell of it. They are from the burgeoning Juke scene out of Chicago. Which seems to have an obsession with all things throwback especially pagers. Check em' out.

A short description of what Juke music is:
Juke house is a type of Chicago House which started being recognised in its own right from around 1992 onwards. It features minimal 808 and 909 drum machine-driven tracks, and sometimes sexually explicit lyrics.
Using the template of classic Chicago House music (primarily, Percolator by Cajmere), and adding the sexual lyrics perceived by casual fans of Miami Bass, it has usually been made on very minimal equipment with little or no effects. It usually features a "4-to-the-floor" kick drum (full sounding, but not too long or distorted) along with Roland 808 and 909 synthesised tom-tom sounds, minimal use of analogue synths, and short, slightly dirty sounding (both sonically and lyrically) vocal samples, often repeated in various ways. Also common are 808 and 909 clap sounds, and full "rapped" verses and choruses.

Trying to force my opinions onto other people

Welcome to my first shot at blogging. I don't think I am the best writer, but I am egotistical enough to think that my tastes are better in music than most. So I'm gonna take my shot on forcing my opinions onto other people. Because, you know, people really like that. Basically, I am going to update this blog as often as possible with songs that I think people should get hip to. It will cover all genres and probably have a whole bunch of stuff you have heard but a couple of gems you haven't. So yes, another blog by an obsessed music freak. Well, what can yuh do?