Dec
17

The 25 Best Hip-Hop Songs of 2008

25. Prafit-”Nice Weather” The nice weather is long gone–the ostensibly immutable Los Angeles sun blotted by kidney colored clouds and cold rain. So Prafit’s ode to the sizzle of July feels like an antique postcard documenting endless light, chicken breasts smothered in BBQ sauce, and basement parties. Disco Vietnam’s beat sounds invincible like summer: celestial… Continue reading »

Dec
16

The 50 Best Hip-Hop Songs of 2008

Over the next two weeks, myself and a very talented cadre of contributors will be emulating the book above. Unlike said tome, it won’t cost money and you’ll get free MP3s–which, presumably, serve a tangible purpose. Now go cry into your near-beer, Phillip Ardagh, you lovable rogue. 50. Redman ft. Oh No-”Lay You Out” You… Continue reading »

Dec
15

LA Weekly: Idealist Propaganda-The Raw Power of Glen E. Friedman

I have a web-only piece in LA Weekly today on Glen E. Friedman, whose name you might not recognize, but whose photos you most certainly would–even if only because he was the guy who shot the cover of Check Your Head.  He’s also well known in musical circles for his seminal shots of Dogtown and… Continue reading »

Dec
14

Song for a Sunday: Mayer Hawthorne-”Just Ain’t Gonna’ Work Out”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQklopXpQGA Copping a late pass with this one, after From Da Bricks, So Much Silence, and O-Dub already gave Stones Throw retro-soul phenom, Mayer Hawthorne, the rant and rave treatment. But “Just Ain’t Gonna Work Out,” is absolutely breathtaking. I don’t know if it’s humanly possible not to love this- though I’m sure Tray will… Continue reading »

Dec
13

Revelations on A Saturday A.M.

Trans, a vocoder-laden work often derided as Neil Young’s mid-life crisis in album form, is much better than its reputation. Bon mot master, Alfred Soto puts “Like an Inca” and “Transformer Man” in his Young top 20. I’m too busy with year-end ’08 list-making to know if I’d wholly concur, but the high praise is certainly… Continue reading »

Dec
12

The Never Before Revealed Script for Busta Rhymes’ “Arab Money” Video (With Deleted Scenes)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVGQX4aLu8A EXT. THE ARABIAN DESERT-DAY BUSTA RHYMES and jovial sidekick, SPLIFF STARR, stroll through a barren wasteland: famished, high and disoriented. Busta:Where are we, Spliff? Spliff Starr: Yemen. Busta Rhymes: Don’t yeah man, me…I pay you for two things: carrying drugs and geographic know-how. Spliff Starr: No, Yemen. It’s nearly 600,000 square kilometers, approximately the… Continue reading »

Dec
11

Islands-”Where There’s a Will There’s a Whalebone” ft. Despot

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEnnXbcYv2Y Good look for Islands to enlist Def Jukie, Despot, to aid them in a rendition of one of my favorite songs ever, “Where’s There’s a Will There’s a Whalebone.” People are sleeping on Arms Way and, Th’ Corn Gang album–whenever it drops–promises to be equally impressive. Despite the group’s possibly unsavory views on ethanol.… Continue reading »

Dec
11

The Beat Generation: Eff a F Word

Zilla Rocca has never attended a conference for stuttering children, though he lives by Big Pun’s credo that even if you stutter, he will still sh…sh…shit on you. Good friends and fans of The Passion and Clap Cowards, I feel like we’re family—you can borrow my Murs CD and never give it back, I can… Continue reading »

Dec
10

Every Kanye Sample Ever [808s and Heartbreak Edition]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XaDeC2LEdA They say mediocre artists borrow, great artists steal. I’ll let you determine what that makes Kanye.

Dec
10

The Best Reissues & Compilations of 2008

Steve Stein and partner Double Dee, were dropping lessons on kids when Shadow and Cut Chemist were still constructing crates out of lincoln logs.  Finally collected on the aptly named, Illegal Art label, Steinski’s seminal singles are that rarity–as fun as they are important. Neither The Avalanches nor Girl Talk, are remotely possible without the… Continue reading »

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