May
23

Between a Roc and a Hard Place

Evan Nabavian keeps the 40 drop in the velour top. As much as I’d like to proclaim Marci of Hempstead the New York rap messiah, that’s not really the case. Roc Marciano gave NY an album to be proud of with Marcberg, but he didn’t spark a citywide resurgence of gritty rap sounds, nor does… Continue reading »

May
23

Sach O: Fabriclive 56 & 57: Pearson Sound & Jackmaster

Sach O’s influences are peerless. Convincing anyone to actually purchase a legit mix CD is in 2011 is no easy task. I don’t care if you’ve got DJ Muhammad-Imad-Bruce-Lee mixing nothing but unreleased Burial and Jeff Mangum dubs (he’s killing it on the white labels!), getting people to part with their guap when Fact Magazine,… Continue reading »

May
21

Free Download: yU – Before Taxes

In an effort to engender enough good will for eternal devotion (no rapture), Mello Music Group are giving away yU’s stellar Before Taxes for free all week. Named the 32nd best album of last year by an obscure website, Aaron Matthews hailed it as “one of the strongest 90s hip hop albums of the aughties…built… Continue reading »

May
20

Sach O: Swindle – Moodswings Video

Sach O thinks there might have been something in his drink. Admittedly, I’m not entirely sure what’s going on here. When I think of Swindle’s Moodswings, I think of classy drinks in nice bars, fine looking women and a certain air sophistication. This video on the other hand, features an epilepsy warning, a 3 eyed… Continue reading »

May
20

Blu Dreams: Her Favorite Colo(ur) Redux

Jonah Bromwich’s favorite color is Cardinal. Enigma. Anomaly. Sky-high potential. Game-changer. Rap messiah. We’ve heard these labels applied to up-and-coming rappers many times over the past decade. A short list of them goes as follows: Wale, Lupe Fiasco, Lil B, Tyler the Creator, B.O.B., and of course, Jay Electronica, who has personally used all of… Continue reading »

May
19

All Hail Mary Mallon

Fun isn’t an adjective commonly associated with Aesop Rock. Dense, cerebral, obtuse are more common. Over the course of his decade and a half career, he’s released only a few songs digestible enough for alternate-world airplay:  “None Shall Pass,” “Big Bang,” and the closest thing he’s ever had to a hit, “Daylight.” Even on “Basic… Continue reading »

May
19

Oddlogic & Other Birds

Chris Daly has been liking all things odd since Ripley built the first Odditorium. Outlier Recordings has an interesting problem on its hands. Lead act and artistic director, oddlogic, may be too talented for his own good.  The master of Sub Hop is a completionist. At no point do you hear one of his tracks… Continue reading »

May
19

Sach O: Kodwo Eshun – More Brilliant than the Sun – Adventures in Sonic Fiction

Sach O can review books too. This one’s out of print but a quick Google search should help ya… Sometimes, it’s nice to be wrong. And in many ways, Kodwo Eshun’s More Brilliant than the Sun – Adventures in Sonic Fiction was as wrong as possible. A loving testament to the possibilities of futuristic Black… Continue reading »

May
18

Thundercat Ho!

Around the Low End Theory, no album is more anticipated than Thundercat’s Golden Age of Apocalypse. Best known for his work on Flying Lotus’ Cosmogramma and in Erykah Badu’s Traveling Medicine Show, the bass god is of the eccentric ilk who can dress like Little Hiawatha and look like he should be dressed like Little… Continue reading »

May
18

Kill Yelawolf’s Nightmares

Evan Nabavian dreams of electric beats. “Kill My Nightmare” begins with a scene from any slasher movie. There’s a steady heartbeat and a background of white noise. Then a woman’s scream, a wet stab, and the sound of the killer’s breath. The heartbeat slows. Yelawolf uses Friday, May 13th as an occasion for a cold,… Continue reading »

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