May
18

Douglas Martin’s Dirty Shoes: Chad VanGaalen’s Exile to Diaper Island

If you need Douglas Martin, he’ll be flossin’ in Austin. Chad VanGaalen could feasibly be referred to as indie rock’s foremost genre shapeshifter– a distinction that would be pretty cool if he weren’t as frustratingly uneven and easily  capable of hopscotching between styles of music. For every genuinely terrific number the songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist/visual artist has written… Continue reading »

May
17

Golden Axes and Glass Spaceships

Only 24 hours after Earl-Gate, controversy continued to shadow the odd circus in Detroit. Apparently, a frenzied crowd threw bottles at them like they were Blues Brothers. Admittedly, I’m under the impression that every rap show at Majestic or St. Andrew’s features at least a few tire irons hurtling through the air. Motown is a… Continue reading »

May
17

Beat Traps: The Chaos of B. Lewis

Chris Daly don’t drink no zinfandel. The deranged beats of B. Lewis. A 22-year-old San Franciscan, choice crate digger, obscure sample flipper, but capable of producing a dim familiarity.  No slave to the metronome, the kid’s music has the consistency of a cat tail, skittering here and there, never following a distinct path, but adhering… Continue reading »

May
17

Question in the Form of an Answer: Charles Bradley

In hindsight, it would’ve been tragic if Dap King and Daptone co-owner Gabe Roth hadn’t approached soul singer Charles Bradley in a small New York club nearly a decade ago. The payoff came on the 62 year-old’s debut, this spring’s No Time For Dreaming, a record that initiated a wider audience to his James Brown… Continue reading »

May
16

Steinski – Solid Steel Radio Show Mix (4/29/11)

“In hour 2 Steinski hits us with an almighty mix of Golden Era hip hop created to accompany a book all about hip hop sampling called Creative License. The sonic cut and paste artist dips and dives through hip hop legends Public Enemy, De La Soul, Run DMC and Marley Marl, all interwoven with the… Continue reading »

May
16

Broken Clocks and Heat: Zilla Rocca, Curly Castro & Has-Lo’s “American Language”

Has any relatively obscure rap song had a better second life than “Broken Language?” Forget Red and Meth’s 08 version, a decade and a half later, the stalagmite set remains enthralled by Smooth Da Hustler’s & Trigger Tha Gambler’s Tunnel banger. From Action Bronson’s “Moonstruck” to Zilla Rocca, Has-Lo, and Curly Castro’s “The Heat” (American… Continue reading »

May
16

Beat Traps: Ghost Feet – “Top Papez”

Chris Daly is hoping to either expand PotW readers to additional beats or more really obscure Gen X jokes. Preferably both. Is Monster Rally a bit too sunny for your liking? Would you be a bigger fan if Bonobo didn’t sound quite so cheerful? Then let me introduce you to the boy/girl duo of Ghost… Continue reading »

May
16

Stones Throw Podcast 66: Lovers Melt Mixed By Flying Lotus

In which the former Stones Throw intern hands his old employers a sun-pocked 32-minute platter of funk, soul, hip-hop, and electronic. Said the label: “We’ve been talking with Lotus for a long while about a mix for the Stones Throw podcast. Here’s one he just sent over … no theme, no loops, just “records found… Continue reading »

May
16

Live Nation: Burn One & Warrenjae

Evan Nabavian raps under the name Cash Warring. DJ Burn One caught my attention when he reworked “Duel of the Iron Mic” and put a twenty-something Cash Money signee named Starlito on it. Three songs into Renaissance Gangster, I realized that Burn was much more than an Atlanta producer/DJ who hosted Gucci Mane and Young… Continue reading »

May
14

DaVinci ft. San Quinn & Matt Blaque – “Clean Ass Whip”

For me, this is aspirational rap. I have been trying to get to the car wash for the last three months, but rains and dazes have occluded me from my goals. One day. In the meantime, DaVinci finally drops a video for a song that he premiered last summer. Ample views of the Bay Area… Continue reading »

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