Jun
30

Fab Five Freddie Gibbs

“Versatility” has a different definition depending on who you talk to. When I interviewed FloRida last week, he stressed its importance in sustaining longevity in the commercial rap game. Admittedly, he’s the same dude who had no qualms rhyming over Eiffel 65′s “I’m Blue,” so you have to take his words with a whiff of… Continue reading »

Jun
30

The Underdog: Rudi Zygadlo on production, bass music, and moving to Berlin

Rudi Zygadlo On Pictures Music & Planet Mu Releases with Jules Hallam on Intruders.tv Music Last January, I interviewed Rudi Zygadlo after hearing his first single “Resealable Friendship” on Mary Anne Hobbs’ Radio show. It was immediately evident that he was one of the most gifted artists in contemporary bass music. Think of him as… Continue reading »

Jun
30

Beat Traps: Mecca83 and the Solar Sound System

Chris Daly owns six lava lamps and four dark light posters. Mecca:83, for one, would like to welcome our alien overlords, apparently right into his bedroom. Following the freshly blazed path of dropping albums on the heels of one another (no Shlohmo), the Manchester producer has stacked a collection of interstellar grooves worthy of your… Continue reading »

Jun
29

Ghostface Killah ft. Sean Price & Trife Diesel – “Laced Cheeba”

Do I need to explain why I posted this song? No, I do not. Obviously, it’s for Trife Diesel. Download: MP3: Ghostface Killah ft. Sean Price & Trife Diesel – “Laced Cheeba”

Jun
29

Frank & Beats: Bjork’s “Crystalline”

Aaron Frank can see clearly now, the rave is gone. After a first listen through the spastic, skittering melodies of Bjork’s new single “Crystalline”, it would almost appear that the reclusive Icelandic queen of electronic had been hanging out in British dance clubs like FWD and Plastic People for the past several years, soaking in… Continue reading »

Jun
29

Tupac Back

Unless he returns from his clandestine Angolan abode, we won’t be getting any new Tupac interviews anytime soon. So consider this pair of unreleased diss tracks additions to the historical record. A cursory Google search reveals little about their origin, but considering the DJ Quik appearance and the Don Makaveli alias, it’s probably safe to… Continue reading »

Jun
29

Douglas Martin’s Dirty Shoes: John Maus Becomes the Pitiless Censor of Himself

Douglas Martin knows nothing about your so-called Balco investigation. Just like the word “steroids” when determining the legacy of certain baseball players– or the video for “Piss on You“ when assessing the career of R. Kelly– it seems as though no write-up about John Maus can be completed (or even begun) without the mention of… Continue reading »

Jun
28

Bad Moonface Rising

Spencer Krug is resistant to reductive analysis. A conservative dude would’ve stayed in Frog Eyes, played the keyboard behind Carey Mercer’s cat-killing cacophonies and scarfed Tim Horton’s throughout one endless Canuck road trip. But Spencer Krug is not a conservative dude. How else to explain his glorious technicolor dream coat and head wrap above. The… Continue reading »

Jun
28

Beat Traps: Alex Ludovico’s “Fame Kills”

Chris Daly hates to advocate drugs, alcohol, or violence to anyone, but they’ve always worked for him. Alex Ludovico wants you to understand that drugs are bad, m’kay? Except when they’re good. And celebrity is a bitch that will get you in the end. Except when it doesn’t. As a concept album, I think I’m… Continue reading »

Jun
28

Sach O: Kozzie – The Problem’s started

Sach O is opening for MRK1 tomorrow at the Belmont in MTL. He’ll be playing Spartan. Grime is not Hip-Hop in the same way dancehall isn’t, except when it is. London’s subgenre of urban music has always been divided between the mainstream dream of successful UK rap and the underground desire to break away from… Continue reading »

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