October 15th, 2009
The second release following Toronto-based WIDEAwake’s purchase of the Death Row catalogue, Snoop Dogg’s Lost Sessions Vol. 1 would ostensibly offer a gold mine of unheard rarities cut during the label’s 92-96 heyday. Instead it offers a closer look at how quickly Snoop fell off without Dre’s serpentine funk and creative direction. Of course, any of the million suckers (myself very much included) that purchased 1996’s archetypal sophomore slump, Tha Doggfather, can attest to that fact, but The Lost Sessions confirms it, with the Cadillac strut of Dre’s Parliament samples swapped for Snoop’s watery sub-Gap Band explorations. Apparently, weed isn’t the panacea that the “Chronic Relief Intro” promised.
Like most archival releases, these tracks remained in the vault for a reason, but The Lost Sessions isn’t entirely lacking merit. In particular, the George Clinton-aided “Doggystyle,” might’ve been superfluous on Snoop’s debut but removed from it’s context, it’s a classic slice of G-Funk, with Snoop’s wiry hunger and sneering drawl still salient and meshing perfectly with Clinton’s drunken and drugged warblings. Plus, it has Jewell, the Blue Raspberry of the West Coast (with all due respect to Michel’le). “Fallin’ Asleep on Death Row,” might have accurately described the label shortly after recording ceased, but reminds exactly how potent and sinister the Murder was the Case-era Snoop was. While “Quite Obvious” throws a bone to rap nerds with the pairing of Snoop and San Francisco’s Rappin 4-Tay. And the original version of “O.G.” finds Nate Dogg kicking the first draft of the “Nobody Does It Better” hook and Snoop in story-telling mode– a style he abandoned all-too soon in the pursuit of a mastery of the “izzle” suffix.
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October 7th, 2009
The song commences with Busta admonishing Royce for “sharing your food in a recession.” Judging from Bussa Bus’ ever-expanding waistline, he hasn’t been sharing food since his salad days. It doesn’t help when he starts confusing rappers with hamburgers and frankfurters. If you consider “Fried Chicken,” his 2008 collaboration with Nas, it’s clear that Trevor Smith might be better off spending time with Jenny Craig. Thankfully, he’s spending time with Ryan Montgomery, thus redeeming the pair for the relative disappointments that were Back on My B.S. and Slaughterhouse (which wasn’t bad, but I refuse to ride for a group of guys who didn’t even realize the potential of calling their album, Slaughterhouse 4).
Neither verse here would rank in any of these artists’ all-time greatest. It’s just that carnivorous rare meat rap to bait the vultures with until October 20 when Street Hop drops. And for what it’s worth, this is a damned good appetizer. More deviled eggs and drumsticks, less quiche.
Download:
MP3: Royce Da 5′9 ft. Busta Rhymes-”Dinner Time”
MP3: Royce Da 5′9-”October 20th Freestyle”
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September 16th, 2009
As Dom Passantino pointed out, “Zevon came with more killer openings than Bobby Fischer.” Though the lyrics were co-written by a late-period whiskey (and coke and acid)-addled Hunter S. Thompson, it’s hard to argue with the efficacy of “You met her in a Turkish town/but you didn’t want to bring her here/You didn’t want her hanging around in the Kingdom of Fear/So you left her there.”The Ramada Room organs are as kitschy and soft as shag carpeting, and the lyrics mordant and perennially wicked. Were there are a Passion of the Weiss Hall of Fame, Warren Z. would be first-ballot–the only me-decade guitar troubadour who understood that you’re nobody till somebody kills you.
The only thing Zevon could’ve done to impress me more was cold-cock James Taylor or scam the Eagles on some bunk cocaine, but no one’s perfect.
Download:
MP3: Warren Zevon-”You’re a Whole Different Person When You’re Scared”
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September 15th, 2009
Despite their heavy buzz around Los Angeles, there were a variety of reasons why I never got into Rainbow Arabia. For one, there is the above video. I’m not quite sure what’s going on, though I’m pretty sure that if I tried I could pick enough low-hanging hipster humor fruit to fill up a Carmen Miranda hat. I’m not going to try. Then there’s the name Rainbow Arabia, a nomenclature that seems swiped from an excised chapter of V, an outfit fronted by a Levantine midget, with a rhythm section consisting of a pair of itinerant quat peddlers playing Sahara hand drums. Besides, I’m already a Black Moth Super Rainbow fan and ostensibly that should be enough iridian indie for me (no homophobia).
But last Thursday, Rainbow Arabia won me over at the second Friends of Friends Show put on by budding label impresario Downtown Leeor Brown. The couple of Danny and Tiffany Preston hang their fedoras in Echo Park and are willing to commit in a monomaniacal manner more suggestive of Bedford Ave. Backhanded? Sure. But a compliment, nonetheless. After all, they buy the ticket and take the camel ride to the extent of importing Lebanese synthesizers–sublimating Sublime Frequencies so much that I wouldn’t be surprised if the Prestons can’t sleep at night without the susserations of a Syrian oud.
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September 3rd, 2009
From the new EP from Stuart Murdoch’s side project. For those who enjoy Isobel Campbell-era Belle & Sebastian, 60s girl groups, and St. Vincent joints. Ideal for a sensitive but quirky Michael Cera indie comedy with a mawkish soundtrack that will mar this song for eternity. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Download:
MP3: God Help the Girl-”Stills”
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August 31st, 2009
Thanks to Nate Patrin, I recently discovered “Midnite Vultures,” the would-be title track turned “Nicotine & Gravy” B-side from 1999. Sez Nate: “some days, this would be my favorite Beck track.” Sez I: throughout of the duration of the weekend, it was mine.
In hindsight, Beck channeling Serge Gainsbourg while smoking Gauloises and sipping Pernod, may have been the right angle, instead of spending the majority of the aughts channeling Beck and/or spending Sundays recording cover albums with Wolfmother and Devendra Banhart. The least they can do is cut Histoire De Melody Nelson.
Download:
MP3: Beck-”Midnite Vultures”
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August 30th, 2009
As seen earlier, Rah Al Milio of the Knux has begun a blogging and recording side-project under the Joey Lestrat (Le Pop Killer) alias. He bills it as “The Knux, Vampires, Guitars and stars.” I can’t help but view this as a wise move. In these True Blood and Twilight times, the real money is in vampires. Consequently, Passion of the Weiss is switching to an all vampire-all-the-time-aesthetic. Nothing but Lestrat, Manson, and Bauhaus. Bela Lugosi is not dead.
About “Touch.” It’s not rap, so don’t download looking for typical Knux garage-hop. According to Al, it’s “not on an album, not on a mixtape, no purpose but to spread the virus.” If anything, it sounds closest to late 90s Brit Pop–as though the younger Lindsey brother has been listening to nothing but White Town’s “Your Woman” and Blur’s 13. I also can’t help but view this as a wise move. If nothing else, it sons Japanese Cartoon.
Download:
MP3: Joey Lestrat (Rah Al Milio)-”Touch”
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August 29th, 2009
My bad. Three months ago, Smoking Section don, John Gotty sent out an e-mail requesting that I listen to Freddie Gibbs, a Gary, Indiana-raised, Interscope Records refugee with co-signs from Devin the Dude and Just Blaze. For reasons best blamed on scatterbrains and Internet fatigue, I never got around to The Miseducation of Freddie Gibbs, an excellent collection of jettisoned major label tracks, freestyles, and stone-cold street raps.
Last week, Gibbs released his follow-up, Midwestgangstaboxframecadillacmuzik, an album that takes its title from Outkast, but its inspiration from the asphalt. Beyond prodigious rapping ability, a penchant for writing catchy hooks, and a great ear for beats, Gibbs’ lyrical acumen distinguishes himself from the crack-packing masses. No recycled cliches, no paper-thin narratives, just Gibbs navigating the gauntlet of Gary to craft tracks with tape-popping re-playability. Think of him as the missing link between Midwestern speed rap and trunk-rattling Houston ride music–if you like Bone Thugs, UGK, Z-Ro, and Trae, Gibbs will probably be your new favorite rapper.
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August 25th, 2009
My former Stylus colleague, Mike Orme tagged “Feel It All Around,” from South Carolina’s Washed Out, with a Pitchfork Best New Tracks this morning. Rather than fritter away an afternoon grappling with ways to reiterate what Mike already said, I’ll just co-sign his sentiments regarding Ernest Greene’s sublime vision, “stuck somewhere in an imagined euphoria set after the art rock of the late 70s, with a dotted line drawn directly through the swath of synth pop and all the way to the psychedelic, guitar driven Brit-pop of the Stone Roses.”
It’s easy to sneer at the Balearic descended beach pop that’s bombarded the blogs all season long, but there’s also something heartening about it–the wide majority of it self-released or on tiny indies like Acephale or Sincerely Yours. All of it ideal for that last Labor Day gasp of summer. Save your censure for the PR deluge surrounding the Girls or Big Pink records. Right now, trying to fight Washed Out, JJ, Javelin or Memory Tapes is tantamount to swimming against the tide.
Download:
MP3: Washed Out-”Feel It All Around”
MP3: Washed Out-”Belong”
MP3: Washed Out-”You’ll See it”
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August 24th, 2009
Sach O:
1. Holy shit. Ghostface blacks the living fuck out on this. He doesn’t walk away with the song, he runs. Like his house was on fire.
2. Dilla is posthumously sonning Rza on his own shit. Which is kind of bittersweet in a weird way but whatever.
3. This Raekwon fellow’s album has me *ahem* hyped.
4. If I was Rae and Ghost, I’d be weary of inviting Cappa to the studio, you never know if he’ll rip it or come “meh”.
5. They should let me pre-order this thing. There’s no way I’m gonna make it to the release date and the chances of my spending money on it largely depends on my paying for it before I can acquire a leak.
Weiss:
1. There is clearly an unknown alchemical balance involving albums named Cuban Linx and Ghost name-dropping vaguely obscure R&B singers. Aaron Hall & Ray J are the new Adina Howard on his mind all week. Sidenote: Ray J making a sex tape with Kim Kardashian was easily the best thing that happened since he was born with the last name, Norwood. Otherwise, he’d be doing guest-spots on Koch refuse not the new New Boyz single that’s running the radio out here.
2. If Rae’s promo team had any sense they’d get him on Iron Chef immediately.
3. Taking baths with white women> Taking Baths with Mr. Bubble>Taking Baths with Rubber ducks.
4. One day a decade from now, people will accept my assertion that Starks is the greatest rapper of all-time without snark or derision. Not everyone will agree, but most won’t argue. Those who argue probably listen to “Flowers for Algernod,” or as he is popularly known, Plies.
5. Ghostface has a supplier named “Loose Bruce?” Was Fruity Rudy unavailable?
Download:
MP3: Raekwon ft. Cappadonna & Ghostface-”Ten Bricks”
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