| Cam’ron Still Killing | September 11, 2013 |
Max Bell gets puters putin. There’s no predicting when Cam’ron’s Killa Season 2 will drop. There have been talks of its release since 2011. At this point, it may go the way of Detox and never hit the shelves or your preferred digital streaming/download service. It might also fade into obscurity like Gunz n’ Butta, […]
| The Way of London’s The Melodic | September 3, 2013 |
Max Bell has a hellhound on his trail. Like the blues or funk, folk is a genre where the standards are often only redone well or redone with a twist. The Melodic haven’t reinvented the wheel yet, but they’re definitely forging their own finger plucking, soul-trembling path. Hailing from the South London neighborhood of Brixton, […]
| Eminem Goes Berzerker | August 28, 2013 |
Max Bell prefers Clarence Carter to Billy Squier. Eminem knows Recovery should be filed under pop, not hip-hop. So with “Berzerk,” Em claims he’s going to “take it back to straight hip-hop.” It’s a move in the right direction, but now that he’s as old as the genre itself he’s gone too far back. He’s on […]
| The Savage Planet Discotheque of Computer Jay | August 14, 2013 |
Max Bell made it to level 3. If there’s a planet suspended in the funkmosphere between Dam-Funk and Gaslamp Killer, that’s where you’ll find Jason Taylor, A.K.A. Computer Jay. The Echo Park-based producer turned mad robotic synth scientist has been doing his thing in the L.A. beat scene for years. He’s played keyboard for Dam-Funk’s group […]
| The Corrections: El-P’s Fantastic Damage | August 12, 2013 |
Max Bell wrote his own eulogy with cocaine hands. While the attacks of 9/11 aren’t mentioned explicitly, El-P’s Fantastic Damage might be the only N.Y. hip-hop album from 2002 that sonically captures the horror of the terror alert era. Though there’s really not much competition. Cam’ron’s Come Home With Me dropped the same day (May […]
| Busdriver at the Versachi Store | August 8, 2013 |
Max Bell Versace Versace Versace. Your favorite art rapper doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Despite what you might think, not even Mike Eagle exclusively listens to They Might Be Giants all day. They’re probably up on the most popular rap songs on the Internet and/or radio. At the moment, whether your like it or not, […]
Max Bell is not fragile. If you’re reading this, you’ve heard of Jonwayne, the “rap game Sam Beckett,” the “open toed Blowedian.” (see here, here, here, or here). Yesterday, marked the release of Cassette 3: The Marion Morrison Mixtape, the third tape in the “Cassette Trilogy.” Taking its name from actor John Wayne — his […]
| Riding with Warm Brew | July 29, 2013 |
Max Bell doesn’t always drink beer, but when he does, he prefers warm Dos Equis. There’s a science to making a good weed song, or at least one that’s loosely weed related. On the surface, it seems easy. Devin the Dude has made killer “coughee” cuts for years. But at the end every year only […]
| Max Minelli Eats Gunpowder for Breakfast | July 23, 2013 |
Max Bell is predisposed to like artists with the name Max. If you really want an in-depth view of Baton Rouge rapper Max Minelli, see Jeff’s extensive interview with Minelli published this time last year. But if brevity is your thing, here’s the short, short version: Max Minelli has been rapping, as many rappers from […]
Dub Club is no longer just another weekly in L.A., if it ever was to begin with. It’s an institution, respected by Reggae heads from Silver Lake to Kingston. There are other places in the states where you can listen to DJs spin Reggae, Dub, Ska, Dancehall, and anything else worth listening to that’s come […]
