Rap Talk

One of the most amusing and consistent rappers in the game at this point is Del the Funkee Homosapien (aka Teren Delvon Jones). The Bay area based rapper has taken the Heiro name and spread it world wide. Oh yeah, he’s Ice Cube’s cousin too. And most recently he worked with El-P, a NYC based supa-producer and emcee, to release 2008’s Eleventh Hour. It was his first disc in nearly eight years and perhaps because of that, there was a great deal of built up pressure to release a classic. So, that disc wasn’t as well received as some may have expected – myself included – but Del still has the Gorillaz, right? Right.

It’s a good thing that he does to, because of a rather interesting statistic. As the world moves further towards a complete reliance upon digital technology, social networking sites (a fancy way to say Myspace or Facebook) play an increasingly important role in the marketing of new music, film and media in a broad and general sense.

That’s not a new idea or statement, but the fact that the Gorillaz are the most popular band on Myspace is a pretty grand idea. They have almost seven hundred thousand friends and even though that doesn’t necessarily translate to concert attendance or record sales, it’s still pretty impressive considering that basically every band on the face of the earth has a Myspace account.

After the Gorillaz impressive numbers, there’s a pretty steep drop off in the friend count and by the time one gets to Coldplay, we’re only talking about five hundred and twenty five thousand friends. It seems a bizarre contrast – these two bands. It is.

Coldplay probably can boast higher concert revenues and considering the fact that they released an album earlier this year and the Gorillaz have been relatively silent, it almost doesn’t make sense. Or perhaps the universe is just trying to balance itself out by relegating Coldplay to second tier friendsters. After all, in addition to grossing a ridiculous amount of money, they’re still one of the most maligned groups in world. And for good reason.

The 2007 release of Below the Heavens properly introduced the world to L.A. based rapper Blu.

Being one of the underground’s most heralded albums Below the Heavens, produced by Exile, hasn’t seen a proper follow-up, though Blu did release a C.R.A.C. Knuckles album with veteran Ta-Raach last year. And even though that disc easily trumps most of what’s out there on the rap market these days, Blu was the highlight of that outing.

Being raised by a pastor helped Blu define the lyrical content of his raps. His rhymes aren’t always on positive topics, but they surely aren’t bogged down by trite gangsterism like so much rap. There are, of course, references to violence and occurrences on the street, but it’s a far cry from getting even with someone that’s wronged you.

It seems that without a full length deal in the works, Blu has been releasing a great deal of single tracks and appearing on mixes or compilations like this year’s Basic from Eastern European producer DJ Cadik. On Blu’s track, Cadik’s futuristic synthesizer gives the rapper a vastly different musical setting to work out his rhymes. But again, showing his immense talent, the beat doesn’t give Blu too much trouble.

The interesting thing about Blu’s appearance on Cadik’s newest disc is that Below the Heavans’ beats are so organic and soul drenched it’s startling to hear the rapper in new territories.

Basically what all of this means is that no matter with who or with what Blu’s working, it turns out to be a pretty decent track. And that’s really the hallmark of a great rapper – being able to churn out quality rhymes regardless of the situation or setting.

And as previously stated, the So-Cal rapper has been on a tear, releasing a great deal of music, so thanks again to 2 Dope Boyz for posting this video. There’s a little bit of Blu talking about the game and rapping in general, but it moves on to a performance of his. A bit short on the later, but nonetheless more than entertaining.

Here’s hoping for a new full length in the new year.

Everyone’s busy during the holidays, but some more so than others.

Freeway, after he’s wrapped up his holiday shopping, has promised to release a new track everyday for the month of December. And so far he’s kept his word. Right now, we’re obviously 23 days deep into his campaign with just over a week left.

Is there going to be a special edition for Christmas and New Year’s? We have to wait to find out. But until then you can head over to 2 Dope Boys for all of the posts.

Accompanying each post is usually a picture, but a few are paired with video. So far, my favorites gotta be Freeway’s freestyle from DJ Green Lantern’s show. Somehow he’s able to rap non-stop for a ridiculously long time. He trades off verses with Young Chris, but the video clocks in at about fifteen minutes.

Anyway, if you go here, you can find each of the posts pertaining to Freeway’s December presents. The lyrical content is what you might expect, but the sheer tenacity of this rapper to proclaim his rap prominence is pretty impressive. Some of the beats don’t seem as if they’d be album quality, but again the amount of work that’s gone into all of this is surprising.

And in an overall sense, these raptastic feats only point to the fact the hip hop might be the music that has actually utilized new technology to the utmost impact. You can’t find any rock bands putting out thirty tracks in a month. The Bouncing Souls wanted to release a single per month – but that has as of yet to materialize. So just keep listening for more presents.

There’s no good way by which to explain the Anticon label, the music that they produce and release or the people that run the show. Luckily, there’s Youtube. And a recent video (well, actually a lot of videos), that condense the history of this label into digestible tidbits.

If you’re not familiar with the Anticon crew here’s a brief primer.

Label honcho Sole, white rapper supreme, found that he needed an outlet for this ramblings that had been relegated to freestyles, battles or shows. He decided to start releasing his own music with the assistance of a few friends.

The list of albums produced by this crew is really astounding. They count Sole’s own Bottle of Humans, the first Sage Francis full length and a few discs by multi instrumentalist Dosh. This last fellow doesn’t necessarily fit into the definition of hip hop, IDM or rock. It’s just good creative music. And that’s really what Anticon traffics in.

They’ve even begun to branch out into re-releases with Darc Minds’ near perfect Symptomatic of a Greater Ill.

Anticon and its affiliated crew haven’t yet reached the masses in the way that Atmosphere has. But the super group, if that term is applicable here, Subtle has become something of a media darling – in the underground at least. That hasn’t translated into a much expanded vision of Anticon as of yet, but only the future knows what’s in store for these transplanted east coasters. At least Oakland seems more promising than Maine or Ohio.

The Smoking Section just had its seven millionth page view. It probably has to do with the wide ranging and in depth coverage of anything and everything hip hop related.

And you know what else is hip hop related? Getting high. There’s really no way to get around that one at all. And if that’s something that you find near and dear to your heart, then just wait until tomorrow for the second installment of Mythblazers.

What’s Mythblazers, you might ask? Well, friends rapper Curren$y hosts a web based show about how to get high under difficult circumstances. There’s been a time, when you’ve been ready to smoke, but are left without any normal means to do so.

And in the first episode, knives are heated on a stove and after they’ve reached a great temperature, weed was placed between them. It was able to get the guinea pig coughing enough that he had to excuse himself to go to the bathroom. I guess that means it worked.

In another segment, a taste test with weed, parsley, sticks and stems were sampled to see if they were all appropriate to smoke – you can already guess the answers.

Mythblazers is kinda like watching your friends do ridiculous stuff – its Jackass without the injuries. And that’s why it’s good television. But just wait for tomorrow to find out what other inebriated stunts will be perpetrated. If you can’t wait that long though, Episode One is still online. It’s only about ten minutes long, but you won’t be sorry you stole those ten minutes from your employer.

I’m sure, by this late date, that Kool Keith is extremely tired of being referred to as crazy or weird. He’s worked on a ridiculously long list of albums under an even longer list of aliases. Most recently, he came back at listeners with another Dr. Doom record. But he keeps on giving folks reason to talk – as if Black Elvis wasn’t enough.

Now, it seems as if Keith has assembled a super group. Ur Girls Favorite Band consists of Kool Keith, his long time collaborator, Kut Masta Kurt, Denis Deft, John Drummy and Yeti Beats. The groups Myspace page has a few tracks up and I don’t believe that anyone could have guessed the Keith would be involved with music like this.

It sounds more rock oriented than hip hop, but if Keith didn’t make people keep guessin’, than he wouldn’t be Keith.

There’s not too much information about the group at this point. Yeti Beats does have a website, replete with some great music videos – and some videos that really only have to do with Keith’s love of women. Either way, it’s pretty amusing. And if what’s just been described sounds like the Gorillaz, or other rap/rock hybrids, that makes sense. But sonically, none of those are really good touchstones for this project.

In the end, it seems that Kool Keith is willing to work in any medium as long as he finds it entertaining. There is always a bit of humor in his work, much like Del. But since listeners are working with a lonely pair of songs at this point, Ur Girls Favorite Band could wind up being just that.

One of my favorite rap discs from the ‘90s is the self titled Haiku d’Etat release. That group, and their lone disc, sported Abstract Rude, Mikah 9 and Aceyalone. Notably, the later two were at one time a part of the all too short lived Freestyle Fellowship, whose lone proper album released in the early ‘90s is still name checked if anyone talks about underground hip hop long enough. As a whole it’s not quite to the level of 36 Chambers or Illmatic, but some of the raps come pretty close.

Mikah 9, though has changed his name to the eerily similar Myka Nyne. That probably doesn’t demarcate some deviation in style – it just has some the letter ‘y’ in it now – that’s all.

What listeners have come to expect from Project Blowed affiliated folks – Myka Nyne being one of them – is a literate and at least passably socially conscience type of rap. Myka will not begin to disappoint here.

The new disc, entitled 1969 is slated to come out January 13^th on Fake Four.

And for a preview from the disc, check out the label’s website for streaming mp3s (including the Busdriver track, which is pretty crazy). The site also clarifies who else will be appearing on the disc.

That answer is almost guaranteed to ensure the quality of the recording – Aceylone, Busdriver and Awol One are all accounted for. That list doesn’t seem odd considering that Myka Nyne has worked with most of these folks before. But that doesn’t make clear whether or not these new tracks are going to compare to The Weather – released with Busdriver and Daedelus – or Myka Nyne’s appearance on Vocal Studies + Uprock Narratives. But if 1969 comes close to any disc mentioned here, it’ll be sure to end up in the every growing canon of hip hop records.

Tracklisting:
01. Real Song
02. Inner Knowing
03. Soul Beat
04. Snake Bite
05. To the Sky
06. Options (feat. Aceyalone)
07. Cadillac Nights
08. Chopper (feat. Busdriver)
09. Elevated
10. Liberty
11. Hand Bone
12. Monte Carlo
13. Good Old Smokey (My Kanine)
14. 91 Octane (feat. Awol One & Gel Roc)
15. 1969

Apart from a few mix tapes, Grandmaster Flash has been notably silent since the 1988 On the Strength. And considering the public’s new found penchant for reissues and tours from reconstituted groups, it’s a surprise we haven’t heard more from the Grandmaster.

It the mid ‘70s, Flash, while deejaying disco clubs, created the language the turntablists speak today. It would be a few years until he and Melle Mel joined forces in the Furious Five and released a disc – being beaten by Rapper’s Delight to the market place. But Flash’s innovations on the decks speak to musicians even today.

The ‘80s weren’t too receptive to the Furious Five’s old school approach and as new techniques were introduced to the rap game, Flash seemed to be left behind. Subsequently, though, the lore surrounding him has grown and now we await a new disc from the Grandmaster Flash.

It won’t be a strictly deejay affair, the disc boasts a laundry list of rappers including the likes of Q-Tip, Big Daddy Kane, Snoop Dogg, KRS One and others.

He’ll be in Dubai for New Year’s (which I would imagine is going to yield a crazy paycheck), but there’s time prior to the release of The Bridge: Concept of a Culture to come on back and set up some dates. The disc is scheduled for a March release jointly on Adrenaline City Entertainment and Strut Records.

There haven’t been any tracks released as of yet, so listeners are going to have to wait to hear if he continues in on old school tradition or has incorporated newer sounds into his repertoire.

Tracklisting:
01. “Welcome”
02. “Shine All Day” (feat. Q-Tip, Jumz & Kel Spencer)
03. “We Speak Hip Hop” (feat. KRS-One, Afasi, Kase-O, Maccho & Abass)
04. “Here Comes My DJ” (feat. DJ Kool & DJ Demo)
05. “Bounce Back” (feat. Busta Rhymes)
06. “Swagger” (feat. Red Café, Snoop Dogg & Lynn Carter)
07. “What If” (feat. KRS-One)
08. “Unanswered (Interlude)”
09. “Tribute To The Breakdancer” (feat. MC Supernatural)
10. “Grown & Sexy” (feat. Mr. Cheeks)
11. “When I Get There” (feat. Big Daddy Kane & Hedonis Da Amazon)
12. “Connection (Interlude)”
13. “I Got Sumthin’ To Say” (feat. Lordikim, J-Flo & Almighty Thor)
14. “Can I Take You Higher” (feat. Mr. Cheeks, Grandmaster Caz & Tito)
15. “Unpredictable” (feat. Syndee & Big Daddy Kane)
16. “Those Chix” (feat. Byata, Princess Superstar & Hedonis Da Amazon)
17. “Bronx Bombers” (feat. Lordikim, Almighty Thor & Mann Child)
18. “Zuka The Sound (Interlude)”

If not for Gil Scott-Heron and the Last Poets (of course) hip hop would look drastically different than it does today. Rap might utilize totally different source samples. It might not have the same potential ability to affect politics and society. It might just be totally different. Without The Revolution Won’t Be Televised and the rest of Scott-Heron’s catalog, the course of American music might be drastically changed. It’s just not something that one would really want to consider seriously.

Scott-Heron has always been a voice to be heard over the din, but recently that voice was quieted with the news of his father’s death. Gil Heron was 86.

Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Heron would eventually live in a multitude of disparate locales from Canada to Scotland. These moves were frequently made without his wife , they were divorced, or son.

In 1946 Heron began playing professional soccer in the US, but soon his talents were spotted by the Celtic football club out of Scotland. He made the move Europe alone. But when he arrived he found that he was in the middle of becoming the first black player in the league and thusly was dubbed the “Black Arrow”. Could this have affected Gil Scott-Heron’s outlook on race? Perhaps it did. But did it spur him on to become a politically minded performer. It’s likely.

After his athletic career had passed him, Herron turned to embrace his artistic side by immersing himself in photography – a form of expression that his son could certainly relate to.

It’s really become difficult to keep track of all the Hieroglyphics related releases. Still my favorite thus far is Casual’s 1994 release Fear Itself. The production is on par with any Tribe Called Quest or even some funky Ice Cube tracks.

In the intervening fourteen years since that album was released, everyone from the Hiero crew has been more than busy. Del tha Funky Homosapien has created the largest public persona, but Souls of Mischief come a damn close second. And if nothing else ’93 till Infinity has really only grown in critical appreciation.

The Souls of Mischief’s mixture of jazz samples and west coast lyricism sat them at a crucial crossroads while g-funk, NYC realism and DAISY Age fought it out in sales, this quartet appealed to all corners of the hip hop community.

Comprised of A-Plus, Phesto, Opio and Tajai, the group last released a disc in 2000. And while there have been subsequent releases by individual members, the new track “Tour Stories,” posted on their Myspace page marks an end to a drought of group releases.

Along with that single track, Souls of Mischief has released a zip of mp3 files to mark their “Ice Cold” tour. You can find a link to it here.

Part of the cause for touring is the impending release of Opio’s newest disc, Vulture’s Wisdom Vol. 2. Hopefully the crew is coming to your part of the world, but if their not, you might have to make due with buying that new disc and copping that zip of songs.

Tour Dates:
1/08: The Underground, Reno, NV
1/09: Whiskey Dick’s, Lake Tahoe, CA
1/12: Domino Room, Bend, OR
1/13: Berbati’s Pan, Portland, OR
1/14: Nectar Lounge, Seattle, WA
1/15: The Blvd, Spokane, WA
1/16: Zebra Cocktail Lounge, Bozeman, MT
1/17: The Badlander, Missoula, MT
1/18: Urban Lounge, Salt Lake City, UT
1/20: Sandbar, Vail, CO
1/21: Three20South, Breckenridge, CO
1/22: Fox Theater, Boulder, CO
1/23: Cervantes, Denver, CO