Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Sounds Like The 90's (Volume 10)

Last month we were a little late with this so it's only right we make up the difference by dropping this early. Volume 10 is full of heat rocks and should appeal to just about every kind of hip-hop fan out there. We got some new joints by Dynas, Baby Blak, Skyzoo, Ghostface, Masta Killa & Big Boi. Recently I discovered Fresh Daily and was taken back by his album that I had to lace ya'll twice!

And if you forgot what its like to hear an emcee blackout make sure you listen to Ali's "Best@it." We appreciate feedback, good or bad so be sure to let us know what you love, hate or would like to hear on upcoming volumes.

And remember we're always looking for gems to lace these compilations so be sure to email us heat @ blog.philaflava@gmail.com. And for coverage on current hip-hop make sure to visit our sister blog Steady Bloggin. Enjoy! --Philaflava

Sounds Like The 90's (Volume 10)

1. Fresh Daily - Supaspectacular!
2. Bro Ali - Best@it feat. Freeway & Joell Ortiz
3. Sha Stimuli - Move Back feat. Freeway & Young Chris (prod. Just Blaze)
4. Dynas - The Future feat. DJ Jazzy Jeff
5. Baby Blak - Evolution (prod. L.G.)*
6. De La Soul - La La La
7. Fresh Daily - Video Gaming
8. Skyzoo - Return of The Real (prod. Just Blaze)
9. Raekwon - Surgical Gloves (prod. Alchemist)
10. Boycott Blues - Da Math feat. Consequence & Insight
11. O.C. & A.G. - Think About It
12. Masta Killa - Things Just Ain't The Same
13. Dynas - Family Jewels feat. Slick Rick*
14. KRS-One & Buckshot - Oh Really? feat. Talib Kweli (prod. Marco Polo)
15. Ghostface Killah - Guest House feat. Fabolous
16. Big Boi - Fo Yo Sorrows feat. Too $hort & George Clinton

*T.R.O.Y Exclusive


Catch up an all 10 volumes
here.

Props to Strategy for assisting in the tagging of all these tracks and of course Kalel. The man who has been the mastermind behind all these dope album covers for the past 10 months.

Unfortunately, Volume 10 will be the last for Kalel. He's blowin' up, making moves and leaving us for bigger and better things. We wish him the best and want to thank him for everything he's done for T.R.O.Y.

Big Twan - The Best of Big Twan

Here is the second collabo between The T.R.O.Y. Blog and BigLOnline and we'll continue bringing heat as long as you allow us to. This compilation showcases the talents of Big Twan, who many remember off of Big L's "8 Iz Enuff" track. Twan went on to do a lot of work with Big Kwam (no relation) and put out several singles on the UK label Blind Side Recordings. We've hand picked 16 tracks and Big Twan was nice enough to give 4 himself to help create the Best of Big Twan. Enjoy! --Philaflava

The T.R.O.Y. Blog & BigLOnline Presents..
Big Twan: The Best of Big Twan.

01. Above Da Law ft. Agallah, Labba, Sean Price & Starang Wondah
02. My Mic
03. The Hellgate Rebel ft. Big Kwam
04. The Reunion ft. Big Kwam
05. One Time 4 the Lyricist
06. Tom Hewitt Freestyle
07. The Pavlik
08. Focus
09. The Reunion ft. Big Kwam (Vinyl Reanimators Remix)
10. The Hellgate Rebel ft. Big Kwam (A capella)
11. My Mic (Instrumental)
12. The Hellgate Rebel (Instrumental)
13. The Reunion (Instrumental)
14. One Time 4 the Lyricist (Instrumental)
15. The Reunion (Vinyl Reanimators Remix Instrumental)
16. DJ Eddie Ill & DL Ayatollah Freestyle ft. FT, Hafeese, Labba & Matt Fingaz
17. Get It In Freestyle
18. Strate Razor
19. Above the Law (Instrumental)
20. ’96 Stretch Armstrong & Bobbito Freestyle

Download

Tracks 06, 07, 08, 17 and 18 are exclusives given to BigLOnline by Twan himself.

Bonus:

Big L – 8 Iz Enuff (Demo Version) ft. Terra, Herb McGruff, Buddah Bless, Big Twan, Killa Kam, Trooper J & Mike Boogie (Produced by Buckwild) Download


Monday, September 28, 2009

The 90's Bay Area Obsession

The 90's Bay Area Obsession

I can remember it just like yesterday, my bedroom was draped in red and gold to match my Joe Montana poster that my mother had got framed for me to go with the room. She was good like that, always made sure her son always had coordination game on lock. It's probably one of the reasons I'm real finicky today about matching colors. Life was good back then, the Oakland A's were fresh off a World Series sweep against their cross-town rivals, the San Francisco Giants. My childhood idol Rickey Henderson was setting himself up for a career year, in which he later won his first and only MVP award.

At the time the biggest selling hip-hop album "Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em" was dominating the airwaves and officially put Oakland on the hip-hop map. Despite years of hustling by Todd Shaw, it wasn't until Hammer's success that Oakland started receiving national attention. I suppose selling 10 million records will do to a town. If you ask me every Bay Area rapper owes a debt of gratitude to MC Hammer.

At twelve you're still very impressionable and I remember trying to memorize every lyric in D. U.'s Sex Packets album while listening in my bedroom. My room was filled with stacks of Playboys that were given to me by Hector, a 40-something Puerto Rican guy who used to do maintenance work in my apartment complex. Come to think of it, it's disgusting to think that I even touched those magazines after Hector had his way with them. God bless Hector though, he always laced me with some of his KFC when he couldn't finish it. Kinda disgusting to think about that too.

Even though I was obsessed with Playboy magazines back then, I still refused to grow up completely because I was still collecting baseball cards. Back then David Justice and Frank Thomas rookies (both former A's players) were the most sought after cards and I remember starving myself at lunch just so I could use that money to cop packs of '90 Leaf.

Little did I realize most of these things were Bay Area related. Subconsciously I was forming a marriage with apart of California in which I've never visited growing up. As the years went on I noticed some of my favorite music came the Bay Area. You had Spice 1, Too $hort, The Coup, Mac Mall, JT The Bigga Figga, Ray Luv, Andre Nickatina, Dru Down, Mac Dre, Young Lay, Rappin' 4-Tay, Celly Cell, The Luniz, E-40, Digital Underground and 2Pac just to name a few.

The production was also phenomenal because you had Ant Banks, Studio Ton, Mike Mosely, Sam Bostic and the forever underrated Khayree.

Below are some of my favorite tracks for this era. What are some of your favorite Bay Area artists? Albums? --Philaflava















Saturday, September 26, 2009

DJ Premier: Roc Raida Tribute

Last night DJ Premier did what he does best, set shit off on his Live From HeadQCourterz Sirus satellite radio show. Rest in piece Raida.

Download

Courtesy of the DJ Premier Blog.

Friday, September 25, 2009

Help A Blogger Out: 1997 Roc Marciano EP

The last one of these I did, didn't yield much help at all. But I will continue to bother you because I trust in your never ending reservoir of hip hop knowledge.

This started out over a year ago, with me looking like an idiot in trying to describe this song in a request thread.
All I could remember was sampled singing that went,"yah, yah, yah-yahhh", and a few random lines. I deduced that the name of the artist was Black Prophet and the song title was Extra Mile, and I was pretty wrong.
It was played on Bobbito a few times and so was a remix.

Well, almost a year ago, I found an old CD that had a bunch of random tracks from various radio shows on it.
I was in luck, but not 100%. I found what I always thought of as the remix to this song I was looking for.

Check it out, it's ill:
"The Prophecy" Mix #2?

Okay, so now I post this mix in the requests, hoping it will help someone out there to recognize what I was looking for. Sure enough, within the day, a T.R.O.Y. poster and fellow former Stretch and Bobbito follower named mathematik, came through lovely.
He ripped the song with the "yah, yah, yah yahhh" sample in it straight from tape.
And he made a strong guess, that we all wound up agreeing on, that this was a young Roc Marciano from the UN.
The sound quality isn't great, but it's enough for you to recognize it if you heard it before.

Check it:
"The Prophecy" Mix #1?

Well, now we still had to confirm who it was and what exactly it was from. Being that Bobbito had played it in regular rotation, not in a "Demo Corner" type block, I guessed this had to be a vinyl. And there was two mixes so it was doubtful that this was a demo.
I decided to send these songs to Alkuttraz, from Crates Of AG, because of his deep knowledge on mid 90's obscure vinyl. Sure enough he sends me back the answer I wanted:

Alkuttraz said-
"this is rocky marciano. it's an ep from '97 called noose productions volume 1. hella dope record.
side a is marciano and ox as 'kuku productions'. track is called 'the prophecy' and has 3 different mixes."

Awesome. Great. Done. Now the vinyl has to pop up on one of those uber rare VLS blogs, right?
Nope.
But this week we got a little treat. New T.R.O.Y. forum poster, Sebastion Shaw, posted the third mix of this song which is another banger!
Props also to philosophic and bosmann for putting in work to get the quality better sounding on this one.

Peep it:
"The Prophecy" Mix #3?


And please keep your eyes open for this:
12" Vinyl Title - Noose Productions EP
Artists - Marciano and Ox as Kuku Productions
Tracks - "The Prophecy" 3 mixes
Year - 1997

Thanks to mathematik, Quotashun, alkuttraz, Sebastion Shaw, philosophic, and bosmann.
Also thanks to aReal for almost finding a rip of the vinyl. But it was actually a kid who just took all the rips from T.R.O.Y. and posted them on youtube.

And also check the hyperlinks on the peoples' names here. Most of them have good blogs that you might want to visit. And since summer is officially over, enjoy this unbelievably ill Roc Marcy cut, "Snow".

--Verge

KRS-ONE: Def Jam destroyed Hip-Hop

I don't know about you, but I can listen to Kris babble forever. "Forever and ever, and ever and ever." This man has completely lost it and I don't even know if he buys his own shit but I'd be lying if I said he wasn't entertaining. --Philaflava



Shoots to HoodTV

Yo Dre, Stick to Producin'

Dre has a ghost lyricist. GASP! its true! but no one cares, because everyone knows.

Dre has ghost producers. GASP! its true! but, again, no one cares, but because we secretly do not want to believe.

Yes, although it is known that Dre has a whole slew of producers in his Batcave vomiting beat after beat while get drunk offa that Aftermath Fame, it isn't as well known just to what extent does he have to depend on these stilts to walk his walk.

Let's do this chronic-logically.


The starting point to Dre's career was this electro-rap group formed by a club owner to be a mobile DJ Crew. Even from conception, this group wasn't supposed to be a Dre product, but some people might think that, so in all fairness, let's just say it now. IT WAS NOT A DRE PRODUCED GROUP. The club owner was Lonzo Williams, and his name appears in the production of many of the groups singles. But, we will see Andre Young's credit appear quite a few times throughout the crew's discography with this: "Written-by, Drum Programming [Dmx]". Little side note, the Dre-rapped single "Cabbage Patch" would be when Cube would start his ghostwriting career for Dre.

This era's verdict: Dre probably spent more time learning about machines and beat making than women and love making.

http://www.westcoastpioneers.com/uploads/pics/picture_world_class_wreckin_cru_dr_dre_yella_clintel_pomotion_01.jpg
World Class Wreckin Cru

This one is harder to believe because not too many people have any faith in DJ Yella. Is it his pornstar moustache? We know that D.O.C. was in there ghostwriting, so maybe there was someone else ghostproducing? Mike Lezan, better known as the Arabian Prince was the producer for JJ Fad's biggest single "Supersonic", plus his electro sounds pretty much match the sound of most of NWA and the Posse's first album.

But judging by the electric bass heavy sounds of "A Bitch is a Bitch", I think Dre must have been moving away from that into what would sound more like "Express Yourself". Into the world of funk and soul samples. And, thus into recreating samples. And thus, into using musicians. You might remember Stan the Guitar Man. On Eazy's "Radio" he asks "I play guitar on this record, when am I gonna get paid motherfuk*". This is definitely the moment where Dre starts to rely on musicians to help out. Yella's drums are a constant during these years. And we still shouldn't count out Yella in the production background, as "Alwayz Into Something", "Express Yourself", "Dopeman", "Boz in the Hood" all have his name in the production credits. I would love to stretch out Yella's actual influence into Dre's game, but the only common denominator between their sounds post-NWA is that same G-Funk found over every single west coast record during the late 90's, sounds that NWA actually didn't ever really live off of.

The only other producer that was around in that era was Cold187um (who we will get to within the next 3 seconds of your life).

This era's verdict: Dre was nice enough to put "co-produced by Yella" so he wouldn't cry.

http://www.stonesthrow.com/images/arabian/jerrynwa.jpg
Arabian Prince, Heller, Eazy, Dre, Yella

Cold 187um, aka Big Hutch, from Above the Law, had a song with Kokane called "Don't Bite the Phunk" where he clearly disses Dre from stealing his G Funk sound that he exploits the shit out of on The Chronic. Being a big "Black Mafia Life" fan, I can attest to the fact that it's true that Hutch was using the same sounds before Dre was, but I have to admit that Dre has his own twist to it. He has cleaner key's and instrumentation in general. He is also working with quite a few people in production now. Soopafly. Sam Sneed. Daz. Warren G.

There are countless interviews where Daz claims that Dre jacked his music, including "All my Niggaz and Bitches" from Doggystyle. But in other interviews, Daz has expressed how much he learned from Dre during the making of Chronic and DoggyStyle.

Warren G only started getting production credits after Dre was gone from the label.

Soopalfy mostly grew in this era into becoming a producer after this album, but his instruments were in quite a few Deathrow records.

Sam Sneed also came after the Chronic lit the whole west coast on fire. He co-produced "Keep Your Heads Ringing" and "Natural Born Killaz".

This era's verdict: Dre had a lot of keen weed carriers that would later learn how to produce.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBOtzQzT8l373C-a74s-Tdy4lvdwbGGUpoAJ-gQTr8N1pjws0EeJFJa85bLoBs7rAIKpyIoFnLpfg5wsCHawR4QfMdw7Dp3AWXoDFbAfsfegSYdTTb6twkZL6jV5Tpz6ar8A3fGQmJXkAV/
Deathrow Dre

Now it's no longer fair to judge Dre as a producer, because he no longer is that! He is now a record label CEO. Sure he is his own hottest commodity, but he can afford to walk around pointing good things out and pfff'ing bad things. He can afford to have a producer roster on his label. The roster includes Denaun Porter (hiphop production's most boring name), DJ Khalil, Mel-Man, Mike Elizondo, Hi-Tek, Mark Batson, Che Vicious and probably a good 20 more that are in charge of bringing hot coffee and turning the studio lights off at night. The only problem this time around with Dre is that he 's basically signing his name on everything, even though even the simplest minds can tell that it ISN'T a Dre beat. We kind of proved how Dre was very "influenced" by Mel-Man's production on Chronic 2001 with a comparison of Mel's solo work with Dre's second solo album.

But he has only had one album since 1999, so checking each individual production he has done for Eminem, 50, Busta, Rae, etc. is basically just looking into each individual song credit role and checking for all the instrumentation and realizing that Dre has become more of a symphony orhecstrator than a "beatmaker".

One example: Busta Ryhmes "How We Do It Over Here". Produced by Dr.Dre, Keyboards - Che Vicious. So, is this a classic example of Dre glossing over and putting finishing touches over Che's work?

Another example: Eminem "Hello". Produed by Dr.Dre. Produced by Mark Batson. Yup. The credits say both.

This era's verdict: Dre's getting by with ALOT of help from his friends.

http://hiphoplives.today.com/files/2008/10/batson-2.jpg
Dre, Che, Batson
The next era's future prediction: None. It will never exist. Instead, Dre will get into furniture design. He will be the first to own a theater with each individual seat with subwoofers under the seats and tweeters in the head rests.

______________________________________________

What's the bottom line though? Alot of people hate on Dre gratuitously supposing that he just depends on his co-producers like stilts to walk his walk. Including me. But after delving deep into his credits... I gotta admit that not only did he do alot by himself, he also gave opportunities to a lot of talented cats who would almost all AFTER become legends in their own niches. But before Dre, most were beatmakers. Dre taught them how to become producers.

And thats another important point completely. Only in hiphop do we expect every simple sample-over-beat-beatmaker to be a producer and vice versa. In every other music genre, the writers bring their music to a professional who details it all to its maximum capacity and thus carries that title "PRODUCER", distinguishing himself from the other "songwriters".

-- Cenzi Stiles

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Pretty Tone Capone - Dismissed (CD Single) 1992


"And niggaz lost it when they heard 'Kick that Gangsta Shit" Cam'Ron

Here we have a rare cd single from Pretty Tone Capone of Mobstyle(Azie, Whimp Whop, Gangsta Luke) released in 1992. The two titled tracks are Case Dismissed and Kidnapped. There's a hidden track at the end, Gangster Shit Pt.2. Enjoy!

1 Case Dismissed (4:16)
2 Case Dismissed (Radio Version) (4:16)
3 Kidnapped (3:25)
4 Kidnapped (Radio Version) (3:25)
5 Gangster Shit, Pt. 2 (6:11)

Download

-- Thomas V

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Four Great Phife Dawg (Of A Tribe Called Quest) Cameos

Phife is typically ignored during discussions of great emcees, which is a shame because his presence certainly enlivened many of A Tribe Called Quest's greatest songs. Q-Tip's distinctive voice and romanticist poetics were certainly a draw for many fans, but Phife's slightly more aggressive and yet affable delivery added an extra dimension to Tribe's very laid back approach. Try imagining a Tribe record without Phife's vocals and you're left with the rap equivalent of smooth jazz. Let's take a moment to honor the funkiest diabetic not named Ghostface with some examples of rhyming excellence:

Fu-Shnickens "La Schmoove" - Chip-Fu had the acrobatic flow but Phife steals the show on this with one of the catchiest, most memorable cameo verses ever.



Chi-Ali "Let The Horns Blow"
- Dres, Fashion, and Trugoy all come dope, and Phife matches their ferocity. No need to listen to Chi's lackluster verse.



De La Soul "Sh.Fe.Mcs"
- Phife holds his own alongside his Native Tongue brethren.




Diamond D "Painz And Strife"
- Diamond is engaging as always but Phife's kinetic delivery on his brief verse is both technically impressive and enjoyable.


--Thun

Video: Davey D sits down with Posdnous (De La Soul)




It's always good to hear from Plug Wonder Why. 20 years in the game and still making music. You think Joe Budden or Trae will be able to claim that? Pshhhaw.

Props to the immortal http://www.daveyd.com/ for the video!

From D.A.I.S.Y. To Da Mad Face (De La Soul & Onyx)


Pure plug ... bliss?

In 1991, De La Soul cut themselves free from their paisley shirts, peace medallions, and cuddly day-glo aesthetic. Trugoy even chopped off all but a few of his trademark dreadlocks, looking nearly like a stranger in the "Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey Hey)" video. While seemingly unimportant, this change in hair parallels a genre-wide shift towards more aggressive posturing, best exemplified by Queens-based group Onyx. I'll get to that later.

De La's early "D.A.I.S.Y." image, whimsical haircuts included, represents a knowing departure from the uninspired dookie gold chain pageantry of the mid-'80s. Indistinct Kangol-clad crotch-grabbers blathering over James Brown breaks were the tired norm. De La's early music intentionally reflects the contrariness of their fashion choices and vice versa. Under Prince Paul's eccentric tutelage, they worked against the grain in a manner that was not always well-received by critics and fans accustomed to more blustery rap styles. If the lyrics to "Pease Porridge" are to be believed, than De La's outward appearance inspired taunts that ballooned into altercations with local hard rocks while on tour.

Even if we choose to ignore two years of concert scuffles, the riskiness of De La's aesthetic choices cannot be overstated. Three Feet High and Rising's marriage of cryptic rhymes, oddball deliveries, bizarre skits, left-field samples, and a comportment devoid of chest-puffing bravado was a huge deal in '89. Late '80s icons like Public Enemy, Boogie Down Productions, and Eric B. and Rakim are universally hailed as innovators, but their swagger was decidedly more masculine. Even the highly idiosyncratic spaciness of the Ultramagnetic MCs packed more of an obvious punch.

This is not to say that De La were without precedent or peer. They clearly owe a great debt to the Jungle Brothers, Stetsasonic, and to a lesser extent, EPMD, for popularizing a more laid-back, funkier, but still decidedly East Coast approach to rhyming. Contemporaries like Kwame, UBC, and a few others came off in a similarly left-of-center fashion. But De La had far greater crossover appeal than any of these groups, and they climbed the charts even as they bemoaned the way that record execs and fans pigeonholed them as neo-hippies on their P-Funk sampling hit single "Me, Myself, & I." The sonic and visual eclecticism of the D.A.I.S.Y. predictably invited scrutiny both positive and negative.

De La's exuberance was surely influenced by a late '70s and early '80s hip hop culture, whose flamboyance and earnest goofiness was quickly supplanted by a Run DMC-helmed return to the streets. Just-Ice, Big Daddy Kane, T-La Rock, Ice-T, Schooly D or LL Cool J were probably in rotation in De La walkmans, but if we are to take Posdnous' verses on "Ego Trippin' Part III" as the gospel truth, those artists must have taken a back seat to the Treacherous Three, Fearless Four, and of course the pop ditty interpolating Cold Crush Brothers. This healthy respect for the garish weirdos of the musical past complemented their obsession with moving things forward. The abandonment of the played-out relics of the immediate past ushered in a future of free-flow and pastiche, where the slavish devotion to insistent repetition was bolstered by a cumulative development.

De La's joie d'vivre was not burdened by naivete, and they knew when to call it quits on the flowers. The embrace of their sound and image, first by college radio and then by the mainstream media, led to a parade of imitators, mostly inferior. The few disciples who managed to craft respectable albums like KMD, The Future Sound, and The UMCs either languished in relative obscurity or found themselves caught up in a sea change from day-glo to Carhartt when 1993 rolled around.

Which bring us of course to Onyx. The Queens based crew were heavily influenced by the Native Tongue sound, but increasingly gravitated towards the grimier (and balder) side of things after hooking up with Jam Master Jay. Their ascension to the forefront of hip hop was enormously influential and put the nail in the coffin for all things colorful and cheery for many years. Mix shows once inundated with BDK, Rakim, and De La clones would soon be overrun by raspy voiced gunslingers and elaborate haircuts and parts quickly became passe, suggesting that hip hop in the 90s can be explained as a series of rapid reactions against the last style to be appropriated. For better or for worse, '93 saw Onyx snatching wallets on record, proudly proclaiming "No, this ain't El Segundo ... just the four bad brothers from the ghetto" a far cry from the frivolity of their first, jazzy Tribe meets Southern Drawl-ish single "Ah And We Do It Like This." And the beat went on.




-- Thun

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Recap - Late September


Wake up, Rip Van Winkle. We've been busy the past couple of weeks, too. Here are the highlights:

Chicago Vs Detroit (1993-1995)


Chicago vs Detroit, 1993-1995. This compilation is some slammin boom bap shit. I'd try to name favorite tracks but I like them all. For you midwest collectors, check out T. Green. I believe this is another one of K-Stone's projects. I hope everyone digs this, I have been playing it repeatedly for days now.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=32C4O5AJ

01 (4:32) B-Def - Kickin' Up Dust (Detroit 1995)
02 (3:59) Pscylone - It Should Be Known (Chicago 1995)
03 (4:05) M.F. 911 - Prodigy (Detroit 1993)
04 (4:05) Da Nayborhoodz - Makin' Moves (Chicago 1995)
05 (5:34) Detroit City Mob - Where I'm From (1995)
06 (4:10) MC Breed - The Deal Is Da Funk (Detroit 1994)
07 (4:14) T. Green - Who Is It ? (Detroit 1995)
08 (3:41) Figure Uv Speech - Check It Out (Chicago 1993)
09 (3:34) Awol - Detroit 4 Life 1994
10 (1:49) 2 Sins - A Piece Of My Mind 1995
11 (3:55) E.c. & Rubberoom - Taste Of Chicago 1995
12 (4:17) Tha Chamba - Hood Thang (Chicago 1995)
13 (5:20) Mountain Climbaz - It's Over (Detroit 1994)
14 (2:57) Stranga - When I Zone Out (Detroit 199x)
15 (3:50) East Of The Rock - Galaxy Rays (Chicago 1993)
16 (3:31) Whatnoxic - Fly Urban Scenery (Chicago 1995)
17 (5:04) Vakill - Check Me Out (Chicago 1995)


Please leave some comments, let me know what you think!

--Schenectadyfan

Monday, September 21, 2009

J-Zone's "Ign'ant" Mixtape Series




J-Zone has always been one of NYC hip-hop's most under-appreciated musicians. The man came onto the scene in the late 90's, carving a niche all his own which was defined through his sharp wit and undeniable talent for creating unassuming and completely original rap music. Never making commercial concessions, J-Zone albums have always been unabashedly ignorant, extremely hilarious, and impeccably produced. These qualities are what initially distinguished Zone from the flotsam and jetsam clogging up the New York underground, and have continued to distinguish him for a decade.

Over the past ten or so years, Zone has also proven to be extremely prolific. In addition to dropping five traditional "beats & rhymes" solo records, he's released an instrumental concept soundtrack for a fake movie, three remix projects, a duo album with Celph Titled, seven instrumental compilations, and most recently, a concept record themed around the St. Ides malt liquor radio ads from the early nineties. That's not even touching his impressive production clientele, which includes Biz Markie, Tame One, Akinyele, and MF Grimm.

As stated above, Zone has always shown a penchant for the ignorant, illustrated through songs like "Ho Kung Fu!" and "Jailbait Jennifer." According to Zone himself, the influence came from a variety of places:








"I grew up on Black Comedy albums. Rudy Ray Moore, Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, LaWanda Page, Blowfly, Redd Foxx. My family had all that shit and I used to make tapes of 'em and play em in school for my friends. That foul, funny and low budget element of those records was very prevalent in a lot of Southern and West Coast rap and I loved it. All the Rap-A-Lot shit, 2 Live Crew, Bustdown, Poison Clan, NWA, JCD & The Dawg Lb....Those records were like hip hop versions of those comedy albums. But I also was a fan of New York stuff because I was a funk fan and record collector and the samples drew me in. So when I created my sound it was like a lighter version of the subject matter and vibe of the ignorant shit and the offbeat sampling of the classic NY shit." - J-Zone, 2007


In 2003, J-Zone decided to pay homage to those records and dropped the first volume of his "Ign'ant" mix series, with volume two released a year later. Nearly sixty combined tracks of the most unapologetic and completely misogynistic, violent, and just plain offensive rap music known to man. A pre-No Limit Master P, Poison Clan, and Willie D all make appearances alongside lesser-known regional talents like Ron C, X-Raided, and Disco Rick & The Dogs. Trust, if C. Delores Tucker had heard these mixes she probably would have dropped dead instantly. The first volume (released through the Black Jesus World imprint) has been out of print for a few years now, so good luck finding a physical copy. As far as the second volume is concerned, I've never seen it for sale, either online or in stores, so I would assume that it's either a tour exclusive or a bonus disc for one of Zone's solo efforts.

In conclusion, if you're looking to clear out a party, offend your neighbors, or are just plain having a bad day look no further than these two mixes. Trust me, the music more than speaks for itself; it straight knocks. Burn these two mixes for play in the Protege and become a connoisseur of the ign'ant.





















- Echo Leader

Saturday, September 19, 2009

R.I.P. Roc Raida

No word on what happened but it was confirmed by Busta Rhymes, who Raida used to DJ for.

Busta announced the unexpected news via his Twitter account Saturday afternoon.
"I am sorry 2 say that on this day at 2:05 Sept 19th we lost another incredible life...Dj Roc Raida died 2day my personal Dj is gone... I just wanna thank everyone 4 ur love and support and ur prayers...We will never let ur name die Roc...We love u and will 4ever miss u...RIP." (Busta Rhymes' Twitter)

Raida was reportedly checked into a hospital earlier this month after becoming the victim of a car accident.

Rest in peace to one of the best to ever do it. --Philaflava

Friday, September 18, 2009

Freestyle Professors in 2009

You may know of these cats from their 1994 single, "Lil Sum Em Sum Em", under the name Geo & Ricochet. At least that's the one that I remember hearing on college radio and then on vinyl. Or you might have first heard them all together on "Get Wise" also in 1994. You can check for their unreleased album and other mixtapes here.

Well, lo and behold, 15 years later and they're dropping an album featuring production from Diamond D, Show, Buckwild, Lord Finesse and Minnesota. To be fair, they only do a beat each while the rest of the production is handled by crew member, Branesparker, and one by J-Superia. The beats are grimy. Dirty drum breaks chopped up, simple head nodding samples. They definitely have that mid 90's "heavy" Bronx sound down pat.

We can't give you a download to the entire album because that would just be wrong. It drops October 1st and is being sold at a normal price. Not on some "limited", your kids will have to go hungry this week, prices. Here's a few tracks off of "Gryme Tyme" to let you know what you have to look forward to:[click on title to preview]

Think About It (produced by Diamond D)

Time Flies (produced by Minnesota)

The Lord's Prayer (produced by Buckwild)

We Comin' (produced by Show)

Gryme Tyme (produced by Branesparker)

I think you might still be able to get one of the limited bonus 45s if you pre order now.
If you're diggin' any of those, cop here.


--Verge

Video: Buckshot & KRS-1 doing the classics

Aiiight so their new music might not be what we're all looking for, but good news, this video is Buck and Kris covering their classics on Tony Touch's Sirius radio show. It's a nice way to start the weekend. Enjoy! --Philaflava



Peace to ThatsHipHop.com for the video.

Touring The States: Portland, ME (with Echo Leader)

Maine is generally more known for producing lobsters and lumber than rap talent. Sure, we've got some great local MC's - Well's Spose and the mid-state duo Luch & Eliza come to mind - and a relatively well-known (at least regionally) record label called Flophouse, but past that the good rappers are few and far between, and often slip through the cracks of open mic nights and backwoods poolhall performances. It's been hard to put the Pine Tree State's hip-hop scene on the map.

Sole could have done it for us, man.

After a series of industry misadventures following the recording of his first demo - including an deal with EMI that fell through at the last second - Tim Holland (bka Sole) and his DJ Cuz Tha Highlander began recording together under the moniker "Northern Exposure." During it's brief existence, the crew only put out one album, 1994's "Madd Skills & Unpaid Bills." This cassette-only effort was put out on a now-defunct local imprint called 45 Below Records, and only sold around 300 copies. Needless to say, finding an original tape is damn near impossible.

Sadly for Northern Exposure, long-term success was not to be. Shortly after the tape's release and subsequent lack of success, Sole decided to keep it movin' and began recording with a new group, the Last Poets. Thier 1996 release "What's It All About?" quietly began making the dub rounds, eventually being traded as far as Los Angeles and arguably planting the seed for an entire future crew of milquetoast, "artsy" rappers in the Yay.



The music contained on "Madd Skills..." is certainly indicative of the time during which it was recorded. Hardcore b-boy posturing. Black Moon samples all over the place. Extensive graffiti references. Gritty boom-bap beats, courtesy of Tim & Cuz. And check out the intentional misspelling of "madd" in the title! I mean, misspelling stuff worked for Redman, right?

In conclusion, Sole's contemporary fans would positively shudder to hear these grimy examples of life on the harsh, unforgiving streets of Portland, throwing off their headphones and quivering behind their scarves. I can only imagine what would have happened if Tim/Sole had stayed in Maine and kept to the course; he might have influenced a generation or more of Jedi Mind Tricks-lite kids dressed up in wheat Timbos, baggy jeans, and North Face bubble gooses. Hoods from the woods, if you will.

In short: don't sweat moving to Cali, Tim. We've been ok.

In case you're wondering what anticon's wunderkind sounded like before he grew out his facial hair, peep game. It's actually pretty interesting to hear the approach Sole started out with, considering his current sonic pedigree. (Thanks to schenectadyfan for providing a rip of this incredibly rare tape.)


Northern Exposure - Madd Skills & Unpaid Bills







1.) Intro (Real MCs)


2.) Busta


3.) Ex To Tha Next Shit


4.) Madd Skills & Unpaid Bills


5.) Wreck On Tha Regular


6.) Hoods From Tha Woods


7.) Last Minute


8.) To The East (Bonus Track)








Enjoy.



-Echo Leader

Thursday, September 17, 2009

DJ Premier - Originals

As the cover states, this is a continuous mix of funk & soul as sampled by DJ Premier. It also has some rock, jazz, fusion, and soundtrack cuts. And it's actually divided into three lengthy tracks. Which is better, IMO, than the entire mix being on one track. No tracklist at all here. There's a bunch of obvious samples that you probably already know. But don't sleep, there are quite a few I never heard and they are treats. You should notice a few that were used by other producers, too.

Something strange about this CD, though. The same exact mix was released in 2002 as "Primo's Bakery". And there is no credit on either mix as to who mixed it. WTF?! Unless it was by Primo, himself, or somebody who wants to remain anonymous. I dunno, man.
On google, all the info I could find on "Primo's Bakery" were places to download it and places to buy donuts and banana bread. The only info I could find on this release was the label to purchase it from, Boomkat.
Definitely worth a cop just for that bad ass cover. Too bad it's not on vinyl. Not yet, at least.

Check The Previews:
Part 1-

Part 2-

Part 3-


--Verge

De La Soul - Breakadawn (Video)

Good morning! No better track than this to wake up to, right? Is this a top 5 De La Soul track?



Peace to SMUFNYS.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Big L - The Best of The Rest

This compilation showcases a dozen varied highlights of non-album cuts and unreleased tracks by Big L. It spans from his first recordings in ‘92 to his last live show in ’98. Most blogs focus on the best of Big L. We've heard all those tracks but this time we're focusing on the best of the rest. Tracks that don't always get mentioned and some hard to come across. We've hand picked 12 tracks in their best quality and put together this compilation for you. Stay tuned for more collabos with The T.R.O.Y. Blog and BigLOnline but for now enjoy The Best of The Rest. --Philaflava

The T.R.O.Y. Blog & Big L Online Presents..
Big L: The Best of the Rest.

01. Big L – Devil’s Son ’98 (Live in Amsterdam)
02. Lord Finesse – You Know What I’m About (Original Version) ft. Big L
03. Big L – Principal of the New School
04. Big L – Unexpected Flava
05. The Children of the Corner (Big L, Herb McGruff, Murda Mase, Killa Kam & Digga)
– Hell Up in Harlem (Extended DJ Ron G Uptown Mix)
06. Big L – We Got This (Alternate Version)
07. Big L – Let Me Find Out
08. Liz Lucci – We All Can’t Ball ft. Big L & Richie Thumbs
09. Bootsie – Harlem N.Y.C. (Beats 2 Blow Remix) ft. Big L & Herb McGruff
10. DJ Ron G – Exclusive 2003 Shit ft. Big L
11. Big L – Now or Never
12. Stephen Simmonds – Alone (Original Version) ft. Big L & Marquee

Concept and title by: Jason Gloss of Philaflava.
Cover and execution by: TheBigSleep of Big L Rarities (and BigLOnline).
Quality: Half are 192 / CBR and half are V2 / VBR. (65 MB for a dozen MP3s.)
Duration: Forty five minutes, forty seconds.

Download Mix
Track Info:

01. Recorded October 8th, 1998 for the Fat Beats Amsterdam Party (with Andre the Giant and Roc Raida on stage as well).
02. The first song L ever recorded. When he was seventeen, 1992. Unreleased (because Finesse wasn’t allowed to put anyone on who wasn’t signed to a label) until it was put it on From the Crates to the Files in 2003.
03. The first solo song L ever recorded, also in 1992, before Devil's Son. The first verse was used on Stretch & Bobbito that year but the rest went unheard until Finesse put it out last year on Rare Selections EP Vol. II.
04. Given to DJs but unreleased tag free (without voiceovers) until last year when Finesse put it out on Rare Selections EP Vol. I. ’91 Finesse remix instrumental beat for Large Pro, unused by Warner Bros., L’s vocals added in ’93 but deemed too outdated for Lifestylez.
05. Unreleased Ron G mix not included on the 2005 Children of the Corn Collector’s Edition CD (features all of The Children of the Corner except Bloodshed).
06. Part of this was used for The Triboro, unheard in it’s entirety until 2005’s The Archives, put out by Finesse.
07. Bootleg that surfaced within the last couple years. From the mixtape Classic Whites: The Illest White Labels Vol. I. Unknown year, production, source and origin.
08. ’98 vinyl single only release. Liz Lucci also went by the name Big Zil.
09. ’98 vinyl single only release.
10. 2003 Ron G Mixtape release, Da Thriller Blends. (Available in full on Recognize the Real: http://recogthereal.blogspot.com/2009/03/ron-g-da-thriller-blends.html )
11. Recorded in ’96 for L’s second Columbia LP, The Big Picture. The first time that album was given a name. Unreleased until 2005’s The Archives.
12. Recorded in ’97. Limited edition vinyl release.

Don't forget to check out Big L Rarities.

Video: Kool Keith dancin' for Ronald Regan

In the early '80s, Kool Keith was apart of a NYC breaker crew called Activity and they performed for President Ronald and Nancy Reagan. Back in '92 Bobbito conducted an interview with Keith and this was brought up. To quote the great Keith Thornton "Regan was a bitch-ass n*gga."

Peep the video, but be warned there is no sound due to the copyrights. Keith is in the yellow outfit and steals the show around the 2:30 mark. --Philaflava



Props to Memory Man & Tom C3 for the assist.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

dirt_dog Remix Pack 2


Welcome to another installment of the dirt_dog Remix Pack. This time around we have a couple original versions and 3 more of my favorite remixes pulled from my own personal collection of cd singles (retail, US, UK and promo only versions). And as a former Wu fanatic, I've always enjoyed the extra verse from Meth on the "Home Grown Version." If you missed Remix Pack 1, go HERE.

Remix Pack 2
01 Wu-Tang Clan-Method Man (Home Grown Version)
02 Stetsasonic-Talkin' All That Jazz (Dominoes Vocal)
03 Outkast-Elevators (Me & You) (Crazy "C" Trunk Rattlin' Edit)
04 Black Sheep-Strobelite Honey (Street Mix)
05 Mobb Deep-Shook Ones Part I (Original Version)


enjoy,
--dirt_dog