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Beastie Boys: Understated Legend

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The Beastie Boys: Understated Legends

On May 4th, 2012, Adam “MCA” Yauch passed away.

For some, it was the death of a grand musical artist. Many may not understand that MCA was more than an emcee. In fact, he was a guitarist, keyboardist, and even a video director known as Nathaniel Hornblower. He was also a devout Buddhist that started the Tibet Freedom Concert. In addition, he made sure to take his visions to a grander scale by starting Oscilloscope Laboratories, his film company. In full understanding, it can be easily seen that MCA was a renaissance artist.

For me, however, it was a statement of a genius that wasn’t totally recognized. Many of us do recognize The Beastie Boys for the great things they have done in music. However, they have not totally come to grips with the everlasting effect they themselves have had on the world’s landscape. There are certain popular situations that wouldn’t even exist without them. Also, they have paved the way for musical experimentation and actualization. With further review, I will break down just how deep their musical mentorship goes.

To Be Cleared Like Samples

The Beastie Boys took sampling-mania to another level with the release of Paul’s Boutique. Constructed by The Dust Brothers, Paul’s Boutique is a myriad of eclectic yet funky portions of music from over 100 songs. In fact, the last track on the album samples about 24 songs. With much adulation, sample clearance issues, and notoriety, Paul’s Boutique separated The Beastie Boys from their “frat rap” label. Conclusively, Paul’s Boutique gave inspiration to many artists to make the most of any and every sample that there is to find.

Don’t believe me? Just ask Chuck D and DJ Shadow how they feel about this album.

Quizzically, The Beastie Boys have even become the object of their inspiration. Their song “The New Style” from Licensed to Ill has been sampled numerous times. Also, an eclectic array of artists from Beck to even Weird Al Yankovich has made use of the music the guys have made. The Pharcyde even made a worthy single of sampling AD Rock’s voice on “Drop”, accompanied by an ever-whimsical video. So, it is safe to say that plenty of artists have taken a sample platter of the sample kings’ work.

The Hip Hop Hybrid Kids

After the adventure labeled Paul’s Boutique came about, The Beastie Boys went smack dab back into their rock roots. Check Your Head was birthed from multiple sessions in California that had them playing their own instruments, vibing out, and enjoying the tunes. What came to be was nothing short of sonic goodness. Listeners noticed the carefree rhymes and the instrumental heavy songs. In this musical transformation, The Beastie Boys made it cool to infuse rock fully into hip hop.

Check Your Head not only gained them notoriety, it also birthed more hybrid music later on. If it weren’t for The Beasties, rappers like P.O.S. or groups like Rage Against The Machine may not be as popular. Also, Linkin Park would probably seem like something unfathomable. Many of us acknowledge The Beastie Boys for their over-abundant hip hop influence; still, their rap-rock influence is just as important.

The Skinny

The Beastie Boys have plenty of accolades to go along with their career. However, people need to understand just how profound and impressive this ground is. They could never be considered unsung. Still, the true musical gifts that they brought can be considered to be understated. Thus far, the musical influence of The Beastie Boys has transcended their own imaginations.

Oh, and this is only one part of my dedication to the legends. Stay tuned for part 2.

‘Nuff said and ‘Nuff respect!

Smoke Screen – ‘Ice Cold Water’ EP Review

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Props to The Needle Drop for scooping Ice Cold Water, an EP from Cleveland duo Smoke Screen. The EP sounds just as refreshing as the title, and is awash with dope lyrical content and an eclectic musical tinge on the beats, clearly the result of good teamwork.

That’s not to say that rappers Mooke and Chemist, who also produced all but one track on the project, are bopping and weaving over this thing like The Beastie Boys. Rather, they excel by displaying their own unique styles and complimenting each other’s thoughts. On “Ice Cold Water,’ the first and arguably best track, Mooke kicks off this tag team with a great finger-pointer: “Everybody and they mama wanna get some/everybody want the honey ’til it get stung/but don’t nobody wanna ever roll they sleeves up/they rather party all the time and get geeked up.”

Likewise, Chemist holds up the latter end: “back to the raps, attack tracks with passion/laugh at the cats who wax supreme fashion.” The rap tag-teaming gets even better on “Blur,” where they both detail their psychedelic, almost astral experiences when “cheebin’ on the herb,” or on “It Don’t Stop” where they easily trade off bars about their unyielding torrent of great content.

And the beats, a huge plus from their group collaboration, single-handedly uphold the cool, youthful exuberance that Smoke Screen carries. It’s easy to recognize their conscious effort to produce solid instrumentation that satisfies not only the more free-flowing stylings of Mooke or the aggressive battleground stance from Chemist, but also something that sounds fun and vibrant on its own. The title track instantly hits with a whizzing vinyl scratch and pounding drums, soon followed by a block-shaking bassline.

“The Ave” has an amateurish beatbox break surrounded by whirring synths and a rythmic spark effect. “Smoke and Lazers” touts a sinister, dubstep-influenced beat with a buzzing synth line and a two-tone drum and bass to keep rhythm for Chemist and Mooke’s dizzying wordplay. Each song has a short prologue that lets the track’s feeling seep in before the verses come in, and two tracks, “Blur” and “Smoke and Mirrors,” have an extra instrumental tagged to the end a la Pete Rock that keeps things flowing.

In fact, the album flows, quite literally, like a cool stream. From the backstreet wild style of the introduction to the extraterrestrial essence of the the ending and even on the call-and-response group vocal for the hooks, Smoke Screen knows how to curate a 20-minute that vibes perfectly and feels oh so good. Even though each rapper, guests included, brings his own bag of tricks, it always transitions smoothly without any jarring inconsistencies. When a dude drops a line like “ice cold cinnamon spice but whole heaven with microphone rhythms and pipes with gold lettuce” without throwing off his previous verse, that’s a miracle in and of itself. Ice Cold Water stands as testament that music can have style without sacrificing creativity.

Open Mike Eagle – ‘Rent Party Extension’ EP Review

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I discovered Open Mike Eagle’s latest EP, “Rent Party Extension,” when Milo, a rapper previously discussed on the site, hyped it up on his Tumblr. The LA rapper has put out two albums and three EPs prior to this one, however, he took the song “Rent Party Revolution,” first released on “Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes,” and bundled it with some unreleased tracks in preparation of a new album later on this year.

Newcomers to OME’s style of rap may find many similarities to Milo, but besides the fact that they’re both rapper who confess to reading books and their preference to Flying Lotus-style production, everything else is misguided speculation. The intro track “5ree Thinkers” proves that in droves, with OME delivering sly, cynical lines about his worldview: “Keep it close to the vest like Pakistan/don’t watch the mic, the other one is the magic hand A little oral projection, a little astral man/clap your unshackled hands/partying with kings ’til the whole damn castle dance.” He gets into some nice pocketed grooves of continuous flow, his lyricism doesn’t immediately give a definite guideline of beliefs, and his delivery’s so relaxed and laid back on the peculiar beat that they almost meld together.

Things get much better on “Amped,” as OME brings a head-nodding flow that keeps me coming back. His verse is decent, but Eagle Nebula provides a great feature verse full of absurd and hilarious statements: “We are good rappers and we don’t sell crack/we read, have feelings, and we’re also very black.” Her voice literally sounds “amped” like she spat these bars while voguing with eyes wide open. Likewise, the song “Neighbor” feels just as absurd, but with a creepy tinge, as OME rhymes about off-kilter over Infinity Rock’s overbearing instrumental. The beat jumps in from the right to left ear with an burping bassline, followed in suit by a haunting wail and electric bleeps and bloops.

Milo features on the stellar “Boss Fight,” starting his verse with a nerdgasm of a showstopper: “Kanye West is RoboCop, I’ll be Judge Dredd/I’m playing video games until my eyes are blood red.” His cool and calculating aesthetic works as a great foil to OME’s increasingly paranoid flustering, especially on the beat that would be the perfect theme for a SNES-era Miami Vice video game. OME has some nice video game references on the track, but obviously got too hyped up in the booth. We get it, video games are cool.

Thankfully the closing track, a remix of “Rent Party Revolution,” leaves listeners with a clear and grounded view of his reality. On an earnest beat, he talks about the struggles of his liberal arts upbringing, musing that he “[grew] up to be the brokest smart guy ever.” It’s a personal track that surely resonates with every college grad who was told to follow their dreams and major in Romanian Literature, only to realize that it never guaranteed a job. The song makes a fitting conclusion, as he presents his least elusive narrative that’s actually tangible beyond sounding cool. Granted though, his fiber-rich style of rap has its place. “Rent Party Extension” makes a very great introduction to Open Mike Eagle’s character, with a fun roster of features and sounds to boot.

2Pac That Was and Wasn’t: What to Make of the Performance by 2Pac’s Hologram

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2Pac That Was and Wasn’t: What to

Make of the Performance by 2Pac’s Hologram

After some time was given, there is much to be made about this recent “2Pac performance”. At the 2012 Cochaella Music Festival, during a Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg performance, concert goers were blown away by a hologram 2Pac. Much fanfare was made over the internet; everyone from Hiphopdx to even the Huffington Post had an opinion. Such warranted attention made the situation a bigger spectacle. For that moment, a deceased emcee was having resurgence in the common conscience without a new album to purchase.

The views about all of this have been mixed. Many people enjoyed the use of technology in an intriguing form of flattery and dedication. Dre and Snoop even want to take the show on the road. However, many others are crying foul.  C-Bo even likened Dre and Snoop to “parasites” for trying to make money off of ‘Pac’s legacy. In agreement or not, there seems to be a divide between people on this topic.

It is now time to take an analytical view of the pros and cons of this hologram hoax.

The Good

For many friends, fans, and musical contemporaries, the hologram served as a form of remembrance and homage paying. Old fans can find a way to enjoy a new “concert” with 2Pac performing old hits. Also, they can witness the strengths of improved technology. Many people will try and see just what a 2Pac concert may have been like. For some fans, this is a pure win in their dedication to a great artist.

The people that really should be fans of this are those in charge of 2Pac’s estate. Technological situations like this only add to the memory of any great artist. Also, you cannot forget the potential for revenue. Having a performing hologram of widely popular artists will only make more money for the estate. No matter how it may be seen, there are those that stand to reap benefits from the advent of this technology.

The Not So Good

Many are frowning upon the tarnished legacies that can be created by this hologram situation. Many people are appalled at the idea of watching a show that involves an empty stage and a CD playing in the background. Others would like for those artists to rest in peace. What would be so appealing about watching an image that was probably already seen before?

Another issue is the manipulation that could take place. Unless you are musically unaware, records companies are always in to make an easy dollar. An idea like this could easily push record sales; the possibility of more music misuse can/will follow. Instead of coming with new artists, companies will rehash old and dead ones. This gives way too much musical stagnation. In the end, there is the possibility of the same music being used all the time. Where is the joy in that?

The Skinny

The hopeful fans are looking forward to witnessing a legacy “first hand”. Other fans don’t want to see a legacy tarnished. Whatever side a person is on, one thing is for certain: the use of technology to amplify the ability of live music isn’t going away. I just hope it isn’t abused to mitigate the effect of good music. That right there would be the biggest travesty of all.

‘Nuff said and ‘Nuff respect!

‘Food & Liquor 2 is done,’ says Lupe Fiasco

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Lupe Fiasco, the Chicago rapper known for his seminal works “Food & Liquor” and “The Cool,”  announced today on Twitter that his followup to “Food & Liquor,” titled “Food & Liquor 2: Great American Rap Album Pt. 1,” has been mastered.

Along with stating a tentative listening session for fans and music executives, Lupe hinted at a “July” release. The only factor that would impede release is if the new album includes two CD’s worth of content or not.

Fiasco dropped his latest project, “Lasers,” in 2011 to mixed critism, and also questioned the trust of fellow fans. Here’s hoping that his next effort shows a return to boom-bap form.

Props to HipHopDX for the scoop.

Money Forever Young – Can Drake and Nicki Minaj Maintain their Momentum | Editorial

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Money Forever Young – Can Drake and Nicki Minaj Maintain their Momentum?

 If you pay attention to anything hip hop, you cannot help but to hear about Young Money (YMCMB). Drake and Nicki Minaj are the main artists bringing in revenue for the label besides Lil Wayne. Drake has had meteoric rise due to his rhyming and singing chops; Nicki Minaj, on the other hand, has made waves due to her rambunctious lyrical flow and harajuku influenced costume play. Right now, they have a chokehold on the industry; but, just like many situations due to change and gravity, they are not destined to be on top forever.

Let’s be serious here: between the two of them, Drake has the better, profound artistry. Drake started out with his So Far Gone mixtape, which  was so successful that it garnered him radio play, touring, and (deemed unnecessary) singing with Young Money. While many feel that he hasn’t touched his lyrical ability on his major albums, some are still faithful that he may take a turn and rhyme. And we aren’t talking about Swizz Beat rhyming (the construct of chorus like chants to hide any real lyrical ability) – we are talking about spitting rhymes like he did on Comeback Season. Between the two, Drake has the bigger possibility to maintain artistic integrity over time.

To be honest, as “soft” as his music may be, Drake has the ability to make great music. From his mixtapes, people should not be surprised to hear him do a lot of R&B sounding stuff. Yet, he can still get into lyrical shape over tracks, too (Lord Knows being an obvious example). Plus, he recognizes that he should get lyrically dynamic on future projects.

Nicki Minaj, however, may run short after her third or fourth album. When she first came on the scene, she was almost like a newer version of Lil Kim. She would spit hood glorious freestyles and dress like a “regular chick”. However, once being signed, she underwent a transformation. The “Harajuku Barbie” took on real form within her own entertaining “plastic doll persona”. She became more colorful, comical, and callously commercial.

How did this affect her music? Well, for starters, she became more of a “pop” oriented artist. This would not be such a bad thing if her talents were more organic and unintentional. She worked hard to be known as a pop artist, though. Auto-tuned singing, David Guetta productions, and endorsement deals got her closer to being a household name. Yet, publicly tragic performances only sealed the deal on her time being ultimately limited.

While their run at the top may become leprechaun short, Drake may have more fight in his career than the Irish of Notre Dame. Nicki is popular now and will have present/future riches to plunder. Still, her career isn’t based on “greatness” or “skill”. The basis of her popularity is characterization. While that is good for keeping people’s attention, this is music. Your character only carries you for so long. Just ask 50 Cent about that one.

Devine Carama – ‘Heart of a King’ Album Review

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Devine Carama cuts no corners when it comes to his vision. “Heart of a King,” the followup to his 2011 critically acclaimed album “Blood of a Slave,” has the Louisville, Kentucky native sharing his honest worldview, a combination of divine right and social concessions, in stellar form. Although compromised by a shaky start, the album overcomes any odds with solid, witty lyricism and soulful instrumentation.

Christianity and Hip Hop have many an embrace, but the combination has always been mixed. Hardcore bible-thumping Christians love using rap as a means of sharing the Gospel, but hip-hop heads don’t take well to the inoffensive tone, low-quality rhymes and ultra-sweet message toted over a cheesy beat. Likewise, hardcore Christians seldom bother to buy the latest secular rap album, finding the thick braggadocio and Seven-Deadly-Sin committing “demonic.”

Carama evidently understands and agrees with both sides of the argument. After all, the Bible itself is one of the most vulgar texts in human history despite the theological significance (it displays incest, there are thousands of killings, and every donkey is mentioned as an “ass”) and even Jesus Christ held most of his teachings around thieves, pagans and prostitutes. As such, he not only proclaims his faith but keeps a refreshing honesty about it: “I need to back in my bible though/and realize that I’m a king and stop fucking with them tribal hoes.”

That line probably exaggerates his tone, but it works nonetheless. Carama does not even force repentance or quote verses, yet gets his message across by simply rhyming from the heart, drawing inspiration from Bobby Seale  and Malcolm X as well as Moses, at the very least promotes cultural unity and personal growth. In fact, the best song, the dire lamentation “Soul Dead,” lets listeners know that true faith does not always guarantee true happiness: “I’m feeling so tired and hopeless, as if my heart is wired to explosives,” and the frankly philosophical “Purgatory” details his daily walk toward a higher calling: “because I rap about the man I’m trying to be/but until that maturation I’m just a walking contradiction.”

No contradictions exist in terms of the beats an rhymes, though. Although southern-bred, Carama barely hesitates to show off his dense Brooklyn-esque poetry and penchant for suave, groovy beats. “New Life” has tingling piano and laid-back bass on top of live drums while he stresses the importance of change:“for a breath of fresh air, I’ll duel with the serpent/and its all up to me so I re-channel my chi.” And the obvious example, “Golden Era Flow,” makes good work out of a righteous 70’s funk sample while Carama and guest feature Rob Jackson perform lyrical back flips: “hot cools off but dope is forever, so I neutralize the weather by spitting bars for all climates.”

Sadly, the first track, “The Nicest,” lacks that same feeling. It actually put me off initially, with the overtly sunshiny beat and the corny hook: “whenever I surprise my daughters with pizza for lunch, they scream yeah, yeah, yeah.” No offense, but what?!? Those lyrical back flips occur here as well, but the package surrounding the verses almost lead me astray. If he used the creamy neo-soul  from “Hang Onto The World,” or even switched their places, it would have projected the entire experience much better.

But as stated before, “Heart of a King” turned out way better than expected, surpassing the fumbling intro and contextual assumptions to bring a great perspective on living with faith while keeping in touch with reality, and even dedicates two whole songs to his love for genuine hip hop. He may not consider himself perfect, but his album is one of the best to drop in 2012 so far, and truly deserves support due to a universal appeal and compelling performance.

Mixtape Review: Lil B – ‘God’s Father’

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Up to this point, Lil B must have dropped at least at least hundreds of albums worth of tapeworm-riddled dog shit on the rap community. What’s even more confounding is how the community has reacted: with blind, sycophantic admiration or a deranged, seething hatred. DEHH has also tackled the subject themselves with… interesting results. By and by, I mostly ignored what seemed like an over-inflated hype machine concerning an artist who deserved none. After all, the one song that did slip past my filter, “I’m Miley Cyrus,” had less nutritional value than a twinkie.

So as a slightly ironic detour, I accepted the prospect of sitting down with “God’s Father” and barreling through a 34-track marathon of straight Lil B. I expected struggle rap on steroids, the equivalent of Forrest Gump blessing the mic with corny “box of chocolate” jewels and messing up verses out of sheer terror. Boy, did I aim too high.

Now let’s get this straight: after hearing “God’s Father,” I can say that his music completely sucks, but does not truly warrant any heated debate. Lil B is mediocre beyond any limitations of the term. His sloppy flow makes Manwiches jealous. He has the vocabulary of a baboon. His errant way of pausing in the middle of a line is completely hilarious and equally disturbing: “I’m so lonely on this pony/ridin’ over the sunlight way past yo’ head/I’m fr-…”

“Secret Obsession” chronicles the most basic come-up story in the laziest fashion possible. “Deep Ass Thoughts” is as deep as a wafer. And his conversational ad libs chronicle a flourishing indie rap career absolute from his actual reality. Either someone keeps lying to this dude or this is the great joke ever concocted.

But one thing has become very clear. Lil B’s skill level, if tightened up here and there and given a spit shine, would be comparable to any other swag rapper currently holding the reins of commercial rap, like a Lil’ Wayne or a Big Sean (Waka Flocka cannot be considered rap, only rhythmic banshee calls). It makes sense for the odd acceptance of his horrid dribble if that particular listener’s standard is a hype beat and a couple quotables mixed within some verbal soup. Coming to grips with Lil B’s inconceivably mediocre body of work only requires a small step back if “6 Foot 7 Foot” was the previous height. What does it matter if he sounds like a drunk person with a speech impediment? They just want something to “cook wonton soup” with.

The bare semblance of a rapper trying his best does come through, and somehow makes Lil B’s music worth a listen, although I find it false. From my perspective, he’s a modern day Juvenal, satirizing the exact medium he uses to get that message across. “God’s Father” may as well be a comedy album for all intended purposes, as the jumbled up thoughts, abrupt pausing, and the feel good song from hell “I Love You” had me rolling on the floor. But that does not detract from the single defining trait of this mixtape and Lil B himself — it sucks.

Check out my favorite lyrical abortions below:
1.   “You should feel pain because… you just ended a brain/ father, son, grandkid, anything”
2.   “Gat blast niggas fall back you gotta fire/I ain’t neva been a thug, experience is a motherfucka”
3.   “Move to a group home, bum all places/rambada Ion know who places/fugadalaniggamangimmeyochanges”
4.   “Spit on the beat now the records talk back/this all freestyle I just spit it now it’s written”
5.   “Now I’m back, its official like ASAP/writin’ all day, you would think I used my backpack”
6.   “And fuck yo’ dreads nigga, and fuck yo’ gold teef/and fuck yo life, nigga, dats where da ends meet”
7.   “Niggas got greedy mentals and they mind is a bitch”
8.   “Call me Obama Basedgod/Call me Obama Basedgod”
9.   “Shut yo mouth bitch/Basedgod, Basedgod/Basedgod it’s Friday/Basedgod’s a bitch cuz he sleeps in a mansion”
10. “I am not perfect/but I am great cuz I keep a smile/I know you are a superstar/ stay based and…”
11.  “Kill the game man, moves like Jada Pinkett/My thought process is thinking above thinking”
12. “RIP to yo dead family/I love you Basedworld for life”

MMG Releases Large Music Catalog For Free

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"Self Made Vol. 1" is one of the many commercial albums being released for free.

According to collabprojekt.com, Maybach Music Group, the Warner Brothers-distributed record label headed by Miami rapper Rick Ross, has provided an extensive catalog of mixtapes and albums from its artists for free download.

The catalog, which includes artists such as Meek Mill, Wale, Stalley, and Teedra Moses, seems to be exhaustive with the glaring exception of “Ambition,” the sophomore album from Wale which was released last November.

No word on how long this exclusive deal shall remain in effect, but this risky and costly business maneuver appears to be a spur of the moment act, and as such, may be gone before long.

NOTE: I frantically downloaded a couple of albums from the website, but the majority of them gave error messages and were corrupted. When I downloaded them one at a time, however, the transaction worked fine.

Rest In Peace Whitney Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012)

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Whitney Houston has died at age 48 according to her publicist Kristen Foster. The cause and nature of her death are undisclosed at the moment. This is really terrible news. Her death comes right before the Grammy Awards that are set to air tomorrow. Rest in peace Whitney. You will surely be missed and we have lost one of the GREATEST SINGERS of ALL TIME!