My Auntie Lives In Hackney

Klashnekoff
Our Time
Daggo Mentality
Son Of Niah
from The Sagas Of.. (2004, Kemet Ent. Records)

Coming out of East London,UK, K-lash has bascially fused the 4 12″’s he dropped along with some new material and came out with this album. That’s fine, but it lacks a little consistency because of that. The album is a display of West Indian roots spliced with East London conditions, he vents intelligently for the most part, about the usual things that would run through a persons mind; hate, love, racism, life, death. It’s not conscious rap as we know it, it’s alot murkier. He’s frequently labelled as the underground front man for UK hiphop, and to an extent it’s true. I’d still like to hear a full studio album but for now I’ll settle for this. “Our Time” & “Daggo Mentality” are both produced by Lewis Parker, the other song I’ve included is “Son Of Niah” produced by AC.WAR.ION.

Controversially so, I haven’t put up the BIG SINGLE of this album. “It’s Murda” criminally slept on as a 12″, but heavily rotated on pirate radio is billed as being the best this album has to offer. Either way; This whole thing is a nice insight to another persons life, makes me wonder what my auntie thinks of the Hackney area.

Enjoy!

-Matt B aka FU

Operation Lockdown for 2005

Sean Price
Onion Head
Spliff & Wessun feat. Rustee Juxx
Boom Bye Yeah feat. 5FT of Black Moon
from Monkey Barz (2005, Duck Down)

The Boot Camp Clik/Heltah Skeltah MC has at last dropped his solo
album! It’s been close to 10 years. we’ll it’s been “COMING SOON” for at least four years!, where it was listed in the liner notes of his 2001 single “Don’t Say Shit To Ruck”..

And the album emphatically delivers. Sean P has long been recognized in the underground as one who has everything an MC should; Intelligence in his lyrics, un-front-on-able voice and delivery. He’s backed by wonderous production on this. With help from legends Ayatollah and Agallah as well as relative new comers DJ Kryhsis & 9th Wonder this is a peculiar album.

I do believe a number of these tracks/verses are recycled (maybe
re-recorded) versions of ones he’s dropped on various mixtapes. There’s the GTA3 soundtrack tune ‘Rising To The Top’ and I can think of 5-6 other tracks which I’ve previously heard. If you’ve heard the ‘Donkey Sean Jr.’ mixtape then you’ve heard a large portion of this album before! There is a recycled verse on the title track!! DAMN.

The lead single is the up-beat ‘Onion Head’ produced by Kryhsis, but was all the waiting really worth it? I’m currently undecided, but here are 3 tracks for you to start making your own mind up. Show some money for the Brokest Rapped You know! Who has interview quotables like;”My label is bummed out man. That’s why my shit gonna flop cuz my label so shitty nah mean. Tours… they don’t know what a tour is. I’m lucky if I get 4 shows a year. I need somebody to hook me up with some shows man, word.” Also up there is “Spliff & Wessun” ft Rustee Juxx/produced by Ayatollah & “Boom Bye Yeah” ft/ 5Ft (of Black Moon) produced by Tone Mason.

Enjoy.

-Matt B aka FU

What is a DJ if he can’t…

Rob Swift feat. D-styles and Bob James
Salsa Scratch
from Sound Event (2002, Sound Event)

Scratch. Let’s add on, “What is a dj if he can’t scratch on beat?” The Brokebboys will be flippin the focus (pun intended) towards the Dj’s who’ve rocked musicality and creative shit recently, whether it was bein in a live band setting or pushing the envelope on production. To set off this series we got a track that appeared off of Rob Swift’s Sound Event LP. For this song, Rob enlisted help on the cut from the always-precise D-styles, pianos from the very much sampled Bob James, the horns from Dave Guy of Dujeous?, AND his mom. Check the results, feel the groove. This ain’t no skratch practice.

-BoogaLeo

Do you really wanna play it “cool” ?

Freestyle Fellowship
Everything’s Everything
Way Cool
Pure Thought
from Innercity Griots (1993, Island)

If you haven’t heard of Freestyle Fellowship by now, wake the hell up and stop sleeping! Before Aceyalone learned to Love & Hate, and way before the crew tried to come back with Temptations, you had Innercity Griots and To whom it may concern, two albums that marked a new era for underground hiphop.
I’m not gonna front like I was all there in the spot and tell you exactly how it changed…but bein a lil bboy in FL and hearin the styles comin from the lyrical hurricanes of Self-Jupiter, Acey, Mikah 9, and PEACE, I was blown out the water. classic.

-BoogaLeo

PS. anyone have the hot potato remix?

06/02/05 Update
Peace to the homie Nyps for hooking up the track.
Hot Potato (Blow Up Long Version) Download

Microphone Master

Das Efx

Mobb Deep

Das Efx
Sewa/41st Side Remix feat. Mobb Deep
Dome Cracker Remix
from Microphone Master 12″ (1995, East/West)

This release comes in relation to the current post over at Rap Nerd. RapNerd#2 was discussing how he’s a big Coldplay fan and it was reported that 50 Cent was a Coldplay fan as well… Fan enough to interpolate a Coldplay song into his latest track, God Gave Me Style. Some unknown cat came up with a hiphop-ish remix of the song “Trouble” and after the hooks, the cat threw in a bit from the “Microphone Masters (Sewa-41st Side Remix)” which features the incredible vocals from the infamous Mobb Deep. This is that classic NYC style from back in 1995… Proper rhyming and choice beats from none other than Easy Mo Bee. I also included the Dome Cracker Remix, which flips the original vocals with a nicely laid back track created by DJ Spinna and Joc Max. You know what time it is with Mid-Nineties Spinna production. We all know how slept-on he is, specially with all the headnodders he concocted at the time. Anyways… Enjoy this… I didnt rip the original since I dont have much time at the moment. More hot beats from the Broke BBoys to come… Stay Tuned.

-Audio1

P.S.
Happy Birthday to my brother Jeff. He used to rock this record alot back then.

Diversify yo’ Flows

L’Roneous Da’Versifier
L’Chemy
A Place Called This
Imaginarium
from Imaginarium (reissue) (2002, Six Months)

L’Roneous Da’Versifier defintely displays a more catch in his flows way better than my attempt at alliteration. (Say word) It was pretty hard picking out three tracks to rock because the album has a lotta heat–complete with the poetic cohesiveness of L’Roneous and live beat production by Dj Zeph. On first listen it’s easy to dismiss him as an Aceyalone soundalike….maybe you folks at the Bay area can help me out on the connection.

Anyways, L’roneous rips it, he has a gift of that natural flow–like you don’t even have to comprehend most of the words to feel his melodic flow on tracks like “L’chemy”. Now when you do check the lyrics, L’roneous crafts and paints his pictures clearly, reference the skills on “A Place Called This,”

Some claim to be a player, but in this game, we all pawns
All spawn, by the overlord
We overcame on a petty four-score
of ancient folklore, but the overlord kept plottin
Take, and I’ll give you all the ROTTEN things I’ve gotten
cause it’s hot, in this hell on earth
where you ain’t worth a nickel
And you can’t even see the shit that makes your cells go sickle

Get ready for the L’rony ride.

-BoogaLeo

Boogie Down Doom

chillin in a bboy stance..

Madvillain
Money Folder Remix
from Mind Fusion vol. 1 (Stones Throw, 2005)
+ hidden exclusive

So I’m on this real old school trip right about now. Right when I heard this flip on Madlib’s recently released mix I went BONKERS. Do you know what he’s messing with? It seems Madlib has been experimentin on that 808 sound, is he samplin directly off or is he playin it himself? Who knows, but I think this joint does this justice.

The latter is a heralded bboy classic. When that use to get on, the floor use to immediately clear OUT. I cherish so many rug burns, funny freezes, and battle scars towards that song. Two mysterious producers in full effect, last I read on Mr. Parrish, he released an LP in 1997. Peace

-BoogaLeo

Tinseltown To Boogie Down

Scritti Polliti feat. Lee Majors and Mos Def
Tinseltown To Boogiedown
Psycho Les Variation
Ali Shaheed Muhammad Variation
Pete Rock Variation
from Tinseltown to Boogiedown 12″ (1999, Virgin)

Scritti Politti is labeled as soulful rock.. I didn’t exactly find them to be that, but I picked up this single on a whim. With so many dope HIPHOP producers featured on this 12″, how could this not be nice? This is basically 4 remixes of the original version, which sounds like a rock orientated producer (Green Gartside) trying to make a hiphop track. It’s very difficult to listen to… and I won’t mention the hook, but thankfully he handed over production responsibility over to some of hiphops finest…with rhymes from Lee Majors and Mos Def. First comes the Psycho Les ‘variation’, arguably the most impressive beat of the 4. It’s the one I heard first and therefore I associate it with how I think the track should sound. I was thrown off initially by the requirement to play this at 45rpm. Some say this 12″ is rare/collectable, but I’m skeptical, anybody know about that?? The Rob Swift & Pete Rock variations don’t really sit well with me. It’s always a good track, nothing could change that… But the Psycho Les version is the only standout combination (Having said this I began to listen to the Ali Shaheed Muhammad version alot, this is also great!). But I’ll allow you to be the judge. What a dope single! Forget about all the indie rock cats who hated this!
-Matt B

Matt & I had a little discussion regarding this release, as his vinyl is pressed at 45RPM and contains a Rob Swift version, which I’d like to hear now that I’m aware of its existence.. My version is pressed at 33 1/3 RPM and has the 3 remixes and the original. The person who decided to enlist Pete Rock, Psycho Les and Ali Shaheed is very smart. These 3 producers along with Rob Swift turned an otherwise wacky and uninspired original from the Anomie & Bonhomie album into 4 separate masterpieces. I personally enjoy the Ali Shaheed variation best with Psycho Les’ right behind it. The Pete Rock one is OK… He offset the lyrics by a bar or two, giving it an offbeat feeling. That drove me nuts. Whatever floats your boat. Here are 3 for you to chew on.
-Audio1

p.s.
This is an open call to anyone who wants to do a guest post and gots some good music to share with the world. Please hollate at me and lets make this happen.

Welcome to the world of RAMM:ELL:ZEE

RAMMELLZEE
Beat Bop pt. 2 (feat. K-Rob)
Pay the Rent (feat. Shockdell)
Traxxstoppers
from The Bi-Conicals of the Rammellzee (2004, Gomma)

Hmmm, forget next level. He’s on the next universe. Next level for Rammellzee was 1983 after dropping the most heralded hiphop singles ever, “Beat Bop” with the late Jean-Michel Basquiat. He’s one of my favorite hiphop pioneers you never really hear about. Ramm was right at the intersection of hiphop breakin out of NYC (being a part of “The New York City Rap Tour” going all over Europe 1982) and the boomin Lower Eastside arts movement (being down with Basquiat). He pops up in all the early hiphop productions, having a short cameo in Style Wars, and is the MC rockin the mic while Rocksteady gets down at the amphitheater. He’s also credited for pioneering the “nasal style” you hear today by the likes of Cypress Hill and Lyrics Born.

So I’m lacing you with the sequel of the classic, complete with tempo changes, Rammellzee’s trademark concepts and delivery, and the rematch with K-Rob. So where’s he been all this time? And why is his new album so fuckin weird? From the last Style Wars interview, Ramm had gotten more involved with his art, actually creating a whole new universe, Gothic Futurism. Goin around the site, he revolves a whole world around tagging: the movement of letters, the secret letters which were supposedly banned by the status quo, and the complete power of them…ummm, word.

As for his new album? It seems to make much more sense comin from that universe angle. The beats are like epic-cosmic-electro shit (taken care of by Poets of Rhythm) “electro” producers wish they could produce, and spontaneous lyrics of….what we know today as THE RAMMELLZEE. So I honestly think the tracks on here are the more accessible “traditional” tracks from the album. Whether on another universe or not, I welcome the pure innovation and creativity flava Rammellzee continues to bring. It doesn’t even sound forced.

-BoogaLeo

XX

Double XX Posse
Put ya Boots on
The Headcracker
We Got It Goin On’ (Remix)
from Put Ya Boots On (1992, Big Beat)

What’s up,

I’m starting my summer postin with some nitty gritty east coast flava from the Double XX Posse. I got this CD from the used store solely on the namecheck of Stretch Armstrong as execuctive producer. Nice pick, the production is pretty crisp but the lyrics seem pretty standard for ‘92. You have the crew choruses in the back which was probably the affiliated posse even though most of the rhymes are handled by Sugar Ray.
“Put Ya boots on” makes me wanna buy some Timberland’s I never had (struttin around Florida was never practical). Followin that track, “The Headcracker” seems to be an updated version of Kurtis Blow’s “The breaks”, whatever happen to these phrases? I’mma bring it back. Goin to Iraq is a headcracker, running out of financial aid? That’s a headcracker. Enjoy.

Oh yea, while surfin through the net I found an old video for “Not gonna be able to do it”, courtesy of nobodysmiling.com.

Peace
-BoogaLeo