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Get your hands on this freebie here.
Visuals from Kardinal’s Kill Shot here, the latest drop from his and Nottz’ collaborative album A.M.T.R.I.M. (Allow Me To Re-Introduce Myself). I’m feeling this track but something about it isn’t quite right. I mean, it’s just too aggressive for a track which essentially is chastising the use of guns. The visuals are grimy and at times I feel like Kardinal is almost glamorising the use of carrying heat. As a musical piece, it’s nice. Nottz brings his disjointed production to great effect, somehow managing to bookend a couple of Steve Carell samples in there too.
I used to listen to lots of Southern music hip-hop when I was younger, mainly driven around their penchant for pulsating instrumentals and deep heavy basslines and that inner-child in me drove my interest in this. Nothing groundbreaking lyrically here but definitely one for those that like their hip-hop brashy and in your face. So I’ve been meaning to post this up for a while now, but every time I go to do it I get distracted watching the entire Illmatic performance from Nas’ SXSW set. I’ve gone with his AZ joint venture here, but you’ll have to head over to YouTube and battle with that VEVO thing to watch the rest. Things to note from this: 1. PREMO is on the decks! 2. AZ spits like it’s 1995 all over and I’m salivating for a potential new collab on either his or Nas’ upcoming LP. 3. The crowd is horrible. Like horrible. I feel bad for Nas. I mean, there he is performing the best hip hop album of all time. Live. With AZ. With Premo. And nothing. Direct from the man himself: “We are dying to release our follow up to The Pursuit LP entitled The Darkest Hour. We have 15 NEW TRACKS on this project and need your help in getting it done so that we can release it! OUR GOAL: Raise $3,000 in order to release The Darkest Hour WHERE THE MONEY GOES: Final recording, mixing, and mastering costs needed to complete the project HOW YOU CAN HELP: By donating any amount you’d like through our donate button here.” Unconvinced? Click here to see what The ILLZ has delivered in the past.
Will.I.Am jumps behind the boards to give the original a revamp. Accompanied with the black and white visuals, the remix gives us a totally different feel, somewhat more classical and throwback. I feel this version suits the verses better, Nas’ obviously a particular highlight. This is the kind of thing I’d like to hear on whatever his new album is called. But alas, I expect trademark Nas with his terrible beat selection whilst trying to ‘push the envelope’. K’NAAN’s More Beautiful Than Silence EP can be picked up over at iTunes. Rugged Man features are always things to savour. Rugged Man features on a video? You’d be mad to miss it. Although only a feature on this, you can tell he always has a ‘hands-on’ influence on directing as these visuals with Psalm One elicit that classic R.A. humour. Bumpy Knuckles is also doing the rounds, on the back of his recently released collaboration project with DJ Premier, and makes a hilarious cameo here. This has got me thinking, by the use of hip-hop algebra… R.A. knows Bumpy… Bumpy knows Premo… You do the math.
Here, French producer Kensaye manages to find something new to do with a BIG track, creating a hauntingly relaxed beat for the Life After Death classic. Kensaye himself explained his reason for making the track, saying: “Anyone that loves Hip-Hop today needs to pay dues to the King of Brooklyn. That’s why as an avid Hip Hop fan I remixed one of his tracks, opting for the more chilled and atmospheric approach.” Does this stand out among the plethora of Biggie remixes? Let us know in the comments.
The standout track from Game’s last summer release The R.E.D. Album gets the visual treatment to superb effect. A powerful cinematography accompanies the life of a youth making the wrong choices in the precarious world of gang culture. Interestingly Game holds his own in front of the camera and emanates that big personality we all know him for. As much as Kendrick spazzes out at the end and totally steals the show, the visuals here portray him in more the ‘apprentice’ styled role. Intentional or not, in light of the verses, a good move by Game’s people to retain at least a shade of credibility.
It’s always difficult to write on topics such as this, but it goes without saying that our thoughts at OTU go out to Trayvon’s friends and family across the pond.
Thankfully, it’s an episode to savour with two brand new contributions from series favourite Frank Ocean, in addition to a couple of other noteworthy artists getting involved. Three to catch up on from the week gone by, with Novel dropping off a bumper 19-track project, Teyana Taylor also getting in the mixtape hunt with her newest effort, and the second episode of our other weekly series, Sh*t You Forgot About. Head below.
It’s great to hear Nas rap with such energy, there’s certainly been a void in hip hop without him; one hopes this is a sign of what is to come.
Dark, grungy and packed with an eerie, ominous quality that makes for a very addictive listen throughout, this is certainly an effort that deserves to soundtrack the film its set to. The track opens with a thudding percussion and sharp guitar work, creating an edgy and almost industrial feel, whilst Cudi’s hook furthers that by virtue of capturing the film’s dystopian vibe with some controlling lyrics. The verse work is melodic and delivered in a menacing manner that wraps around the instrumental nicely, and essentially serves its purpose of building to the hypnotising hook. A creepy, disturbed effort that definitely captures the essence of the film its made for. The undisputed highlight of Wale’s Ambition album, this motivational number is an excellent choice to restart the Wale/MMG buzz. As one of Wale’s better tracks to date, there’s pressure on the clip to deliver, and thankfully it does. The video opens with, and is mostly anchored around, a nightime cityscape, capturing the dark and moody elements of the audio very well, ensuring the true essence of the track is visualised appropriately. The verses contain some excellent semi-biographical sections too, with Meek Mill reflecting on his time back in his neighbourhood and Ross offering a rare glimpse of his personal life with some brief clips of life as a young upcomer. Wale closes things off with a mix of isolated and studio scenes, and it becomes apparent that his verse is incredibly thin subject-wise, in comparison to the more personal styles Meek and Ross go with, with his arrogant bars not quite fitting in with the general introspection of the song/video. An enjoyable watch nonetheless, and a real standout track in Wale’s back catalogue. Grab it on iTunes now.
The previous releases from this tape have generally been received well, and it appears some of the ill-feeling he bred for his ‘pop sellout’ Rolling Papers album is being clawed away with a return to a more hip-hop friendly style. Of course, there’s bound to be enough material to satisfy his new mainstream followers too, and I’d expect this to be a solid, well-rounded tape with some enjoyable chillout efforts that have become Wiz’s trademark in recent months. Free grab below.
This genre-less weekly episodical seems like the perfect opportunity to mix things up, and whilst there’s still ‘normal’ stuff in there, feel free to indulge yourself with the two curveballs I’ve thrown in this week. Last week you may recall Kid Cudi featuring heavily, and this week’s theme is…April 2009. I’ll be honest, it was more coincidental than anything. Head on below deck if you’re ready. Brand new visuals from Calez’s Kid With Raps project, and on top of that it’s all filmed in the headquarters of our GWHH friends over in Chicago. Having been one of the first to recognise Calez’s talent, it’s a nice touch by those guys, and also a good look for our fellow talented reviewers to get some camera time. It helps that it’s a decent track to set the clip to, with a real head-nodder of a production that boasts enough oomph to rattle your speakers, whilst Calez’s flows are sharp and certainly showcase his continued evolution. The video keeps things clear and uncomplicated, focusing mostly on Calez’s raps and confidence, which is undoubtedly a good move at this early stage in his career. Whilst more complex, ‘artsy’ videos may bring out the inner creativity, Calez is at a stage where he’s gaining acceptance for simply being the new rapper on the block, and hence it’s an effective visual in focusing on and projecting the audio. Solid all-rounder, and it’s great to see both Calez and the GWHH boys get a nice shine here. Grab Kid With Raps for free right now.
Although the instrumental on Now is to be admired for its complex layers, it’s really all about the lyricism on this. It’s the type of track you won’t just listen to once. In fact, whenever I bump this it’s on repeat for 5 times at least to fully appreciate Eyedea’s wordplay and rhyme scheme. Finally! The reason I say this isn’t because the video is particularly great, it’s because of the exposure it will help give this record and the LP in general. For me, this track was the middle finger to anyone who thought Premo was falling off. It’s also the track which proves Torae as one of the nicest in the underground, as he effortlessly rides over the perfect boom-bap concoction. Anything else I missed? Go grab the audio here. |
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