GANG SIGNS!

Remember how waaaaaaaaay back I promised that I'd advertise the upcoming online radio show/podcast done by my bro Ishmael? Well I've been working on so many other projects that I haven't had time to do that, or any of the other stuff I promised to do recently! Don't worry, dear reader, I haven't forgotten about you. Here is the link to the GANG SIGNS blog page where you can download their first two episodes (and more on the way, I hear).

GANG SIGNS LINK

I've listened to both episodes that are up so far. They're both quite funny, and these boys have some interesting things to say. If what they tell me about the upcoming episode is to be believed (and I believe that it is) then we're all in for a great episode! Here's their brief:

BLOG NEWS & UPDATES #2

News & Updates March 19th

So I've been on the posting spree today. Everything that came up today has been in the works for the last week in some way or another- I've just been a busy girl, that's all. Don't hate.

I gave the blog a new look today as well, but nothing new on the technical front.

I have some more stuff in the works for all of you too- part II in the MF Grimm guide (which is going to be about his book) and part III (which will probably be all about the new stuff with Drasar Monumental). Additionally, I have part IV of the Wu-Tang guide coming which is going to be about post-Golden Age releases that hold their own with the GA ones. I may split that up into two pieces, one about non-Ghostface Killah releases, and one just for GFK.

After that the plan is to branch out some more. I'm going to do a piece on cool hip hop concept albums. That could take a little while to get together, or it might come out in multiple iterations. So keep your eyes open for that, the plan is to have it out by the end of April (we'll see). On top of that I'm hoping to do a piece about Jean Grae<3. I've been pretty generous with the boys, but there are some ladies who deserve some serious love, and JG is one who can rap circles around most male rappers EASILY.

That's all for now, remember to follow me via the mail list to get an email whenever I post something! xoxo <3

Hodgy Beats Recommendation

Note: I'm taking a break from my two biggest ongoing projects, A Short Guide to MF Grimm and A Short Guide to Wu-Tang Clan right now before launching into my next plan, where I go over some terrific hip hop concept albums (full-on concept albums at that, not just the ones following a concept so loose you wouldn't even notice it).

This is a short post with a very specific recommendation. Now I'm not too huge on Odd Future on account of Tyler the Creator (whose rape lyrics aren't shocking and offensive so much as just tiresome and completely useless), but I did receive a recommendation recently to check out Hodgy Beats' Untitled EP (2012). I gave it a listen and actually found it really cool. This boy can rap, and the production picked is fantastic. Topically he deals with drug addiction, shitty life choices, etc. I should also point out that life would probably be better for these cats if not every woman was a hoe and a bitch, but CLEARLY it's ALL the fault of the woman, and not at all the men who beat/rape/murder them. HMPH. In any case this is well worth your time, and you'll be happy to know that it's free on the Odd Future website! As always the link is included. :)

If you want a particular track recommendation, you gotta check "In a Dream," that shit really speaks to me.

http://www.oddfuture.com/collections/music/products/hodgy-beats-untitled-ep-1

Soul Science Album Review

Soul Science Album Review:

Artist: Elavi
Length: 70:48
Year: 2007
Tracklist:

1. Intro
2. Revolution
3. Doves Still Cry
4. Droppin Science
5. Jacobs Ladder
6. My Name On It
7. Smoke & Mirrors
8. The Dawn
9. Out of Sight, Out of Mind
10. It's Not About You
11. The Show Must Go On
12. You Must be Crazy
13. Faith in the Valley
14. Clockwork
15. Bombs
16. M.O.N.E.Y. (My Own Natural Energy Yield)
17. Soul Science

**Have you read the Readme?**

This is interesting and there's a story here (that's also interesting?). I actually met Elavi a few years back in the UK. He was performing on the street and I liked it well enough. He was there rapping and playing bass guitar with a drum machine going too. I thought that it was fairly fresh- after running into him a few times and enjoying a conversation I picked up a CD to show some support.

Here's the thing. Elavi is actually fairly talented. I never heard him do anything too fancy on his bass, and he doesn't throw out any crazy solos on this album either, but it's still quite solid. Even more important, when he wants to his rapping is decent too. These are the biggest strengths and weaknesses of this album. Firstly, Elavi self-produces everything about this album. The rapping, the singing, the composition, arrangement, production, etc. is all handled completely by Elavi. Elavi is actually a decent arranger and producer, but the problems start with the mixing. The production is often rather compelling, and due to the live instrumentation stands out from a lot of hip hop, but instead of adding to the rapping it often takes away from it. This is for one main reason- Elavi has set himself up to be a messiah-type figure in line with his idols (name-dropped in the liner notes here as including Bob Marley, Tupac Shakur, Jimi Hendrix, KRS-One, John Lennon, etc.). He feels (also according to the liner notes) that these characters have "gone deeply into the soul of music" (whatever the hell that means). The album is also "dedicated to all the lovers of true musical expression, to all those who feel that music has become either driven by money or egos and by big corporations who force pointless irrelevant music on the masses." So... unlike the 1920s, right? Look, I'm going through this because this is all central to the music on the album. I get that Elavi thinks this is some kind of revolution he's starting here, but I don't see it. Revolution against what? A corporate music industry where artists have more freedom than they ever did? Evil governments? This is all well and good, but listening to the album (for the tenth time too) I still have yet to really figure it out. I don't mean that in a good way either.

All of this being said there are some positives. When Elavi decides to actually rap instead of just half-singing "deep" one-liners (ugh) or half-chanting "deep" one-liners (also ugh) he actually pulls it off quite well. I also don't have a problem with politically charged stuff, but it needs to be pulled off well. Clarity always has to be a key element for this sort of thing if you want it to have any kind of lasting impact. When Elavi is focused on just doing the music instead of placing himself at the centre of this musical revolution he has the greatest impact and sounds the best.

Also, what is "soul science?"

Recommendation
Meh. There are two main ways to procure this album. One is in person from Elavi himself. If you see him on the street in the UK (usually Manchester I am lead to believe) and like what he's doing on the street then pick up a copy of this to support him. I'd assume you can get this online some way or another but I don't know why you'd be all that compelled to without actually meeting him.

MF Woolly, free album! - Operation Chrome & Ivory

Here's something neat.

MF Woolly is a hip hop duo consisting of T-Woolly (aka Granddad Woolly) and MF DOOM. DOOM handles the beats, T-Woolly takes care of the rhymes. The end project, called Operation: Chrome & Ivory (originally released 2009) ended up being pretty fantastic. Apparently no one cared, and no one listened to it. That was awfully silly of them, wasn't it! Well, recognizing this, T-Woolly very generously decided to (two days ago) give it away for free on his website with two bonus tracks (link included at the bottom). That was awfully nice of him, wasn't it!

I should also mention that despite hearing some of these beats quite regularly on different albums this is one of my favourite DOOM collaborations. T-Woolly is a fantastic rapper, and he basically carries the album from start to finish over some fantastic production choices.

http://granddadwoolly.bandcamp.com/album/the-granddad-presents-mf-woolly-chrome-ivory-5-year-anniversary-edition

Did I also remember to mention that this album is actually fantastic? Because that should be remembered.

PERFECT 天 Album Review

PERFECT 天 Album Review:

Artist: RYU BLACK
Length: 73:44
Year: 2011
Tracklist:

1. Intro
2. Satsui No Hadou
3. Ansatsuken [Feat. Majesty]
4. Hayashi N Kaze ( 林 風 ) [Feat. Masia One]
5. How Hadou
6. Go-en ( 御 縁 ) [Feat. Divine Life]
7. Once Bit 10
8. Sakura-chan [Feat. Mio Fujii]
9. Cry
10. Heaven ( 天 ) [Feat. Mariannie]
11. Chun Li [Feat. Mega Ran and Masia One]
12. Yama ( 山 ) [Feat. Dashah]
13. Metsu Ansatsuken ( 暗 殺 拳 )
14. Dojo Kun
15. Minasan [Feat. Arablak, Baron, DVS, Hona Core, Kenso Kuma, Lex, Atari Blitzkrieg, Cy Marshall Law, Hop and Jon Luca]

**Have you read the Readme?**

Let me preface this by saying that this album is not for everyone. That's not at all a bad thing though. This album isn't supposed to be for everyone. PERFECT 天 is an album that is a true treat for fans of the Street Fighter videogame series. Yes, this is a Street Fighter concept album. When I first learned about that my excitement shot through the roof. I love Street Fighter, and this is a perfect ode to the series, especially the classic Street Fighter 2 sub-series.

The beats here are tight, and the rhyming is great. Minimal but talented guest features add characters to the concept without weighing it down with too many voices to keep track of and everyone brings their A-game. I wasn't familiar with any of the names on the guest list either, but for a project like this it wasn't terribly surprising. Between every track are skits which add some narrative detail to the album. Ryu (here as and performed by RYU BLACK) journeys and adventures, hanging out and fighting with Ken, Chun-Li and others, fighting Zangief, Vega, etc. Those familiar with the story of Street Fighter will be able to pull specific details from the album's lyrics and will also get a nice surprise in the album artwork (not only the cover, but the entire CD case- designed by Ron Wimberly).

One of the biggest pros for this album is that despite its long running length (largely courtesy to the abundance of skits) it doesn't feel like a long undertaking. The skits add freshness between tracks, and the variety of topics (surprising considering the source material) make for a great listen start to finish.

Where the album falters a bit is in terms of its broader appeal (and I'm not talking about radio tracks!). The skits get a bit cheesy in places and sometimes the more serious topics of suicide and bullying don't come through all that well. Here's the thing though- this is a concept about Street Fighter, if you're down with that kind of thing then you aren't gonna be bothered by those things. A bit of cheese is basically required considering the source material and is more than forgivable with beats and rhymes this good. I suppose the biggest complaint anyone would have is this: if you don't know anything or don't care about Street Fighter then why should you care? To answer that perfectly honestly- I don't know, I love Street Fighter.

Recommendation
I highly recommend this album. It has the beats and rhymes that any lover of underground hip hop can get on with. While I'm not sure those who don't already love Street Fighter will be all that compelled to care, this is one of the most compelling hip hop concept albums out there, and it will definitely find itself on heavy rotation for those who are open to the concept.

Album Reviews Readme

I don't normally do this kind of thing, but special cases deserve special treatment. I'm talking about albums, not people- you're not special (unless you're reading this! <3).

Words of Warning

So, these are going to be some of my rare album reviews. A couple words of warning to preface all of this. While I am a professional freelance writer (no, really I am!) I am not being paid to do this blog, which consists wholly of my opinions, views, thoughts, feelings, etc. So while any review I write is going to strive for balance and fairness, I am not writing a consumer guide, and I don't believe there's truly such a thing as objective reviewing (and anyone who claims otherwise is either lying, or deceiving themselves- that's bad faith man). That being said, I am a professional, and this is a review, so you could probably swing it to call this a professional review (take that Wikipedia!).

Also, another cautionary word. I am (most likely) not going to be commenting on an artist personally. If I have heard bad thing X about artist Y I probably won't be commenting on that. So if you're 2Pac and I'm doing a piece about Biggie, I hope you can understand that while (especially if you've spoken to me about the topic personally) I am a third party removed from the situation. So even if I believe you completely or agree with you from personal experience I will attempt to not let that affect my writing. This serves a different purpose.

Lastly- I really don't feel the need to take requests. I have a near insatiable appetite when it comes to music. You can suggest something to me if you think that I'd like it, but if you ask me to review it it may not happen.

Recommendation System

The structure of my reviews are pretty basic. I'll ramble on for a bit about the album and give some thoughts on it. I'll probably talk about some positives and some negatives (like all reviews should, right?). After that I'll put a "Recommendation" section where I tell you straight up if you should look at getting this. Again, this isn't a consumer guide, so I won't tell you where and when you should throw your money. No scores, just an honest opinion.