Meanest Man Contest has released its latest single – You Don’t Wanna Know – via RCRD LBL – and it’s a doozy.
We’ve seen the duo all over the place, from remixing Daedelus to getting a little violent over some bad-ass electro beats. But on You Don’t Wanna Know – off the tremendous Partially Smart EP – MMC cool out over some analog crackling that pairs nicely with overall warmth of the production. Eriksolo even sings. Settle down, ladies.
Stream it below or download it here.
I just picked up the new 33 1/3 book by Matthew Gasteier on Nas’ classic debut Illmatic. So, naturally, I’ve revisted the album and listened to it about four or five times in the past couple days – just as a reminder of its near-flawless standing.
But listening to Illmatic can be as frustrating as it is rewarding, knowing now that his propensity for greatness was undermined by his inconsistency in the albums to follow (It Was Written, I Am …, etc.). Because in the post-Illmatic years, for every Nas Is Like (a DJ Premier gem) there was a Hate Me Now (feat. Puff Daddy). How do you reconcile that?
Perhaps that’s the curse of releasing one of the most influential hip-hop albums of the ’90s (ever?). Sadly – and inevitably – nothing Nas has done or will do can live up to Illmatic’s perfection. Needless to say, I’m eager to dig into Gasteier’s account/analysis of the album.
Meantime, here’s my favorite cut from Illmatic, the Large Professor-produced It Ain’t Hard to Tell that famously samples Michael Jackson’s Human Nature.
Serial collaborator Chali 2na, late of the great Jurassic 5, is finally breaking out with his own solo album, due for release July 7 on Decon. Despite the somewhat cheesy title (Fish Outta Water … get it?), it’s good to hear one of the MCs from J5 steppin’ up.
The first single from the album is called Lock Shit Down, featuring Talib Kweli. And I guess the real question is whether Chali 2na and his baritone pipes can carry a full album or if it will only make us yearn for the J5 days.
Also, Chali 2na lends his voice to a new adidas campaign called “Inner Workings” with two animated videos featuring NBA stars Dwight Howard and Derrick Rose.
No surprise here, but The Roots remain the only reason to watch Jimmy Fallon’s show. So every time a decent musical guest is booked, the tantalizing notion of a collaboration with The Roots – like the one with Public Enemy – warrants some attention.
On Monday night, they teamed up with the old-as-dirt Beastie Boys (what’re they, like, 45?) for a top-notch rendition of So What’cha Want off the recently remastered Check Your Head.
To celebrate seven years as one of best weekly hip-hop nights in the Valley, the Blunt Club has booked a headliner worthy of such an anniversary bash: Gift of Gab, one-half of Blackalicious and a member of the Def Jux-backed Mighty Underdogs, is the featured guest next Thursday’s throwdown.
If you’re skeptical about why the man calls himself the Gift of Gab, take heed. My guess is, we’re in for some ridic freestyles next week.
Related:
The Mighty Underdogs: Want You Back (video)
The Mighty Underdogs: War Walk
Somewhere between The New Danger and his acting career, I fell out of love with Mos Def.
Black on Both Sides was such a certified classic that I wanted so badly to like The New Danger, an album in which Mos was clearly to make some sort of lofty artistic statement (but only he knew what that really was). I thought maybe if just I kept the album in my iTunes library it would somehow reveal itself to me. Alas, its fate rested in the digital trash can. And who the hell knows what was going on with True Magic … I barely blinked when that came out.
So with my interest in Mos at an unfortunate all-time low, I mustered just enough strength to check out the tracks from his forthcoming album The Ecstatic (due out June 9). (I’d already wasted my time watching Something the Lord Made, so what’s another few minutes?) I’m happy to report that this (so far) sounds like what should have been the follow-up to Black on Both Sides. I’m not ready coronate Mos again, but the three tracks released have me somewhat hopeful.
Check the new video for Casa Bey below:
I meant to post this last week when I saw it at URB, but a designer/artist by the name of Logan Walters has taken it upon himself to redesign the covers of Wu-Tang Clan-affiliated albums in the style of the classic Blue Note look. The results are fantastic.
Says Walters: ” … almost all of the Wu-Tang album art was horrible (ODB’s two albums being the only real exceptions) — no offense to the original designers, but as iconic as they might be they’re looking pretty dated these days.” It’s a brilliant concept and Walters seems to have nailed it, right down to the yellowing edges of each cover. He’s gone so far as to replace the originals with his designs in his iTunes library. Can’t say I blame him. You can check out all the covers (and he’s adding more) at his Flickr set.
And while we’re on the topic, El Michels Affair has another mp3 available from its album of instrumental Wu-Tang interpretations, Enter the 37th Chamber. GZA’s Duel of the Iron Mic – El Michels calls it Duel of the Iron Mics … plural – gets the reworking here, complete with movie-clip sampling that appears in the original.
The folks at online marketing and publicity firm RED are giving away a pair of tickets for every date of the Haiku D’Etat tour. That includes a May 20 stop at Chaser’s in Scottsdale (and May 19 at Club Congress in Tucson for that matter).
Haiku D’Etat is the sorta haughty-sounding moniker for the trio of Aceyalone, Myka 9 and Abstract Rude, all well-respected for their contributions to the underground scene in L.A. Aceyalone and Myka were founding members of Freestyle Fellowship, and Haiku D’Etat follows in the free-form, jazz-inspired style.
It’s been five years since the last Haiku D’Etat release (Coup De Theatre), so it could be that something new is in the works. Ab Rude’s debut for Rhymesayers, Rejuvenation, came out Tuesday.
Haiku D’Etat’s tour also kicked off on Tuesday and continues through May 22. Enter to win tickets to any of the shows right here.
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of 3 Feet High and Rising – 20 years! – URB is inviting readers to ask a couple questions that the magazine will then get to the group.
I thought I was all ready to type in a question and then I became paralyzed: What can I possibly ask these guys that they haven’t been asked before without sounding like bumbling idiot? Of course, these are musicians I hold in the highest regard. In fact, hanging just above my computer is a placard promoting Stakes Is High signed by Posdnuos and Trugoy, who happened to stroll into Zia Records in Tempe one afternoon before a show that night in 1996. Trugoy signed it: “To: Kevin, True Plug Too”. In the event of a fire, I’d probably grab it right after my dog.
So, what would you ask De La Soul?
ALSO, De La Soul has just released its contribution to the Nike+Original Run series. Are You In? is a continuous 45-minute mix “written specifically to power your run.” That would be pretty cool if, well, I actually ran. Below is an interview with De La discussing the project:
RELATED:
J. Period feat. De La Soul: Excursions (remix)
De La Soul tribute on Hip-Hop Honors
Damn. It was back in December that I posted about Say G&E!, the first single from the album of the same name by Living Legends members The Grouch and Eligh. Well, that album finally hit stores this past week, just a few weeks before the duo’s May 15 stop at the Clubhouse in Tempe (tickets are $15).
The Grouch hooked up those hip to Twitter with a free mp3 off the album for the song Rivers Run Dry, one of the strongest tracks on the record. My favorite so far, though, is Old Souls (feat. Blu with production by Flying Lotus).
Check reviews for Say G&E! at URB and Okayplayer.
Also on the bill for the May 15 show is edIT, who remixed one of my fave Grouch tracks, Artsy.