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I Used to Love H.E.R.: Nick Andre (City Light)

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The 43rd installment of I Used to Love H.E.R., a series in which artists/bloggers/writers discuss their most essential or favorite hip-hop albums and songs, comes from Nick Andre, a Bay Area DJ/producer and co-founder of Slept On Records who has worked with, among others, artists from Quannum and Living Legends. His newest project is City Light, which recently toured with and recorded a split covers EP with Her Space Holiday.

bizarre rideThe Pharcyde
Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde
(Delicious Vinyl, 1992)

I got Bizarre Ride on cassette tape during a summer trip in seventh grade to my cousin’s house in S.D. This was the first “underground” hip-hop album I owned. That summer my cousin and I got really into smoking weed so Pack the Pipe was kind of an anthem for us that summer. Bizarre Ride had such a unique sound to me from the different vocal tones of Fat Lip, Tre, Brown and Imani to the simple but extremely catchy hooks. They even manage to make a entire song out of Ya Mama jokes.

As I got older I got obsessed with going to as many hip-hop shows as possible and began to find out about similar artists such as Hieroglyphics, Living Legends, Project Blowed, etc. Right after high school, I saved up my money and purchased an MPC 2000XL and decided to take a shot at making beats. This became my new obsession. As I progressed and became more confident about what I was making, I started giving beat tapes to local MCs in the Bay Area. This led to being able to work and tour as a DJ with some of the artists I had grown up listening to such as Medusa (Project Blowed), OMNI (BLX), Bicasso (Living Legends) and more. About 10 years after I had purchased Bizarre Ride, I found myself backstage at a Pharcyde show we were main support for, drinking Hennessy with Jern Eye and getting so drunk that we ended up on stage singing the chorus to Passin’ Me By … doesnt get much better than that.

hip-hop

Cassettes Won’t Listen remixes Mr. Lif’s ‘The Sun’

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To hype the release of his full-length Into the Hillside (out June 16), Cassettes Won’t Listen (born Jason Drake) has joined up with Wired.com’s Underwire to release a free remix EP called – this one was too easy – (F)remix. The collection includes six CWL remixes for a variety of artists: The Dears, The Death Set, Christine, The Faunts, Bisc1 and, most appealing to me, Mr. Lif, who a couple months ago released a new full-length I Heard it Today.

I’m a huge fan of CWL’s remix of El-P’s Flyentology (better than the original, I say), so no surprise here that I dig what he’s done with Mr. Lif’s The Sun, slowing the sample from 45 to 33 1/3 RPM and wrapping Lif’s voice in an airy atmosphere instead of the low-end aggression of the original.

Download the entire (F)remix EP here (zip file).

  • Mr. Lif | The Sun (Cassettes Won’t Listen remix)
  • Mr. Lif | The Sun

    • Related:
    I Used to Love H.E.R.: Cassettes Won’t Listen
    Cassettes Won’t Listen covers The Freed Pig

    hip-hop, video

    Mos Def performs Quiet Dog on Letterman

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    Mos Def’s new one, The Ecstatic, is out now (available on mp3 at Amazon for $3.99 today) and, having listened to it about 10 or so times in the past week, I’m giving it my full backing.

    The production roster is top-notch (Oh No, Madlib, etc.) and it seems to bring out the best in Mos – a more focused effort that is on par with his debut Black on Both Sides. No surprise that one of my favorite tracks is the leadoff song, Supermagic, on which Mos is basically rapping over Oh No’s Turkish-inspired cut Heavy from Dr. No’s Oxperiment.

    Mos performed the drum-heavy Quiet Dog for Letterman on Monday night. Check it below. (Thanks to Ickmusic for posting the vid.)

    covers, general, video

    Far covers Ginuwine’s “Pony,” reunites for album

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    far0607

    I’ve been cautiously optimistic about this news of a Far reunion — and new album! — and it all appears to be a go: “Perhaps some of you have heard via the internets that we’re putting out a record with the venerable Vagrant Records. True and good.”

    Though it’ll be hard to live up to the greatness of 1998’s Water & Solutions – a desert-island disc candidate from my collection – the band’s two-album stint was (ahem) far too short, even though singer Jonah Matranga carried on with a solo career.

    Far’s reintroduction actually came last year in the form of a cover of Pony, the ’90s hit by Ginuwine. If you’ve ever wanted to hear Jonah sing, “If you’re horny, let’s do it/ride it; my pony,” well, your wildest dreams have come true. Apparently, Ginuwine is a fan.

    And here’s an acoustic version of Pony the band did for 91X.

    Keep up with Far on Twitter and/or MySpace.

    arizona, video

    Miniature Tigers on The Interface

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    Phoenix’s own Miniature Tigers stopped by AOL’s The Interface for a session as they continue their seemingly non-stop tour in support of the debut LP Tell It to the Volcano.

    I posted two of the four songs below (Cannibal Queen and The Wolf). Get the other two and an interview here. You can also get the audio if you subscribe to The Interface podcast.

    Related:
    Miniature Tigers on The Train Tracks
    Miniature Tigers on Daytrotter
    Guest list: Charlie Brand of Miniature Tigers

    general, hip-hop

    Meanest Man Contest: You Don’t Wanna Know

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    mmc_0604

    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.

    general

    The Kickdrums: Things Work Out

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    kickdrums

    Cleveland production duo the Kickdrums — Alex Fitts and Matt Penttila — have remixed and produced some hip-hop heavies (Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Talib Kweli), and they just released their debut, Just a Game, on Tuesday. I haven’t heard the whole album – I’m downloading it now – but this single, Things Work Out, has a delicious Motown-meets-modern-day-production vibe.

    You can check out the album at imeem. Also, I’ve asked the guys if they’re interested in writing an I Used to Love H.E.R. entry and they are down to do it. Expect that in the near future.

    general, video

    Frightened Rabbit: Swim Until You Can’t See Land

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    From black cabs to train tracks, you just never know where you’ll stumble across a great performance. So how about a park bench? Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit offered up three songs for a session at Off the Beaten Tracks, including a new/unreleased song called Swim Until You Can’t See Land (via Forkcast).

    Does this mean we’ll see a follow-up this year to my favorite record of 2008? If that’s the case, we’re looking at a potentially big year from Fat Cat’s Scottish representatives, including We Were Promised Jetpacks and The Twilight Sad.

    Related:
    Frightened Rabbit: Bright Pink Bookmark (video)
    Frightened Rabbit: I Feel Better (video)
    Frightened Rabbit: Keep Yourself Warm (live in Phx)

    general

    The Cave Singers: Beach House

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    welcomejoy

    I’ve been eagerly awaiting word on a new album by The Cave Singers, and the news came today that Welcome Joy – a fine piece of advice, if it’s meant to be that, for a pessimist like myself – will be released Aug. 18 on Matador.

    I love the campfire/indie-folk quality of their debut, Invitation Songs, an album whose pretty melodies paired nicely with singer Pete Quirk’s slight rasp.

    After hearing Beach House, the first single off Welcome Joy, I have high hopes for what this new album will bring.

    hip-hop, video

    Nas: It Ain’t Hard to Tell (video)

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    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.