Tag Archives: Busdriver

Incoming: Busdriver, Nocando and Open Mike Eagle, Oct. 24

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Three of Los Angeles’ finest emcees at the forefront of the avant-rap scene – or whatever you wanna call it – are joining up for a fall tour that will stop at Rhythm Room on Oct. 24 (though at this point I’m not sure who is promoting it, so I have little in the way of ticket/age information).

Busdriver, Nocando and Open Mike Eagle are as prolific as they are talented, often showing up as guests on each other’s work, so a collaborative tour makes sense.

In the case of Busdriver and Nocando, they released the album 10 Haters under the Flash Bang Grenada moniker last year. But all three have either released or will release solo material in 2012. Busdriver dropped Beaus$Eros in February; Open Mike Eagle released 4NML HSPTL this summer; and it looks like Nocando is close to unveiling a new album.

In conjunction with the tour announcement, Busdriver premiered a new video for the song “Utilitarian Uses of Love” over at Potholes In My Blog.

I’ve included some more treats below:

Nocando and Busdriver are Flash Bang Grenada: In a Perfect World (feat. Open Mike Eagle)

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Busdriver, the resident braniac of experimental rap, wrote a tweet the other day that gave me pause: “It’s boggling how much effort goes into any given song that ultimately gets converted into a violently disposable MP3.” It’s a pretty straightforward sentiment that speaks to our habits as digital consumers and asks the non-musicians among us to be more respectful of the artist at work.

It’s a point worth remembering, especially as I present to you an MP3 from Flash Bang Grenada – Busdriver’s new project with Nocando. But this track, featuring their fellow Project Blowedian Open Mike Eagle, is hardly a throwaway.

When three of rap’s most progressive and self-aware MCs come together – over a spellbinding beat from Mono/poly – it’s going to take more than one listen (or five or 10 or more) to appreciate what’s happening here.

Flash Bang Grenada’s full-length 10 Haters comes out on Aug. 23.