A young lady welcomes Young Chris to the University of Wisconsin
Sorry I've been so lazy about writing shit, but that laziness is continuing. Mostly it's been that there isn't much music I've felt compelled to write about, which isn't to say there I'm not digging any music, but I don't have much to say other than "this shit is good." Then there's MJ, who gave me tons of great memories of trying to remember the thriller dance with this girl I liked, or singing obnoxious karaoke renditions of "I Want You Back," or getting into silly rockism vs popism debates with my friends over whether Thriller was a better album than Dark Side of the Moon (though really, Pink Floyd are pretty lame, guys) but as a young'un I've never completely linked all that great music with the guy I became aware of as a freakshow NY Post headlining has been. If there's any positive to Jackson's death, it's in forcing assholes like me to reconcile this shit.
Anyway, here's a mix I made a couple hours before I found out about MJ for my old roommate. It's slightly less obscure than it would be for an audience of internet rap nerds, there are likely to be at least a few songs you're incredibly familiar with. Also somehow I didn't realize how fruity it is to make a mix for a dude you haven't seen in a bit with an R&B track called "My World Is Empty Without You." Oh well, fuck a pause, the song jams. Tracklist in the comments.
Almost all newish rap this episode, with me and special guest Joseph from Geek Down (if you're not checking there, you should be) droppin' some knowledge and ignorance (mostly ignorance) on y'all. Shit was fun. Click here to download or here to stream.
Don't know what I'm doing with this. Hopefully I can figure out how to put this on itunes and do subscriptions and all that junk. Anyway, click here to download. Also if you are or will be in New York City, you should be a podcast guest. And you should employ me.
Another playlist type post with stuff that's more old than new, without a loose theme. I'm considering doing these types of posts as podcasts, though the amount of time I take to talk about each track could lead to a podcast that's more talk heavy than what I want.I dunno, I probably just wish I went to a school where I could get a decent radio timeslot.Let me know what you think of the idea, readers.
The Coasters - Young Blood
The Coasters are this 50s group that made a bunch of songs you probably had to sing in summer camp if you went -Poison Ivy, Yakkety Yak, Charlie Brown- but divorced from that novelty, they just bring a bunch of fun and energy to pretty well written songs. The kinda shitty recording quality only adds this welcome layer of sloppiness, far from the studio polish of all those 60s classics, but not forced amatuerishness like punk either. It's something more casual. Like remember the scene in Oh Brother Where Art Thou when they go to the studio and pay 10 bucks to lay down a track and then leave? That's probably not how this was recorded, but it's got that feel.
There's also something really weird about the fact that "young blood" is the name of the girl. Personally when I hear "young blood," I think of blaxploitation, as Youngblood is Priest's first name in Superfly, and (I think) Iceberg Slim's first nickname in Pimp: The Story of My Life. So the fact that it's used to describe a girl and not a badass dude is weird enough, but then if you think about it, the idea of lusting after "young blood" sounds really predatory and, uhh... vampiric. I dunno, there's this real dangerous edge to 50s and early 60s pop that it's convienient to forget about, but makes the music still exciting and fucked up.
Drumma Boy feat. Young Buck, 8Ball and MJG - Round Me
Holy shit! That 8Ball verse might be my favorite Ball of the decade. (this is counting the decade as starting in 2001, lots of good shit on Space Age 4Eva) Anyway it's some 90s style Ball storytelling over a nice mellow soul beat, which means it lacks the urgency of something like "What Can I Do," but still has the pathos. Buck and MJG's performances are also very solid, while I wish Drumma Boy would just stick to producing, which he's very good at. This isn't even a case of needing a better ghostwriter, Drumma has an annoying voice and is not an interesting presence at all on the mic.
That said, the majority of Drumma's mixtape, Welcome II My City, is really good. There's a mix of rap talents he throws on, and the biggest names all come at the end, but dude's just a really versatile subtle producer who never tries too hard to make bangers. Plus it's pretty cool to see this huge sprawling local crew featured on anything. And that crew also has two pretty good female rappers in Allie/Allizee and Gangsta Boo, which is always a bonus.
Carol Douglas - Doctor's Orders
I bought the Last Days of Discosoundtrack the other week, which is not only a great disco comp for n00bs, but really makes a point of connecting disco and soul, showing how disco was an easy place for black pop to go in the 70s and not some new evil thing that the "Disco Sucks" crowd always argues. (The Disco sucks crowd is also just wrong, Disco was way better than most other music of the mid-late 70s) So Doctor's Orders makes sense, as a song that could be easily characterized as soul or Disco, and showing the thin line there. It's also great. I'm not gonna defend the cheesiness of the lyrics so much as say that the melody here is so powerful that if by the third time you here this song you don't wanna sing along with "says in my condition love's the best pha-sician" then you're more strong-willed than I can ever hope to be.
E-40 Record Haters
Pretty much anytime I think of 40 water, hating, records, Rasheed Wallace, bitches, snitches gouda cheese, hemorrhaging, AZ etc I'm forced to play this song. It's not that much of a burden.
Kilo - She's Got Me Eating Pussy
From that early Atlanta comp Noz made a while ago. Look, I can't resist a good juvenile sex rap. Still there's something kind of charmingly dated about this song, like it's from a time when pussy-eating was something unusual or not discussed, and Kilo and the other dude are like these pussy-eating pioneers. Also did anyone catch the name of the dude who isn't Kilo? He definitely has the best lines in, "when it's time for the erection, my toungue gets hard," "her chairs were all broken so she sat on my face" and "when I get hungry I'm going over to Atlanta Fried Pussy for a two piece cootie cat snack." Despite the political bent, the song is just an excuse for those kinda ridiculous lines. Or is it that the silly lines make the pro-pussy-eating sexual politics more palatable to the kind of immature dude who'd resist them? At any rate, it's a good companion to Devin's "Broccoli and Cheese."
Young Jeezy featuring Bun B - Over Here
I don't love Jeezy or think he's a great rapper, but he's undeniably one of the most influential rappers of the decade (I'd put him at #3, behind Jay and Ye) Not only did labels start signing rappers who looked like they could be the next Jeezy (Joc, Ross, Zoe, and any number of dudes since) but producers started to create the kind of beats that Jeezy sounded good over for lots of artists, who then elongated their flow. To use one example, I don't think T.I. would have never become a star without Jeezy, but I doubt "What You Know" would exist.
Anyway it's interesting to revisit the stuff he released when he was just another guy with some buzz in the streets. Simply put, he's the same but different. That is all the elements are there, the slow flow, the scratchy voice, the adlibs, the celebration of the trap, but it seems rawer. The adlibs are less consistent, the rhyming is less polished, and the way he pronounces "be the fuck gone wit it" in the chorus is more assertive than we usually hear. Shawty Redd's beat similarly sounds kinda rough or unfinished, or at least not as fine tuned as something like "Hypnotize." It also seems a bit fast for Jeezy, as Jeezy hasn't developed a fast flow yet, so he's rushing his slow flow to keep up to the beat. None of this really detracts though. And then Bun is on it, which just shows how willing Bun is to find up and coming artists before they get big and appear on their shit. Bun naming Jeezy one of the top 5 rappers makes more sense when you remember this, he was supportive of Jeezy from the very beginning.
After hearing Welcome II My City, I decided to download Drum Squad member Allie's old mixtape, Preseason, which she released as Alizee. It's a mixed bag, but this song just comes out of nowhere and completely fucks up the whole standard early 2006 mixtape vibe and turns it into something else. What that is, I don't know, but it kinda scares the shit out of me. Allie is a New Orleans native, so this track makes me think she'd be a good choice for collaborating with Jay Electronica.
So I should have posted this when I first saw it about a month back, but forgot. Anyway, I've watched it a lot since then and it's still growing on me. Ryan Leslie's greatest strength and commercial downfall is his fundamental corniness, and this video is great example of that. The video starts out in pure throwback Sinatra-musical cheese (I especially love the swelling background music while he gives the men his speech) and then turns into something "grittier" but still kinda goofy when the evil male model dude shows up to steal his girlfriend (this part kinda reminds me of the early Denzel movie, A Soldier's Story). The video changes in tone but stays decidedly old-fashioned (way more than your average "retro" dress up type video), while "How It Was Supposed To Be" is this totally forward thinking piece of jilted lover synthpop.
Leslie co-directed this video, which is probably the best way to explain why it's so wacky. Like the video's twist, where he imagines leaving the stage to beat up the villain, is actually the most generic element. Way more idiosyncratic and interesting is the aforementioned speech, the unexpected introduction of Leslie's girlfriend's body issues, or the acapella version of "Diamond Girl" that opens the video. It's a video that realizes one guy's inspired vision, even if that vision involves tossing in 5 more ideas than necessary.
It's really cool to see realistic, low budget, neighborhood photography videos done well. But there's something to be said for videos like this, where the artist is maybe too ambitious, trying to make their music videos feel like a movie. The vibe for "How It Was Supposed To Be" is the opposite of naturalism, but it's evocative original and kooky enough that it doesn't matter. Ryan Leslie is old-fashioned, weird, corny but kinda awesome, so of course that's what this video is. It sucks that there aren't more crazy ambitious music videos like this, though it makes sense as few can afford them. I don't have cable, so I have no idea if this has gotten any MTV or BET play, or if it's even the official video, but I really hope lots of people are able to see it, it's a brilliant example of an subgenre that barely exists anymore.
Looking at U-N-I you'd think they're just more L.A. hipster rappers in the vein of the Knux. However, their new free album A Love Supreme reminds me most of Huntsville AB's G-Side. While U-N-I are more middle class and into fashion, at their best they rap super-earnestly and emotionally over beats that mine the melancholic aspect of house or rave sounds. The title final track hits hardest, with Thurzday talking some shit about about a gangsta and his willingness to be self destructive on some petty shit before ending it with "Fuck that I'd die for my pride, nah I take it back I'd die for my daughter." There's something really touching about that invocation of fatherhood there, and it makes Thurzday way more interesting than another young dude willing to talk some shit about how nice his sneakers are, although yeah, he's that too. These guys may look silly, but the album is all about coming into adulthood, while bringing in all the immature shit as well. Y-O's verse is even more affecting, vividly detailing the experience of getting mugged. In lines that perfectly capture the feelings of powerlessness during this experience, he recalls, "with his body turned round, I wish that Jeff would come out of store and pop him with the keg/but instead he reaches for the phone while he push me to the ground with the gun to my head." Of course, that kind of powerlessness is debilitating and uncool, and Y-O kinda questions his passivity after his verse ends, though he feels he ended up doing the right thing, choosing life. And while there's plenty of great rap that embraces self destruction, it's nice to hear some real, vulnerable, life affirming shit sometimes too.
This whole album is really good, especially the production by RO BLVD, who mines the same territory as Block Beataz, but comes up with his own distinctive sound. It's futuristic, but also boom bap-influenced enough to feel retro. Few songs are Timbo-style bangers, instead it's synth based comfort food for the ears. You can download it at U-N-I's site.
Playboy Tre -"Preacher's Wife"
At this point, I'm gonna assume any Suckapunk readers have already downloaded Playboy Tre's excellent new free album, Liquor Store Mascot, which is about as good as you could ever hope for. (That is to say, about as good as Goodbye America). But you might have missed this excellent track, released a couple days before the album but left off, about fucking a preacher's wife. Tre's great at describing his guilt, going into detail about his experience sitting in church with this sin on his mind, and telling the story with great movement. My only complaint is that he seems to hold back a little with the sex scenes, that pornographic detail would make the sin feel even more wrong, increasing both the humor and tension of the story. But for better or worse, pornographic detail isn't really Tre's style, and the song is still funny and full of tension without it. The beat is fine, at its best during the chorus when the the organ sounds kinda badass, but like every Tre track, the rapping is the standout.
C-Ride -"My Only Life"
Ok real talk, I don't know shit about C-Ride other than he's a dude from MIA. But damn if this song doesn't represent country rap tunes at its finest. Riding a twangy guitar driven beat with a flow that can transition easily between rapping and singing like Devin or Z-Ro, C-Ride lays out his manifesto. There's nothing he's saying that's incredibly memorable, but his technical skill describing his typical hustler's life makes up for this, and there's a satisfied yet wistful feeling to his delivery. As the weather gets hotter and the days get longer, this is perfect hot late afternoon music. You can download C-Ride's mixtape here.
Pill -"Bunkin"
I've listened to Pill's 4180 The Prescription mixtape more than anything else in the 3 months since I downloaded it, and this is probably my favorite track. Pill isn't a hugely varied rapper, mostly sticking to energetically shit talking, reciting trap based punchlines or talking about fucking girls. But there's something about the guy's enthusiasm that's really likeable. He takes obvious joy in the act of rapping, and the frequency and nature of his ad libs reveal this guy who's really having fun. On this track he gets a beat that's just as energetic and off the wall as he is, complete with a bouncing spring sound effect somewhere in the background of the wonderfully busy mix. There's something kinda fucked up about triumphantly invoking Obama being in office in the middle of celebratory drug dealing song, but it grounds a statement like "Trap got me fucking more hoes than Wilt Chamberlain" nicely. If you liked this mixtape, you should probably also download Pill and SL Jones' Skulls and Roses EP, where the grind time rap gang up and comers serenade the ladies over classic 70s and 80s R&B.
Bonus non-new, non-rap song
Against Me! -"Miami"
This is the jam right here. I love how it takes a while to really coalesce into a banger, and then when it does, it's just monstrous. I'm years late on this band, never thinking 2000s punk could be this good, now I gotta catch up.
So by now you probably know that The Pack's Lil B currently maintains 114 or so myspace pages, each with 5 or 6 songs. It's an intense piece of performance art, and one that I'm sure contains quite a few gems I'm never going to get around to. But browsing through, "Stuck Up Bitch" was a clear standout.
While most B tracks either offer him rapping or completely rejecting rap to say random shit to soundtrack his freakout, he never quite decides what he wants to do in Stuck Up Bitch. He never commits to rapping, but he also never commits to not rapping. This means the hook shows up in random places and his flow changes constantly, going from from conversational to technical even in the middle of a line to create some brilliant nonsense like this,
You’re a stuck up girl Acting like the coolest thing in the world bitch but you’re something kinda like onthebottomnofmyshoe I’m just playing hell but no I’m not I can’t lie you’re shit bitch Positive but you’re shit bitch Bitch you do not talk to me And if you look at me when I look at you bitch It’s obvious that we Have a rap war that’s establishing connections...
This allows the song to stop and start, sometimes awkwardly, like a guy hitting on a girl who isn't giving him much to work with.
I said hello and you're trying to act like I didn't even say maybe Bitch I said something Bitch I'm the fucking man
In context, that last line sounds more like a shattered ego trying to reassert itself than pure misogyny, as B sees the rejection he gets from the stuck up bitch as disrespect that makes him genuinely insecure. This is how dudes respond to rejection all the time. The language might change, but few of us are mature enough to not take rejection personally or seek out the catharsis gained by rejecting the rejecter. This isn't to say this attitude isn't problematic, but it's extremely honest in describing experience.
Well maybe you have a boyfriend or maybe you have a husband But you can tell me Don't just look at me bitch I'm not playing, don't even look at me bitch
Do those who want more vulnerability in rap know what they wished for? This song is "ignorant" in that all the attitudes expressed are totally juvenile, but you'd be hard pressed to find any sentiment as vulnerable as "don't even look at me," which may be even more pathetic because it's delivered authoritatively here. Being vulnerable never stopped anyone from being an asshole.
A young lady welcomes Young Chris to the University of Wisconsin
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