February 2013 Hotlist Week 1

Masta Killa - "Selling My Soul" 2012

I had pretty much forgotten he existed at this point, it's been so long since he put a solo album out. He was always kinda the odd man out within Wu Tang to me, because you could see why people like U-God and Cappadonna never really made it big, the way their styles are, but Masta Killa always seemed like he could be more versatile with his laid back flow. Sadly this album sounds more like some lost material from 10 or more years ago than a brand new album, which may actually appeal to some people I know, but I'm usually looking forward when it comes to new music and not backward. There's a couple songs that feel like tributes to other people than actual songs. That all being said, this is a decent east coast rap album that I would recommend to people who miss late 90's NYC rap, the way it was back then, and obviously any hardcore Wu-Tang fans, even though this album doesn't really have the feel of a Wu-Tang LP. It has a similar feel to Ghostface and Raekwon's albums from a few years ago. Check out R U Listening?, "Food", "All Natural", and this video for "What U See" and "Cali Sun" combined.

Torae - "Off The Record" 2012

Torae is a rapper that I neither like or dislike. He's not weak at all, but I don't feel like he has enough of what I want to bring to the table. In 2013, it's not enough to just be a tight MC putting together tight rhymes over decent beats, at least for me. Much like DJ Premier's production after 2000 or so, it all just starts to sound the same after a while with everyone chasing the same crowns and having the same goals within music. This is supposed to be like his leftovers EP of stuff that didn't fit on any albums, and within that context, this EP is pretty solid. Nice east coast style hip hop. Check out "Steady Mobbin", "Over You (Alternate Version)", and "New Day".

Mike Mictlan - "Snaxxx" 2012

I'll be honest, this album surprised me. I was expecting it to be a snoozefest, like most Doomtree projects have tended to be for me for the last few years, but this is the strongest release to come out of that camp since P.O.S.'s 2009 album, for sure. This album is actually fun sounding, and outside of a couple misguided attempts at fitting into whatever this new niche in the local scene that Prof seems to be in at the moment, doesn't really sound like a lot of other Minneapolis hip hop, and especially not within Doomtree. Some of this sounds slightly Spyder Baybie Raw Dog influenced, and his multiple guest appearances bring that home as well. This album made me realize that I had underestimated someone from this crew for sure. Some of this stuff almost comes off as being influenced by Das Racist or something. I like it. Check out "Flick Tha Bic", this video for "Spicy Peen", "Let Me Know" featuring Spyder Baybie Raw Dog, P.O.S., and La Manchita, "Hella Frrreal", and "Scottie Pippen" featuring Z3R0KOOL8D and Spyder Baybie Raw Dog.

C418 - "One" 2012

This guy became known from doing music for the video game Minecraft. Apparently most of these songs are from the soundtrack to the documentary about Minecraft, which I have never seen. Nice classical piano stuff tinged with electronics. Good for having on in the background and completing tasks. Check out "Post Success Depression", "The Weirdest Year Of Your Life", and "Lawyer Cage Fight".

"Sunrise Blend 2" 2012

Nice compilation put out by French record label, Juicy. This highlights a lot of upcoming, sample based electronic musicians from around the world. This is a very enjoyable album all the way through, even if there's not really any stand out songs to me. Just a lot of cool people throwing down cool sounding songs. You can check it out here.

The Chariot - "One Wing" 2012

This band was introduced to me by a friend of mine who is more into this style of rock than I am. I remember liking some of their older songs, so I decided to check this new one out. My assessment is that this band has a shitload of potential that is not being tapped into enough. If they concentrated less on the annoying Deftones style screaming and more on the Mr. Bungle/Secret Chiefs 3 style changeups they have going on in some of these songs, I would be WAY more into it. Check out "Love", "Tongues", and "First".

Reso - "Tangram" 2012

Well, here it is. The full length debut by Reso after I slew of relatively amazing EP's from the last 4 years. Within that context, this album is slightly disappointing, but as a debut album, this is incredibly solid. It shows that he doesn't need to pander to the dubstep audience at all, and can produce pretty much any style of electronic music, and excel at it even. Check out "Tabris", "Check 1,2", "Half Life", and "Virtua Rhythm".

John Roberts - "Paper Frames" 2012

Don't know anything about this guy, but these couple songs sound pretty good, and in the same vein as people like Amon Tobin, but it also reminds me a lot of James Blake's instrumental stuff. I'll have to seek out more music by him. Check out "Paper Frames" and "Crushing Shells".

DJ Spinn - "Teklife Vol. 2: What You Need" 2012

So, the next in the Teklife series also does not disappoint. I'm just really digging all these footwork/juke guys take on DJing and electronic music in general. There's not any weak tracks on this entire album. Check out this ridiculous remix of Kanye West's "Mercy" featuring DJ Rashad. Also check out "What You Need" featuring DJ Manny, "Let Me Baby" featuring DJ Rashad, "4 A $5 Bag", and "Horn Chemist" featuring DJ Rashad & DJ Manny.

Neil Young & Crazy Horse - "Psychedelic Pill" 2012

I just checked this out to see what old Neil is up to nowadays. Some of the stuff on this album is listenable, but it's mostly due to Crazy Horse being a pretty nice jammy sounding band. Most of Neil's lyrics are pretty rambly and uninteresting. This album has a very loose feel, like they're all just jamming and improving with each other, and didn't really have a plan. It makes for some good background music if you already generally enjoy him. This album sounds cool on headphones too, due to the way the guitars were recorded. I didn't know all these videos existed until I was putting together this blog entry, so that was a sweet bonus. These are great. Check out  the title track, "Driftin Back", "Ramada Inn", and "Walk Like A Giant".

The Chap - "We Are Nobody" 2012

I really dug their previous album "We Are The Best", so I was eager to hear this one, and it doesn't disappoint, but I will also say, I still prefer that album. These guys are fairly uncategorizable. I would call them a rock band by default, but they hit lots of different feels from song to song and use some electronic elements. There isn't a clear cut lead singer either. Both the male and female seem to share equal duty. Definitely recommended for people who don't like regular boring rock, and maybe also enjoy stuff like Stereolab and The Unicorns. Check out "Hands Free", the video for "What Did We Do", "Better Place" (can't find a link for this song anywhere, and it's one of my favs), and "This Is Sick".

Kuba - "Random Precision" 2012

Blind download. This music is incredibly detailed and complex overall, but somehow the way it's arranged and produced so slickly, makes it almost seem generic. It sounds like something you'd hear on a "moods" or new age type satellite radio station, but it's not 100% that stiff either. Most of the songs are kind of like an adventure that never really goes anywhere. Hard to explain. Check out "Dub Mythology", "On The Spot", and "Never Trustafarian".

Stark Reality - "Acting, Thinking, Feeling" 2012

Now Again Records is releasing an anthology of this jazz/funk band's entire body of work, ranging from the late 60's to early 70's. This is kind of the odds and ends disc, with a couple 10" releases and short albums compiled onto one disc. I like the instrumentation a lot, and how they are able to effectively play both traditional jazz and more funky stuff, but some of the singing leaves a little bit to be desired. Check out "Say Brother" and the title track.

Joey Bada$$ - "Rejex" 2012

Checked this dude out because he has a decent buzz going right now, and I wanted to see what the hype was about. I was actually surprised to see that he's a traditional sounding east coast rapper, rhyming over mostly late 90's sounding production. I normally really hate when people go for a retro sound or try to prey upon younger people's ignorance to the fact that rap like this used to be the norm, but this guy actually has some talent. This is a promising collection of rhymes. Check out "OG Killuminati", "Indubitable" (did he ask Lord Finesse permission? haha), and "Pantie Raid".

Oh No & Chris Keys - "Ashes" 2012

2012 was definitely the year of Oh No, at least for me, and this was ANOTHER release he put out that fell under my radar. I don't know anything about Chris Keys, but stuff I read about him says he has a jazz background. This album is strictly hip hop though, and while it's not spectacular in any way, it bangs all the way through with no weak tracks. I'm assuming they made all these beats together, and they work good as a production duo, although not quite as good of a match as Oh No and Alchemist as Gangrene. Check out "The Light" featuring LMNO & Declaime, "Devastation" featuring Guilty Simpson & Montage One, and "Strangers".

Choir Of Young Believers - "Rhine Gold" 2012

This group is OK, but they seem to fall in that same zone as Muse for me, where i'd rather be listening to Radiohead when I hear them, but I know they're not a bad group. I like how these guys have very high aspirations and get almost progressive sounding at times, but their sound is clearly still planted in the basic pop/rock world. This also seems like the type of album I might enjoy more the more I get to know it. Check out "Have I Ever Really Truly Been Here", the title track, "Patricia's Thirst", and "The Wind Is Blowing Needles".