Review: Inkswel - Super Foods Vol. 3 (BBE Music)

The final installment in prolific Australian producer Inkswel's 'Super Foods' album series, this LP features exclusive remixes of the tracks from the previous two records, as well as exclusive new material. Simple, soulful music over crunchy, chunky beats define Inkswel's sound; a sound which is swiftly earning him fans from across the musical spectrum.

Highlights for us have to be the brilliant Kid Sublime remix of 'Flashing Lights' and the head-nodding 'Applause' which features creative NY hip hoppers Scienz Of Life.

As the label put it: "Sitting somewhere between deep house, boogie, soul and electronica, Superfoods Vol.3 takes the listener on a mouth-watering journey from head-nod to dance-floor and back again, all cooked up expertly by your Chef Du Party, Inkswel."

Super Foods Vol. 3 is out now via iTunes

Review: Vursatyl - Super feat. Dion (BBE Music)

It’s really a pity that in the Abrahamic tradition (i.e., Judaism, Christianity and Islam,) that the snake got a bad reputation.  In the Native American and African tribal legends, the snake was revered for its changing skin, a symbol of rebirth or renewal rather than being the bad guy in the legends of Abraham’s descendants.  Its counterpart in ancient Egypt is Osiris and the Norse had Baldr—both gods who were regularly reborn.  Hip hop music seems to be shedding its skin at the moment, maybe doing a bit of soul-searching.  It started out as a Bronx thing, spread all over NYC, then the East Coast and then all over the USA and Caribbean before leaping across oceans to first infuse and then reproduce itself in the UK, Japan, the European continent and beyond…  It was underground, then crossed over before eating whole, then redefining mainstream music. 

Hip hop music has been pretty busy since the late 70s spreading its message of… 
…Well, that depends on how you were introduced to it.  Initially it was party music, then it got more sophisticated and realized there was more to be talked about—such as social issues.  There was Black Nationalism and the rise of violent gangs on the West Coast. Back in NYC (and the East Coast in general,) Black Nationalism gave way to Afro-Centrism and a particular strain of Islam (“5% Nation,” later known as “Nation of Gods & Earths.”) The 90s brought us jazzy beats & rhymes, paeans to Mary Jane, “Thug Life” and “conscious rap.”  Another equally important, yet understated development was the abstract and sometimes instrumental output of the Solesides (later called Quannum) collective, which included Latyrx (Lateef the Truth Speaker and Asia/Lyrics Born,) Blackalicious (Chief Xcel & Gift of Gab) and, most famously, DJ Shadow.  Although they weren’t major label talents, they were licensed in the UK by a very influential label: Mo’Wax.  DJ Shadow has gone on to be a hiphop legend based on his revered instrumental album, Entroducing, which really works as a long-form piece.  While Blackalicious never reached the stardom of Shadow, they have a lot of artistic capital.  Fortunately for us, they used some of that to back a group from the hip hop non-mecca of Portland, Oregon known as The Lifesavas. 

From this group, comes the MC Vursatyl, whose “Super” sounds a bit like J-Live produced by J-Dilla.  Dion’s vocals play the proper support role, yet stick in your head (isn’t that why it’s called a “hook?”) In place of J-Live’s “Gods & Earths” we get a quick reference to Vursatyl’s Christianity, “…the Messiah was on the cross between two crooks.”  Despite this, braggadocio is still on full “…You’re trying to reach your potential, but I keep raising the bar.” His delivery is confident and his flow dances around the beat, making him a joy to listen to.  He’s had a few years on stage going toe-to-toe with Gift of Gab and it really shows.  Rolling Stone tapped Lifesavas as “a group to watch” a number of years ago and they were onto something.  “Super” should be bumping in everyone’s car, iPod, home or what/wherever they dig on music.  I’m sure there’s more to come and I, for one, can’t wait to see where Vursatyl goes with Hip hop wearing its new skin…

'Super' is out now on iTunes and all major download stores.

Review: DJ Oil - Phantom (BBE Music)

A quick look at Discogs tells us that DJ Oil previously had a solo album out a few years back on Discograph, which totally passed this writer by. When I wondered why I realised I had pretty much given up on the trip-hop genre, which was so ubiquitous through the ‘90s and noughties, but fell off the radar as it became ever more ‘ambient’ and unchallenging.  Well, this release should have said radar beeping furiously, because it’s anything but soporific mood music. DJ Oil has definitely put the ‘hop’ –hip-hop’s urban grittiness—back into trip-hop, while the trip is all about our lives now, more often a nightmare than a hazy escapist fantasy. This impression is conjured by his inventive use of rousing spoken-word passages, field recordings and an array of cool analogue and digital effects.

It turns out DJ Oil, Frenchman Lionel Corsini, was part of The Troublemakers, an acclaimed group who (uniquely) had albums out on both deep house label Guidance and legendary jazz label Blue Note. That tells you something of his affiliations to African-American music, and it’s this rootedness in that musical tradition that really sets this apart from other contemporary downtempo efforts.  It has more to do with James Brown, Fela Kuti and John Coltrane than  it does the chocolate-box confections that had seemed to sound the death-knell of the trip-hop genre (we won’t name names because we’re sure you’ve nodded off to them all yourselves), and it’s hard not to see the Black nationalist rhetoric  as also a coded commentary on contemporary France in the light of recent events. This will keep its place in my boxes alongside contemporary downtempo beat-makers as diverse and brilliant as Madlib, Nightmares On Wax, Fredric Galliano and Boards of Canada.

Buy now via at iTunes: geni.us/DJOilPhantom
CD / Vinyl at: www.bbemusic.com

Audible Doctor feat. June Haze - Church Night

It's getting less and less common for a hip hop record to make me sit up and take notice these days, but when it happens, it's a joy. This promo popped up in my inbox back in May, sent by the fantastically named 'Brown Bag Allstars'. It's a simple, no nonsense hip hop track with heartfelt lyrics and a great vibe. Interested to find out more about the producer I headed over to his website, where I learned the following:

"Born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin The Audible Doctor fell in love with music at a very young age. As a child he spent countless hours with his toy keyboard on the kitchen floor playing what he called his “muget” (music), that same drive and passion has followed him through the years. His parents recognized his talent early on and tried to nourish it by finding outlets for him to learn and grow musically. Piano lessons gave way to joining the city choir which gave way to guitar lessons and so on until Audible Doctor finally found his own niche with Hip Hop.

By his sophomore year in high school he began collecting records and DJing at friends parties, school dances, and anywhere he had the opportunity. Equipping his room with two 15″ speakers (that the neighbors across the street complained of when their walls started shaking), Audible Doctor would often have friends over for DJ sessions in his bedroom. After the purchase of a $15 Radio Shack microphone those DJ sessions became full on freestyle sessions with DJs and Emcees taking turns on the turntables and the mic. Later, when The Audible Doctor got his hands on a digital 4-track recorder he began writing rhymes, making beats, and recording himself and other local artists."

Audible Doctor's 'Church Night Remix' featuring June Haze is available to download for free from his website, alongside a wealth of other excellent productions:

 http://audibledoctor.com/downloads

http://www.brownbagallstars.blogspot.com

Album: D-Sisive - Run With The Creeps (Urbnet Records)

I first heard Canadian MC D-Sisive on a DJ Format record back in 2005, on which his tone, deft flow, clever lyrics and innate sense of fun immediately caught my attention. Unfortunately I jumped on the D-Sisive bandwagon just as he entered a period of writers block.

After almost 3 years of silence he returned in 2008 with what must be one of the most prolific comebacks in music history. His return saw darker lyrics, a sharper tongue, as well as a genuine disdain for both the music industry and the current state of hip hop.

Without doubt one of the cleverest and most original rappers on the international scene, D-Sisive's recent output has been constantly compelling. Although some of the beats he chooses to rhyme over may not be my personal choice, his ability to paint a picture with words never fails to impress.

Having given away not one but two concept albums as free downloads (the sorely underrated 'Jonestown' LPs), D-Sisive has followed up with 'Run With The Creeps', released on November 15th 2011. Probably his most honest and original record to date, this album is full of dense, claustrophobic beats and introspective lyrics- fans of feel-good party hip hop need not apply. On first listen there are a couple of immediately likable tracks which are clearly more accessible, however I would rather not dissect the record- I strongly recommend it should be listened to in its entirety. It's a proper album with a beginning, middle and ending, exactly as it should be.

Railing harder than most against the morass of shallow, commercialised nonsense which passes for rap music these days, if anyone in the industry deserves a break, it's Derek Christoff. As his label Urbnet told me: "So far we have had the best response with this D-Sisive record. We hope this is the record that launches his career!"

Stream and Buy 'Run With The Creeps' here:

http://urbnet.bandcamp.com/album/run-with-the-creeps-thed-luxeedition

Download 'Jonestown' FREE here:

http://urbnet.bandcamp.com/album/jonestown

Perfeck Strangers - Ghetto (Urbnet Records)

Veteran Toronto emcees Dan-e-o and Promise are now tackling the world of music as a tandem. It's easy to say that Perfeck Strangers are an unlikely pair, but when listening to their music you would think they have been rhyming together for years.

Both accomplished rappers in their own rights, their union presents a "perfeck" melding of talent in the vein of Hip Hop's most heralded duos, such as Black Star, De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Little Brother.

Dan-e-o and Promise have even been compared to legendary tag-teams like EPMD and Das EFX for the way they effortlessly flip lines back and forth with each other.

In 2012, their debut album, "Series Premiere" will air worldwide, with distribution via URBNET Records.

"Ghetto" is also available on URBNET's "Underground Hip Hop Volume 7" compilation, on iTunes now at: http://itunes.apple.com/album/urbnet-underground-hip-hop/id477620119