As I give my creaking knuckles calisthenics, I’m reminded of how great 2013 was for music. There were a lot of great releases, and I think that a few of my selections might shock a few people this year, but it’s necessary to give credit where it’s due. Leave your comments in the C-Section below, and let me know how you feel.
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Here’s the latest video from Ramble John Krohn, and this one comes to us from his latest outing, The Colossus. The track is called “The Glow”, but to be honest, I have no idea where they got the idea for this video. I definitely like the track, and I was also a big fan of the new album. If you haven’t picked up The Colossus, you probably should do so as we speak.
Spotted @ Stereogum
Talk about great fucking news. Rjd2 is easily one of me top 5 producers, and I love everything that the guy has ever done. When it comes to production, damn near all of his work is pristine. Needless to say, I’ve been waiting on new Rjd2 material since The Third Hand, because like most people I was a tad disappointed in Third Hand and knew that Hip-Hop is where he truly shines.
2DopeBoyz had a really dope article on Rj and the things that he has coming up before the end of the year. It sounds like Rj started his own label (RJ’s Electrical Connections), and he will be re-releasing his first 3 releases (Dead Ringer, The Horror EP & Since We Last Spoke) in a box set that will come out on October 2oth. ALSO included in the box set will be a new EP called The Tin Foil Hat EP which will contain 7 unreleased Rj cuts. You can go cop Your Face or Your Kneecaps, In Rare Form & Things Go Better (Instrumentals) on iTunes now. To top it all off, we can expect Rj’s new album The Colossus to drop in early winter.
I’m pretty much ecstatic to hear this news. I can assure you that there is no doubt in my mind that I will be at the record store on October 20th to get my box set. Will you? If you’ve slept on Rj this long, I really don’t know if there is any hope left for you in the world.
Copywrite recently talked to HipHopDX about a few things that pertained to his dearly missed friend, Camu Tao. As many of you out there in the Hip-Hop community may know, the original MHz album Table Scraps has been re-released in both digital & retail. If you haven’t heard Table Scraps before, you are truly missing out on a piece of history. We are talking about an album that put Ohio’s Hip-Hop scene on the map for the first time, not to mention launched the careers of Rjd2, Copywrite & Camu Tao. The thing that is special about the re-release of Table Scraps is that portions of the proceeds will go directly to Camu’s family.
According to the HipHopDX article, Copy claims that many people didn’t even know that he and Camu were in a group. Copywrite feels as though Table Scraps is great music, and re-releasing it is a way to give back to Camu’s family. He also mentions that Table Scraps is exactly what it sounds like, a bunch of recordings laying around that they wanted to throw together for one cohesive effort to give people some insight. Copy also talks about not wanting to be a solo artist coming into the game, but things at Eastern Conference didn’t work out with MHz. In a baffling breath, Copy drops the bomb that DJ Mighty Mi didn’t even want to release Rjd2’s Dead Ringer (which is a catastrophic decision).
Copy met Camu in ninth grade and they soon found out that they had a lot of things in common as far as lifestyle. He notes that when Camu learned to make beats he elevated his game right away, “He was crazy with his style. He always wanted to do something different”. He remembers Camu as a good friend, and a cool, energetic dude. This is really a great article that has many eye opening facts. I highly suggest you read this, it’s an example of some great Hip-Hop journalism.
In addition to the information about MHz, Table Scraps & Camu Tao, Copywrite also talks about his upcoming album The Life & Times of Peter Nelson.
You can read the original article here.
In lieu of my friend and comrade Erik Burg leaving us at Mind Inversion, I wanted to do a review that would hit close to home with him. When you think of dynamic duos, you tend to think of pairings such as Premier & Guru, Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth and not to mention Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince. This is where Rjd2 and Blueprint come into the equation. From the first time that I heard these guys collaborate on Rjd2’s album Dead Ringer I knew they were going to be preposterous pairing in every aspect. Continue reading
Rjd2 is one badass dude, he released Deadringer in 2002 (one of my favorite albums of all time), and roughly one year later he released this ten track gem otherwise known as The Horror EP. Don’t get me wrong, Deadringer is a multi-level musical masterpiece but I think The Horror EP is a little better. This EP has ten top tier tracks, revisits some of the best moments of Deadringer and further more, it features some of Rj’s best beats. I feel as though if this was the only material that you owned by Rjd2, you would still be listening to his best music. Continue reading
Hell’s Winter might be one of the best label debuts I’ve ever heard. Hell’s Winter is Cage’s sophomore album, and it saw him coming into a different light than Movies For The Blind, and all I can say is that this album is really fucking impressive. Cage rhymes about some of the most insane shit that I’ve ever heard, but the crazy part is that he has actually lived most of it. Def Jux as a label has put out a lot of really good material, but this album might be the best. This album makes for one hell of a violently vicious view inside of Cage’s mind. Continue reading
Before hearing this album, my view of Southern Hip-Hop was grossly grim(except for Little Brother). I had been hearing the same shit over and over again with Three Six Mafia and Lil’ Jon all the time, and frankly I was getting sick of it. Kno, Deacon & SOS are what you would call a boisterous breath of fresh air for the lungs of southern Hip-Hop. One of my best friends had been telling me about these guys for a long time, and my attitude towards Southern Hip-Hop stopped me from listening to them for awhile. After I started listening to this album I couldn’t believe what I had been overly oblivious to for so long, these guys are incredible. Continue reading
It looks as though your favorite emcee who never fails to give you the punchlines you always crave is back in action this year. In an article I read on HipHop DX, I found out that Copywrite has three different projects coming out this year. It made me wonder, is everyone putting out a shitload of material this year? The answer seems to be a constant yes. This year is going to be a great year for Hip-Hop. As many of you know Copywrite burst onto the scene in the Ohio group MHz with Rjd2, Camu Tao, Jakki Da Motamouth and Tage. Table Scraps was the only album that they put out as a collective, and many people consider it to be a classic.
Copywrite will be putting out an EP of all new material this year, which will serve as a preface for his Sophomore album entitled The Life and Times of Peter Nelson. 2 months after he releases the EP he will be re-releasing the 2002 classic The High Exhaulted which will be in digital and physical format. Continue reading
I have to tell you all that this list was one of the hardest things I’ve had to get myself to do, because I knew it wasn’t going to be anywhere near easy. Even while going through this list I had to constantly change things because I felt something was missing. This list (to the best of my abilities) contains the quintessential list of albums that shaped my taste in music. To be put another way, I don’t know where I would be without these albums. I can also say that I feel that each one of these albums is timeless as well a masterpiece. So without further ado…
Top 10 Albums of All-Time (In Order from 10-1)
The Who – Live At Leeds (Deluxe Edition): Honestly I don’t even know where to begin when it comes to this album. I remember buying it in the store years ago, and it cost me just about thirty-five dollars. It may be the best money I’ve ever spent on an album. This album truly shows the pure rock fury of The Who. If you have ever had a doubt in your life as to the legitimacy of The Who, please listen to this album. The original album was released with just 35 minutes of the 120, and this album has all of it. This is one of the greatest live albums of all time, no doubt in my mind. Every single member of The Who sounds precise and musically sound. This also might be the heaviest material you will ever here from The Who. From the rapid fire boulder crashing drums of Keith Moon to the lion roaring vocals of Roger Daltrey this album is everything a live album should be and more… Continue reading
MIND INVERSION 