“That Girl” is Back, Bad as Ever
With Lip Lock, Eve shows no signs of ring rust, and after an eleven year hiatus she is back to claim her crown as rap’s leading lady. Since her emergence on the scene in the early ’00s, Eve has done what many women tried to do in this male-dominated arena: succeed. While she was on top, she won several accolades including Grammy awards, Billboard hits and even international stardom with her song “Who’s That Girl?,” and now that she is back she’s here to prove that she is still a contender.
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews eve
Dynamic Duo
Aesop Rock and Kimya Dawson join forces as The Uncluded on their new LP Hokey Fright, and the result is not unlike Batman and Superman using their individual superpowers to save the day. Each of these artists is unique and has established his or her own unmistakable style of music. Aesop, with his skillful yet often complex word play, and Dawson, with her distinct guitar playing and penchant for clever allegories, combine to create a sound that this world may not be ready for.
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By William Hannan Posted in High Fidelity, Reviews Aesop Rock, Kimya Dawson, The Uncluded
Swallow the Lion to Get Rid of the Dogg
Sometimes an artist comes to the point were he feels the need to redefine himself. Some musicians’ evolutions are gradual from point A to point B. Some change as a means to stay current so they don’t merely fade away. With others it’s a sign of maturity, an aging musician whose musical style and lyrical dialogue transform from adolescent tendencies to subject matter that is more relevant to them now. The emergence of Snoop Dog’s latest release would fall in the last category. Released under the moniker Snoop Lion, Reincarnated shows a side of the artist we have not seen before: a reggae album.
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews Snoop Dogg, Snoop Lion
Same ‘ol Song and Dance
Homophobic. Outlandish. Explicit. All of these adjectives have been used to summarize Tyler, The Creator’s previous works, but on his 3rd release Wolf he’s aiming to mature some, or at least as much as one could expect him to. During a Spin interview in 2011, Tyler stated, “Talking about rape and cutting bodies up, it just doesn’t interest me anymore… What interests me is making weird hippie music for people to get high to.” The question on everybody’s mind though is: did he follow through?
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews Tyler the Creator
This is a Secret Worth Sharing
DJ Muggs is keeping himself busy. After releasing his solo record Bass For Your Face released at the beginning of this year, he’s back with a motley crew on Cross My Heart Hope To Die. This quartet’s self-titled EP serves as a nice introduction to what may come from these folks. Consisting of turntable all-star DJ Muggs, producer extraordinaire and founding member of the hardcore band Strife, Andrew Kline, singer-songwriter Brevi, and journalist/activist/hacker Sean Bonner combining their talents, CMHHTD comes together like Voltron to form something larger than themselves.
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews brevi, cross my heart hope to die, DJ Muggs
Short Songs, and More Than Enough of Them
The latest of the crop of rap outfits using pop culture references as names is Seattle’s Art Vandelay. Its new album Eye 8 the Crow doesn’t really do much importing or exporting, but rather is a straightforward delivery of a cynical outlook on everything from religion, media and death.
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews art vandelay
Home is Where the Flows Are
Kansas City natives Ubiquitous and Godemis kept it local when they signed with fellow KC rapper Tech N9ne’s label Strange Music under the moniker CES Cru. In fact, their latest album Constant Energy Struggles is dedicated to their hometown. 2012 saw both members releasing a solo mix tape followed by the well-received EP 13, but even after that these two still had a lot to say; like diarrhea, they are just full of sick flows that can’t be contained no matter how hard they try.
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews CES Cru
Play Lady. Play!
Terrie Walker and Nicole Wray are kindred spirits born several decades too late. Under the moniker Lady, this duo has gathered eleven soul-infused tracks for their self-titled debut album. Their shared love of ’60s/’70s soul brought these two together and Lady is a testament to that era.
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews Lady
Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto
American producer/DJ, Sam Spiegel has run the gamut in the music industry, from scoring commercials, video games and movies, to collaborating with the likes of Karen O, Del tha Funkee Homosapien and even Maroon 5. This go ’round he has joined forces to create Maximum Hedrum with Sepultura lead singer, Derrick Green as well as Harold Faltermeyer, whose soundtrack work for both Beverly Hills Cop and Top Gun will forever define the sound of ’80s action movies. The combined efforts have created one of the most interesting collections of songs of the year so far.
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By William Hannan Posted in High Fidelity, Reviews Maximum Hedrum
The Art of Interpretation
The concept of jazz musicians covering contemporary music is a tradition as old almost as jazz itself. NEXT Collective’s Cover Art is the newest addition to this cycle. This seven-piece ensemble consists of some of most talented younger jazz musicians doing what they do best, which is compose in-depth musical pieces. Cover albums are tricky things; if the artists stay too true to the original piece, the new composition can sound like a mediocre homage, but if the the artists stray to far away from the original they can be labeled as brazen.
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By William Hannan Posted in Reviews NEXT Collective
