More John Robinson for ya’ll, sure you won’t mind. 

This is the first EP of two featuring combined a selection of 8 tracks from the “I Am Not For Sale” CD album.

‘I Am Not for Sale’ is the culmination of over a decade of tireless work from one of Hip Hop’s most slept on MCs and all round renaissance man - John Robinson aka Lil Sci. Many of you will know J.R. from his work with Sol Uprizing or Scienz of Life or from the stellaroutput of his own Shaman Work label which he runs together with Chris Craft. John’s is also a unique voice you may recognize from a host of guest appearances for and collaborations with Madlib, Count Bass D, Rawkus Records, MF DOOM, Daedelus, Ammon Contact, Dwight Trible,Jneiro Jarel and Flying Lotus.

Having teased the underground community in the last two years with the widely acclaimed mixtapes ‘The Leak Edition’ Volumes 1 & 2 (and subsequent vinyl sampler (Leak Edition EP 1) on Fat City.

Tracklists after the jump. Cop these here!

Read the rest of this entry »

More John Robinson for ya’ll, sure you won’t mind. 

This is the first EP of two featuring combined a selection of 8 tracks from the “I Am Not For Sale” CD album.

‘I Am Not for Sale’ is the culmination of over a decade of tireless work from one of Hip Hop’s most slept on MCs and all round renaissance man - John Robinson aka Lil Sci. Many of you will know J.R. from his work with Sol Uprizing or Scienz of Life or from the stellaroutput of his own Shaman Work label which he runs together with Chris Craft. John’s is also a unique voice you may recognize from a host of guest appearances for and collaborations with Madlib, Count Bass D, Rawkus Records, MF DOOM, Daedelus, Ammon Contact, Dwight Trible,Jneiro Jarel and Flying Lotus.

Having teased the underground community in the last two years with the widely acclaimed mixtapes ‘The Leak Edition’ Volumes 1 & 2 (and subsequent vinyl sampler (Leak Edition EP 1) on Fat City.

Tracklists after the jump. Cop these here!

Read the rest of this entry »

I’m sure we’ve all been waiting for this one to drop for a minute. 

“The Layover” idea came about while I was on tour with Little Brother last year. It was supposed to be a side project that Khrysis and I were going to do - him on the beats me on the mic, 5 songs, free download. I strayed from the “side project” idea and moved towards making,”The Layover” an Official EP.

Pete Rock & CL Smooth’s All Souled Out or Ice Cube’s Kill At Will are big inspirations and examples of EP’s that were really quality & served as the perfect vehicle to make me get the next album to drop shortly there after. This is my intention with The Layover EP. It was important to me that even though Khrysis and I didn’t do the whole project together he still be a major part of it, and he gladly accepted.

This is THE FIRST banger off of my upcoming EP - “THE LAYOVER” title track. Khrysis on the boards with the heat, Dj Revolution On the Cut, and me on the mic, painting a picture about my best friend, FREK ONE who I lost in 1993. This is really taking my career WORLDWIDE, and some classic E-V Word Play to get this project kicked off on the right note ! So much more to come…Stay Tuned !”

(Via HipHopGalaxy.com)

Tracklist after the jump. Cop this hotness here.

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I’ll admit, I’m not the biggest POS fan, BUT, I met him and a few other members of Doomtree after seeing them all in concert. They were all very cool, down to earth dudes. Before seeing them in concert, I’d never listened to POS as a solo artist, only Doomtree material. So imagine my suprise when I hear this hip-hop artist, doing not only rock-crossover records, but heavy metal shit. Needless to say, I was thoroughly enjoying it all the way through. It may be a tough listen for you if you’re not prone to listening to any other genres besides hip-hop, but broaden your horizons a bit and check out POS.

I’ve been listening to Danny! for a minute now and I still can’t help but think that he’s still extremely slept on. Sure, he’s not the most lyrical guy you’ll ever listen to, but as someone who produces as well, I can honestly state that his skills on the boards easily exceed the average and are a definite force to be reckoned with. In fact, Danny! was recently listed alongside indie heavyweights such as El-P, Madlib, Ant and Black Milk as one of the top 5 indie hip-hop producers to know. So whether this is your introduction to D. Swain, or you just haven’t had the pleasure of listening to this album, check it out and enjoy.

Danny is most notable for his critically-acclaimed 2006 album Charm, which is widely considered his best work to date. Charm would eventually go on to be listed in seven different categories on the 49th Annual Grammy Award short list^[1], helping Danny to become South Carolina’s most heralded hip-hop artist.

As you may or may not know, HHDX has been reviewing an album a day for the last 20 days and will be doing so for the remaining days of November. I saw this a couple of weeks ago and tried to keep up with them, but my stoner ass failed miserably. Anyways, here’s a summary of the reviews they’ve compiled so far. The coloured ones are on CTR already, I’ll post the worthy black n white albums over the coming days.

Day 20 -  Reef The Lost Cauze - A Vicious Cycle
Day 19 -  The Alchemist - Alchemist’s Cookbook EP
Day 18 -  Beyonce - I Am…Sasha Fierce
Day 17 -  Crooked I - The Block Obama II EP
Day 16 -  Jurassic 5 - Delux Reissue
Day 15 -  GMG - Who$ Got Next
Day 14 -  Sadat X - Generation X
Day 13 -  Jedi Mind Tricks - A History Of Violence
Day 12 -  Sweatshop Union - Water Street
Day 11 -  LoDeck and Omega One - Postcards From The Third Rock
Day 10 -  Trick Trick - The Villain
Day 9 -  Above Ave - Mission
Day 8 -  D.I.T.C. - The Movement
Day 7 -  Kurupt and Roscoe - The Frank & Jesse James Story
Day 6 -  DJ Unk - 2econd Season
Day 5 -  T-Pain - Thr33 Rings
Day 4 -  Illa J - Yancey Boys
Day 3 -  Q-Tip - The Renaissance
Day 2 -  Big Shug - Other Side Of The Game
Day 1 -  88-Keys - The Death of Adam

Yanase Productions brings us this great japanese jazz hop instrumental album by Kondor. Peace of Mind is a definite must for fans of the Japanese jazz hop movement. The production is reminiscent of Nujabes, Uyama Hiroto, Nomak, and Himuki. The beats are all nice jazzy soulful numbers with plenty of piano, strings, and that boom bap we all love. Make sure to support the artists and purchase this record here.

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Very good listen if you’re looking for something different (but not on some Kanye West 808s & Heartbreaks shit). Peep the tracklist at least.

Timeless is a 2006 album by Sérgio Mendes. It features neo soul and alternative hip hop guest artists, most prominently will.i.am of The Black Eyed Peas. It was released February 14, 2006 by Concord Records and will.i.am music group. The first track, “Mas Que Nada”, was featured on commercials of Joga Bonito/Nike Football; EA Sports’ NBA Live 07 and 2006 FIFA World Cup video games. The album reaches across styles, combining neo soul, bossa nova, samba, hip hop, and even flavors of reggaeton.

More info after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s 3:30 am here and I’m too tired to tell you about these cats in my own words so here’s what my dude Apallow (biggest Giant Panda fan I know) has to say about them:

i’m trying really hard right now. this isn’t happening….not at 4am

something about the production (handled by chikaramanga and newman) focusing on drums and turntables which creates an old school feel, along with samples of underground classics including grand daddy i.u.’s “something new” in the hook on “chops.” then the originality of the japanese verses. and you could mention that the tracks sometimes touch on social issues, other times are humorous, and other times are really chill. and i’d also say something about maanumental possibly having the best lyric/flow combination ever.

More info after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

Been waiting for this one to drop ever since reading numerous reviews around the net. Haven’t had a chance to listen to it myself, you can do so by coping it yourself here. Below is what HHDX had to say. I absolutely love album covers like this one!

Something great about the current state of Hip Hop is that there are many brands of rap. The variety in form adds versatility to the culture and a facet of intrigue to the blending fusions that take place within genres, cultures and artists. For many, this has been exercised and portrayed by the concoction of LoDeck and Omega One, an emcee/deejay duo that consists of a New York based vocalist and a psychedelic-inspired mixmaster.

Their chemistry is apparent. Omega One’s production, a backdrop of gloom, mellow, melodic tones meshes well with LoDeck’s hardened vocals as grit meets the atmospheric sounds. They bring a varied tenor, which leads to unpredictable switches within songs and a decidedly funky, impressive beat backdrop. The samples are on point and add a different element to the puzzle as well, considering songs like “Understand U” and “A Day in the Triangle.” Front to back, it’s difficult to discredit the beat maker for an album well done in terms of production. It’s free enough to be different from most of what’s out but it’s not too wild to sound contrived or tired.

LoDeck brings his usual grit, flow, humor and grimey voice to accompany the soothing sounds Omega One has created. As is expected, Deck’s rhymes become complex and can be a bit too much, depending on who is asked. The aesthetic is closer towards that of Aesop Rock [click to read] or MF DOOM. Deck’s rhymes are a cross between said artists and some of the lyrics can be confusing or can go over heads. His flow can also become monotonous after some time and that doesn’t lend well to such a surprising and well balanced beat selection. Still, for those who want to dive into obscure and unclear vague lyrics to dissect the poetry behind it, this album’s complex rhyme style may befit you.

That leads us to the negative aspect of having so many brands of rap. Sometimes, there is a clear line between these brands. That, in turn, leads to separation amongst rap styles that’s hard to cross. Postcards from the Third Rock does not beg for many new listeners. Still, it is a conceptual piece and should be applauded or even obtained by those who love the duo, but there are drawbacks, as well. Instead of hearing what LoDeck is saying, some may get lost in a monotonous flow and/or the vague diction. While there are times LoDeck shines with one liners and/or clever song writing, there are also times where LoDeck loses connection with his rhyme style and the inspired beats Omega One chose to back him with. There are also times when the references to the moons and stars ring true to underground “nerd rap” clichés. So, while some have pegged this album as one of the best indie releases of the year, the overall outcome leaves much to be desired as it is an acquired taste that some may never acquire. This is definitely a different brand of rap from what many are used to today and that unique approach is commendable but Postcards from the Third Rock doesn’t quite live up to the hype.

(Via HipHopDX)

Tracklist after the jump. 

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