I’ve had this ready for so long just haven’t had the time to get to it. Props to thorough for the Bambu post earlier, got my lazy ass to finally get to this. Ever since coming across Bambu’s I Scream Bars, I’ve been heavily into the Native Guns. Check this if you’re a fan of Blue Scholars, Talib Kweli, Common Market and Little Brother.

Native Guns:

Native_Guns_(Bambu_and_Kiwi)-Stray_Bullets-Bootleg-2004-F*D
Native_Guns-Barrel_Men-2006-F*D
Native_Guns-Stray_Bullets_Volume_2-Bootleg-2007-F*D

Bambu:

Bambu-Self_Untitled-2003-F*D
Bambu-I_Scream_Bars_For_The_Children-2007-F*D
Bambu-Exact_Change-2008-F*D

Kiwi:

Kiwi-Writes_Of_Passage-2004-F*D
Kiwi-The_Summer_Exposure_Mixtape-Bootleg-2007-SN*OK

Under the Volcano, the annual festival of music and art that takes over North Vancouver’s Cates Park the first Sunday of every August, has long billed itself as a celebration of resistance, protest, and social change. That suits Kiwi, one half of the California hip-hop duo Native Guns, just fine. “I would like to consider myself to be an activist,” the rapper says, reached at his day job in the Bay Area. “At least that’s what I’m kind of striving towards. What activism means to me, it’s very holistic. It’s learning about the stuff that’s going on, both theoretical stuff and the actual issues that are happening, from a local level and from a global level, and then working with different groups and organizations to raise awareness and take action on these issues. So I definitely consider myself an activist first, actually, and an artist second. It’s a very close second, but I think that if the activism wasn’t there, then I would have nothing to talk about as an artist. Nothing meaningful for me.”

Listen to any Native Guns track and what’s meaningful to Kiwi and his partner in rhyme, Bambu, becomes clear. Set to classic laid-back Cali-style beats, songs such as “Champion” and “Look in the Mirror” speak to the specific experience of being young Filipino men growing up in Los Angeles, surrounded by gang culture and systemic racism. At the same time, though, they touch on global issues and address the plight of the disenfranchised everywhere.

“We want to acknowledge that there are parallels with other peoples’ struggles,” Kiwi says, “and that we are really all a part of the same struggle, and that we are all fighting the same system of oppression and exploitation, which is capitalism and imperialism.”

The aforementioned cuts will be featured on Native Guns’ upcoming CD, Barrel Man. Until it is released, they are available on the duo’s Myspace page (www.myspace.com/nativeguns/). Those looking for a longer taste of Native Guns’ rebel rap can also pick up the raw Stray Bullets Mixtape, which will be available when Kiwi and Bambu play Under the Volcano on Sunday (August 7). This will be Native Guns’ first performance outside the U.S., and Kiwi sounds grateful for the opportunity to spread the pair’s message. Not content to merely point out the world’s problems, he hopes to be able to offer solutions.

“My own personal feeling is that people need to organize and plan around how to create change, whether it’s creating programs in our communities or as big as finding ways to change and dismantle the system that exists with the government,” the rapper asserts. “I think those are positive things.”

(Via Straight.com)

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Requested by my dude NBS (who’s played an important role in getting CTR back up as well as the new joint we’re working on) requested this one a few days back. I told you’d I’d get to it mayne :D.

• 2004: Blue Scholars

• 2005: The Long March EP

• 2007: Bayani

• 2007: Joe Metro EP

• 2008: Butter & Gun$ EP

Emcee Geologic and DJ/producer Sabzi came from vastly different musical approaches to experiment with a unique, new sound that still echoes the classic boom-bap of a bygone era (see: A Tribe Called Quest, Digable Planets). Prior to their collision, Geo had already begun making local rounds as a distinguished battle emcee and spoken-word poet, while Sabzi honed his skills as a classical and jazz-trained pianist while attending indie ska and punk shows. This unlikely partnership set the precedent for what distinguishes the group from the vast sea of independent hip-hop artists - the ability to strike a balance between worlds usually seen distant from one another. Poetic lyricism with beats you can dance to. Marxist theory with Baha’i spirituality. Musical influences ranging from Thelonius Monk and Aphex Twin to Marvin Gaye and J Dilla.

However, the bridge between the two artists go far beyond musical interests. Blue Scholars is as much rooted in the music as it is in working in the community. Their experiences as college students provide an intellectual dimension to their craft, while their backgrounds as second-generation sons of working-class immigrants keep the music grounded. Armed with a purpose beyond creating music for music’s sake, Blue Scholars take the classic form of the emcee/DJ duo Gangstarr, Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Eric B. & Rakim while carrying the essence of militant, yet personal struggle shown by hip-hop luminaries such as Public Enemy and KRS-One.

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New shit from common market. Just like the track we dropped a while back (Tobacco Road), this has me fiending for new material from the dudes. Fans of Gabriel Teodros, Blue Scholars, Move.Meant, and Braille should def check on this one.

Download: Gol’ Dust.mp3

New shit from common market. Just like the track we dropped a while back (Tobacco Road), this has me fiending for new material from the dudes. Fans of Gabriel Teodros, Blue Scholars, Move.Meant, and Braille should def check on this one.

Download: Gol’ Dust.mp3

New shit from common market. Just like the track we dropped a while back (Tobacco Road), this has me fiending for new material from the dudes. Fans of Gabriel Teodros, Blue Scholars, Move.Meant, and Braille should def check on this one.

Download: Gol’ Dust.mp3

New shit from common market. Just like the track we dropped a while back (Tobacco Road), this has me fiending for new material from the dudes. Fans of Gabriel Teodros, Blue Scholars, Move.Meant, and Braille should def check on this one.

Download: Gol’ Dust.mp3

This is the first single from Common Market’s upcoming sophomore LP by the same title (September 9, 2008). I really enjoyed their first self-titled album (which I bought, because Breeze supports indie artists) as well as the EP they dropped earlier this year (Black Patch War EP) and this single is a good sign that this release will be worthwhile as well. Keep checking back for the new album and and as always if you like it, buy it when it drops. For fans of Gabriel Teodros, Move.meant, and Blue Scholars.

btw… did anybody else notice last.fm is different?

Tobacco Road.mp3

This is the first single from Common Market’s upcoming sophomore LP by the same title (September 9, 2008). I really enjoyed their first self-titled album (which I bought, because Breeze supports indie artists) as well as the EP they dropped earlier this year (Black Patch War EP) and this single is a good sign that this release will be worthwhile as well. Keep checking back for the new album and and as always if you like it, buy it when it drops. For fans of Gabriel Teodros, Move.meant, and Blue Scholars.

btw… did anybody else notice last.fm is different?

Tobacco Road.mp3

This is the first single from Common Market’s upcoming sophomore LP by the same title (September 9, 2008). I really enjoyed their first self-titled album (which I bought, because Breeze supports indie artists) as well as the EP they dropped earlier this year (Black Patch War EP) and this single is a good sign that this release will be worthwhile as well. Keep checking back for the new album and and as always if you like it, buy it when it drops. For fans of Gabriel Teodros, Move.meant, and Blue Scholars.

btw… did anybody else notice last.fm is different?

Tobacco Road.mp3

This is the first single from Common Market’s upcoming sophomore LP by the same title (September 9, 2008). I really enjoyed their first self-titled album (which I bought, because Breeze supports indie artists) as well as the EP they dropped earlier this year (Black Patch War EP) and this single is a good sign that this release will be worthwhile as well. Keep checking back for the new album and and as always if you like it, buy it when it drops. For fans of Gabriel Teodros, Move.meant, and Blue Scholars.

btw… did anybody else notice last.fm is different?

Tobacco Road.mp3

1. Loyalty
2. Butter & Gun$ (Loyalty II)
3. 27
4. Loyalty (Instrumental)
5. Butter & Gun$ (Loyalty II) (Instrumental)
6. 27 (Instrumental)

Download!

Changing up the 2 emcees, 1 producer dynamic a little bit (1 emcee, 1 producer, and 1 DJ)  here’s our next indie trio, Move.meant hailing from Los Angeles, California. Great production coming from Just Beats (dude sounds like a premature version of Sabzi from Blue Scholars & Common Market), decent cuts from Spider, Champ’s lyrics are for the most part on point, and the album also has some nice features from Blu, Trek Life, Anecdote & more. I wouldn’t put it in my 10 best albums of 2007 (still a solid listen), but with time I’m sure these cats will move on up the food chain.  Def check ’em out regardless or at least peep the video.

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