Since my post on DOOM’s Unexpected Guests last month, Gold Dust Media has changed the track listing considerably. Several cuts have been removed, including De La Soul’s memorable “Rock Co.Kane Flow” single. Others have been added, too, notably a previously-unreleased live version of “I Hear Voices” from the 2001 Operation: Doomsday reissue. And, as shown above, an impressive horticultural image of the Super Villain now adorns the cover. The release date is November 10.

Check after the jump for the new track listing and the earlier, pre-release one.

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Tomorrow, October 13, Del the Funky Homosapien and Tame One pair up for Parallel Uni-verse. It’ll be released by Gold Dust Media, and is completely produced by Parallel Thought. And for anyone who felt that Del fell off with The Eleventh Hour, he comes back hard with this one (at least I think so).

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Bay Area hip hop band Crown City Rockers has finally finished its third album (the first was recorded as Mission:) and first in five years (!). Initially called 5 Gold Stars and set for release via RED Distribution, The Day After Tomorrow now drops via Gold Dust Media on September 29.

Why does it take these guys so long to make albums? Best known as a touring band, the quintet is probably best heard live, where Raashan Ahmad’s hype routines put a true-school spin on the classic Roots “organix” formula. Still, it would be nice to see them expand their studio craft as the Roots eventually did with Things Fall Apart

Quibbles, quibbles. Here’s a chunk from the press release:

CCR have built a reputation for their driving sound derived from live instruments fused with traditional hip-hop production, which makes their live shows particularly dynamic. Emcee Rashaan Ahmad commands the crowd in the tradition of the block party greats, with a tight backing group infusing funk energy into the bouncy hip-hop sound.

Though the group has remained intact, the album represents a reunion of sorts, as many of the contributors have been focusing on solo projects recently. Rashaan Ahamad’s solo album Push (2008) furthered his reputation as a party rocker par excellence, which he supported through tours with People Under The Stairs, Common Market, and others. Bassist/producer Headnodic recently helmed the boards for last year’s Mighty Underdogs project on Definitive Jux with emcees Gift of Gab and Lateef from the Quannum camp, and keyboardist Kat recently completed a solo project and is currently working with People Under The Stairs’ Thes One.

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With the fall season fully underway, misanthropic rapper/producer DOOM is making a surprise contribution to the glut of new product. Set for release on October 27 via Lex Records Gold Dust Media, Unexpected Guests compiles several guest appearances, including his classic “Rock Co.Kane Flow” single with De La Soul, along with what appears to be a few new tracks – at least in regards to an official release.

The artwork above and the track listing below are tentative; both may change before Unexpected Guests is released. I’ll update this post if that happens.

(October 28 update: The track listing and artwork has been changed, and the release date has been moved back to November 10. Also, I made an error on the label; Gold Dust Media is releasing the compilation. You can view the changes here.)

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On June 23, influential producer DJ Muggs will present a new collection of Soul Assassins tracks via Gold Dust Media. Intermission features dozens of street rappers, from B-Real (Muggs’ partner in Cypress Hill) and Planet Asia (with whom he issued Pain Language last year) to Bun B, RZA, Prodigy, the Psycho Realm, La Coka Nostra, Evidence and many others.

Cue the press excerpt:

DJ Muggs is constantly in the labe; creating remixing and always making things happens as one of the most respected DJs in the game. He’s also put in more than his share of work as a producer with a resume that stretches from coast to coast. Muggs’ distinct love of west coast funk and heavy doses of hip hop have been responsible for multiplatinum sales and chart topping hits with Cypress Hill, House of Pain and many other artist.

In between being a part of one of the most successful hip hop groups to come from L.A., going on tour and discovering new talent, DJ Muggs has always found time to make music with his crew the Soul Assassins. As one of the founders of Soul Assassins, (a collective of artist, writers, musicians, producers, rappers, etc.) it wasn’t hard to assemble a stellar line up for their latest endeavor, Intermission.

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Tis’ the season for goofy, unexpected mashups — see N.A.S.A., the BPA and MSTRKRFT’s latest for proof. And with his new album, Loss 4 Wordz, former Roots member Scratch has added to the micro-trend. The track listing for his second album includes Kanye West, Damon Albarn from Gorillaz, Estelle, Talib Kweli, Musiq Soulchild and many other unexpected guests. Loss 4 Wordz drops May 25 on Gold Dust Media.

Here’s a bit from the bio:

Scratch, the world famous beat boxer and hip hop superstars is extremely excited about his new album, Loss 4 Wordz. For those that don’t know, Scratch is one of the most amazing DJs, producers, entertainers and of course, beat boxers in the world. Scratch is a Grammy Award winning artist who’s also known all over the world. He’s performed on stages with icons like Jay Z, James Brown, and Usher.

Loss 4 Wordz includes singers, rappers, and traditional instruments infused with Scratch’s beat boxing that will have everyone wondering where the beat boxing stops and the traditional instruments begin. All of the production was done by Scratch, creating everything from the crisp scratches, lush bass, melodic synth sounds by layering different vocal effects on top of each other for each track. “I wanted the tracks to be as simple as possible but also to sound full.” This philosophy is what raises the bar to new heights for beat boxing. It’s much more than the early days when beat boxing was a highlight or small component to rap music. With Loss 4 Wordz Scratch transforms beat boxing into rap music.

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Bay Area duo Zion-I has scheduled its fourth album, The Takeover, for January 27 on Gold Dust Media.

“Zion I has a reputation of being very spiritual and serious,” says MC Zion a.k.a. Zumbi in a press release. “I think The Takeover is a lot more fun than our past records. We still touch on serious subject matter, but this album shows the other sides of our personality.” Towards that end, Zion and producer Amplive have recruited Brother Ali, Devin the Dude and British rapper Ty for guest shots.

Amplive has built a reputation in recent years as an out-the-box remixer, reworking tracks by Jamie Lidell, Linkin Park and others for mixtapes (2006’s Beats, Remixes & Mashups) and online consumption. A planned Radiohead remix effort, Rainydayz Remixes, drew a lot of press when Radiohead threatened legal action against him. (It’s currently available via Amplive’s MySpace page and elsewhere.) However, it also earned Zion-I some of their first mainstream notice in years. Before then, Zion-I was acclaimed in the urban world — their 2003 album Deep Water Slang drew a Source award nomination for Best Independent Album — but mostly ignored in the pop press.

Buoyed by Amplive’s Radiohead remix controversy, Zion-I’s challenge will be to use that increased attention and make The Takeover a breakthrough release. “We try to make music that falls into a crack and fills a void for us as fans of music,” says Zion.

The track listing for The Takeover is below. The group is currently on tour with the Mighty Underdogs.

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This fall, true school hip-hop vets People Under the Stairs will celebrate ten years in the rap game with a series of new projects.

First comes a greatest hits collection from Om Records, the San Francisco label which signed the group in 1999 (after the group dropped its self titled debut in 1998 on PUTS Records). Scheduled for release on July 22, The Om Years is a two-CD set with choice cuts from the group’s four albums as well as 12-inch B-sides and rarities.

Then, come September, Thes One and Double K will drop their sixth album, Fun DMC, on newly-formed label Gold Dust Media. To drum up interest, the crew is going on tour next month.

“We got our 6th album comin’ out in September of this year, and it’s chock full of all the musical dope you have come to love and expect from the P,” writes Thes One in a post on PUTS MySpace page. “We have listed a series of East coast dates to help get the word out about the album, and when it drops we will run up and down the west coast handling our business and rockin’ for you.”

Here’s the track listing for The Om Years and Fun DMC as well as the tour itinerary.

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