Brother Ali’s fourth album, Us, drops September 22 on Rhymesayers. As usual, ANT handles the production, while Joell Ortiz, Freeway, Chuck D. and Stokley Williams from Mint Condition make guest appearances.

Here’s the press info:

Brother Ali’s last album, the critically acclaimed The Undisputed Truth, was a landmark in hip-hop, an album that carried weight equally with critics and fans alike, an album of bold statements and bolder beats, politically and socially aware without being preachy. His new album, Us (out September 22nd on Rhymesayers Entertainment), is a progression that will make Brother Ali one of the most enduring figures in hip-hop; while still aware, Ali has turned his gaze inward, and started examining the human condition from the outside in. A profound personal glimpse into a vulnerability seldom seen or heard in music, Us touches on the strengths and flaws of the human condition, exploring drug abuse, divorce, homophobia and many more topics that most people are scared to touch in their own lives, much less on an album for the world to see.

Here’s the track listing:

• 1. “Brothers and Sisters” (feat. Chuck D. & Stokley Williams)
• 2. “The Preacher”
• 3. “Crown Jewel”
• 4. “House Keys”
• 5. “Fresh Air”
• 6. “Tight Rope”
• 7. “Breakin’ Dawn”
• 8. “The Travelers”
• 9. “Babygirl”
• 10. “‘Round Here”
• 11. “Bad Mufucker Pt. II”
• 12. “Best@it” (feat. Freeway & Joell Ortiz)
• 13. “Games”
• 14. “Slippin’ Away”
• 15. “You Say (Puppy Love)”
• 16. “US” (feat. Stokley Williams)

Link to “Us”: rhymesayers.com

Underrated Minneapolis duo Eyedea & Abilities will release their new album By The Throat on July 21. Set for release via Rhymesayers, it’s the group’s first album in five years.

Here’s a bit from the bio:

Their first album since the breakout 2004 release E&A, By The Throat’s songs range from intensely personal topics to the more esoteric (quantum mechanics). The end result is leaps and bounds beyond what MC Eyedea is perhaps best known for, his prowess as a battle rapper (winner of HBO’s Blaze Battle, Scribble Jam and several others). DJ Abilities, also a well-known battle vet and contributor to El-P’s now-classic Fantastic Damage, adds heavily to the sonic soundscape of this album, which advances beyond boom-bap hip-hop into rock-fueled guitar riffs, gritty production and melodic songwriting.

Eyedea and Abilities were instrumental in the wave of independent hip-hop that includes Atmosphere, El-P, Aesop Rock, Living Legends and several other seminal acts. By The Throat is their most progressive and refined effort to date.

Here’s the track listing:

• 1. “Hay Fever”
• 2. “Spin Cycle”
• 3. “Time Flies When You Have A Gun”
• 4. “Burn Fetish”
• 5. “Sky Diver”
• 6. “Junk”
• 7. “Forgive Me For My Synapses”
• 8. “This Story”
• 9. “Factory”
• 10. “Smile”
• 11. “By The Throat”

Eyedea & Abilities have landed a slot on the upcoming Rock the Bells tour. Here’s that itinerary, in case you haven’t seen it a gazillion times already:

• 6/27: First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre, Chicago, IL
• 6/28: DTE Energy Music Theatre, Detroit, MI
• 7/05: Molson Amphitheatre, Toronto, ON
• 7/12: Merriweather Post Pavilion, Washington, DC
• 7/18: Comcast Center, Boston, MA
• 7/19: Jones Beach Amphitheatre, New York, NY
• 8/01: Deer Lake Park, Vancouver, BC
• 8/06: Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Denver, CO
• 8/08: San Manuel Amphitheatre, Los Angeles, CA
• 8/09: Shoreline Amphitheatre, Mountain View, CA

“This Story”

Next month, Rhymesayers Entertainment is launching the RSE Spotlight Series. The series will spotlight relatively unknown independent artists and, in its words, “provide select services and distribution to emerging artists ready to go to the next level, by expanding their fanbase and sales history.”

The first release comes from Toki Wright, who many will recognize as Brother Ali’s hypeman on his past several tours. Wright’s debut A Different Mirror features guest appearances from Ali as well as I Self Devine and Scarub. It comes out June 9.

Here’s more press stuff:

A highly respected community activist and longtime member of the Twin Cities Hip Hop scene, Wright is most recently known around the world as the engaging and energetic hype man and opening act for Brother Ali. Featured on recordings by Atmosphere, P.O.S, and C-Rayz Walz, to name a few, Toki brings years of experience and numerous accolades (2007 Twin Cities Hip-Hop Awards “Best Knowledge Spitta” Winner, 2006 KMOJ Radio Artist of the Year, 2003 Star Tribune Artist of the Year – Honorable Mention, 2002 City Pages Hip-Hop Artists of the Year, 2002 Minnesota Music Award Nominee: Best Hip-Hop Artist, etc.), to his debut solo, full-length release, A Different Mirror on Rhymesayers Entertainment June 9th, 2009.

Here’s the track list:

• 1. “Foundation”
• 2. “More Fiya”
• 3. “Devil’s Advocate”
• 4. “Good”
• 5. “A Different Mirror”
• 6. “Rise” (feat. Scarub)
• 7. “Next Best Thing”
• 8. “The Law” (feat. I Self Devine)
• 9. “State Of Emergency”
• 10. “Truth Or Dare”
• 11. “The Feeling” (feat. Brother Ali)
• 12. “Little Girl”
• 13. “Poison Ivy (Afreecan-American)”
• Bonus Track: “Get Up” (feat. Felipe Cuauhtli of Los Nativos, St. Paul Slim & Trama)

“State Of Emergency”

Over a year after Abstract Rude signed with Rhymesayers Entertainment, the L.A. vet has scheduled Rejuvenation for a May 5 release. Initially titled Dear Abbey, Abstract Rude’s third solo album is completely produced by Seattle’s Vitamin D and, according to a press release, “is a hard hitting soulful ryde showcasing Ab Rude’s distinct and unlimited vocal styling.”

• 1. “Hip Hop Ryde”
• 2. “Rejuvenation”
• 3. “Nuff Fire”
• 4. “The Conch”
• 5. “Thynk Eye Can (Haiku D’Etat Mix)”
• 6. “TV Show”
• 7. “Sadly Ever After”
• 8. “Tomorry”
• 9. “Diggin’ It?”
• 10. “Aaron, Ab, Abbey”
• 11. “RSVP (Wanna Party)”
• 12. “Man Down”
• 13. “Is What It Is”
• 14. “Parables”
• Bonus Track: “Thynk Eye Can (Blowedian Next Generation Mix)”

Abstract Rude, “Rejuvenation”

On March 10, Brother Ali returns with The Truth Is Here EP, his first package of new material since 2007′s acclaimed The Undisputed Truth. Set for release via Rhymesayers, it collects seven tracks and two B-sides (“Palm the Joker” and “Talkin’ My Shit” from the “Uncle Sam Goddamn” 12-inch series), and features a DVD of a 2007 hometown performance at First Avenue in Minneapolis and two videos for “Take Me Home” and “Uncle Sam Goddamn.” The package clears the decks, so to speak, for Brother Ali’s fourth album, tentatively titled Street Preacher. “The Truth Is Here captures a key period in the career of what many have called one of the most promising voices to emerge from the underground this century and will be a must have for any and every Brother Ali fan,” reads a press release on the Rhymesayers website.

Brother Ali has already scheduled a few performances to promote The Truth Is Here, including a stint on Atmosphere’s North American tour. More from backpack rap’s answer to Sam Kinison are undoubtedly forthcoming.

The Truth Is Here:

• 1. “Real As Can Be”
• 2. “Philistine David”
• 3. “Little Rodney”
• 4. “Palm The Joker”
• 5. “Good Lord”
• 6. “Baby Don’t Go”
• 7. “Talkin’ My Shit”
• 8. “The Believers” (feat. Slug)
• 9. “Begin Here”

And here are the tour dates:

• 3/05: Fox Theatre, Boulder, CO
• 3/09: Fineline Music Cafe, Minneapolis, MN
• 3/10: Fifth Element, Minneapolis, MN (in-store)
• 3/19: Habana Bar, Austin, TX
• 3/28: NOS Events Center
• 5/10: Higher Ground, Burlington, VT
• 5/12: The Asylum, Portland, ME
• 5/13: House Of Blues, Boston, MA
• 5/15: Trocadero Theatre, Philadelphia, PA
• 5/16: 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
• 5/17: Toad’s Place, Richmond, VA
• 5/18: Beachland Ballroom, Cleveland, OH
• 5/19: The Vogue, Indianapolis, IN
• 5/21: The Pageant, St. Louis, MO
• 5/22: Slowdown, Omaha, NE

3/19: SXSW
3/28: Paid Dues Festival
5/10-5/22: w/Atmosphere

On February 3, Rhymesayers will release Minneapolis rapper P.O.S.’ third album, Never Better. Here’s a section from the press release:

P.O.S. himself made more than half of the beats on Never Better, and the production bears his unmistakable signature. The album enters a room like bombshell with a black eye-badass, noisy, impossible to ignore. Feedback and relentless drum rolls are only occasionally tempered by sung choruses and clean, chiming guitar lines. Some critics will be eager to categorize the album as a hybrid-some kind of crossover project. But it’s probably not. P.O.S is a rapper with range, he’s a real musician and an unstoppable performer. For him, genres are as they ever were: permeable.

• 1. “Let It Rattle”
• 2. “Drumroll (We’re All Thirsty)”
• 3. “Savion Glover”
• 4. “Purexed”
• 5. “Graves (We Wrote The Book)”
• 6. “Goodbye”
• 7. “Get Smokes”
• 8. “Been Afraid”
• 9. “Low Light Low Life”
• 10. “The Basics (Alright)”
• 11. “Out of Category”
• 12. “Optimist (We Are Not For Them)”
• 13. “Terrorish”
• 14. “Never Better”
• 15. “The Brave and the Snake”

Atmosphere is set to release its first album since 2005′s underrated You Can’t Imagine How Much Fun We’re Having. On April 22, the Minneapolis, Minn. group drops When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold through its Rhymesayers label.

Though it’s been three years since the last Slug & Ant “emo-rap” epic, he and Ant have been very busy in the last year or so. Ant masterminded Brother Ali’s critically acclaimed album The Undisputed Truth. And last summer, Atmosphere returned to Sad Clown Bad Dub, the series through which they first launched their career, for a quartet of seasonal EPs: Sad Clown Bad Summer #9, Sad Clown Bad Fall #10, and Sad Clown Bad Winter #11. The fourth and final chapter, Sad Clown Bad Spring #12, is scheduled for release right before When Life Gives You Lemons drops.

If that didn’t build enough buzz, Atmosphere issued a free Internet album, Strictly Leakage, on their MySpace page over the holidays. (You can still download it there and on Atmosphere’s profile on the Rhymesayers website.) According to a press release, the album has been downloaded over 60,000 times.

When Life Gives You Lemons will undoubtedly benefit from the Warner Bros. distribution deal that Rhymesayers announced last year. There will be a limited-edition package of the album that is encased in a 40-page black fabric book with gold embossing, and include lyrics, an illustrated children’s story from Slug, and a bonus DVD of footage from last year’s “Everybody Loves a Clown” tour and other treats. The track listing, which was unveiled on Pitchforkmedia.com today, is listed below.

“When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold will mark Atmosphere’s most complete album to date,” reads the aforementioned press release. “Recorded in the dead of winter, and influenced by fatherhood, Slug’s storytelling and Ant’s lush melodies have never been more poignant.”

• 1. “Like the Rest of Us”
• 2. “Puppets”
• 3. “The Skinny”
• 4. “Dreamer”
• 5. “Shoulda Known”
• 6. “You”
• 7. “Painting”
• 8. “Your Glass House”
• 9. “Yesterday”
• 10. “Guarantees”
• 11. “Me”
• 12. “Wild Wild Horses”
• 13. “Can’t Break”
• 14. “The Waitress”
• 15. “In Her Music Box”

www.myspace.com/atmosphere

Photo by Dan Monick.

Two years ago, a relatively unknown group called Grayskul released Deadlivers on Rhymesayers. Despite its low profile, Deadlivers drew kudos from those who heard it. It was an album that balanced Gothic-styled lyrics with a dark, mystical atmosphere, and was reminiscent of early 90s horrorcore classics like Gravediggaz’ 6 Feet Deep and Organized Konfusion’s Stress: The Extinction Agenda.

Now the Pacific Northwest group is back with a new joint. Bloody Radio features Onry Ozzborn (where’s that Gigantics album you promised?), JFK and DJ Wicked holding court with the likes of Slug, Cage, Aesop Rock, Pigeon John and Andrea Zollo, formerly of the late indie-rock band Pretty Girls Make Graves. The duo’s mighty Oldominion crew help out, too.

Grayskul’s Bloody Radio drops September 11 on Rhymesayers Entertainment. The track listing is below.

• 1. “3000 Voices”
• 2. “Virginia N.M.2″
• 3. “Dope”
• 4. “Bloody Radio”
• 5. “How to Load a Tech” (feat. Cage)
• 6. “Missing” (feat. Andrea Zollo)
• 7. “Scarecrow”
• 8. “Haunted”
• 9. “The Office” (feat. Aesop Rock & Slug)
• 10. “Is It Me”
• 11. “Dance the Frantic” (feat. Pigeon John)
• 12. “Give Me Love”
• 13. “Us”
• 14. “The Last Lullaby”
• 15. “Heaven is Still Coming”
• Bonus Track: “Disappear”

www.myspace.com/grayskul

A few days ago, a publicist who shall remain nameless joked to me that all Rhymesayers MCs sound the same. But of course that’s not true. Brother Ali, for example, can carry his own with just about any underground rapper out there. And yes, that may not be saying much to all y’all backpack haters/Lil Wayne dick riders. For those that appreciate the Minneapolis albino, however, prepare for his first new album in four years, and first release since 2004′s Champion EP.

The Undisputed Truth is set for a March 20 release on Rhymesayers. A particularly strong cut, “Original King,” was posted on his MySpace page a few months ago. Unfortunately, it’s not on the promo version of the album.

Here are the tracks:

• Whatcha’ Got
• Lookin’ at Me Sideways
• Truth Is
• Puzzle
• Pedigree
• Freedom Ain’t Free
• Letter from the Government
• There
• Listen Up
• Take Me Home
• Uncle Sam Goddamn
• Walkin’ Away
• Faheem
• Ear to Ear

March 20 looks to be a big week for noncommercial rap, as El-P (I’ll Sleep When You’re Dead), J-Dilla (Ruff Draft) and Evidence (The Weatherman) will all drop albums that week. Save some allowance money for Brother Ali.

www.myspace.com/brotherali