P.O.S. has been touring across the States all year, ever since his third album Never Better dropped in February. And it looks like he’ll perform shows right up to Christmas break. He’s currently on a Midwest run with Rhymesayers label mates Eyedea & Abilities; when that ends, he’ll jump on the PacSun PacTour, an alt-metal package with Saosin as the headliner.
Leave a good lookin’ corpse:
Sweat lodge: Jneiro Jarel at the Do-Over, October 18 (part one – zshare.net) (part two – zshare.net), Flying Lotus’ birthday jam session (brainfeedersite.com)
Photo by Jonathan Mannion.
Robots With Hearts is a collaboration between two artists that will be familiar to two worlds. Icon the Mic King is a veteran battle emcee who has been around for ages. Andy Coleman has recorded several downtempo albums for labels such as Ninja Tune and Thrill Jockey; his 1999 album as Animals on Wheels, Nuvol I Cadira, is particularly nice.
The duo’s first 12-inch, Divided by Zero EP, drops next Monday, October 26 on UK imprint TAPE Records. A representative from the label was kind enough to send me a track from the EP, “Downward Spiral.” For those of you familiar with Animals on Wheels, the song is much more glitch-y and tweaked than Coleman’s solo material, but it has a familiar, melancholy vibe. And I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of Mike’s rhymes, which covered, well, being in a downward spiral.
My only quibble is that the song didn’t completely coalesce. Mike tries to sing a chorus, then admits at the song’s end that he can’t sing. Meanwhile, Coleman throws in some unnecessary effects that distract from Mike’s vocals. It’s a common occurrence when electronic producers and MCs collaborate (see Funkstorung, Prefuse 73, et cetera). Gotta let that bitch breathe, y’all.
Nevertheless, Robots With Hearts seems like a promising venture. I’m looking forward to its debut album, which is currently scheduled for early next year. You can download “Downward Spiral” for yourself after the jump.
On November 3, All Natural Inc. will release Rita J’s debut, Artist Workshop. The Chicago-to-Atlanta emcee collaborates with several guests, including Black Spade, Cap D, Guilty Simpson and Mr. Greenweedz. Here’s a bit from the bio:
Sonically, Artist Workshop ranges from the up-tempo to the soul-infused to the mellow. On “Outlasted†both Guilty Simpson and Rita J. exchange rhymes about doing what it takes to make it as an indie emcee in spite of the obstacles.
“The song is about getting to your finish line,†explains Rita of the track. Or take the chill, “The Address” where the rapper turns vocalist and sings about the universal topic: love.
Born in Chicago, IL, Rita J. credits her father’s massive collection of soul, pop, rock, r&b, disco and hip-hop records for instilling her with a love of hip-hop. While living in Chicago after college, she connected with the underground icons DJ Tone B. Nimble and MC capital D of the group All Natural. In 2002, she joined the collective officially. Rita J. was featured on numerous compilations and was part of the collective Family Tree for a few years honing her skills, studying and gearing up for her debut solo album.
“I taught myself how to write and structure songs and record. I wrote most of the album in my bedroom. Whether it was music, paintings, drawings, toys, books, pictures, I was surrounded by art at all time. It was like an artists’ workshop.”
I usually wouldn’t post something on Warren G — although I admit to rocking “Do You See” and “Indo Smoke” back in the day. But the West Coast vet has two indie acts opening for him, L.A. duo U-N-I and Chicago hipsters Kidz in the Hall. Get to the show early, and stick around for the “Regulate” singalong.
Next week, Afro-Punk is launching its first national tour. Saul Williams headlines all dates, and ass-man CK Kidtronik opens throughout. Other artists scheduled to appear in select cities include Living Colour, Kimya Dawson, Amp Fiddler and Hollywood Holt. Should make for a great show, even though it’s distressing to see James Spooner turn his provocative 2003 documentary on marginalized black punk rockers into yet another Warped Tour-like lifestyle brand. But hey, I guess that’s “punk rock” in the new millennium. Not hating, just sayin’.
Rakim has a new album, The Seventh Seal, that drops on November 17 via Ra Records/SMC Recordings. It’s his first album in a decade, and comes after a long (and ultimately fruitless) stint on Dr. Dre’s Aftermath label. The Seventh Seal doesn’t include any Dr. Dre tracks, but it features appearances from Maino, Busta Rhymes, Styles P and Jadakiss. Vitamin D, among many others, provides beats.
There’s no official track listing yet, but Rakim has already set up a national tour with Rhymefest in tow. It kicks off later this week.
From the left of the map:
Someone like me: The Physics, High Society (thephysicsmusic.com), Jern Eye’s Eye Exam (zshare.net), Duck Down Records sampler Download the Right Thing (duckdown.com), Diamond District’s Diamond Mixtape (zshare.net)
From J.J. Brown’s album Connect the Dots, which drops November 10. They’re having fun with it.
Mayer Hawthorne gets hammered in a bar, and random hot chicks start messing with his head. We’ve all been there.
From the just-released album A Strange Arrangement.
As widely announced, Goodie Mob are heading on tour together after performing a triumphant concert in Atlanta last month. Cee-Lo has been on good terms with T-Mo, Big Gipp and Khujo for the past few years; the quartet even planned to drop a new album before ‘Lo’s Gnarls Barkley project blew up. So why now? Is it because Gnarls Barkley fell off with its second album, The Odd Couple?
But I digress. Equally iconic rapper Scarface opens on most dates. The itinerary changed earlier this week, so it looks different from most of the posts you’ll find on the web. Of course, I’ll update it if it changes again.
On November 17, Kid Sister’s long-delayed debut Ultraviolet will finally come out via Downtown Records. She’ll celebrate with several concerts in major cities across the U.S.
Close observers of this blog (if there are any) will snicker that I often use the phrase “long-delayed.” But Ultraviolet may truly qualify. It was supposed to come out in the fall of 2008 as Dream Date. Since then, the title has been changed; the track listing has shuffled several times (early versions include a collaboration with the Cool Kids); and the release date has been changed many times this year alone, from March, to October 6 and finally (maybe) November 17. Meanwhile, the white-hot club rap movement that once seemed destined for mainstream consumption, with Kid Sister at the forefront, has not only been co-opted by makeup-wearing, Hot Topic-clad rock kids (see 3!Oh!3, et cetera) but has also settled into a comfortable, if slightly confining sub-genre. (Whatever happened to Spank Rock?)
What does that mean for Kid Sister and Ultraviolet? Who knows. Even though she’s a little poppy for my taste, I respect that she works with underground dance producers. And in world where male rappers still think that women don’t make good MCs because they’re too “soft” (Dude, if women can become soldiers and work in heavy industries, then they’re tough enough to rap!), it’s nice to see Kid Sister rock the mic.
More goodness from Del and Tame One. Directed by Alex Ghassan, it features some nice shots of Tame’s graff work and a requisite Fat Beats scene.
Taken from the duo’s Parallel Uni-verse, which dropped yesterday.
Blackalicious front man Gift of Gab heads out on the road next month in support of Escape 2 Mars, which also drops next month via Cornerstone RAS. Joining him will be Chali 2na and a live band. And the opening act? None other than Mr. Lif, who dropped I Heard It Today last spring. Add Lyrics Born as the evening’s host and you have a stupendously entertaining show.
Galapagos4 artists Mestizo, Robust and Dirty Digital take a stroll through various West Coast clubs and bars.
Decent joint by Bay Area rapper Jern Eye. Lorenzo Escalante directs the “Beautiful” half (and catches some nice shots of Lake Merritt in Oakland) and Charles Barcelona directs the “Something Wrong” half. I’m not a fan of videos that split between two songs (I guess Jay-Z’s “Dirt Off Your Shoulder/Public Service Announcement” immediately comes to mind), but this turned out OK. Both cuts are produced by Illmind.
Taken from Jern Eye’s Vision, out now on the Myx Music Label.
Tomorrow, October 13, Anticon icon Sole drops his second album with the Skyrider Band, Plastique. Unlike previous efforts, which all came out via Anticon, this one arrives courtesy of Fake Four Inc.
To promote Plastique, Sole is embarking on a national tour. Check after the jump to see if he’ll reach a town near you.
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).
*Sigh* Women are so frustrating.
Directed by Matt Koza. From the Foreign Exchange’s Leave It All Behind, which came out last year.
This clip finds Chali 2na hanging with Beenie Man and various youths in Jamaica. It’s weird to see Beenie hanging out with a bunch of lovable kids instead of the half-naked models you usually find in his videos.
“International” was directed by Decon Media’s Jason Goldwatch. From Chali 2na’s Fish Outta Water, in stores now.
