(JUAN.of.a.KIND)

lightningcollective:

THE ROOTS | The Other Side (feat Bilal & P.O.R.N.)

The Roots, also known as The Legendary Roots Crew, The Square Roots and The Foundation, are an influential, Grammy winning hip hop group based out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, famed for a heavily jazzy sound and live instrumentation. Inspired by the “hip-hop band” concept pioneered by Stetsasonic, the Roots themselves have garnered critical acclaim and influenced later hip-hop and R&B acts. 

While everyone is shitting their pants about The Black Keys - El Camino, I’ve been eye’ing up on my home city band/hip hop group from Philly, The Roots. Their recent album, ‘How I Got Over’ was a good one and for sure it was some good vibes almost anytime of the day. The first time I listened to that album was traveling on the “el” on the Red Line to downtown Chicago and when I heard this was coming out, my ears were wide open curious to know/hear what they had going on this time around. I’m going to say one word…damn. This is one more fabulous album adding on to their flawless discography. 

Though the group had multiple members going in and out, this group doesn’t disappoint. I chose this song due to the fact of how raw of the hip-hop/soul vibes are clashed together. Dynamic drums, deep vocals, organ synths/pianos, and moving chorus drops all create a ‘feel good’ sound. If you aren’t into The Roots, this sound, or whatever it is, they’re a group to get into if you want to expand your mind a little. To end this off a bit, what threw me off a little bit was in the end of the album there was movements (Possibility, Will To Power, and Finality). It’s literally them playing instrumentals that are really nice to hear, fucking around banging on shit, or well, both. Regardless this album has some unique features on it.

The Roots, stay relevant and keep it real. Love your shit.

The Roots - Kool On (feat P.O.R.N. & Truck North) [LC recommends]

4 full front-to-back listens deep in yet another excellent studio recording (and one hell of a reverse narrative concept) from the most consistent band in music and my favourite group/musicians of all-time. And this beautiful joint is an early contender for the best track from undun. From Tariq’s unmatched storytelling abilities on the first 2 verses to P.O.R.N nicely holding his own on the third verse to Bilal’s pitch perfect handling of the dramatic hook, this track (featuring ?uesto’s laced-out drums and Poyser’s heavenly keys) just gets everything right on and IMO is one of the best compositions The Roots have ever created (coming from a loyal admirer of 2-1-5’s finest for 16 years and counting). Copping the CD on the 6th of December to show support for the hardest working band in hip-hop.

The Roots - Make My (feat. Big K.R.I.T.)

From Nah Right:

undun is an existential re-telling of the short life of one Redford Stephens (1974-1999). Through the use of emotives and Redford’s internal dialogues the album seeks to illustrate the intersection of free will and prescribed destiny as it plays out ‘on the corner’. Utilizing a reverse narrative arc, the album begins as the listener finds Redford disoriented–postmortem–and attempting to make sense of his former life. As he moves through its pivotal moments he begins to deconstruct all that has led to his (and our own) coming undun.

“At this point in our career we’d like for our work to have a unifying theme, and an experiential quality,” says Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson, 40. “We’ve been intentionally making our albums shorter in length so that they can be experienced as a continuous work. The music is band-oriented with an eye on the moody cinematic. As a DJ, I am the King of playlists, but I don’t want our albums to feel like a playlist or a mixtape for that matter. We want to tell stories that work within the album format and we want the stories to be nuanced and useful to people. undun is the story of this kid who becomes criminal, but he wasn’t born criminal. He’s not the nouveau exotic primitive bug-eyed gunrunner like Tupac’s character Bishop in “Juice”… he’s actually thoughtful and is neither victim nor hero. Just some kid who begins to order his world in a way that makes the most sense to him at a given moment… At the end of the day… isn’t that what we all do?”

Can’t believe that The Legendary are already putting out a brand new LP (and a concept album at that). I’m all for shorter (read: 40 min) studio recordings if it means more frequent releases from the hardest working band in hip hop music. Plus, you gotta love that extended breakdown at the end.

Official tracklist:

1. Sleep
2. Make My feat. Big K.R.I.T.
3. One Time
4. Kool On
5. The Jump
6. Stomp
7. Lighthouse
8. I Remember
9. Tip The Scale
10. Redford

undun hits your favourite music retail outlet on December 6th (instant coppage on day one). Should be the perfect way to end what has turned out to be a fine year for hip hop.

(Source: okayplayer.com)

Beastie Boys - Long Burn The Fire (Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, 2011)

Ill-tastic track from a guaranteed summer album by Adrock, Mike D and MCA. This particular dark joint reminds me of the menacing vibe they had on Check Your Head (my favourite Beasties LP along with Paul’s Boutique). Also, my CD and T-shirt package finally shipped (today was the North American release date) and the retail (dirty) version of the album understandably leaked a few days ago. Long burn the (upcoming summer) fire!

DJ Quik - Across The Map (Feat. Bizzy Bone & Bun B)

David Blake, better known as the legendary DJ Quik, proving once again why he is the best producer to EVER come out of the west coast. Not to mention a TOP 3 all-time greatest producer on the mic, along with the late, great J Dilla (who always knew how to expertly ride his own creations) and the RZA (an acquired taste for many, but you need only peep the Abbott’s verse on GZA’s 4th Chamber to become a believer). On this particular party joint, Quik is joined by the ill & chill Bun B (who has been dropping some smooth guest verses over the past few years) and a returning Bizzy Bone (who can still spaz out on the mic like only the RIP$ta can).

On the topic of DJ Quik: the man has been consistently creating dope beats AND dope rhymes for 20 years now, resulting in an impressive catalog with nary a weak LP amongst the bunch (and no lazy 10-year hiatuses either). Hopefully the swirling rumours that this is Quik’s final album aren’t even remotely true. But the man has certainly earned it, no doubt (yet STILL remains underrated). In any event, The Book Of David officially drops tomorrow. And I, for one, plan on expressing my thanks to Da Quiksta for a great career by copping this ill-tastic recording. While perhaps having a cup of milk with chocolate Nestle Quik for old times sake (haven’t had that sweet stuff since the late 80s, back when it was still packaged inside of a cool tin).