Metal Lungies

Even Just Bleezy and Green Lantern kick a few bars. If I can take a second to get nostalgic for an era I was too young to experience, isn’t it great to see cats just having fun and passing the mic? Just Blaze actually surprised me with his bars.

“Roc Boys (And the Winner Is)…” is the second single released from Jay-Z’s 2007 album, American Gangster. The song is produced by Diddy, Sean C & LV. “Roc Boys” is all about the upbeat, celebratory horns, sampled from the Menahan Street Band’s “Make The Road By Walking.” A funky guitar lick plays in the background through most of the song, and the sample is topped off with some thick, thudding drums (must be Diddy’s contribution there!) The beat quickly became the go-to instrumental for rappers to freestyle over, with rappers like Asher Roth and Wale still using it in 2008.

The video for “Roc Boys” has cameos from basically everyone. Look for appearances by Rick Ross, Memphis Bleek, Diddy, Freeway, Nas, Tru Life, Young Gunz, Jadakiss, Swizz Beatz, Beanie Sigel, Cassie, DJ Clue, Larry Johnson, Tristan Wilds, Just Blaze, Zab Judah, The-Dream, Irv Gotti and Mariah Carey.

Producer K-Def remixed American Gangster and released his set of remixes online, entitled Real Live Gangster. Def’s version of “Roc Boys” is a complete about-face from the original’s feeling. It’s slow and downbeat, centered around a series of jazzy electric guitar riffs. Every few bars, the guitar is joined by urgent strings and police sirens. The remix switches the drums to light, live sounding drum taps. K-Def’s stripped down instrumental is compelling enough to demand attention by itself, while focusing the listener’s attention on the lyrics.

Which version do you prefer? I really dig the whole Real Live Gangster remix album, and as much as I liked “Roc Boys” when it came out, the original is a bit played out for me. So the K-Def version is a compelling alternative. Given the massive amount of American Gangster remix albums, if you don’t care for either version highlighted here, you ought to be able to find one that floats your boat.

You can download Real Live Gangster here. I can’t recommend it enough, regardless of your opinion of the original AG album.

Download: Jay-Z – Roc Boys (And The Winner Is…) (American Gangster, 2007)

Jay-Z – Roc Boys (K-Def Remix) (Real Live Gangster, 2007)

Coney Island’s Torae snatched up a lot of attention earlier this year with his solo debut, Daily Conversation. His New York flow, potent rhymes and excellent beat selection made his name a necessary inclusion in any discussion of NY’s underground. He’s been consistently dope ever since, hence this mixtape of collaborations and unreleased material. If you’ve been checking for Tor, chances are you’ve heard a few of these tracks already, but it’s a solid collection nonetheless.

True story: Torae was my first interview. This was pre-ML for my college newspaper. Not even gonna link it because I screwed it up so bad. Maybe I’ll post the mp3 ten years from now when Torae is either an underground legend or a Jay-Z-level superstar.

Download: Torae – Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself

via okayplayer

(image source)

Still pissed I missed this show. Color me a Blu stan.

Download: Blu & Exile – SOB’s Freestyle

via Classic Drug References

Another remix of the killer PRGz track, check it:

You’re probably familiar with Beth’s work, since we’ve used her photos for several posts on this very site. She’s a Brooklyn, NY based photographer who’s had her work published in magazines including Scratch, URB, The FADER & Waxpoetics. She has a talent for really capturing the essence of her subject’s personality in a single photo; Madlib is surrounded by records, playing a one-stringed bass, Marley Marl is biting down on a record and Mark the 45 King is shot in closeup, wearing a shirt that simply reads “BEATS.”

Here’s a few of my favorite photos of hers. I recommend visiting her website to see her whole gallery.

Before there was…

… there was…

Like previous Beat Drop subject Isaac Hayes (and unlike all other Beat Drop subjects), Curtis Mayfield has not produced any hip hop records — at least not directly. However, he has produced, written, and performed (either with his heavenly voice or ability to play multiple instruments) many great songs that have been sampled by some of the best hip hop producers, some of whom we’ve highlighted in the past.

Read the rest of this entry »

Let me preface this review with the acknowledgement that  I have never before read a graphic novel and that my only experience with comics is Garfield, Calvin and Hobbes, a handful of webcomics and of course the recent wave of comic book movies (Dark Knight in IMAX is still sold out, WTF). Forgive me if I accidentally criticize something that’s conventional of graphic novels.

Method Man tells the story of a chapter in the life of Peerless Poe, once a member of The Clandestine Order of the Sacred Method (or Method Men), who defected to solve street crimes on his own. As a great evil rises, Poe must side with his old team again to save the world. The character of Peerless Poe is obviously based on one of hip-hop’s most beloved personalities: the blunt-smoking, stage-diving master entertainer, Method Man. Having met him, I can assure you he’s every bit as cool as he seems.

The setting and atmosphere is entirely worthy of the Wu-Tang logo on the title page. Both the Method Men and the rising threat they face are rooted in Biblical events. The charm of the story is that at the center of all the Bible references and talk of ancient traditions, there’s ghetto ass Peerless Poe who likes weed, sex and money. This directly parallels Wu-Tang, which mixes Chinese  folklore, by way of 60s/70s kung fu flicks, with grimy beats and equally grimy raps. In that regard, Method Man is on point. And also, there are ninjas, which just seals the deal.

My main problem is that the story just feels rushed. Poe’s character is barely established before three forgettable characters are hastily introduced. The group quickly moves from place and before you know it, the whole thing is over. There’s even a cheap little love story in the middle of it too.

My other gripe is that there isn’t enough of what makes the whole thing special, namely Peerless Poe. His presence is reduced to a quip here and there. The allure of Wu-Tang is the result of a calculated balance between kung fu and hip hop. On “Da Mystery of Chessboxin,'” there’s four lines dialogue from Five Deadly Venoms and then it launches into a full-fledged rap song with kind of a kung fu twinge. The problem with Method Man is that most of the time, all Poe does is react to stuff in a funny way; he encounters an enemy and says, “King-of-Hell-Devil Fist Style? N—a what?”. He takes a backseat to all the things going on around him. Unfortunately, Peerless Poe is only a hair above all the rest of the wisecracking action heroes.

I’m not going to act like I have any kind of eye for art, but I liked the way the characters are drawn. Peerless Poe and his cohorts (peers?) are slickly drawn, but the creatures on the other hand are pretty generic.

Method Man is a fun read despite its problems. Ultimately though, this graphic novel is meant for the die-hard Wu-Tang fans who will appreciate the scattered, though obvious, Wu references.

And to anyone who knows more about comics than I do, recommend me something good!

Not hating at all, more (wildly) amused than anything. A remix version with Freeway & Beanie would have my brain explode. For some reason, this makes me think of this (which I will admit to having in my music stash):

Scooped from Miss Info.

Michael speaks the truth at some thing he was doing for kids. I am not a Lakers fan, so I love to see Kobe get hated on. Plus, we get to see a 45 year old Mike cram on some kid at the end.

Now all we need is a Ron Artest freestyle.

Video stolen from You’ve Been Blinded