Metal Lungies

(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.

ML has been sleeping on posting some stuff from The Knux while they’ve quietly been building up a pretty big buzz on the internets, well it’s about time we introduce you to this duo. These Interscope signed/Paul Rosenberg managed dudes definitely are bringing an original sound to the table.  I originally saw Weiss post the ex-x-x-xlusive, but Lee of Foundation reminded me that I had to put it up when he hit me up with a 192kbps version (read: a lil higher quality) + the instrumental.

Download (Mp3) (Updated 11/9): The Knux – Bang Bang

Download (Mp3 (Updated 11/9): The Knux – Bang Bang (Instrumental)

The Knux’s Myspace

This is a serious must-have.  Somebody raided Puff’s vault and got the original and alternate versions of all the tracks on Ready to Die. So many gems.

There’s the uncensored version of “Gimme the Loot” (all-time favorite song?) which contains the cringe-worthy line, “I wouldn’t give a fuck if you’re pregnant” without the little rewind over “pregnant”. Reminds me of the “Stack chips like Hebrews” line that got taken out of “It’s All about the Benjamins”. There’s the DJ Premier version of “Machine Gun Funk” which I don’t like quite as much as the album version. There’s the version of “Ready to Die” with the original beat, which I’d say is better than the album version (nerd note: this was previously on Mister Cee’s Best of Biggie Part 2 mixtape, another must-have). There’s “Me and My Bitch” with the original beat, which definitely pales in comparison to the sinister beat on the album version.

There’s the “The What” with Biggie’s original verses. According to legend (and by legend, I mean Easy Mo Bee on the Bigger Than Life DVD), Biggie thought Method Man outdid him on the track. On this version, Biggie’s first verse is different and when Meth comes on after him, his flow pretty much annihilates Biggie’s. It’s obvious that Biggie went back and redid the first verse to be on par with Meth. I’m thinking Biggie was referring to this version when he said Meth outdid him.  Method Man respectfully dodged the question when I asked him about it.

Other included tracks are the original version of “Whatchu Want,” which is far grimier than the Danja-produced version that appeared on the Duets album and the original version of “Come On” which is also a lot grimier than its counterpart on Born Again. Also there’s “Mac’s N Dons,” Biggie’s Pepsi freestyle and a radio cut of “Biggie Got that Hype Shit”.

I’m not one of those who thinks Puff Daddy ruined Ready to Die, but this is a hint of what it would’ve sounded like without him. Now I want the songs Biggie supposedly recorded with Fat Joe, if Joe’s comments on Juan Epstein are to be believed. Somebody get Puffy on the phone!

Download: The Notorious B.I.G. – Ready to Die (The O.G. Edition)

Bonus: The Notorious B.I.G. – Queen Bitch (reference track for Lil’ Kim)

The homie J-Berga hit up yet another event last weekend, the Rock Steady Crew Anniversary show. Here are the musings he had to share:

This was my third year going to the Rock Steady Crew Anniversary event and this year might have been the best so far.  This year was dedicated to the memory of the great Frosty Freeze who was one of the innovators when it came to breakdancing.  The event was held in Lincoln Park in the city of Newark, New Jersey and it is always a very family orientated event.  It was an all day event starting at 12 and I will recap what I saw once I got there at 5pm. 

Q-Unique and the Arsonists were on stage when I got there and I later found out that I missed out on Grand Master Caz, Termanology and Ice-T.  AG hit the stage for a short set as well as one member from the Lordz of the Underground.  Craig G came out with Marley Marl backing him up on the turntables.  At one point Marley Marl got so hyped by Craig G’s freestyles that he felt inspired to spit on the mic himself.  Then one of the great female MC’s came an ripped the stage, Bahamma D.  Her rhymes were venomous!  Then the Architects came reunited to do a performance and squashed whatever beef they had going between them.  Pumpkin Head and Mr. Metaphor from Brooklyn Academy did a short set and then the man who created arguably one of the greatest mixtapes ever in 50 MC’s, Tony Touch, came out and showed the crowd just why Djing is considered an artform.  After Tony’s set Crazy Legs, Fabel, and the rest of the Rock Steady Crew came out and did a very well choreographed performance that included about 15 people on stage.  I could tell that they put a lot of hard work into their performance.  After they performed Fat Joe came out and did a surprise performance, which got everyone real hyped.  For some reason he was the only artist people started throwing shit at but everything that was thrown missed him somehow haha.  By the time Fat Joe was done there was very little time left in the concert which meant Smif-N-Wessun, Beat Nuts, and Black Moon didn’t get to perform because time had to be saved for the headliner, KRS-One.   People were real hyped when he came out and as soon as the first song got started the speakers blew out!!!  He kicked some accapellas and got all of the artists that performed earlier to come on stage and engage in a large freestyle cipher.  Overall the show was tight and I would encourage all true hip-hop heads to check out this event next year and get involved in all Rock Steady Crew events.  Till next time ML.

J-Berga’s connect B-Rad (a lot of hyphens were in the building) took some dope pictures I threw up on the ML flickr feed.

Rapper Theo on the set for How We Rock, spots Skyzoo, Torae, and Panama.