Metal Lungies

At the start of this month I saw a mesmerizing promo video for Diplo’s 2004 album Florida on Mad Decent’s blog that I never got around to posting. Despite the lateness, I highly suggest you watch it, the edit of Juveniles’s Ha makes it worth it all by itself, the rest is just icing on the cake. Oh yeah, it kinda gets NSFW too.

Slick visuals for a dope song. I’m definitely looking forward to Keelay and Zaire’s upcoming album Ridin High.

via RubyHornet

How did I miss this? An incredible interview with Big Daddy Kane on Cipha Sounds and Peter Rosenberg’s Juan Epstein podcast.

Download: Juan Epstein ft. Big Daddy Kane

Bonus: The music video for Paul Simon’s “Me And Julio Down By The Schoolyard”, featuring Biz Markie and Kane freestyling. BDK talks about this video in the interview.

Microsoft recruits a sampler and a sampleree (now word!) in the form of Common & Afrika Bambaataa for their latest TV spot.

Personal tech note: I got a demo of the Zune software last month, and its not bad at all, if you are all about discovering new music, check it out you might prefer it over itunes.

Just got the 2nd video from The Renaissance in the e-mail box from the video’s director- Rik Cordero.

ML mega-favorite DJ Premier shows how effortlessly he makes dope beats, then talks about where Ludacris stands in his top MC ranking.

Hold up for a second. Forget all that bullshit assclownery going on in music right now. Forget Souljah Boy. Forget auto-tune. Sit down. Pour yourself a classy drink (ginger ale and rye is always a good choice) and sit down in a comfy chair. Lee Morgan has something he’d like to play for you.

“I Remember Clifford” performed in 1958.

Video for Johnson & Jonson’s “Up All Night.” Blu going crazy with the flow and a dope video. You’d best have that album already.

via okayplayer

One two/who got more style than son do

It’s been a minute, people. My apologies – midterms and essays got your boy busy.

“Thief’s Theme” is a 2004 single released by Nas in support of his double album, Street’s Disciple. Salaam Remi flips the guitar riff and a soaring organ line from the Incredible Bongo Band’s cover of “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida”(later used in almost identical fashion by Wil.i.am for “Hip Hop Is Dead”). Remi throws a short bongo break on the chorus, where scratches Nas’s lyrics from “The World Is Yours” for the chorus:

The thief’s theme, play me at night they won’t act right/Understandable smooth shit that murderers move with.

Keeping with the theme of the song, the video features people robbing stores in ski masks.

I owe my discovery of today’s featured remix entirely to Dan Love at FDB, who tipped me off to this track at the end of last year. “Thief’s Theme” was remixed by Canadian producer Midas Touch for his online mixtape The Remix Tape Volume 1, which you can download here. Obviously, this remix is internet only, but it’s a shame; Midas does a better job behind the boards here than Nas’ current stable of mostly crap producers.

Midas switches up the percussion to heavy snares and hi-hats. He adds pretty, echoing piano keys and brings in stirring strings and some really dope horns every few bars. Midas also chops us some classic Otis Redding groans and layers them on top. Midas’s take on “Thief’s Theme” is cinematic and sounds like a lost Premier beat circa Moment of Truth – never a bad thing.

Which version is better? I’m leaning toward Midas on this one. Remi’s beat is hurt by the fact that Nas used the same sample for “Hip Hop Is Dead” but two years later. Still a good beat, just feels a bit redundant, I suppose. What do you guys think?

Download: Nas – Thief’s Theme

Download: Nas – Thief’s Theme (Midas Touch Remix)

You know you are major when not only do you get a cameo, but you get to perform on a kids show. The Roots did just that appearing on the Nickelodeon show Yo Gabba Gabba.

Check the performance of Lovely, Love My Family below:

If I had kids you better believe they’d be rocking with this over the Sean Kingston X Kidz Bop.

In other pertinent Roots news, according to a few sites (and mysteriously disappearing videos), The Roots maybe going on a touring hiatus come March in order to become the house band for Jimmy Fallon’s takeover of Conan’s Late Night show. If this turns out true (all signs are pointing to it, it was even hinted to in that OKP ?uestlove Famous People thread), I need to catch The Roots one more time live before this (as do you!), because they are one of the best live acts, ever.