Tag: Rap
When A$AP Rocky first started making waves back in 2011, my first impression of him was only that his name was similar to that of Aesop Rock, the motormouthed, surrealist rapper of whom I was a borderline obsessive fan back in high school. Now, here’s a video of the two meeting backstage at Rock the […]
The stated aim of the University of Houston Digital Library is to “showcase digital collections of materials documenting the history of the University of Houston, City of Houston, and State of Texas,” and on that note, they’ve recently acquired the collected album art of legendary Houston graphic design firm Pen & Pixel. Most widely known […]
Each week in Sample Wars, we’ll pit two songs which sample the same source material head-to-head against each other, to determine which one rocked the sample better. “Montara,” Bobby Hutcherson, 1975, samples appear at :21 and :53: Bobby Hutcherson’s “Montara” is one of those ’70s jazz cuts that sounds like it was created just so some […]
Here’s the latest episode of Mass Appeal’s great new series “Rhythm Roulette,” which asks rap producers to pick three records while blindfolded, then make a beat that samples all three. This installment features El-P, who grabs LPs (see what I did there?) from Leon Haywood, Theo Vaness, and Beethoven. After hitting the vape and sipping some Modelo, […]
Each week in Sample Wars, we’ll pit two songs which sample the same source material head-to-head against each other, to determine which one rocked the sample better. Between a new music streaming service and file format, a Stereogum list, a book, and a new-ish Crazy Horse album, Neil Young seems to be having a late-career moment. […]
Here’s “ODB,” the video and first single from OLD, the forthcoming album from Detroit bruiser Danny Brown. If you’ve been following Danny at all (and of course you have), you pretty much know what to expect, and “ODB” doesn’t disappoint. Unsurprisingly for a first single, it’s in the vein of the bugged-out, drug-happy first half of breakout […]
Turns out “The Last Donut of the Night” wasn’t the last donut after all. The Detroit News is reporting that Herman Hayes, uncle to the late, impossibly great hip-hop producer J Dilla, will open a donut shop in Dilla’s honor in Detroit’s Harmonie Park. The shop, to be dubbed Dilla’s Delights, will feature all-organic treats with winking names like […]
When we spoke to veteran hip-hop blogger Byron Crawford last week, one of the things we touched upon was his love for NYC rappers Action Bronson and Meyhem Lauren. Now, here’s a video featuring that indomitable duo along with virtuosic producer Harry Fraud and Brooklyn hardhead Ag Da Coroner. As marionettes. It’s great. […]
Each week in Sample Wars, we’ll pit two songs which sample the same source material head-to-head against each other, to determine which one rocked the sample better. This week saw the release of Earl Sweatshirt’s long-awaited debut album Doris. We’re looking at early highlight “Centurion,” which shares a sample with the 1995 Kool G Rap track “Take […]
In his new book, NaS Lost: A Tribute to The Little Homey, veteran rap blogger Byron Crawford takes aim at everyone, whether it’s comparing Chief Keef to “sellout-era Liz Phair,” devoting an entire chapter to the cultural critic dream hampton, or expounding on the merits of Gin Blossoms’ New Miserable Experience. Through everything (and I really mean everything– […]
