Episode 183 : The Natural

"Posthumous ain't the wave..."

- Mega Ran

For this month's cover art, I couldn't resist calling back to one of the most unexpectedly popular stars of the Olympics I was glued to earlier in the month, and going a little Griselda with it 😁 Music-wise, we're almost entirely Hip-Hop this episode, but visiting a lot of different chambers - got some brand new stuff, some tracks that are older than I realised, and we open up with a gem that never got a commercial release...

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Twitch : @airadam13

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Playlist/Notes

Warzone : Take It Or Leave It

I left the drop on the front of this track to respect the blog DubCNN, from where I got this track way back - one I've never heard anywhere else! Warzone was a supergroup made up of Kam, Goldie Loc, and MC Eiht of CMW, who drop unapologetically gangsta lyrics through all three verses of this fire tune. Sadly, even though they did record a full album, the world never got to hear it due to them being unable to get a distribution deal - if anyone somehow has a copy, I would love to hear the whole thing! I think Mr. Porter is on production, which makes sense, with the drums having a distinctly Detroit timefeel which really adds to the overall flavour.

Sndtrak : Inhuman

The Detroit stalwart House Shoes was recently playing some beat flips by Oakland producer Sndtrack on a Twitch stream, and before he was done I'd already bought two of his albums, including "FLIPS V2: FLIP​-​TUCK" from which this is drawn. He deconstructs Michael Jackson's "Human Nature" on his Maschine and turns it into a dark, gothic, booming track which lives up to its title! This is an artist well worthy of your support.

Layfullstop : Did I Stutter

Brand new single from a double-threat MC/singer you might know from her work in the Manchester scene over the last few years - she posted a clip on Instagram and I immediately had to buy myself a copy! Layfullstop kills it in less than three minutes with flows and bars galore over a wicked self-produced beat that features smooth keys under an irresistible rhythm track. An artist to always keep an ear out for!

Mega Ran ft. The Outlawz : In The Game

It was great to see Mega Ran return to play in Manchester this month, and while it would have been easy to just reach for his most recent release, we're going back to a personal favourite, the "Live '95" LP. As someone who grew up loving Hip-Hop, hoops - and of course gaming - in the magical time of the 90s, this album explores the intersections of them all. Edi Mean and Young Noble of The Outlawz, best known as 2Pac's crew guest here with a couple of short and positive verses over Yon Li's production, but it's the headliner who really shines here with an excellent first verse. His lines about "anybody I ain’t rock with, don’t put them on my projects" ring truer than ever in a world where some are excusing the use of AI deepfake tech to put words in the mouths of the deceased. We don't support that necromancy over here.

Zion I : We Got It

Accidentally deleted my notes for this - let's try again 😂 This was a nice B-side on the flip of "Here We Come" by Skhool Yard, both taken from the 2001 compilation "The Funky Precedent Vol. 2". The production by 418Hz is sparse enough to allow the straight-ahead dopeness on the mic from the late Zumbi to breathe.

Diamond D ft. Torae and Bishop Lamont : MERK

Jo-Jo on the low pro, the Forest Projects and DITC legend Diamond has returned to bless us with a new release this month, the nine-track "The Diam Piece 3 : Initium", loaded with featured guests all doing their thing over his top-shelf production. The crispy drums and guitar sample with a subtle bass backing create a clean but still grimy backdrop for all the MCs - Bishop Lamont from Cali and Brooklyn's Torae, both true insiders' choices - to bring quality bars. Well under three minutes long, this is concentrated dopeness.

[Jay Dee] Slum Village : Fall In Love (Remix Instrumental)

The original version of "Fall In Love" was at least at some point removed from retail copies of "Fantastic Volume II" due to sample clearance problems, but this remixed version is an underground classic in its own way. I recently picked this up as a 45, though I'd expect that there are some 12"  and digital releases containing this excellent J Dilla beat as well.

DJ Premier & Bumpy Knuckles ft. Flavor Flav : Shake The Room

He may only be on the hook, but I thought we needed the Public Enemy legend, US Women's water polo team sponsor Flav, and general US Olympic hypeman on the episode somewhere this month! As he has done so often for Chuck D, he brings a different tone and change of energy to this track to contrast the gravelly-voiced and aggressive style of Bumpy Knuckles, with DJ Premier switching up the beat in those sections to match. The first single from the "Kolexxxion" LP, this one has a beat that Busta Rhymes apparently rejected, but Bumpy and Flav have made it what it needed to be.

Black Milk ft T3 and Phat Kat : Danger

Into the crates for a Phat Kat feature after getting the chance to play an all-Detroit warmup set before he performed in Manchester earlier this month! This cut from fellow 313 native and beast producer Black Milk's debut LP "Sound Of The City, Volume 1" has him taking the mic for the opening verse, before T3 of Slum Village takes the baton for the second, and finally Phat Kat burns it down on the close with pure aggression. Some of those that Kat said should "stop rapping and drive a cab" might well prefer to look into rideshare options if they were on the receiving end of this torching 🔥

Jel : Delete Sound

Just a short instrumental bridge courtesy of Jel, co-founder of the Anticon label as well as, of course, a producer in his own right. This is a great drum workout entirely done on the legendary SP-1200, from the 2002 "10 Seconds" album, named after the total sampling time the SP has available!

O.C. : The Inventor

I have to credit DJ Rolling Adam for introducing me to this track after playing it on one of his Twitch streams! It's a bit of an O.C. obscurity that had passed me by, with Ogee cleverly using the intro of a much loved jazz track that has been sampled on some classics - none of which made much of this part of the original. On the mic...standard solid performance from O.C., who can always be relied on to hold up his part of proceedings. You can find this on the 2006 "Hidden Gems" collection, or on 12" if you're willing to buy one of the relatively few copies that seem to be available on the used market.

Kev Brown : The Cause (Instrumental)

Absolutely fire beat! Not a crazy number of elements, just the basics done flawlessly, which is a real strength of Landover's Kev Brown, one of the most respected producers of his generation by those in the know. Of all the tracks from his "Selective Hearing" project with LMNO, this was by far my favourite, and the instrumental works well in a standard DJ set, an MC cipher, as a scratch backdrop - it has a quality and restraint that give it ultimate versatility.

Verb T ft. Malek Winter and Da Flyy Hooligan : Mere Mortal

Heavy UK business. The "Restoration" project is a collaboration between the veteran MC Verb T (who may be best known to many as one quarter of The Four Owls) and Malek Winter, who comes through with the 21st century lo-fi boom-bap styles on production. North-West London "gourmet rap" purveyor Da Flyy Hooligan features here, as one of the very few guests on the LP, as the MCs speak on how no matter how bulletproof you may feel, it's never quite so.

Sean Price : Title Track

Ok - in a total inversion of Ronseal naming conventions, this tune is called "Title Track" but the album it comes on is entitled "Mic Tyson", meaning that this is actually not the title track in literal sense! Classic merry rulebreaking from the late great Sean P, whose brutal bars on this 2012 release jockey for position against Eric G's slow, grinding, dramatic beat for sheer aggression. As always, R.I...P!

DJ Quik ft. David Blake II : Shine

There are all kinds of things I've seen in Hip-Hop as time has gone on that remind me of my (thankfully) advancing years, but this one is up there - DJ Quik, who I first heard as a nineteen-year-old MC on  the 1990-recorded "Tonite", being in the game long enough that on this track his son is the featured guest! Quik's production is low-tempo with the double-time hi-hats doing work to add a feeling of extra pace as son and then father get on the mic for each of the two verses. This pick from 2014's "The Midnight Life" is certainly not "Just The Two Of Us", but it's an interesting union all the same.

Trae Tha Truth : Trunk Gone Glow

We go deep and dark sonically as we approach the end of the show, taking it down to Houston, Texas, for a track from a true legend of the scene. This comes from the "Another 48 Hours" mixtape, the second of two albums released by Trae that were recorded in a mere two days each! Trademark Houston lyrical content, talking about the famous SLAB cars and the light-up trunk kits that make them extra-personalised. MOXIII and Watson The Great are credited with production over the whole LP, and this track is a spaced-out, screwed-up synthy soundscape with quality drum machine work over the top.

[El-P] Run The Jewels : Job Well Done (Instrumental)

If I see the instrumentals for a good album available for sale, I make a point of picking them up, so this month I was glad to notice that the beats for the first Run The Jewels LP had been released as a standalone collection. If you already know the album, then you know that it was packed with raw beats and this one is no exception - no crossover style, no chill, just banging, menacing production from El-P.

Justice & Thundercat : The End

This played during the closing ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics and sent me - and a lot of other people - scrambling to Shazam it before they switched to something else! The combination of the French electronic duo Justice and Los Angeles bass force of nature Thundercat (although he's primarily on vocal duties here) is sonic bliss, and makes this year's "Hyperdrama" album one to seek out if this is anything to go by. If you have a nice, clean, tuned sound system...this is going to sound spectacular.

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Please remember to support the artists you like! The purpose of putting the podcast out and providing the full tracklist is to try and give some light, so do use the songs on each episode as a starting point to search out more material. If you have Spotify in your country it's a great way to explore, but otherwise there's always Youtube and the like. Seeing your favourite artists live is the best way to put money in their pockets, and buy the vinyl/CDs/downloads of the stuff you like the most!