I’m playing catch up a bit here on Westcheddar tonight, posting some of my favorite things from the last month or so that I have neglected due to the hectic start of yet another school year. DMV (DC, Maryland, Virginia) producer/rapper Oddisee released a brand new instrumental album late in the summer titled Rock Creek Park, inspired by the Washington D.C. park that bears the same name. I used to live a block away from the foot of the park on 22nd and P, and I would drive through it every morning to get to my job in Gaithersburg, Maryland. It really is a beautiful place, nestled in the depths of the District, and certainly worthy of naming an album after. Read O’s story behind the music below, where he explains his longtime love of RCP and also how he drew inspiration for the project from The Blackbyrds’ heavily sampled song “Rock Creek Park” (which you can listen to down below it’s a sick track)…

“Rock Creek Park is & has always been one of my favorite places in Washington D.C. It has a way of aging with you & adapting to where you are in life. When I was younger, it was a place for skipping rocks, bike rides & imaginary adventures in the woods. As a teen it was a place where I played basketball, had cook outs with friends & walked through with dates. As an adult it’s my short cut through the city, my quickest way from Silver Spring to Georgetown. One thing it still is and always well be is my retreat.” 

“Listening to The Blackbyrds “Rock Creek Park” inspired me to create an entire album around the park & my relationship with it. If the park were to have a soundtrack, what would it be? What does walking along the trails of the park sound like? What does driving on the narrow tree lined roads sound like? This album is my interpretation of Rock Creek Park through break beats, samples & live instrumentation.”

To stream/purchase Oddisee’s Rock Creek Park, CLICK HERE. Check for “Skipping Rocks,” which is one of my favorite cuts on there. Much love to the whole DMV!!!

This is one of my favorite songs to come out this year. It’s by a new band called The Head and the Heart, whose self title album was released a couple seasons ago on Sub Pop Records. I’ve been listening to their album a decent amount over the last few months, and this song is definitely the standout cut. It’s called “Lost In My Mind.” Check out the video above, and watch them perform it live in studio on KCRW HERE.

For more on The Head and the Heart, go to their official website. Aiight!

*Bonus*

The Head and the Heart’s labelmates Fleet Foxes recently performed a full set on KCRW. Watch it HERE.

It took me many months to get my act together and properly check out Flushing, Queens rapper Action Bronson, and finally, after more than a few trusted friends encouraged me, I sat down and listened to his critically acclaimed album Dr. Lecter. And yo, the shit is crack. I’ve been blasting it in the whip all week. First of all, Action Bronson can spit. Many comparisons have been made to Ghostface Killah because of his voice and accent and style (even though he’s a fat, white Albanian with a beard and a baldie see above), and it’s true, he sounds like Ghost. But he is his own man, and has his own flavor that makes him original. To me, he actually raps like a mixture of Ghostface and Big Pun. He’s got the slick vocabulary, wordplay, and flow, and he’s not at all lazy on the mic. He spits quickly, but not rapidly, if you know what I mean. Basically, he goes the fuck in. And his beats are dope! Hard, New York beautifulness, with ill samples, heavy basslines, and banging drums. Plus he makes cool videos too that highlight his charisma and charm. In all, he’s a funny guy who smokes mad trees, loves great food and fine women, and raps with ridiculous realness. I can’t front, he’s the truth. Check out a couple of his music videos so you can see what I’m talking about….

“Shiraz”

“Get Off My P.P.”

I’m not gonna post the video for his song “Brunch” because it’s a bit disturbing, but for the record it’s one of my favorite cuts on Dr. Lecter. Stream it HERE if you so desire. Anyway, I’d also like to highlight Action Bronson’s YouTube cooking show, “Action in the Kitchen.” Not only are the meals he makes well-prepared, but the show gives us a chance to get to know him on a more personal level. It’s obvious that he loves food, and has spent a great deal of time cooking up. Watch a couple episodes below. My favorite is the “Bronson Burger” one. I mean come on, who puts a fucking chicken cutlet on their burger!? Off the yelzabar.

“Bronson Burger”

“Seared Ahi Tuna”

Follow Action Bronson on Twitter, and definitely get Dr. Lecter asap, it’s available on Itunes. I also recommend wrapping your ears around his mixtape with J-Love,  Bon Appetit…..Bitch!!!!! (haven’t heard it yet but my boy Ev Boogie says it’s proper). And he’s got a few exclusives on my dude Peter Rosenberg’s latest mixtape too, What’s Poppin’ Volume One, which features a lot of cool new underground artists as well as production by my other dude The Quartermaine. Get that for free HERE. I’m out.

*Bonus*

Action Bronson: Meatopia

Mayer Hawthorne’s new album How Do You Do is set to drop next month, and in preparation for it, he’s letting new material go in some form or another as part of his #MayerMonday promotion. The latest song he released (his second single), “The Walk,” is quite awesome. Listen to it HERE. And he already put out a video for the first single from his album, “Long Time,” which is equally dope. Two for two so far from Mayer Hawthorne…

Follow MH on Twitter so you can stay tuned in to all his #MayerMonday offerings. Hollerrrrrrrrrr.

This video is so fucking dope. Watch The Throne is right. These guys are the best, and they know it. Look how much fun they’re having. Seriously, all praises due to these two. And I’m not the biggest fan of the album, but it does have some serious gems on it (see below). I love “Otis,” and the video just made it that much better. Props to Spike Jonze, who’s produced some other classic hip hop videos in his day, like Beastie Boys “Sabatoge,” and The Pharcyde “Drop”. And shout out to comedian/actor Aziz Ansari for making a nice cameo in this too, that’s what’s up. Watch The Throne is in stores today, and I look forward to purchasing my physical copy.

Ip’s Watch The Throne Picks:

“No Church In The Wild”- They both murder their verses, and Frank Ocean slays the hook. Love the dark, minimalist production on this too. Q-Tip said on Twitter he “laced the loop” for the beat too.

“Niggas In Paris”- This beat is on some crazy dub step shit, which I normally wouldn’t feel, but Hov goes in so hard on this it is undeniable. His flow is ridiculous. Very fun song.

“Otis”- I love the format of this track, how they just go back and forth trading blocks of bars. Lots of quotables, and they both come off on every mini-verse. And it’s nice to hear some real organic sounding hip hop shit be the lead single off a huge release like this. It doesn’t get much more monumental for me than hearing the two hottest rappers in the world go back and forth over a perfectly chopped up soul sample.

“That’s My Bitch”- This song leaked a while back, and I thought it was cool, but now after hearing it on the album, I like it even more. Q-Tip did some fresh shit with this beat. They both spit dope rhymes on it too (Kanye does a nice little homage to Slick Rick), and the singing on the hook and the bridge are really fly. This might be the most progressive sounding song on the album.

“The Joy”- Another song that came out a while back as part of the G.O.O.D. Fridays series. I had the pleasure of talking about this song during my interview with its producer Pete Rock, and it holds up as a incredibly solid bonus cut. I admit, I was hoping more of WTT would feel like this, but I can’t be mad at Kanye and Jay for pushing the envelope and trying out some new sounds, even if some of them don’t appease my palette.

Those are just my personal favorites, and the songs I actually will be listening to for years to come. There’s other hot cuts on this album, so go check it out for yourself. Have a great weekend Westcheddar.

Entourage is responsible for putting me on to some cool songs over the years, and at the end of last week’s episode, when that coked up dude shot himself in his bathroom and Vinnie and Turtle busted down the door to find him, they dropped some ill shit as they cut to the credits. Perfect ending. Check the video above for the song, James Blake “The Wilhelm Scream”. Props to Entourage for incorporating music discovery into their episodes. Ch.

I’m really into this new song “How Come” by Avi Buffalo (real name Avi Isenberg). Still pissed I missed him a couple weeks ago at The Rock Shop in Brooklyn, but I was happy to discover some new music from him and his band last night, and I’m looking forward to their sophomore album. When I listen to Avi Buffalo, I immediately feel in tune with my California roots (he’s from Long Beach), which is a good thing. He’s a young man with an old hippie soul, and some serious guitar skills. If you can get past the weirdness of his voice, you will see his genius. And if you dig the track, watch him perform it live in Barcelona HERE. Enjoy.

 

 

Do you ever just get in the mood to watch old rap videos? Yeah, me too. I’m blacking out right now on this amazing YouTube channel for vintage rap videos from the 80’s and 90’s. I suggest you do the same asap. They have a sick selection, and they’re all high quality. I’m gonna serve up a few classics to get you started. Walk with me…

Channel Live f/ KRS-One “Mad Izm”

Redman “Tonight’s Da Night”

Gangstarr f/ Nice & Smooth “DWYCK”

To surf through them all, CLICK HERE! Shout to UpNorthTrips for the Jigga photo, shit is ridiculous. Uno.

Nas hopped on Raekwon’s latest album Shaolin Vs. Wu Tang after missing out on the opportunity to be on Only Built For Cuban Linx II. The track, “Rich & Black”, now has a video, filmed in Oslo, Norway, where the two linked up while on tour. Shit’s pretty live. Nice to see two OG’s enjoying themselves overseas and killing it…

Some more smoke, from Curren$y and his boys Trademark Da Skydiver and Young Roddy, called “Still”, from Weekend at Burnie’s. I like these dudes…

This is hot too, roll up to this. The first song/video off Weekend at Burnie’s, “#JetsGo”…

And finally, Prodigy drops something for the hood chicks called “Pebble Beach”. My type of shit (sorry, no video but stream away)…

Download it free HERE. Now go burn something kid!

*BONUS*

Check out this great two-part Ghostface interview from across the pond with Tim Westwood (who is hilarious), live in the back of a limo. Ghost is in rare form for this. Super animated, amazing chi…

Kapow!

Drake’s a dope rapper, but I prefer when he sings. He kills melodies and R & B flows, especially over the eloquence of his boy 40’s production. I liked this song “Marvin’s Room” when it came out (and all the middle school kids I work with are obsessed with it), but the video took the track to a whole new level. Very well put together. Props to Drizzy. Enjoy.

Oh, and click HERE to check out his other new shit “Trust Issues”, it’s hot. Later.