I never got to see Biggie live. He got killed too young. I was only 18 when he was murdered, and I really do believe that hip hop changed that day. Sure, there’s been lots of classic songs and albums released since then by some amazing artists, and I’m still one of the biggest rap fans around. But since he died, THINGS DONE CHANGED. A lot of these bums would not have careers if he was still alive. Or maybe they would, but we wouldn’t care, because Biggie would be pumping out too much heat for us to notice. I guess there is life after death for hip hop, and Jay-Z has done a great job holding it down for the original King of New York. But we will always wonder, “what if Biggie was still alive?” Well for those of you like me who never got to see B.I.G. on stage, check out this great mixtape by DJ Semi, filled with rare live performances from the late great Biggie Smalls…
And please, stay tuned to UPNORTHTRIPS today as me and my partner EvBoogie pay tribute to Biggie with a whole lot of rare pictures, video, mixtapes, etc. You don’t want to miss it. I’ll update this post with the full recap at the end of the day, but for now, GO THERE AND CHECK IT OUT.
R.I.P.B.I.G.
*UPDATE*
Here’s the full UPNORTHTRIPS recap from yesterday, which includes the links to the 60 plus Biggie posts we put up yesterday…
I don’t know much about this band OK Go, but one of the high school kids who frequents my center (what up Lonie) showed me their new video “This Too Shall Pass”, and I was blown away by how cool and creative it is!!!! Turns out they won a short film Grammy in 2007 for THIS video. Well the one above reminds me a little of Happy Gilmore’s final shot to beat Shooter McGavin to win the green jacket. Check it out. And if you’re interested in the making of the video and how it came to be, start watch their four part behind the scenes video playlist HERE. Always good to have hip kids around to keep me in the loop on what’s hot. And yeah, this video has been out for one week, and it already has north of 6 million views on YouTube. Bananas yogurt.
The new Band of Horses album Infinite Arms is set to be released on May 18th. That’s my wife’s due date! Supposedly the album will be more upbeat, with a “Friday night” type of vibe to it. And looks like it’s going to be put out by Brown Records/Fat Possum/Columbia, and not Sub Pop. Really? Oh well, don’t really care, but I got mad love for Sub Pop so I’m curious why they made the switch. Regardless, I’m amped to hear their new stuff. This is going to be the first album my baby boy listens too! Far out!!!!! Stay tuned for more info on this project….
*UPDATE*
Pearl Jam and Band Of Horses. MSG. May 21st. Wow. Probably won’t be able to make it because my son should be in the building by then, but someone please bring me home a shirt!
Legendary rapper Guru, 1/2 of Gangstarr, is in the hospital right now after suffering from cardiac arrest over the weekend. Supposedly he had a successful surgery, but is still recovering. Guru is one of my favorite rappers from back in the day, so I thought here at Westcheddar we should show him some love. I went digging into my mixtape collection and found this gem, hosted by DJ Premier and Guru. Back cover and download link below…
Some of the best artwork that’s been done in the music industry over the years is not always found on album covers. It’s on gig posters! I am in love with this website, simply titled GIG POSTERS, which archives posters and flyers for live shows by band and venue (and city, etc). Really cool. And they’ve got a ton of posters on there, from well known artists and bands you’ve never heard of. I can spend hours on this site just looking at posters. It’s like one big college dorm wall. Here’s some of my favorites. I started above with an oldie from Jimi Hendrix, just to pay homage to the Bay Area hippie era my parents lived through (they do have a bunch of older posters on the site if you dig a little). But I’m gonna focus mostly on the 21st Century. And this is just part one. I’m gonna need another post to post all these dope posters!
One more oldie. Well, not that old I guess. This shit is hot. Always loved the cover of Check Your Head. I still have a t-shirt with the same image of them sitting on the curb. Beastie Boys were one of the first groups I ever saw live, at Lollapalooza on Randall’s Island. Now to the newer stuff.
Still haven’t seen the Arctic Monkeys live yet. Really hoping I catch them soon. I missed them when they were in New York this past December. Great poster.
I saw The Shins at the MSG Theater back in 2007. My favorite band ever. I actually just did a post related to the Greek Theatre, scroll down or click here to see it. What the hell is going on in this poster? Who cares, it’s The Shins! I never know what they’re singing about anyway!
This treehouse thingy is recockulous. Check the venue. The Royal Oak Music Theatre. Cooooool. Never seen these guys live either. Fleet Foxes are right at the top of my list, with the Arctic Monkeys, of bands I want to see live asap.
Band of Horses. Love these dudes bro. Saw them at fucking CARNEGIE HALL bro. ACOUSTIC show. June ’09. Fucking sick BRO. This poster is crack. My G showed up at her crib with his dog holding a rose. This poster sums up the band’s music perfectly.
Damnit man! I missed Stevie when he was on tour recently. He was right at Jones Beach too in the summer of 2008. Fudgesicles! That’s the effing man. I’m sorry Taylor Swift, but Stevie Wonder is the greatest musician and songwriter OF ALL TIME! Gotta see this dude soon, no pun intended. Watch this video clip of him performing in London as part of the same 2008 tour. He goes in with the talkbox and covers some Beatles and Rolling Stones and other UK classics (“london bridge is falling down” haha). This clip is off his recently released DVD Live At Last, which I just watched, and I highly recommend you do the same…
Well, that’s it for part one of my feature on GIG POSTERS. Check the site out for more. And I’ll be back sooner or later with part two, featuring some more of my favorites. Peace out…
Sade’s new album Soldier of Love comes out next Tuesday, and I’m definitely excited about it. I’ve been purposely avoiding the leaks, which I never do, because I want to buy the album and listen to it the way she put it together. The single (title track), which came out many weeks ago, has been enough to hold me over. Check out this behind the scenes look at the making of Sade’s new album…
Did you really think that was all I was gonna give you? Come on now! Sade got MAD CLASSIC SONGS. But have you ever seen the videos for them? I haven’t. Until now. Here’s a couple of my all time fave Sade tracks…
“Hang On To Your Love”
(remember when me and K-Wet sampled this? Click HERE to hear)
“The Sweetest Taboo”
“Kiss Of Life”
“Smooth Operator”
Oh, you want to see her new video? Well I posted the link last month when we played the song on Westcheddar Radio #2. Check it out HERE. The next Westcheddar Radio episode is coming very soon. And go cop that Sade album on Tuesday! Just in time for Valentine’s Day!!!!!
D.C. Hip hop producer Oddisee (I know him from my College Park days), who is also 1/3 of the group Diamond District, is back with his latest ode to the seasons, Odd Winter. It is as eclectic as Odd Summer and Odd Autumn, filled with all sorts of hip hop nuggets, and is definitely worth a listen, especially if you’re in to new sounds and crazy instrumentals. There’s a few different rappers featured on there too, though Oddisee doesn’t grab the mic for this volume. My personal favorite is “The Warm Up” featuring lyrics from underground rapper Homeboy Sandman. Check it out below, along with the link to download the whole project.
Oddisee also keeps a blog, where I spotted a great non-hip hop video by a group I was not familiar with, Kings of Convenience. Turns out they’ve been around for a while and have some fairly acclaimed albums, so I am in the process of digging through their discography for more gems. They have a Simon and Garfunkel type harmony thing going on. Here’s the video I saw on Oddisee’s blog for their song “Boat Behind”. I really like this. Feels like summer on a snowy day…
This song made me think of another S & G influenced group (similar harmonies). A bonus if you will. Here’s This Is Ivy League’s video for “London Bridges”…
Finally, check out the legends themselves, Paul and Art, performing “The Sound Of Silence” this past fall at MSG for the 25th Anniversary of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Legendary…
Where else could you get Paul Simon and Homeboy Sandman in one post? It’s Westcheddar baby! Gimme mines!
Broken Bells (James Mercer of The Shins and Danger Mouse) released the video for their first single “The High Road” today, which is off their self titled album. Not sure exactly what is going on in the video, but I still like it…
I hope these guys go on tour. Pre-order their album, which drops in March, HERE.
The White Stripes documentary Under Great White Northern Lights is set to be released as part of a massive CD/DVD box set on March 16th. I always liked these two. I always thought Jack and Meg White were brother and sister, until my boy Leib told me it was just a gas (see comments section). Turns out they used to be married but told the press they were bro/sis to keep the focus on the music and make their band sound more interesting. But I digress. Watch the trailer for the documentary below…
I’m a fan of Jack White’s other band too, The Raconteurs. Check out this live performance of them in Holland jamming out to “Blue Veins”, one of my favorites off their first album Broken Boy Soldiers…
Pre-order The White Stripes box set at their official website. Rock on.
Hip Hop superstar Kanye West and comedian Aziz Ansari are friends. Aziz did a spoof of Kanye’s Glow in the Dark Tour logo for his own comedy tour (see above) and I guess Kanye went to see his act and loved it, and ever since they’ve been pals. But can you actually picture these two guys hanging out together? Well on Aziz Ansari’s new CD/DVD that just came out this week (see below), he tells his story of a night he spent hanging out with Kanye West in Los Angeles. Hilarious. Nah Right’s got the video clip HERE.
Definitely go cop Aziz’s stand up CD/DVD. And keep up with him at his website, Aziz is Bored…
P.S. This is my 300th post on Westcheddar. Big ups to all my loyal readers!!!!
Westcheddar 