Ok, Matisyahu Season is officially in full swing. In celebration of his new album Light, which comes out next Tuesday 8/25/09, our boy DJ Roz (WP/MD represent) teamed up with Matisyahu and put together an official mixtape to promote the upcoming release, titled No Sleep Till Brooklyn. Yeah, Matis is a White Plains homeboy, but Crown Heights is where he’s been laying his head for years now, so the title is very appropriate. Download the mixtape below (and peep the tracklist), which has exclusives from the new album, some great Matisyahu non-album releases, DJ Roz blends, live performances, and even a couple appearances from yours truly Stan Ipcus (check out the new verse I put down on “WP”). BE CLEAR, THIS MIXTAPE IS A WESTCHEDDAR EXCLUSIVE!!!!!!! DOWNLOAD NOW!!!!
Oh, and this is still my favorite of all the new Matisyahu songs. Not on the mixtape, but it’s the first song on the album (and was also on the Shattered EP released last year). “Smash Lies”. Listen below…
For those who keep asking me, no, I’m not on Light, but check the hidden tracks on the mixtape for a new Matis and Ipcus collabo. Congrats to my brother from another mother Matisyahu on another classic album, WP rides with you always. And big ups to DJ Roz, you did it again my dude!!!!!! Thanks for the exclusive!!!!
Happy Birthday to my Pops Jimmy Izo (above left dancing like a maniac with me at my wedding) who turned 64 this past weekend. To celebrate, I took him over to the East Coast National Sports Card Show at the Westchester County Center. It was a nice stroll down memory lane for both of us. I used to frequent those card shows on the reg back in the 80’s, and he was enjoying the nostalgia of looking at all the baseball and basketball cards from his youth and sharing the stories of some of the great players of his generation. It was a nice father/son morning. Then we met up with our wives (my Mom and Dana Izo) for some Greek food, and my Mom was talking about The Beatles song “When I’m 64”. I thought it would be cool to post it up here to rep for my Dad. Check out the cartoon clip from The Beatles movie Yellow Submarine:
And here’s a nice reggae cover of the song from the Easy Star All-Star’s project Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band :
By the way, Matisyahu is featured on that album too, on their cover of “Within You Without You”…listen HERE
…I’m about to post the new Matis’ mixtape with DJ Roz right now so stay tuned.
Vince Vaughn is probably still my favorite movie star on the planet. I’ve been hearing about his new movie Couples Retreat with long time collaborator Jon Favreau (top, 2nd from left) for a while now, and I finally saw the preview last night when my wife and I went to catch Funny People in White Plains (which was excellent by the way). Check it out, it looks like loads of fun, and it has a cool cast…
I really wanted to do a Best of Vince Vaughn post, but I can’t find the scenes I’m looking for on Youtube. Feel free to leave your favorite Double V movie moments in the comments section…
I own a couple pairs of the Paul Rodriguez Nike SB sneakers, but I never really knew much about him. Well, in promotion of his P Rod III collection, Nike SB just released this rad commercial, letting P Rod himself show off his street skating skills to the sound of Ice Cube’s “Today Was a Good Day”. Check for the Kobe Bryant cameo (and Cube too)…
P.S. I know, it seems like skateboarding and L.A. is getting a lot of love here at Westcheddar this week (peep the Mayor Hawthorne video a couple posts down), but please remember that I was born out west. And my Dad, whose birthday is Saturday, was raised in Venice Beach. It’s in my blood. Get at me…
Chipotle, my favorite fast food Mexican joint on the planet, is finally coming to Westchester County. Praise the lord. Construction has begun on their new location in Rye Ridge (in place of the old movie theater in the Rye Ridge Shopping Center), and will be opening within the next several months. This is fantastic news!
Back when I was a senior at the University of Maryland, Chipotle opened up one of its first locations in College Park. And I ate there EVERY DAMN DAY. Sometimes twice a day. Those who know me best will tell you I have a deep love for Mexican cuisine. In fact, the term “salseated” was created for me to describe when I go in. And Chipotle is awesome because it allows you to create your own burrito. And their ingredients are very tasty.
Slowly but surely, Chipotle made its north to New York and flooded Manhattan, but still there has never been a location in Westchester (the closest one to me is by Columbia University). So when my geeee Jon Jo texted me the other day (who is a fellow Maryland grad and Chipotle feign), I jumped through the roof in excitement. I can’t wait to eat lunch there EVERY DAY. Dinner too. Hollerrrrrr.
Mayer Hawthorne’s debut album A Strange Arrangement supposedly leaked a couple weeks ago online, but for the life of me I can’t find it anywhere (I needs that asap)! This is definitely the release I am most looking forward to copping. Everything I’ve heard so far from it is dope. I’ll be first on line 9/9/09 when it comes out (friends honor I’m gonna buy it even if I get a hold of the leak). Here’s the new video for his cover of “Maybe So, Maybe No”, filmed in sunny California. Fun video…
Here is the new Arctic Monkeys video (and artwork) for their first single, “Crying Lightning”. Humbug, their third album, is due out later this month. I hear it strays a bit from the sound of their first two releases. I’m hoping for the best, because I love this band and I want to see them continue to succeed. Enjoy the video, it’s cool. They’re on a boat!
There’s a great article in today’s New York Times Magazine about my cousin Chris Isenberg at No Mas NYC aquiring the official licensing to sell his Cassius Clay shirt (see above). The shirt, which was actually his first No Mas creation (but was off the market for some time), will be available again online and in stores this month, the legit way. Check the article for more info…
“I’m in the 90’s right now!!!!” That’s what Funkmaster Flex shouts out every weeknight at 9pm on Hot 97. It’s a treat for me, because I’m usually just leaving work when he starts dropping bombs to classic hip hop cuts from the best decade of hip hop. Unfortunately, I’m starting to hear him play alot of the same stuff over and over again, which sucks because there are a ton of great songs (and videos) from that era that get forgotten about. So here at Westcheddar, I’m gonna start giving them some much needed burn, since that’s all I’ve really been listening to lately. Welcome to the first installment of my 90’s Grab Bag. Strictly throwback hip hop videos. Enjoy…
Showbiz and A.G. “Next Level”
The Nonce “Mix Tapes”
Kool G. Rap “It’s A Shame”
AZ and Nas “Mo Money, Mo Murder (Homocide)”
Outkast “Benz or Beamer”
I’ll probably do this once a month from now on so stay tuned. Hit me with your requests. Peace…
John Hughes, the writer/director of everyone’s favorite 80’s movies (above in the glasses with the cast of The Breakfast Club), died of a heart attack yesterday. It’s only right that we show him some love here at Westcheddar, since I basically grew up quoting his movies endlessly. His catalog is extensive, and everyone has their favorites, so I won’t argue which are his best. But a couple are very close to my heart. Here’s my Top Five:
Weird Science might be my personal favorite. Gary (Anthony Michael Hall is my dude) and Wyatt are the coolest gips ever! And Chet rules as the dickhead older brother. Just last week I showed it to my all boys middles school group during a summer camp rain day, and none of them had ever seen it. Needless to say, they were cracking up during the whole movie, which just shows how timeless these movies are. I mean, what teenage boy wouldn’t want to use their computer to CREATE their very own, real life dream girlfriend?
Plains, Trains, and Automobiles is my Dad’s favorite movie of all time. I’ve cried laughing with him watching this during countless Thanksgiving afternoons. It’s a total tearjerker, but it’s laugh out loud funny too. You can’t go wrong with John Candy and Steve Martin.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is such a gem of a movie. Ferris is the coolest high school student ever. And Cameron is that dude! “Rooney!!!” And Sloane was super bad. I have an inside joke with my close friends, which is that I love movies about teenagers that take place during the day (as opposed to dark action flicks that take place at night). Well this may be the most fun of them all. It made me want to skip school. My wife can quote the whole movie word for word, which was one of the things that made me fall in love with her. And of course, it eventually gave birth to my biggest hit song.
The Breakfast Club is the movie that just gets better and better every time I watch it. It’s a genius look at high school life (in detention). I can see a piece of myself in every character. Of course Brian, the nerd (again played by Anthony Michael Hall), is so hilarious. And Bender, the rebel, is amazing too. This is the obvious choice for his best movie, and it probably deserves the title. And the edited for TV version rocks. “Flip you! No, Flip you!!!”
National Lampoon’s European Vacation is my curveball pick to round out my Top Five. People will argue that the original is better, or that Christmas Vacation takes the cake, but this was the one that I have the most love for. I think it was the first movie I ever saw tits in. And Clark Griswold is the funniest Dad in the history of movies. Hughes didn’t direct this one, but he wrote it. After traveling to Europe with my family in middle school, I appreciated it even more.
I know, I know, I missed alot. My boy Matty B will be pissed I didn’t put his favorite Sixteen Candles (above)on my short list. It certainly deserves Top Five status, and Anthony Michael Hall’s rookie nerd role is amazing. But again, this is MY Top Five, and it just didn’t make the cut. But really all John Hughes movies helped shaped my existence. I gotta shout out a couple others that deserve honorable mentions too. Home Alone and Home Alone 2 are awesome holiday kids movies that were a big part of my childhood, and another one I really like that gets slept on sometimes is The Great Outdoors with John Candy and Dan Aykroyd. Good family fun. And I recently watched Pretty in Pink for the first time in at least a decade, and it was excellent. Anyway, check out Rolling Stone Magazine and Spin Magazine’s tributes to John Hughes, and also a nice little video montage I found of the eight movies he directed (he wrote and produced a bunch more, click HERE for a complete list). It’s a fun/emotional watch…
And finally, take a look at this star studded John Hughes tribute from back in 1991 when he was awarded Producer of the Year by the National Association of Movie Theater Owners…
RIP John Hughes. He will most certainly live on through his movies. I doubt I will ever go longer than a week without quoting from one of them. Feel free to share your favorite movies and/or quotes in the comments section….
Westcheddar 