Tags: Picture of the day
There are probably a dozen rappers who send out press releases or album promos or free okayplayer albums every day, and most of them are decent but not much more than that. Then, sometimes, there are guys who are pure genius. Guys who, if radio still mattered, would be huge. Guys who just need a voice–a place to land. Haji P is one of those guys. Earlier this year, Haji released a series of singles through routinefly and other sites that, collected, he called “Home Repair.” (You can cop it for free here.) What made the Home Repair EP so out-of-the (and extra-) ordinary was the variety. Haji’s flow is pretty similar to Wale, but he’s got a little more bounce and joy in his step. His styles shift, albeit subtly, from Chicago sex-and-girls romps to East Coast storytelling to San Francisco bombast, but unlike other artists who shift styles just to prove to labels that they are versatile, Haji P’s voices are organic. He just moves, like he can’t help it. Like he needs to. In his riff over the Fresh Prince of Bel Air beats, he tells you why: He’s from all over. Haji has lived in Hawaii, New Jersey, North Carolina, and (now) the Biggety Biggety Bay Area.
More recently, Haji P released his first solo full-length (he’s been associated with Brown Co. and Rec League). The best part is that, as good as Home Repair was, the Neighborhood Kid album is even better. The producer, DJ MF Shalem (also from Brown Co. and Rec League) completely gets a guy like Haji P. The beats are playful but hard enough to back hardcore rhymes. The lyrics, over the course of the record, tell Haji’s life story, which is another thing that sets this record apart: It’s actually an album, not a collection of disconnected rhymes to show versatility and back a few singles. Standout cuts: El Segundo (an update of my favorite Tribe Called Quest song), Mockingbird, and the single, Good Grief. Hell, the entire album is freakin’ amazing. Available on iTunes and other digital outlets.
I haven’t been so into a new rapper since I found Hollywood Floss late last year.
The Fresh Prints (off Home Repair)
Good Grief (off Neighboorhood Kid)
Video for Good Grief:
Tags: Free Album!, Hip Hop
The Chicago rapper who crafts better rhymes than Kanye West is back! (Not that rapping better than Kanye is hard–K’s skillz are in slick style and production, not wordplay.) Mixed by DJ RTC, and coming via Nah, Right.
Samples:
Do it to Death w/Little Brother (direct download)
DEN are an L.A. band who have been around for a couple years now, and they’re giving away their latest release, “Hence the Boats,” to all who will listen. To say that it is eclectic would be an understatement. The first handful of cuts skip from an oldies sound (“Jenny”) to moody alt-rock (“Eastside Disguise”) to indie psych rock (“Subtle Camo Bee”), all sprinkled throughout with Calexico-type instrumental bits and shorter songs. For that reason, it’s hard to find the center of the record and it can be hard to sit through. But at the same time, each of the pieces on the record are played with extraordinary talent, and each one is compelling on its own. These are very talented artists–skilled, composed, and proficient–who have written a collection of very solid songs. They just haven’t written a proper album. That said, there’s more than enough meat here to make this worth a listen. Available on emusic and for free from their site.
Jenny:
Eastside Disguise:
Get the whole album for free at Den’s website!
P.S.-I’m still trying out a new host, Groovebat, and I need feedback. Are you able to stream? Download? Please drop me a comment and let me know!
Tags: Free Album!, Indie rock
Tags: Easter, Picture of the day
I recently said I’d be dropping a bunch of my monthlies to wait for trades. Why wait for trades? Lots of reasons: They’re cheaper, easier to store, and in many cases it’s just more fun to read a whole story in one sitting. But at the same time, comics are designed to be told in quick bursts, with momentum building to the cliff-hanger, and buying serialized books is the surest way to prevent spoilers. So, which books are worth reading, and which should you wait for? Obviously, I can’t have opinions on every book out there, but here’s a few suggestions—mostly Marvel, because they’re the ones I dig the most:
Adventure Comics. When Geoff Johns was on board, this was a monthly must-buy. Since his departure, we saw a strong (but fairly meaningless) Blackest Night tie-in and an issue containing three prequels. I can’t endorse that for four bucks. Barely any story there! The jury is still out on where they’ll take this book, but it doesn’t look good. Verdict: Wait for a trade to see if the book is worth getting.
Amazing Spider-Man. I do enjoy this series very much, but sometimes you’ll find an issue that’s half-full of a Flash Thompson sob story. Boring. Or there’s a one-and-done with Black Cat that’s better than it ought to be, but still ain’t worth three bucks. Buying monthly lets you avoid those occasional missteps in an otherwise strong series. Verdict: Buy monthly.
Batman and Robin. Not only is this the only Batbook worth buying right now, it’s the only Grant Morrison you need. True, all of his work ties together in a big, nonlinear mess. But it’s still not going to add much to your experience here, unless you study Batman R.I.P. and Final Crisis like the Torah. Just hop in and accept everything you see, and you’re guaranteed a great ride. Morrison makes use of all the classic Bat-tropes like gadgets; a two person, father-son-ish partnership; and over-the-top corny villains. It’s like the Bob Kane Batman through the eyes of Frank Miller. Or Rob Zombie. Verdict: Buy monthly because you need time to digest between issues. Morrison is nothing if not dense and obtuse.
The Bendis Books. Obviously, if you want to know what’s going on in the Marvel Universe you have to read these books. But I much prefer to be able to experience them in larger chunks, because Bendis will often have entire issues devoted to nothing but dialogue and build up with no payoff. I find this less annoying when I’ve got the next issue to follow up with immediately. That said, this is the best Cape work on the market today, bar none. Verdict: Either way, you won’t go wrong.
Captain America. I think Brubaker’s run on this series has been the best run ever, so I say it’s a must-read. However, Brubaker’s stories tend to be intricate espionage novels, and although they are affected by events in the MU, the story arcs best read in chunks. Verdict: Buy the trades.
Daredevil. It’s a little to early to say whether Dan Diggle’s rollercoaster ride will maintain its quality, but for now it’s a gas to see DD doing superhero stuff instead of dodging reporters or cooling his heels in prison. It’s pulpy, action fun that is perfect in 40-page installments. Verdict: Buy monthly, because it’s fun to have the excitement build between issues.
Prelude to Deadpool Corps. We’re now 2 issues deep in this weekly miniseries that appears to be a prelude to another miniseries about a character with at least 3 other books out at the same time. Too much Deadpool? Undoubtedly. But at the same time, Victor Gischler take on the alterniverse versions of the character is fun and funny, and gets a recommendation from me. My advice: If you buy this as a weekly book, you can avoid the first issue (with Rob Liefeld—a great guy and generally a terrific artist—doing his absolute worst art ever) and just buy the Kidpool, Severed Headpool, and Dogpool issues. I predict they’ll be the best. Verdict: Buy monthly, and buy selectively.
Deadpool Team Up. All team-up books are heavily character driven: If you want to see what’s up with US1 these days (and I think you should want that) then buy that issue. If you could care less about the Zapata Brothers, you can skip one (and I think you should skip that one). And if there’s a DP series to skip, this is the one. Verdict: Buy based on a browse.
All the other Deadpool books. You can wait for the trades here. To the extent that they jump in and out of “regular” Marvel continuity, it’s nothing you need to know about. And both Deadpool and Merc with a Mouth tell stories, with fairly self-contained arcs, so you can jump in where you want. Moreover, some arcs are clearly better than others. Deadpool Secret Invasion was great. Deadpool as a pirate, not so much. And the current Hit Monkey story is very thin. Verdict: Buy the trades, but if you’re going to buy one monthly, make it Merc With a Mouth.
Ex-Machina. Most indies can be bought as trades because they are self-contained and they don’t get a lot of press so any surprises aren’t likely to be ruined for you. Moreover, this indie super-politician book is clearly a long-form story. Verdict: Buy trades.
All the Hulk Books. Dude, just don’t buy them. Boy did Jeph Loeb go off the rails here.
Invincible Iron Man. Matt Fraction’s book has been nothing short of amazing. My thing with Fraction, though, is that I tend to like to read his stuff in one sitting. I did it with Iron Fist. I did it with Punisher. However, what goes on in Tony’s world is relevant to the Bendis books, so you may want to be current. Verdict: Toss-up.
Punisher. The Frankencastle book is lots of fun, but you definitely can get it in trade without losing anything. And unlike Daredevil and Amazing Spider-Man, it isn’t really parceled out in 40-page cliff-hangers. It all kind of flows. As for PunisherMax, I just can’t endorse anything with Dillon’s art. Sorry. (But the Garth Ennis stuff was some of the best street-level crime stories I’ve ever read in comics—go buy those!) Verdict: Buy Frankencastle in trade; skip PunisherMax.
All the Ultimates books. It’s a different universe, so you won’t be behind in anything essential. Verdict: I’m waiting for the trades.
The Walking Dead. The Walking Dead is one of the greatest long-form comics I’ve ever read. That said, I can’t see how anyone can read it in issue form. It’s a long, never-ending novel, that must be (ahem) digested in big chunks. Verdict: Get the gigantic softcover (issues #1-48), and then let a few trades pile up before digging in again.
Tags: Spider-Man, Superheroes, The Caped Crusader, Zombies
I generally review albums here on this site, but this press release was too good to ignore. Grateful Dead drummer and co-founder Bill Kreutzmann has teamed up with electronic blues artist Papa Mali, bass player Reed (Tea Leaf Green) Mathis, and musician Matt Hubbard (of Willie Nelson’s band), to form a super-group (of sorts) called “ 7 Walkers. They’ll be putting an album out later this year, but right now they’re press-releasing a tour featuring new Robert Hunter songs (along with some Grateful Dead tunes, naturally). If you can’t imagine how this will sound, you don’t have to! Live audio recordings of the 7 Walkers can be heard at Bill’s website!.
I’m only writing this because the Grateful Dead were so hugely important in my life. I wish the band was coming near my town . . .
7 Walkers Spring/Summer Tour Dates:
(*Please note guest bass player George Porter Jr. will perform these dates with 7 Walkers)
Tuesday, April 6 Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Big Room Chico CA
Wednesday, April 7 Red Fox Eureka CA
Thursday, April 8 Crystal Bay Club Crown Room Crystal Bay NV
Friday, April 9 Great American Music Hall San Francisco CA
Saturday, April 10 Moe’s Alley Santa Cruz CA
Friday, April 16 Spirit of Suwanee Music Park Live Oak FL
Saturday, April 17 The Salt Lick Driftwood TX
Friday, April 30 Mahalia Jackson Theatre New Orleans, LA
Thursday, June 3 Wakarusa Festival Ozark AR
Friday, June 11 Sonoma County Fairgrounds Santa Rosa CA
It’s nice to hear a working-class rocker who makes no effort to sound like Bruce Springsteen (despite the fact that one of the best tunes on Matt Epp’s latest album is titled, “Cover Me). Instead, “Safe or Free” is 12 guitar-driven originals that range from singles (“Working Holiday”) to songwriter duets (“They Won’t Find The Bodies” with Brandy Zdan of Twilight Hotel). The album feels grounded and genuine, as well as theatric. It’s a “road” album, in that it tells of movement and travel, of life peeling by, and getting the most out of it. Good stuff.
