2006 ... a brief recap

Well ... this seems a bit premature, but CMJ's deadline for the best of 2006 was this past Friday.

I primarily culled this off the top of my head, but I thought it would be best to revisit the archives and not soley employ my selective memory.

Generally speaking, 2006 was a fine year for hip hop. I'll elaborate in another post closer to the end of the year.

Here is the WMCO Top 10 Hip Hop albums/cds for 2006:

#1 THE ROOTS "Game Theory"
#2 GHOSTFACE KILLAH "Fish Scale"
#3 PSYCHE ORIGAMI "The Standard"
#4 OH NO "Exodus into Unheard Rhythms"
#5 PIGEON JOHN "...And the Summertime Pool Party"
#6 P.O.S. "Audition"
#7 J DILLA "The Shining"
#8 SERGIO MENDES "Timeless"
#9 COLLECTIVE EFFORTS "Medicine"
#10 WAX TAILOR "Tales of the Forgotten Melodies"

Let me know what you think ... stay true, kfox

countdown and count'em

So here is what is goin down my way, I had promised to post the most recent WMCO Hip Hop charts (for those who are new to the blog, I am the station manager and hip hop music director for WMCO, Muskingum College's radio station). And it is all good.

So count'em:

1. Oh No :: Exodus Into Unheard Rhythms
2. Jurassic 5 :: Feedback
3. Earmint :: Another Early Evening
4. J Dilla :: The Shining
5. The Roots :: Game Theory
6. Aloe Blacc :: Shine Through
7. Cut Chemist :: The Audience is Listening
8. Strange Fruit Project :: The Healing
9. DJ Shadow :: The Outsider
10. Pigeon John :: ...And The Summertime Pool Party

Gotta love that ... if you did not know, this is one hot ass chart, baby! And you need to get down with it.

Now, the countdown ... the Roots are scheduled to be in my neck of the woods in less than a week. I can hardly contain myself. It is going to be a pretty crazy weekend. I hope to not only have stories to tell, but pix to show and tell because bloggin is what it is all about ... it's the way of the new media world yall!

Let's keep lovin each other ... kfox

Hearing and healing ...

The summer music just keeps on flowing and I want you to be in the know. If you don't have any of the hot tracks, you should at least be knowledgeable of who is 'bout it.

Here is what I am diggin this week: Earmint and Aloe Blacc.

I've had both of these cds for several weeks. I have been spinning them equally (alongside the Ghostface Killah and Oh No).

First, Earmint was a pleasant surprise. I almost overlooked it, but my attentive summer intern brought it to my attention. Earmint is the beat maker and a wonderful beatmaker he is. His "Another Early Evening" was bangin on the very first track, "The Flashy Slang" featuring PsalmOne. "The Flashy Slang" has a nice slow rhythm to it. Psalm One gives the song flavor with her style of lyricism. But forgive me if I'm wrong, but I went to put this track in rotation on my radio show and I believe the hook on the song says "...let ya nuts hang, hang..." It's a bit crafty and I did not take my chances on putting it on the air. And of course, since the phrase in question is in the hook, I did not bother to perform an edit. Who is at a loss here...? My die hard listeners - both of them, oh yeah. Record companies kill me - they edit some of the profanity, but they leave in 'flashy slang.' Anyway, Earmint is flowing with the beats throughout the project. And despite his skill set, he enlists the talents of Murs, Longshot, Roc C, Illogic and others. It's a little less than an hours worth of sound, but you will dig this one, fo sho.

I've mentioned the Aloe Blacc project previously. I warmed up to it nicely, but I am just getting around to writing about it. "Shine Through" is a combination of hip hop, R&B, latin beats and more. Just good music with hip hop interwoven throughout. Blacc puts his spin on two classics, yet he manages to personalize each one and makes them his own. The first track is "Long Time Coming." You remember this one best from the Sam Cooke catalogue - "A Change is Gonna Come". The musical composition is unique - some sampling and with a snare drum kicking it thoughout. On this track, Blacc's voice is somber yet hopeful. Nice cover.

Then Blacc goes and touches John Legend's "Ordinary People" - in spanish! (it shows up as untitled track #15, though there are only 14 tracks listed for the disk). I'd first read about this and I thought, 'oh no ... that's death on vinyl or disk.' Boy was I wrong. Blacc gives the track a lil salsa flava and the song remains recognizable yet fresh. Again, his voice has just the right amount of intonation and it is so soothing to listen to. I think John Legend would enjoy it. Overall, I really like the entire Aloe Blacc cd from front to back. It is in the 'A' range. He lets go with his lyrical flow on "Caged Birdsong" and I like that one a lot. Blacc has a great deal of creativity and variety on this project. Love that.

One more thing, the new DMX - "Year of the Dog Again" - is out and though he is far from indy/underground, his message is on par with my style - positivity. I like the track
"Lord Give Me a Sign." How many times have I put in that very request? You too, huh? Of course, X brings it with his usual grimy delivery and he nails it. His aggressive style just get me hyped and makes me feel authoritative. He has these catchy, sing-songy hooks. Works every time.

So now you know what I know, but don't let it go to waste (like your Sunday evenings watching a certain 'video' channel - and ask me how I know what you are watching?) ... stay true, kfox

NOTE: cd cover art courtesy of the respective record companies.

Oh Noooooooooooooo ...

Whoooooaaa ... I must say, I thought I knew about producer Oh No, but I really didn't know jack - not enought anyway, and now I'm tryin to get down wit the get down and get it right this time. There is a good amount of info in the press release that accompanied his latest release. So let me share the knowledge and cut down the leg work for you - buy the cd! That's right pull up on the dollar bills, the plastic or break the bank for this baby! Do dat and your life and those around you will improve exponentially (but you won't know if you don't get a chance to listen to it ... now will you?).

Oh No's "Exodus into Unheard Rhythms" is phenomenal! Nothing short of that, for real. It is little more that 57 minutes, but you will come away having been schooled in street life, the record industry and just have a complete feeling of 'yeah, I'm mad at the world, and rightfully so ...' but the feeling will be euphoric. Aaaah, the thought ... The guest list on this project is exceptional - Wise Intelligent, K Jay, Wordsworth, Aloe Blacc, LMNO, Vast Aire, Wildchild, Murs and others. All tracks contact beats from the Galt MacDermont catalogue. How fly is that?

Tracks to loop on your player ... "To Be An MC" f/K Jay and "Beware" f/Cali Agents. And btw, Oh No is down with the Stones Throw crew - whad you think? And another footnote, he is the sibling to another incredibly talented producer/artist, Madlib. Yeah ...

It hits stores (or whatever place you get your music these days) on August 8, so get wit it hip hop heads ... you know what they say, "don't just talk about it, be about it!" Check out this recent interview.

Stay true ... kfox