hip hop
CD: Kool Keith - KEITHWednesday, 10 July 2019
Keith Thornton is a big deal in the hip hop community, having forged a 35-year career with the likes of the Ultramagnetic MCs and under pseudonyms like Dr Octagon and Kool Keith. To many, however, he is primarily the voice of the incendiary sample... Read more... |
CD: Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - BandanaMonday, 24 June 2019
Don't let the presence of nerds' favourite Madlib on production duties fool you: this is a big bad bastard of a West Coast rap record. It's a cocaine-wholesaling, n-wording, gun-toting, dog-eat-dog-ing, murderous bastard of a rap record, in fact.... Read more... |
Chamber Music, Brighton Festival 2019 review - Wu-Tang Clan depths divinedMonday, 20 May 2019
Martial arts mayhem, Shaolin philosophy, a tribe of masked hip hop warriors emerging from the mist of Staten Island, a Funkadelic-Parliament collective sprawling through the music industry in the age of black mass incarceration: the Wu-Tang Clan... Read more... |
CD: Flying Lotus - FlamagraSunday, 19 May 2019
It's five years since Steven Ellison aka Flying Lotus released an album, and it's not entirely clear how far he's moved creatively. To be fair he's been busy branching out in other directions, producing for superstar rapper Kendrick Lamar, making... Read more... |
The Great Escape Festival 2019, Brighton review - a juicy smörgåsbord of new music from all overTuesday, 14 May 2019
Now going for over a dozen years, ever-busier since Live Nation took over its parent company in 2015, The Great Escape Festival is the annual multi-venue band showcase and music conference which sees Brighton swamped with music biz sorts. This year... Read more... |
CD: Loyle Carner - Not Waving, But DrowningWednesday, 17 April 2019
When poetic London MC Loyle Carner first appeared a couple years ago he was hailed for his fresh take on UK hip hop. Compared to the street-centric machismo of much grime music, he offered a welcome insight into a more sensitive 21st century... Read more... |
CD: LSD - Labrinth, Sia, Diplo Present...Thursday, 11 April 2019
Impressively, this collaboration of three of pop's hardest grafters feels like a real group endeavour. Certainly, the multi-quintillion-selling Australian songwriter Sia's piercing tones and melodic style are the most recognisable thing here, but... Read more... |
CD: The Chemical Brothers - No GeographyWednesday, 10 April 2019
The Chemical Brothers just keep on coming. No Geography could as well be called No Surrender. It’s the sound of two men approaching 50 but still keenly attuned to making feet move on the dancefloor. Partly made using old synths relegated to a dusty... Read more... |
CD: Shy FX - Raggamuffin SoundTapeWednesday, 20 March 2019
Everything about this mixtape oozes confidence. It crams 12 tracks plus interludes – all produced by Andre “Shy FX” Williams – into barely more than half an hour. It happily leaves “Roll the Dice”, the single which conquered club and radio... Read more... |
Yxng Bane, Brixton Academy review - all the fam on stageSaturday, 16 March 2019
There’s a wolf howl and Yxng Bane (pronounced Young Bane) jumps off a block on stage and his furry hooded coat flies open and the arena erupts in screams. The pit is filled almost exclusively with seventeen year old girls, excellently contoured and... Read more... |
Albums of the Year 2018: Farai - RebirthSaturday, 15 December 2018
It’s been an odd year for albums. The one I’ve listened to most is Stop Lying, a mini-album by Raf Rundel, an artist best known as one half of DJ-producer outfit 2 Bears. It’s a genially cynical album, laced with love, dipping into all manner of... Read more... |
Cypress Hill, O2 Academy, Birmingham review – OG hip-hoppers light-upThursday, 06 December 2018
There’ve been more than a few cold and wet days in Birmingham just recently, as winter has been making its presence properly felt. On Tuesday, temperatures were sent soaring in an over-full O2 Academy however, as heavy metal and hip-hop heads from... Read more... |
