Posts Tagged ‘Download’

The latest release from Kid Koala comes in collaboration with Dylan Frombach (Dynomite D). The result of a four-year project that fries chunky blues guitar riffs in a batter of turntablism, 100% is as adventurous an album that an everyday hip-hopper could wish to hear. Much like DJ Shadow’s classic ‘Entroducing’, 100% is constructed entirely of samples, with the primary difference being that Kid Koala laboriously cut each sample to vinyl himself. Being equipped with that knowledge means ‘100%’ is capable of making a bigger impression than without.

With solid, good-humoured grooves and licks throughout, The Slew’s debut album doesn’t necessarily require an appreciation of fine production techniques and deck wizardry. Even though ‘ Robbing Banks’, for example, is driven by an Angus Young style riff motif – and Kid Koala utilises the musical ability exhibited on early classics like Drunk Trumpet in order to manipulate a guitar lick into something akin to a solo – the track still throbs with a funky enough break to keep heads nodding.

Grabbing vocal acapellas is, of course, nothing new. Perhaps it’s Moby who’s best known for putting the blues vocals from the 1920’s Alan Lomax recordings to best effect resulting in hit-after-hit on advert after advert. Although The Slew are unlikely to get anywhere near that mainstream success, 100% is likely to stand as an untouchable underground project, revered and bootlegged alongside records like DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist’s Brainfreeze. Perhaps the best thing about 100% is that it’s, er, completely free: free and downloadable from Kid Koala’s blog.

For those of you who that prefer the feel of cold, hard 5” of polycarbonate or 12” of thick, black vinyl, you’ll have to go out and catch the band on tour in early 2010. With ex-Wolfmother duo Chris Ross (bass) and Myles Heskett (drums) officially part of The Slew, don’t be expecting anything less than an inspiring performance. So there you have it: a free, downloadable album of quality, artistic integrity and love. They don’t make ‘em like this very often…

Tags: 2009, BUY, Download, hip-hop, LP, music, review

It’s been six years since Anti-Pop Consortium (APC) split: six years that saw MC Beans concentrate on his solo output, whilst MCs High Priest and M. Sayyid formed Airborn Audio. For those concerned that these separate adventures into digital madness have compromised the group’s individuality, rest assured that they remain as wily and indefinable as before.  Though the endless arsenal of poetry undoubtedly suits the team of verbose, head-swaying rappers who consistently aim to outdo each other, newcomers to this style of ludicrous word play may want to think twice, as getting out-thought by the combined consciousness of APC is commonplace.

Fluorescent Black is comprised of a variety of hip-hop styles: the traditional head nod of Dragunov and Capricorn One sound like they could have been composed by DJ Shadow during his Private Press phase if he had recorded in a steel cave surrounded by armed synthesisers powered by the incorrect voltage. End Game, however, is a flummoxing addition with arrhythmic, stuttering drums and panned vocals that perplex the listener while simulating a space-like, oxygen-less atmosphere with use of heavy reverb. The old school gets a look in on the piano-led Born Electric, but it’s in the mid-section where things really get progressive.

As soon as the heavy, staggered bassline of Superunfrontable kicks in, it’s clear APC have booted up the hyperdrive with destination HEX-PERIMENT firmly locked on the interstellar GPS. Squirling, looping synths compete with creatively programmed 808 drums on Get Lite while the dead vocoder is resurrected to supply not just the hook, but some random burbling on an especially lively The Solution. Timpani, Volcano and C Thru U lead the charge out of the freak zone with Volcano tipping its angled baseball cap to novelty, ringtone rap and glossy R n’ B. Shine signals a return to normality with a nasty, digital, gangster bass progression and lyrical content to match.

Fluorescent Black escapes the boundaries and trappings of traditional hip-hop, living and breathing within its own freely formed genre of the art. Whether the earth is ready for it is another matter entirely, and it’s not like APC should be bothered in the slightest – they’re light years ahead.

Capricorn One – Download it for free

Tags: 2009, BUY, Download, hip-hop, LP, music, review