Posted on 08/19/2005

 

FIVE THINGS I LOVED
1. This dude’s name. “Kenneth Masters” sounds like your dad’s accountant, not a formidable but often overlooked local MC. Regardless, Ken pulls a total Greg Maddux, proving that an ostensibly stodgy name has no bearing on his ability to deliver from the first pitch (“Planetary”). Plus, Ken Masters is definitely the full name of the Aryan Ryu in Street Fighter. Hadoken.

Posted on 08/17/2005

 

Reunited on its latest effort, British ska legend Madness alternatively romps and broods its way through a gamut of staples from Desmond Dekker to the Kinks. As a cover album, The Dangermen Sessions, Vol. 1 gives a new, exciting ska spin on classic cuts. In assembling these reinterpretations into a single suite, however, Madness presents ska as a house divided—split ambiguously between carefree campiness and "conscious" earnestness.

Posted on 08/16/2005

 

Industry Rule #4,080 might be the most quoted hip-hop law, but lyricists and commentators alike also understand Big Pooh's Rule #1: "Make sure the beat knock 'til the trunk pop / And everybody pause when you cruise down the block." The New Jersey production team Parallel Thought respects the rules on its debut EP Drugs, Liquor, Sex and Cigarettes, delivering five creative, evocative compositions.

Posted on 08/12/2005

 

Not since the explosive, U.K. rave scene of the '90s has a style of music been so inextricably tied to its attendant drug culture. Carrying on the mission of the late DJ Screw, Swishahouse's Michael "5000" Watts breaks out the pitch-shifter and the Robotussin to drop the Twins' U.S.A. into a syrup-sipper's aria.

Posted on 08/11/2005

 

When you add the words "def" and "jazz", the result is naturally a series of jazz instrumentals covering old hip hop songs from the Def Jam catalogue. Roy Hargrove, Gerald Albright, Hubert Laws, and other jazz musicians try their best to bridge the gap between hip hop and jazz. I'm going to flat out say it...it just doesn't work.

Posted on 08/09/2005

 

"...you cannot stop the sunset from setting. You cannot stop a sunset because everyone loves a sunset...."

When you hear the name Tanya Morgan, what usually comes to mind: a new songstress, an actress, perhaps even a porn star?