vendredi 13 février 2009

Saafir - Demos EP

Saafir - Demos EP
2002

When heavy metal fans want to show that they're open-minded and not just retarded role-playing nerds, they all say "I also listen to classical music, Beethoven, Wagner". The two cultural alibies for heavy metal.

Likewise, when westcoast underground heads want to prove they're not just anticon nerds but also true hip-hop lovers, musically rooted in street culture, they say "I love Saafir, this is real hip-hop man".

Download it here

mercredi 11 février 2009

English League Discography

English League are a sub-group from the infamous Shapeshifters crew. But they're not into the weirdo sci-fi thing, they just make classic hip-hop : samples, drum breaks, wordsmithery and, the blowdian touch : amazing flows.

Both albums are really good, though The Track Team has a cleaner sound. Dr. Lewd is a killer emcee he should be more famous. On the first Shapeshifters DVD there was this amazing on stage freestyle where his homies strangle him with his chain and still he can't stop ripping the mic. Please, someone upload this !!!

Mirror Heroes is their first album from 1999.


Download it here

The Track Team is the second one, from 2000 something.

Can't find the cover art, I own the original but I don't have a scanner...

Download it here

The Global Phlowtations (GPAC) Premium Post

Global Phlowtations
Complete Discography !
( + bonuses !!!)

Hey all of you, thanks for the quick feedback in the comments.

As requested by many, here is the complete, exhaustive Global Phlowtations discography (excluding the featurings). Global Phlowtations is one of the most original collectives of "2nd generation Blowdians" as I call them. Though they evolved in the Goodlife / Blowed scene they had other influences, and under the guidance of producer Adlib (aka Thavius Beck) they developped a dark, Wu-influenced sound.

If you're into millenial, night lo-fi rap, GPAC is definitely something to check. They were a large collective (up to 10 members) including Adlib, Inoe Oner, Sach, Orko and even Mikah 9 at some time.


Phlowtation Devices vol.1 is their first album from 1996.
Download it here

'98 Unheard is their second one.
Download it here

Both albums are dope, no negative comments this time.

They also released later an album named Neucleus which is a bit weaker but still worth downloading for free.

B O N U S B E A T S A G A I N

The GPAC cds are already hard to find even as mp3s but still here is an even rarer bonus. Though members like Sach, Thavius, Inoe or Orko have large discographies, Okito only released one EP. It does not really sound like GPAC still it's interesting, I really like the live instruments groove of Elastic Man.

I don't have cover art for this.
Okito - Big City Riot (2002)
Download it here

E X T R A B O N U S

The funky beat of Okito's Elastic Man reminds me of this track from Afterlife-affiliated emcee CHU. I don't think I ever had any other tracks from his album Chuster Show but this "Black Man, you are a UFO" song is one of my most precious forgotten westcoast underground gems.

CHU - Track 01



mardi 10 février 2009

Sacred Hoop Post

Sacred Hoop
Bring me the Head of Sexy Henrietta

Nearly a month without a post ! This blog has been out of my focus for the last weeks, but when I came today, I noticed some people had left comments... Thanks to all of you readers ! Achieving this first step on the path to internetsuperstardom just made me realise how important this blog is to me...


So, for the Anonymous reader who asked me for Sacred Hoop, yeah I have that in stock.
Sacred Hoop are a group from the Bay Area. Lead by Luke Sick, they make funny underground rap... They're a bit in it for the joke IMHO... I've always found their flows to be pretty un-funky and repetitive and I never was a fan but for you, reader, here is Bring me the Head of Sexy Henrietta, one of their albums from 1997.

Download it here

Wait, you think I just came back from my three weeks retirement just to make this post about a group I don't like that much ? Unfortunately, I am not enough of a player in this Superstardom game to act like Jay-Z and make my day with wack comebacks. Here's the transition : it's through Sacred Hoop that I discovered an amazing emcee named Z-man.

Z-Man
4 Hours Of Sleep (Self Produced)

Z-man fits into an emcee archetype I'm definitely a fan of. He's a insolent jackass with an acid, high-pitched voice, and he keeps on delivering hilarious, angry, irreverencious punchlines. Do you know about Yak Ballz, or Young Zee from the Outsidaz ? He is that kind of rapper.

He started his career with a band named 99th Demention, then self-produced mixtapes, one of which I have the pleasure of sharing with you today. Sometimes in duo with the Gingerbread Man (his alter ego on helium, some kind of grotesque Quasimoto), Z just can't stop it on this tape... Just D/L it.



He also played and rapped with these Sacred Hoop people, then in 2004 he released an album named Dope or Dog Food on Hiero, yeah, the Del, Souls of Mischief's Hyeroglyphics, and then... I didn't know so I just googled to see what he was up to... He got really some cool tracks on his myspace, but he's also in some band with crappy pseudo-R&B singers, like some nerd gay Black Eyed Peas... definitely a dissapointment, the band is on Island Def Jam and it's called... I've already forgotten the name and whatever it's crap, we'll stick to the old songs.

Z-Man - 4 hours of sleep
Download it here

B O N U S B E A T S

I won't leave you with just one good album, so here's the 12" from Z's Hiero Album. It's named Z-Mutiny, and on the B-side is a road security song named Buckle Up, plus some instrumentals and acapellas for the MP3 DJs...

Z-Man - Z-Mutiny/Buckle Up 12"
Download it here

Actually, I never managed to find any 99th Demention material. If someone has that, it would be cool to upload it... Otherwise, I had several requests for Global Phlowtations mp3s, so that will be the theme for one next post...

dimanche 18 janvier 2009

Mikah 9 - It's All Love

Mikah 9 - It's All Love
1999

If you're reading this blog, you should probably know who Mikah 9 is, because I think I only have one reader right now... If you don't : Mikah was a part of Freestyle Fellowship, a band who, maybe along with Hieroglyphics, defined Cali backpacker hip-hop.

Mikah is one of the most impressive rappers I know about : he has it all, from the lyrics to the voice control to the hundreds of versatile flows to being a legend in freestyling. Still he never managed to achieve what he deserved as a solo artist : his solo albums are quite disappointing, and remained confidential.

His excellent new record "1969", produced by Canadian beatmaker Factor is is just dropping right now. He went back to rapping rather than singing (even though he can sing, unlike most rappers). I'm sharing with you his first solo from 1999 : "It's all love". Produced by Josef Leimberg (who also worked for stars like Snoop himself), it's his best effort to date. The beats are organic-sounding and groovy, Mikah doesn't sing too much but shows his impressive MCing skills throughout the album, so...

Download it here

samedi 10 janvier 2009

I Ran Y - i have no legs ep

I don't even know exactly who I Ran Y is... He's a member of Private School, a band who released some pretty good records, unfortunately this EP is not that interesting...

But why do I post it then ?

Because it's a request.

Download It Here

Inoe Oner - The Hermit / Stray Bullets

The Hermit / Stray Bullets
(Two CD-Rs from 2005 and 2003)

Shame on me, I said I would post one album a day and like most New Year's resolutions I only kept it for three days. As an excuse, here are two albums...




Today I want to talk about Inoe Oner, an ex-member of Global Phlowtations (most unknown as GPAC). This obscure and seminal group from the late 90s had among its members Adlib, who is known today by his real name Thavius Beck, Sach of The Nonce and Orko. They sounded more like Thavius than Sach : obscure, dark avant-garde hip-hop. We'll talk more about them another day.

Inoe has a baryton voice, and, a singularity in the Project Blowed scene, a massive, slow flow that mixes well with his poetical lyrics. Since the end of GPAC (around 99-2000 I guess) Inoe Oner has released several albums, mostly produced by Adlib himself. Today I'll post two of his most recent albums : The Hermit, released in 2005 on CD-R, and Stray Bullets, released in 2003. They're good, he's good, listen to them. My english sucks, I know, I'm french.

Stray Bullets (sharebee)

The Hermit (rapidshare)