Devil's Night 2015

The followup to my 2013 Day of the Dead mix, this one includes 10 tracks sequenced with samples from the public domain horror films embedded below. The two sampled films not available in the public domain or embedded below are John Carpenter's Cigarette Burns and Abel Ferrara's The Addiction (both highly recommended).

Bells From The Deep: Faith and Superstition in Russia

Greatest Diss Track of All Time?

 

http://mfi.re/listen/2r2v17b5yl4iwqh/GHOSTFACE_KILLAH_AIR_OUT_ACTION_BRONSON.mp3

The Reavers - Reavers Radio WFMU December 7, 2005

The Reavers 20-minute freestyle session begins around 1:51:50, featuring Privilege, Keith Masters, Goldenchild, Akir, Hasan Salaam, HiCoup and billy woods. Complete show playlist below.

Biz Markie	Pickin Burgers	Single	Prism Records	1987	12"
Jin	Top 5 (Dead of Alive)	Single	Draft Records	2005	12"
Mophono	All Alone feat MC Subverse	I Cry	CB Records	2004	LP
Shyheim	Furious Anger feat. Big L	Single	Priority Records	1999	12"
Jean Grae	Monday	Single	Smacks Records	2005	12"
POS	Stand Up	Single	Rhymesayers Entertainment	2005	12"
De La Soul	Ain't Hip To Be Labeled A Hippie	Single	Tommy Boy Records	1989	12"
Bisc1	Lights Out	The Basics EP	Embedded Music	2005	CD
The Reavers Interview	Live on WFMU	n/a	n/a	2005
The Reavers	America feat. Spiega, Hasan Salaam, & Akir	Single	Backwoodz Studios	2005	12"
The Reavers	Bodybuilding feat Keith Masters & Billy Woods	Terror Firma	Backwoodz Studioz/Green Streets	2005	CD
HASAN SALAAM	Blaxploitation	Paradise Lost Paradise Lost	Fifth Column/Day By Day Entertainment	2005	CD
The Reavers	Slumz	Single	Backwoodz Studios	2005	12"
DR. Monokrome	American Beauty feat. Taiwo	N.P.R. Versus M.A.D.: All Things Considered That Was A Long Time Ago	Backwoodz Studios	2005	CD
The Reavers	Invasion feat. Hasan Salaam & Billy Woods	Terror Firma	Backwoodz Studioz/Green Streets	2005	CD
Axis 360	The Time feat. 5th Column (Rugged-N-Raw + HiCoup + Hasan Salaam)	VA: Soundclash #2	Backwoodz Studioz	2005	CD
Hicoup	Ghetto Factory aka Oompa Loompa	Ghetto Factory Mixtape		2003	CD
The Reavers	Web feat. Vordul Mega & Billy Woods	Terror Firma	Backwoodz Studioz/Green Streets	2005	CD
James Bond a.k.a. 007	Basic Training	Golden Gunn	n/a	2005	CD
AKIR	POLITRICKS	Single	Viper Records	2005	12"
Goldenchild	Slavery	VA: Soundclash #2	Backwoodz Studioz	2005	CD
Keith Masters	Have Nots	Bioluminescence	Backwoodz Studioz	2005	CD
The Reavers	Live Freestyle on WFMU	n/a	n/a	2005
Kong	Broken Safety feat. Spiega	???	Backwoodz Studioz	2005	CD
Boogie Down Productions	You Must Learn (Live From Caucus Mountains Remix)	Single	Jive Records	1989	12"
Akrobatik	Internet Mc's	Single	Rawkus Records	2000	12"
Herman Kelly & Life	Dance To The Drummer Beat	Single	Electric Cat	1978	12"
Fatlip	First Heat	Single	Delicious Vinyl	2005	12"
Edan	I See Colours	Single	Lewis Recordings	2004	12"
Written On Your Psyche	Pancake Breakfast (Original)	Single	Delinquent Soundz	2005	12"
Psyche Origami	Fool Service	The Standard	Arc The Finger Records	2005	CD
Tha Alkaholiks	The Flute Song (LaLaLa)	Single	Koch Records	2005	12"
Fakts One	Life Music	VA: A Blow To The State	Coup D'Etat Entertainment	2003	CD
Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force	Renegades Of Funk	Single	Tommy Boy Records	1983	12"
Akrobatik	Strictly For The DJs	VA: A Blow To The State	Coup D'Etat Entertainment	2003	CD

R.I.P. Ornette Coleman

Bix Beiderbecke and the King of Jazz

Albert Camus - The Madness of Sincerity

Man Parrish - The Beehive Project

H.R. Giger's Necronomicon and the Making of Alien

大麻烦小中国 - 牺牲磁带

#PSYCHOSEXUAL #RITUALSACRIFICE #NECROMANCY #SAIWINGMOCK
#HIPSINGTONG
#DAVIDWEINSTEIN
#MOROCCO
#ESTATESALE
#PGTAPES

The 10 best indie hip-hop records of all time left off of FACT's list

Like many people, I have a love/hate relationship with lists. Despite having created them, both for myself on some nerdy collector shit and for others on some "music journalist" shit, they give me cultural anxiety ... and regular anxiety, because how do you rank works of art? Each piece has its own subjective value, and any finite list will inevitably omit something essential. On the other hand, as far as music lists go, FACT Magazine's "100 best indie hip-hop records of all time" is one of the fairest and most comprehensive I've read. That being said, as a diehard fan of indie hip-hop, particularly the "backpack"-era stuff, I couldn't help but scoff at a few notable exclusions; hence, this post.

Now, please keep in mind that my perspective is likely significantly different from that of the writers who compiled FACT's list, as I first got into this subgenre (I was already a fan of some hip-hop, but it was all major label stuff that couldn't be called "indie" by the FACT list's standards) in the early '00s, which would be the tail-end of the period covered here. If this makes it harder for me to appreciate some of the earlier canonical entries, it also spares me the disillusionment of watching the scene "die," as well as some of the general jadedness that may come with age. I also went through a serious period of Wu-Tang fanaticism, traces of which linger today. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this unofficial supplement and continue the conversation by dropping a line in the comments section.

10. C-Rayz Walz - The Prelude (2001)

Other standouts from this album include "Fuck The Mayor" and "Great Voices," a 12-minute track on which he impersonates the day's biggest MCs. As far as punchline rap goes, I'll take C-Rayz over any of today's biggest battle rappers, many of whom he indirectly or directly inspired.

9. Cage - "4 Letter Word" (1998)
 
Movies For The Blind is a personal classic even though it doesn't include "Radiohead," but to this day it's "4 Letter Word" that remains the second most memorable Cage song of the backpack era and a shining example of the underground vs. mainstream mentality that consumed so many of us at that time. I also always loved how Cage's third verse has nothing to do with Eminem, as if he went, "OK, I won, let's move on."

8. Last Emperor - "Secret Wars Part 1" (1997)
After I finished reading FACT's list, my immediate reaction was "Needs more Last Emperor." Marvel Comics is bringing back the Secret Wars storyline, but Last Emperor remains lost like the The Legend of Bigfoot, so even if only because he never got the props he deserved (though I do remember Mos Def saying that he was his favorite rapper), every hip-hop head should be required to play this epic for at least one new person per year.

7. Immortal Technique - "Dance With the Devil" (2001)
Another epic song. You don't need to feel ashamed about being a former Immortal Technique fan. He was (and probably still is) a vicious battle rapper, an amazing live performer and a great storyteller.

6. Mikah Nine - It's All Love (1999)

I came to Project Blowed late, so I'm not going to pretend to be an expert in this department. All I know is that the exclusion of Mikah Nine's solo work from FACT's list just seemed icky. Dude is basically rap-game Charlie Parker, still decades ahead of his time.

5. Cormega - The True Meaning (2002)

I guess Tragedy Khadafi filled FACT's QB thug quota, but my college roommate/rhyme partner was/is such a devoted Mega fan, I'd be doing us both a grave injustice if I left Corey off my list. It's hard to pick a favorite between The Realness and The True Meaning, but I usually go for the sophomore album if only because it struck me as slightly more introspective.

4. Bronze Nazareth - "Sinuhe's Impasse" (2003)
Another personal classic. I co-hosted a radio show on Emerson College's WECB network for a year and this song stayed in regular rotation. Bronze's 2006 album, The Great Migration is not to be slept on either.

3. Royce da 5'9" - "Boom" (2000)
This is another one of those songs I'm going to assume was left off the FACT list because dudes didn't want to admit they loved it ... or maybe it didn't fit the whole backpack image as well. Either way, I have no quarrels about including this infectious Premo banger near the top of my list.  

2. MF Grimm - The Downfall of Ibliys: A Ghetto Opera (2002)
In case you don't know the story behind this album, legend has it that the whole thing was recorded during a 24-hour window while MF Grimm was out of prison on $100,000 bail. As if that alone doesn't make it one of the greatest independent hip-hop stories of all time, all of the beats were provided by Count Bass D and MF Doom, so yeah...

1. Last Emperor - "One Life" ft. Poetic (2003)
Fuck indie. This might be the greatest hip-hop song of all time. Just listen.

Honorable Mention: Darc Mind - "Outside Looking In" (1996)

I guess even if it were considered, this would have to be disqualified because it was released on LOUD, which was partnered with RCA, a major, but sonically this is backpack era all the way, plus the shelved album it preceded was eventually released by Anticon. All said, the combination of LI vet X-Ray da Mindbenda and vocal impresario Kevroc is pretty much unfuckwitable, which is why 2006's Symptomatic of a Greater Ill remains one of my favorite albums of all time.

So there you have it. What did I miss? Let me know in the comments.

Coming soon.

Travis Miller - Always Been Here

26 rare, obscure, unreleased and/or unearthed audio recordings by Lil Ugly Mane a.k.a. Sean Kemp a.k.a. Travis Miller a.k.a. Yung Gus (of The Legacy) a.k.a. Spook Lo a.k.a. The Complaint Register a.k.a. Across a.k.a. Adult Moan a.k.a. Sex of Distance a.k.a. GKRL.

26 related visual art pieces.

1 list of sources for the above.

"I'm sorry to differ with you, sir, but you are the caretaker. You've always been the caretaker. I should know, sir. I've always been here."

Jews on DMT