Haven’t bought Nights In Cuba yet? Damn you sleeping. After initially being released with an epic write up on Et Musique Pour Tous, Dub Sonata’s unprecedented project has started to win over its listeners, and critics. Check out write up’s on AlarmPress, Exclaim Magazine, and Rap Reviews. Although already posted on EMPT, I had to directly link “Todos” to my site because I love it so much. The backwards sample starts off the movie like soundscape, and is quickly joined by a collection of instruments and drums… it’s great. Get up on one of the greatest to be, Dub Sonata.
Shotout to everyone and anyone checking in on my site, and reading up on my Sample Saturday’s sponsored by Et Musique Pour Tous. Take my bias into account if needed, but my brother Hector Mendoza Jr.’s EMPT is steadily moving towards being the best music blog on the PLANET. Keep a musical edge, and learn new records through Hec’s knowledge and overall musicality.
You think positive thoughts and act upon them and you will get those type of results. Yet some insist on associating the negative perception as reality, I don’t know what the point of that is.”
Embrace something that challenges you, join the EMPT movement. Hec, it’s yours kid.
I know this has been out, but I didn’t fully connect to the place this song came from until now. And all I can say is, wow Jimmy. I think the concept of a Perfect Day is one of the best, ever. I said it. The harmonies on the hook musically speak volumes towards what this record stands for. I think in years to come, people will still be discovering this song and making it a topic of conversation. Jim Jones is onto something.
“I got a fool proof plan to make a couple of mill, and I think it’s gon’ work today”
This week, we’re gonna take a look at two men who have been neglected on this site: Eric B. and Rakim. A lot of the most popular all rappers of all-time owe their styles and content to Rakim, who was one of the first to break away from the simple rhyme schemes and high energy that dominated early hip-hop. He developed his own authoratative style on the mic, going against hip-hop norms and using a more jazz influenced flow that held no boundaries or specific pattern. Backed with dope beats from his DJ, and future Mike Tyson bodyguard, Eric B., the duo took the hip-hop scene by storm with their classic debut “Paid in Full”, which raised the bar for hip-hop albums, and fueled the rise in popularity and standard for sampled records. The album was well received and scored perfect reviews from every major media outlet, including the elusive “5 Mic” review from The Source.
“Thinkin of a master plan, cuz ain’t nothin but sweat inside my hand…”
The title track from Paid In Full captured my attention the first time I heard it over a decade ago. The bassline was fly, but it was the lyrics that definitely sealed the deal (that don’t happen no mo). Maybe it was just the hall of fame break from 3:31 of The Soul Searchers’ “Ashley Roach Clip”. Rakim, like the rest of us, was just trying to make it. Pay us in full.(P.Walsh/K.Casey)
Outkast haters are are almost as hard to find as Bob Marley haters. Like my boy Hec said once, “Who doesn’t like Bob Marley, think about it…” I’ll admit while Outkast was releasing their earliest work, my walkman was glued shut with my Wu-Tang tape inside. But after constant influence from my big homie Evan Frey I began to take notice. Then came Stankonia in 2000 which turned me, and I’m sure countless others, into true fans. I recall first coming across the “Bombs Over Baghdad” video, it was unlike anything I had ever seen. The group’s eccentric style made them standout in an always over saturated market and separated them from the rest. Their ability to maintain such different identities yet stay strong as a group is what ultimately propelled them to their Hall of Fame status.
“Ain’t nobody dope as me.. I’m dressed so fresh, so clean.”
The catchiest tune on Stankonia‘s diverse soundscape is definitely the smooth “So Fresh, So Clean”, which features a sample from the renowned Joe Simon. It’s hard to even tell if the sample is laid underneath the chorus, but there’s no doubt where Outkast got that funky vocal melody from. The song was produced by long time collaborators Organized Noize, with Sleepy Brown on the hook. The record was released as the third single and charted with moderate success… but still a defining moment for the duo. (K.Casey/P.Walsh)
So me and another one of my partners in crime Hector Medoza Jr., the mastermind behind Et Musique Pour Tous, have officially joined forces to create the musical super-hero, Casey Mendoza. Before you come see us do what do we live, check out Gold For Breakfast Vol. 1, a 17-minute mashup of a variety of music sure to get your adrenaline levels boosted. We tried to take the mix-factor to another level, combining 3 to 4 songs at a time in certain parts to create powerful new soundscapes. Officially sponsored by EMPT and BroBible.com. This mix is just a small preview of the things to come for us, stay tuned… in the meantime download and enjoy.
One of my partners in this music thing, and also one of my favorite producers, Dub Sonata, recently put out a fully instrumental album inspired by a trip to Cuba. Fittingly so, it was officially released on my favorite website EMPT with an amazing article and description courtesy of Hector Mendoza Jr. I was lucky enough to see this project develop from its early stages and I can honestly say I’ve never witnessed such hard work first hand when it comes to music. That hard work more than payed off, and it is evident in every beat of Nights In Cuba’s 45 minutes. Dub has set a high standard for my whole team, and he is doing so like a true leader with this amazing album. I am certain that 2011 is going to bring an abundance of success for the people I am surrounded by, and no one more than Dub. Support real music and buy Nights In Cuba on iTunes. Viva Cuba.
Fuck….the…..frail shit….As we discussed last week with Raekwon and Ghostface, very few artists in the rap game really have that chemistry on the mic. Another pair that do is Jadakiss and Styles P. of The L.O.X., and throw in Alchemist on the boards and you’re guaranteed to have something hard. “We Gonna Make It” is one of the standout tracks off the under appreciated Kiss the Game Goodbye album, and features the grimy street talk that fans of The L.O.X. are accustomed to. Last year of high school I’ll never forgot one of my boys wanted to make the opening lines of “We Gonna Make It” his senor quote in the yearbook, needless to say the school disapproved.
Anyone unfamiliar with the work Alchemist has put it should take the time to really observe this dude’s discography. Not just records, but certified classics almost all the way through. His ability to take samples and turn them into something completely different has separated him from the rest. Alchemist beats have provided crack for underground acts like Dilated Peoples to some of the most well known and legendary artists like in rap such as Mobb Deep, Nas, and Ghostface. He also took the bold step to produce every track for his own albums. The money chop for “We Gonna Make It” is from 3:23 mark of “My Music” by Samuel Jonathan Johnson. Hard street record that could still get the right crowd moving in a club… rarity these days. (P.Walsh/K.Casey)
I can’t think of two many pairs of rappers that mesh on a track like Raekwon and Ghostface (um, Outkast maybe? M-O-B-B?). If you take their verses off 36 Chambers it’s definitely not the same project, especially when it comes to tracks that they hold down together like “Can It All Be So Simple”. In my opinion The Chef is the MVP of the album, providing hundreds of classic lines for us to recite the last 15+ years. He gave the world a vivid look into the reality of life in a New York City ghetto in the 1980′s…
Yeah, my pops was a fiend since sixteen. Shootin’ that (that’s that shit!) in his blood stream. That’s the life of a crimey, real live crimey. If niggas know the half is behind me…”
The Hype Williams video is as grimey as the lyrics in the song, giving a great visual for the record. ”Can It All Be So Simple” was amongst the group of songs on my “Rap Mix” tape that lived in my walkman throughout my entire 6th grade school year. Like Gladys says before the song begins, “Everybody’s talking ’bout the good old days.”
Not too much to be said about what Rza’s production has meant to the game that I haven’t already mentioned on a Sample Saturday post. No one has proved to be better at combining samples from different sources, this case being another great example. Source #1 is Gladys Knight & The Pips’ “The Way We Were” which is used for the quote in the intro, and also the chop from 1:08 that makes up the hook and title of the record. The Gladys sample is combined with a loop from Labi Siffre’s “I Got The”, who’s familiar opening bars are from Jay-Z’s “Streets Are Watching”. For the Wu record, RZA takes the drum and bass loop from the 2:10 mark, and somehow combines it seamlessly with the Gladys chop. By 2012 I predict I analyze every track from 36 Chambers on a Sample Saturday. Hey, why not.
The first time I ever sat down to make a beat, I dug through a stack of my dad’s records. After getting through the overwhelming amount of traditional irish music, I came across Harry Belafonte’s Calypso album, and was pleasantly surprised when I recognized track 1, “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)”. I came up empty looking for the beat today, but even if I had found it I doubt I would want to share (first beats don’t usually sound like hits). About ten years later the same sample turns up as the fuel to Lil Wayne’s leading track from Tha Carter IV, and his first official single since being released from prison. With no chorus, Weezy attacks the beat with a style that is equally as witty as it is aggressive. Already known as arguably the hardest working and hungriest MC in the game, it seems as if his time away has even further increased Lil’ Wayne appetite for success.
Behind the boards on “6 Foot 7 Foot” is the homey Bangladesh, who’s last collaboration with Weezy was the Grammy award-winning “A Milli”, which also featured the young Cory Gunz on the original version. Like “A-Milli”, the new record contains vocal loops, layered with over-driven 808s. This time Bangladesh pulls out Harry Belafonte’s hit song, speeds it up, and gives it his signature treatment. The main loop that the song is named after comes in at the 1:10 mark of “Day-O”. You can watch Bangladesh in action working on the track in this video, which shows the beat being made on his MPC. Six months later Lil’ Wayne is on stage on Saturday Night Live, performing “6 Foot 7 Foot” and tearing down the house… I wonder if Harry was watching.
