User Recommendation Playlist! Vol. 1

Create a playlist at MixPod.com

Happy Monday! I wanted to thank you all for the awesome and frequent recommendations I have been getting from you folks out there in the Inter-verse. I have compiled a handful of these recommendations into a single playlist (above) for your entertainment. Nothin' finer than a bit of background music for your day. There is a good chance if you mentioned a song/artist to me that they are included in this list.

I will keep making such playlists as time goes on, and adding the tracks to the Top 10 Recommended Songs list (left) as I just did with the last Top 10. Take a listen, and keep the recommendations coming!

Black Star:: "Respiration" :: Concert Follow-up

Before the show last night we all agreed that the best thing that could happen during a Black Star concert in Chicago would be Common joining Mos and Talib for "Respiration". About an hour into the encore the crowd's energy had gone from intense to bonkers, but no "Respiration". Then when we all thought our hopes may not come to pass, BAM! The below happened. I have never seen a crowd respond in such a frenzy like they did here, surging towards the stage, screaming, and jumping in pure bliss.



Maybe I have rose-colored glasses on 1-day post-concert. Maybe my shattered eardrums have affected my judgement. But I would argue that the show last night may have been the best I have ever seen. Yes, I said it. The best. The energy was so infectious, and you could see Mos and Talib were eating it up. Chicago, man. Wow. What a show. Not to be forgotten. Escuche la. La ciudad respirando.


Respiration

Black Star (Mos Def & Talib Kweli):: "Thieves in the Night", "Brown Skin Lady", "Definition"

Tomorrow night I'll be heading out to the House of Blues in Chicago to see one of my all-time favorites, Black Star. The group (comprised of MC's Mos Def and Talib Kweli) rose from the underground NYC hip-hop scene of the late '90's. Though they produced only one self-titled album (1998), their work quickly rose to international prominence due to a combination of superb lyrical quality and content centered on themes of race, social consciousness, and most importantly, anti-violence. Following the violent deaths of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G. only a few years before, the Black Star collaboration seemed a clear and direct effort to call out the harmful role violence often plays in hip-hop music. It was one of the first albums I heard that was a clear and jarring departure from the gangster rap era that preceded it. I ate it up, fell in love with the MC's, artistry, and messages, and have rarely found anything close to its equal since.

From what I hear, the tour going on now is gonna revisit the stellar tracks of their first album, and give audiences a first glimpse of Black Star's hugely anticipated 2nd album,Blackstar 2, expected to drop in 2012. If this is your first exposure to this group, I highly recommend getting the whole 1st album and spending a good hour or two listening to it from beginning to end. Its hard to choose a favorite tune to post here, so please pardon the excessive clips/mp3's below. Man, I just can't wait to see them live!


Thieves in the Night


Brown Skin Lady

Otis Redding:: "I Can't Turn You Loose/ Shake", "(Sittin' by the) Dock of the Bay"::: Birthday Tribute

Otis Redding, born on September 9th, 1941, is one of the greatest soul singers this world has ever seen. Tragically, his death at the young age of 26 cut short the life of an artist in his prime. His gritty, powerful voice and larger-than-life stage presence are emblematic of the greatest qualities of American music in the 60's. Though extremely popular among African Americans, Reddding was not fully embraced by White audiences in the U.S. until after his death. However, Reddings' charm and sweat-drenched performances (such as the clip below from a 1966 performance on the British show Ready, Steady, Go!) transcended racial boundaries, and won him widespread acclaim and adoration throughout Europe. Sadly his emergence as a great musical force was short-lived, as his breakout performance at the Monterey Pop Festival (June, 1967) came only six months before the the plane crash that took his life.




Redding died on December 10th, 1967, while en route to a concert in Wisconsin. The plane that carried him and his band crashed into a frozen lake just 3 miles from the runway, killing 7out of 8 passengers aboard. Redding had recorded a demo of his most famous song, "(Sittin' by the) Dock of the Bay", only 3 days before. It was released in its unfinished form a few weeks later and sold 4 million copies, becoming the first posthumous single to top the U.S. Billboard top 100. Interestingly, had the singer lived to complete it, the most indelible part of the song, Otis whistling at the end, would have been replaced with another verse.


I hope you enjoy this music. I absolutely love the video clip. The dancers, the crowd, the performance. All are just amazing. It ranks up there with the top reasons I wish I had a time-machine. Can you imagine how much pure FUN getting to dance there would have been!

"Dreamin","The Vent" & "Children of The World" - Big KRIT

How many of you have heard (or believe) the complaint that there is just no good new hip-hop anymore? I'm sure most of us would agree that there certainly is an overabundance of lack-luster rap nowadays. Especially coming from mainstream sources. In my opinion, though, a handful of artists in the past few years still have me holding on to my love for hip-hop. The problem is that it is sometimes hard to find the gems that represent the best of what the genre has been and could be.

I had the idea for this site while talking about this with my buddy Evan out in Oakland. He's the guy I always talk to when I need something new to nod my head to, so I was not surprised I absolutely love his first recommendation for AudioIn-AudioOut, Big K.R.I.T.

Big K.R.I.T. (King Remembered in Time) is an MC and producer hailing from Meridian, Mississippi. He was a featured artist in this years XXL Freshman Class and, following the significant critical acclaim he received for the content and quality of his mix-tape, "Return4Eva", K.R.I.T. was recently signed to Def Jam. His highly anticipated first full studio album, "Live From the Underground" is due to be released at the end of the month.

K.R.I.T.'s content and production (which he does himself) create thought provoking tracks with heavy, sparse beats that accentuate rhymes deep on lyrical imagery of the struggles and aspirations of life in the American South. Nothing but true poetry here, a sterling example of how at its best hip-hop can be artistically complex and emotionally powerful. I heard these songs for the first time a few weeks ago and have had them on a consistent repeat cycle ever since. Love 'em.

If you fancy yourself a fan of great hip-hop and quality lyricism I would like to know if you agree. Or not. Either way, take a minute or two to listen to (and hopefully enjoy) something new.

"Percumajor" & "Pon de Floor"- Major Lazer, "Hold Yuh"- Gyptian (Major Lazer remix),

This weekend I'll be enjoying myself at the North Coast Festival at Union Park, here in sweltering hot Chicago. This will be only the second iteration of this event and features an impressive line-up of mostly electronic or hip-hop influenced groups (http://www.northcoastfestival.com/). Main acts include David Guetta, Wiz Khalifa, Thievery Corporation, and Fatboy Slim. The groups I'm most excited for are Little Dragon (see earlier blog post), Common, and Major Lazer.



Major Lazer, a collaborative project from DJ's Diplo & Switch, highlights dancehall reggae beats and vocals, with noticeable hints of house, soca, oldies, jazz and R&B. The result? High-energy, thumping, musical party starters. Perfect for a huge crowd of overexposed, under-hydrated, sweaty festival-goers who want nothing more than to dance their faces off.

The group has produced a wonderful mixtape called "Lazerproof" with La Roux, and a full length album in 2009 called "Guns don't Kill People...Lazers Do". For the album the duo moved to Jamaica, to immerse themselves in the many sub genres of the dancehall world. I have often argued that there is no better type of music to get people groovin' than dancehall. After checking out these songs I hope you not only agree, but join me on the floor come Saturday afternoon.

This track, "Pon de Floor" has one of the strangest, raunchiest, and entertaining videos I have ever seen. If you want an example of the Jamaican dance style, "stabbin", go on the internet and find it. Below is the track.





This Major Lazer remix was the first thing I heard from the duo. I loved it, and promptly went out and bought the original song by Gyptian as well. Check out both below.