Stones Throw

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A Jazz Thing

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So for those of you that don't know me that well I have a very broad range of music that I like to listen to. I used to be a big time hip hop head. You would always see me with a big ass pair of headphones attached to my ears, a fitted pulled low, baggy clothes flopping all over the place and a very distinct NEW YORK bop to my walk. I dj'd too and loved the music that basically defined my teenage years. But as we all know hip hop was flushed down the toilet save for a few great artists that have managed to keep it moving as an innovative musical genre. The one personal benefit of hip hop becoming bastardized is the new forms of music I have been following. Whether it be brazilian, world, afro beat, garage, electronic I have truly been inspired by the various voices and interpretations of such fantastic artists. But the two things that I still find myself being drawn back to is good hip hop and jazz. There is one person who has mastered the marriage between the two. His name is Madlib. I know I'm borderline obsessed with dude's work but its well-earned. His catalogue is crazy. For all of 2010, Madlib has put out an album every month. His latest two albums are amazing, but this is a biased comment because they are his two jazz installments. I'm not sure there is a more beautiful thing than a strong jazz record. I rely on jazz heavily in my work as a filmmaker both as a writing inspiration and a reliable tool in the film itself. It captures the primal and complex emotions of man in such a specific and honest way that I can't help but to draw something from it. I was a drummer in a jazz band in high school and never understood how lucky I was to be a miniscule part of such a beautiful thing. Now that I'm a little older, I understand its importance to me as a person and as a filmmaker. In any case here is a snippet of Madlib's Medicine Show #8: Advanced Jazz. Peep the album cover and notice how much visuals influence the music as well. It is such a dope marriage. I hope you enjoy the clip and you can cop the album at www.stonesthrow.com (I'm giving out free plugs that's how much I love it). Have a great day.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oR_oPvuI7jo&w=600&h=338]

Madvillainy 2 Snippets

So for those of you that don't know I am pretty much obsessed with Madlib and DOOM. If you check my ipod I have hundreds of songs by them. You can throw J Dilla  into that group as well. When Madlib and DOOM came together a couple years a back for their album MADVILLAINY I can't tell you how gassed I was. It is one of the best albums I will ever hear in my entire life. Here is the first album if you wanna check it out: http://www.imeem.com/artists/madvillain/album/31jG7SoB/madvillainy-album/

Naturally, you expect for the duo to drop another album because of its critical acclaim and audience approval. We have gone a couple years without hearing anything from the new album. Now we may have come a cross a sneak peek of what is to come soon. I don't know if these are demos or actual tracks on Madvillainy 2 but they do come from J-Rocc who is a part of the Stones Throw camp. These tracks are ridiculous and now I am officially amped for the new joint to drop. Here is the clip of J-Rocc spinning some of the tracks on east village radio. Enjoy and let me know what you think.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKs3hsFzNfg&hl=en&fs=1&w=600&h=338]