Weezy... from past to present

So Lil Wayne's album dropped a couple days ago, on his birthday...while locked up behind bars. Tupac released a record while incarcerated, and it worked for him. I Am Not a Human Being remains iTunes top-selling record and it will likely remain that way for days to come. Despite being a pretty big weezy fan, my expectations weren't through the roof for this album. However, there are bound to be a couple tracks to get me by until the Carter IV...which Wayne promised he was starting from scratch once he was out of the pen. So here a couple tracks that got my attention:

Lil Wayne- Bill Gates


Lil Wayne- With You


If your like a lot of people I know, you can't stand Lil Wayne and your sick of all the hype. Here is my attempt to change your mind with some older tracks that prove the man is where he is for a reason. Give em a chance...

Lil Wayne- BM Jr.

Lil Wayne- I'm Me

Lil Wayne- Upgrade U

Theophilus spits over some Xx... why not

The song that introduced me into the musical awesomeness that is the Xx is there spin on Florence and the Machines' hit "You've Got The Love". The original Xx remix of this track is one of those songs that i am forced to listen to when it pops on the ipod, apparently Theophilus likes it too. Mr.London is kind of a crazy artist and i find i either love or hate the songs he puts out... fortunately for him i love the fact that he's spittin' over the Xx....enjoy

You've Got The Love-The Xx (Theophilus London Remix)

QuEST-Inner Sense

My Boy QuEST is back with another banger!!! i've been following this kid for a while and was pumped to here his unique flow over this dope Miike Snow sample. He's got a different voice/flow but i enjoy the hell out of it. Its a bullshit day outside so pop the ear phones on and jam this track... you can download "Inner Sense" for free from his website www.yesiamquest.com  

QuEST- Inner Sense

William Fitzsimmons - Derivatives

This is going to be a little different from what usually gets posted on straight goods, but I've been meaning to give William Fitzsimmons a post for a while. This quiet acoustic guitarist has one of the deepest stories I've come across. Coming from the outskirts of Pittsburgh, William was raised by his two blind parents in a household filled with sound. To replace what they couldn't see William's parents used music to express themselves, having almost every instrument in their house including a full size pipe organ, built by his own dad. This all transferred onto William giving him a natural ability to create some of the most entrancing songs I've listened to. His music is usually pretty soft, comparing to Sufjan Stevens and Bon Iver, but his latest collection is a little bit different. Correctly titled Derivatives, this album revisits and remixes some of his best work, crossing genres to bring in an electronic feel. This brings William's music to the next level giving him a unique backdrop for his organic style. I don't know too many artists that have managed to combine folk and electro successfully... but it works. Plus he rocks that beard. Unreal.

If You Would Come Back Home (Mikroboy Remix) - William Fitzsimmons

So This Is Goodbye (Pink Ganter Remix) - William Fitzsimmons

I Don't Feel It Anymore (George Raquet Remix) - William Fitzsimmons

For his full story check out http://www.williamfitzsimmons.com/

The Lyrical Genius That Is Jay-Z..."Decoded"

I've always known that Jigga was an absolute genius when it came to lyrical content...but now i have proof. In a future book entitled "Decoded" Jay-Z will give fans an explanation of some of his classic verses. This video features Jay explaining an unreleased song called "Most Kingz". The hole interview puts his poetic skills on a pedestal and gets me jacked up to read a book that has nothing to do with geography... enjoy

Hoodie Allen - Pep Rally

Hoodie Allen dropped their new mixtape today titled Pep Rally which has 11 new tracks from the duo free for you to download. This mixtape features hip hop with more of a pop influence this time, all over top of a number of samples taken from every corner in the current music scene. The songs are upbeat and fast paced which could come off as too much to some listeners that aren't familiar with that type of hip hop. The style is catchy once you get it in you though, just look how fast chiddy bang blew up in the same genre. They find their best balance when they slow it down a bit though i find, as some of nicely placed indie samples time the beat enough for them to stay in control. Hoodie definitely has a style that their trying to staple down in the industry. Download the entire mixtape from Hoodie Allen for free here http://www.timeforthepeprally.com/

Joy & Misery - Hoodie Allen (Sample: Florence and the Machine's cover of Hospital Beds)


Words of Wisdom - Hoodie Allen (Sample: Two Door Cinema Club's Undercover Martyn)


Tighten Up - Hoodie Allen (Sample: The Black Key's Tighten Up)

The Pass - Burst

I'm always on the hunt for my next non hip hop band to entertain my ears because as much as I love hip hop, it can never be the only genre that I listen to. In the past year bands/artists like Miike Snow, James Yuill, Broken Bells, The XX, etc have dominated that part of my music consumption. It always seems to be a lot easier to find good new hip hop than other genres, maybe because rappers are releasing new material so frequently but I think I've found a gem here thanks to pigeons and planes, my favourite music blog. The Pass are an electro-pop band out of Louisville, Kentucky who's debut album "Burst" comes out tomorrow. The term electro-pop always sounds kinda lame to me but I listen to a bunch of artists that fall into that category so I might as well get used to it. The Pass have provided a full album stream of Burst, which comes out tomorrow and it sounds awesome. Check out the songs below and grab the album if you're feeling them.

The Pass - Vinyl


The Pass - Vultures

Nicki Minaj

Took me a bit to realize it but I am a Nicki Minaj fan. If your name is not Lauryn Hill and your a female rapper, I'm most likely not gonna give you the time of day. Nicki Minaj is the first exception to that rule. She spits hard, sings, and has the thickest booty on the scene...what's not to like? I might be alone on this but I can't help but get a Ol Dirty Bastard vibe from her greasy, bizarre half-sing and half rap style. Here are a few remixes on both of which Nicki goes hard, arguably the hardest of the group.
Listen.

Kanye West-Monster feat Bon Iver, Rick Ross, Jay-z, Nicki Minaj

Nicki Minaj- Your Love feat Rick Ross

Kanye Starts My Fridays Properly

Every friday for the past couple weeks Kanye has been supplying us with some hype tracks. "Lord Lord Lord" features Mos Def at his best which i havent heard in a while. Its awesome to hear Kanye ditch the auto-tune, jumping back on the rap and being assisted by the classic niceness that is Raekwon is always entertaining.G.O.O.D Music has been doing mad work as of late with basically the whole label putting out freshness. A snippet of a future Big Sean banger leaked and as soon as you get past the out of tune singing Sean's lyrical ability is pretty dope. As i've missed putting the last couple friday jams up im gonna unload them all on to Straight Goods viewers now... enjoy, see ya on friday.

Lord Lord Lord (feat. Mos Def, Swizz Beatz, Raekwon & Charlie Wilson)-Kanye West


My Last-Big Sean


Good Friday (feat. Common, Pusha T, Kid Cudi, Big Sean & Charlie Wilson)- Kanye West


Runaway f. Pusha T-Kanye West

Wiz Khalifa-Damn It Feels Good To Be A Taylor

Back in the day Geto Boys track "Damn it feels good to be a Gangsta" was one of the banger's poppin' off my diskman. I've been jammin' to this beat since grade 8 so i was obviously pumped when i heard Wiz Khalifa spit his classic rhymes over it. I like Wiz alot when he raps over laid back beats but still love the hard as nails version of his flow. So throw on "Damn it feels good to be a taylor" or fire it up with "Black and Yellow".

Damn It Feels Good To Be A Taylor-Wiz Khalifa


Black and Yellow-Wiz Khalifa

Hip-Hop new comer: Voli

during my on going search for new music i have stumbled upon hip-hop newcomer Voli. I like his style, with a hard flow assisted by chilled out instrumentals. his debut mixtape "Glass Doors" features beats from Elite, Omen, J.Cole and some done by himself. My favorite track on the tape is "Tripwire" featuring Aliah Sheffield. The song puts Voli's smooth flow on display accompanying it with a sick chilled out beat. If you wanna hear Voli spit some nasty on a track i would suggest Solitary confinement but the mixtape as a whole is pretty dope. I look forward to more Voli in the future, so enjoy this till then

Tripwire- Voli featuring Aliah Sheffield

Deja Vu- Voli

Solitary Confinement- Voli

More fresh Chiddy

Since this is our third post of the day, and the second one about Chiddy Bang I'm gonna keep it short. This is off of their upcoming Preview EP and is produced by Pharrell, these guys are comin up quickly.

Chiddy Bang - The Good Life

To All My Friends - The Atmosphere Ep's

The legendary duo that makes up Atmosphere, Slug and Ant, have just released their newest project today in promotion of their tour with Grieves & Budo, Blueprint, and DJ Rare Groove, which starts tomorrow. This is actually two CD's that have been compressed into one, titled Too All My Friends/Blood Makes the Blade Holy. The production in these tracks stays with the relaxed, easy going, natural style that really makes Slug's voice stand out in comparison. This man could captivate any room with his stories, which may be because of the fact that they can be related to by just about anyone because of the variety of viewpoints he comes from. So do what Slug wants you to do, sit back, reflect and listen.

Freefallin - Atmosphere

The Number None - Atmosphere

The Loser Wins - Atmosphere

New Blue Scholars - Lumiere

Its been a while since I've heard some new stuff from Blue Scholars, the drought is over. The Seattle combination of Geo and Sabzi have taken on a sample of the intro to the XX's self-titled album which I happen to be obsessed with. I was actually expecting producer Sabzi to put more of a spin on the sample since he usually does some cool stuff, he doesn't but the song is still sweet. Geo sounds super intense.

Blue Scholars - Lumiere

Matt & Kim - Cameras

This one's all over the blogs and is killing the hypem charts right now. My first exposure to Matt & Kim was courtesy of Troublemaker's Remix of Daylight featuring De La Soul which is an unreal song. Cameras is the first release off of their upcoming album Sidewalks which is set to drop early November. The bands instructions on what to do with this song say all that needs to be said: "Open all your windows, cut off your sleeves, and stand up on some furniture… THEN put this song on. I think we can extend this summer right through the fall."

Matt & Kim - Cameras