SGM Show Report: Blue Scholars

The Blue Scholars stopped by Toronto on their current tour and SGM was able to check out the show. To my shock, disgust, excitement and a couple other emotions there was nobody else there (okay, a bit of an exaggeration), but in all seriousness you guys need to get out to these shows. The Blue Scholars threw down a great set playing songs of both albums and Opening act, Bambu killed it. Grynch and Sol came along for the trip and got the crowd going with a couple bangers including all “All I Wanna Do”. I want to say I wish the crowd was bigger just because these guys are some of hip hop’s finest and deserve to sell out the ACC (and do play some massive shows out west), but jamming front row and getting to meet the artists makes me just fine with the way it is. If you aren’t familiar with; The Blue Scholars, Bambu, Grynch or Sol Check them out and the visuals below.

Summer Time Jams from Asher Roth and Intuition

We've been out of the game for a while but realistically the boys of Straight Goods Music have moved into some grown man business. It's unfortunate, but being a grown up folk doesn't mean we can't throw one up when real life slows down. Theres something about summer and the music released during this time that's well... It's provocative, it gets the people going (insert Will Ferrell voice). heres some summer jams for anyone searching the inter webs.

Asher Roth: Good Morning View

Danny Brown - Grown Up (New Video + Download)

Grow up, Peter Pan! Because I've recently strapped on my big boy pants and joined the corporate world, this song seemed to vibe extra hard for me.  But really, who couldn't relate? We all gots to grow up one day.. don't we?

This kid swags out hard and Danny Brown gets nice on some Tribe-esque production.  Enjoy.


ps. Speaking of all grown up, happy birthday t-sedany

Kanye West - GOOD music preview

Kanye West has been doing his part to stay relevant following his game changing WTT tour with Hov, dropping a track on Good Friday to bring back the "Good Music Fridays" we came to love here last year. With newcomer 2 Chainz now signed to Roc Nation, Kanye's features in this track, Mercy, along with GOOD music artists Big Sean and Pusha T.

As Kanye pays his dues to the community, people need to realize he still has a huge part in guiding the sound of hiphop music as we know it. With DJ Khaled, Kanye also recently dropped a track out of nowhere called Theraflu, that's summed up by this fan better than I ever could. Hear them both below and look out for the full GOOD music compilation to come late Spring.


Kanye West (feat. DJ Khaled) - Theraflu

2 Chainz (feat. Kanye West, Big Sean & Pusha T) - Mercy

Chiddy Bang - The Hoxton, Toronto - April 25th

When I found out that Chiddy Bang was taking a break from touring the UK for one Wednesday night show downtown Toronto, I immediately signed myself up. This post-college rap duo is a far cry from their beginnings at Drexel University, with Xaphoon and Chiddy having proved themselves over and over as artists that are going to stick. They've shared tracks with the likes of Big Sean, Q Tip, Black Thought, Mac Miller and can now truly cruise after releasing their latest album, Breakfast. Chiddy Bang has been grinding hard to expand the bracket that is "indie hip hop" since the beginning - and since they came on my radar in '09 they've kept me stoked.

Do yourself a favor and buy a ticket to this show before it's sold out.

Show: Chiddy Bang with Special Guests
Venue: The Hoxton - Bathurst & King St. Toronto
Date: April 25th, 9PM
Price: $25


See ya there.

Alex Clare - Too Close (Internet Explorer 9 Ad)

 
You never know where or when a good song will catch your attention. This one reached my ears through a commercial for the new Internet Explorer 9. With the power of today's technology, I rewound live tv a few times until I was able to get the name and artist (Iphone's Shazam app helped). The song really makes the commercial, and fuck, it even makes IE look impressive... but I'll stick to Chrome.

Emily Haines - Metric - Black Sheep

When talking about female musicians that make me swoon, it should be obvious that I really am cheating myself if I'm looking further than the Canadian lead singer of the indie rock group Metric - Emily Haines. This girl takes her style, (and power correspondingly), past any other female that's graced the scene in a long time. With her putting strong material and emotion through Metric for over 10 years, Emily still manages to maintain a level of independence that would be far washed away from any other artist with that notoriety.

Feel Emily's emotions through her re-recorded track, Black Sheep, which was recently featured on the film, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, shot in Toronto's own infamous concert venue, Lee's Palace. If you haven't had the experience of attending this venue, (or the even better experience of the Dance Cave, which lives upstairs), do so immediately. That grit that Emily brings definitely still resides there.

Metric - Black Sheep

The Ting Tings - Sounds from Nowheresville

I recently got the unfortunate news that my dream girl, Ellie Goulding, has fallen pray to Skrillex's suave personality and haircut. Although this means she may be forever ruined, it's going to do me no good lingering and I've found myself a new lady to chase. Katie White runs the main vocals in the duo The Ting Tings, who are a prominent English indie pop act working under Columbia Records UK. Katie caught my ear again lately, after her and Jules De Martino released their second studio album, Sounds from Nowheresville, in February this year. They were originally supposed to drop this album back in 2010 to follow their debut, We Started Nothing, but decided that it sounded too much like everything else on the radio and scrapped half the songs. Katie stated "We were in Berlin where there is a great electro scene, and so we made songs like that, but quickly realized that everything on the radio was Euro-pop shite. We didn't want our record to be tarnished with that brush". I like that attitude.

The Ting Tings - One By One

The Ting Tings - Soul Killing

Cole World No Blanket

It's pretty much official that J.Cole is done his "blowing up" phase of his career, having released his first album to a very receptive audience and now announcing his sophomore EP to drop in July this year. Cole also put a couple tracks out recently to signify his change in this rap game - with Grew Up Fast being released when he hit 2M twitter followers and Visionz of Home setting the stage for his tour returning to his hometown - two major highlights in his growing momentum. Cole has been keeping consistent with the highlights even outside of the music scene lately, throwing down his legitimacy in the NBA celebrity game with the play of the night. Peep it if you haven't, the Roc Nation kid just can't go wrong these days.

J.Cole - Visionz of Home


J.Cole - Grew Up Fast

Logic - The Spotlight

  With Mac Miller going all main stream on us I've found myself a replacement. Logic has impeccable taste in the samples he chooses and his flow is absolute butter. The kid brings us his new track "The Spotlight" where he absolutely destroys Justices classic jam D.A.N.C.E. Based on the video it seems like Logic is livin' the dream and clearly knows how to party. Sidenote: the girl with the lolly pop at the beginning is my future wife... keep your eyes to yourself.

Logic - The Spotlight

Sleigh Bells - Reign of Terror

The first time I sent my ears on the journey through Sleigh Bells sophomore album "Reign of Terror" I found myself a combination of offended and intrigued. The new age girl pop group that gave us the addicting Rill Rill came back with a bang and after a couple listens, I can't get enough of the album. Guitarist, Producer Derek Miller brings heavy 70's and 80's style rock guitar complimented by simple but hard hitting drums that give the instrumentals a heavy and throwback feel. The often distorted rock guitar seems to blend with Alexis Krauss' soothing voice to create some amazing sounds. I'm not about to say that Sleigh Bells reinvented anything here but they definitely brought a new feel to whatever genre they actually belong to. Check out early highlights bellow and get your hands on "Reign of Terror" if you're into it.

Sleigh Bells - Crush



Sleigh Bells - Comeback Kid

A Little "Dose Of Dopeness" From Cudder

With Kid Cudi doing the whole WZRD thing and a sub-par sophomore album, there has been a missing aspect to my hip-hop needs. I understand and completely respect that artists will evolve and their music will change with them but there is something about the early Cudi’s flow and lyricism that I haven’t been able to find in any other artist (including recent Cudi). Dot Da Genius has recently given me a little fix of the old K.I.D. by releasing the studio version of “Dose of Dopeness” (2008) with some filthy production accompanied by Cudi spiting that one of a kind flow that we all have grown to love. Check out the track below and lets all hope that Cudi goes back to that good old fashioned hip-hop every once in a while.

Kid Cudi - Dose of Dopeness (Prod. Dot Da Genius)

Lotty and Arc - He Can Only Hold Her Remix

Straight out of Hamilton, Ontario I bring you Lotty and Arc; two members of local rap group the Hamilton High-Cats. Met the one guy through a friend a couple years ago and until now have never given his music a listen. They bring a classic hip-hop feel to the table with the groovy sample of Amy Winehouse's "He Can Only Hold Her". Don't know which one is rapping and which one sings the hook but the track features some solid flow and a damn catchy chorus. The track gives me that sunny day barbecue type of feeling that you don't hear very often in hip-hop today. The video is of their new track "Ready to Roll" in which the duo get a little deeper on us. It feel's damn good to be reppin some Steeltown talent on Straight Goods... so enjoy

Lotty and Arc-He Can Only Hold Her (remix)

City and Colour - "Little Hell"

Can't ignore it any longer, City and Colour aka Canadian singer/songwriter Dallas Green is killin it. Who knew the Alexisonfire co-leader could have such a successful post-hardcore solo career. So much going on in some of his tracks--he brings folk-style to a different level. His album "Little Hell" released last year is getting some just recognition. Have a listen:

City and Color - Grand Optimist:
 
 
City and Color - Fragile Bird

City and Color - Weightless

City and Color - Fragile Bird (SoniXx Remix):

The Knocks Featuring Mandy Lee "Midnight City" (M83 Cover)

Ok so I'm completely stealing this one from P&P but it's honestly one of the best re-work's I've ever heard. M83's track "Midnight City" has been sampled, rapped over and re-worked countless times at this point. If I were them I would personally take this as a compliment as, until now no version of the song has even come close the amazingness that is the original. The Knocks have been one of my favourite electro bands for sometime now and with the vocal addition of Mandy Lee they do an unreal job of the re-work. They tone down the synthy sound, add some sweet female vocals and give the track a more instrumental feel. The original will always be the absolute jam that led to its popularity but this version just ignites something in my ears that makes me happy... enjoy

The Knocks Feat Mandy Lee- Midnight City (M83 Cover)

The Incomparable Shakespeare - Four Point oh

However you would like to define the genre, i've personally never been a huge fan of recent "Gangsta" rap. Rap is basically like poetry. Someone who consumes any form of poetry usually enjoys a written perspective of what they value, want or envy in life. Broads like greys anatomy quotes, some seem to really enjoy popping bottles, some use rap to express their political beliefs, and some go for the Adele route and just get real emotional. What ever your poison,  we all listen to rap because we connect with what the poet or rapper is talking about.

Well after being snubbed by Universal The Incomparable Shakespeare has moved on and decided to spit whats true to him and apparently thats something i'm way to familiar with... book learning. Four Point oh is a song about the trails and tribulations of Shakespeare's rap career thus far. As I watched this video I couldn't  help but compare him one of my favourite artists, Shad K. Although he is unique in his own right, theres not many talented artists out there that discuss the actual educational aspect of college life. Apparently its not all about having a time, some people leave university having advanced themselves intellectually... crazy concept.

K.Flay's still Coastin'

There's a type of artist that's been carving themselves quite the niche over these last few years. Female hip hop is typically not a genre that's exposed but that only leaves room for an artist like K.Flay to have her say. I first heard K.Flay on the classic Zion-I track "Coastin" that stayed on repeat for multiple seasons during my college career.

This post-Standford student handpicks her samples from popular indie tracks like a lot of other college rappers, but she also does her own thing, with her new album Eyes Wide Shut having a much more obscure feel than her past work. See below for a few examples of what she's been up to; with a track off her new ep, an older track she did sampling the XX's Crystalised, as well as a track of her with Grieves + Budo from the Rhymesayers crew. This girl's definitely been following the right line so far. 

K.Flay - Easy Fix


K.Flay - 2 Weak

Greives + Budo - Lost In The Sun (feat. K.Flay)

Album Review: Sol - "Yours Truly"

Hot damn Seattle just can't stop producing true hip-hop stars. Sol has been one of my favourite Seattle artists for some time now and he has just proved himself even more with his newest album Yours Truly. The man speaks some realness and chooses some true hip-hop head production every time. With the success of the previously leaked tracks "Stage Dive" and "2020" there was so much anticipation for this album and it did not disappoint. The man is one of the most versatile rappers in the game now-a-days as he can rock some solid stoner rap tracks but can also get real epic and emotional. I've been listening to Yours Truly on repeat for days and am having a hell of time choosing my favourites from the project. I haven't seen triple digits in my bank account in soo damn long and this was one album I actually purchased. The guitar riff on "Need Your Love" is absolutely intoxicating and is complimented perfectly by vocals from Ray Dalton. Over all the album is one of the best true hip-hop projects I've heard in a while and I would suggest saving up your pennies and purchasing "Yours Truly". You can grab a physical copy from http://solsays.com/  or the digi copy from Itunes.

Sol-Need Your Love featuring Ray Dalton

Hella Class Like a Bidet

You may or may not have noticed that I've been absent from the blog game for quite some time now. This is due to a tragic accident that involving an audio jack being broken off inside my macbook, thus rendering it audio-less for the foreseeable future. I actually completely dropped of the music world since Christmas and I'm just now starting to get back into things.
For my comeback post, I'm sharing the visuals for possibly my favourite song off of Blue Scholars' most recent album Cinematropolis, Seijun Suzuki. Despite my posting of songs for this album leading up to its release, I feel that Cinematropolis ended up being overlooked by a lot of people, even those that were fans of previous work by the Seattle MC-Producer team of Geo and Sabzi. I'm hoping this video can convince some of you sleepers. I would almost put Blue Scholars on the same level as The Black Keys when it comes to putting out entertaining videos and this one is no different.

Blue Scholars - Seijun Suzuki

Adventure Club - Do I See Color

The rising Canadian dubstep duo, Adventure Club, has decided it's time to show they're more than just a remix act, dropping a large original track a few days ago called Do I See Color. Recently famous for their remixes of Flight Facilities' Crave You and Metric's Collect Call, Adventure Club now shows their high energy dubstep can stand on its own. Subtle drops laced over top of that driving, fast paced beat, AC continues the pattern to not rely on big rises or falls for the passion in their music, but rather hooking you on the subtle intricies in between. Turn this one up, this group has momentum.

Adventure Club - Do I See Color

OCD: Moosh and Twist- The Vestibule

 Moosh and Twist are back at it with a new mix-tape called “The Vestibule”. They’ve always intrigued me as a group as they are two very mature 18 year olds one black one white. They usually have some pretty entertaining beats and although Twist looks like he should be working at Abercrombie the kid spits with some hard as fuck flow. Moosh on the other hand is the calmer of the two who I can’t really compare to anyone but I think that’s what I enjoy. Any ways, no more rambling … these are my two favorites from the mix-tape… enjoy

Moosh and Twist- Hold it Down 

Moosh and Twist- Street Lights 

Ground Up- Clutch

Ground up has consistently been producing quality hip-hop music since I heard them a couple of years ago. My theory behind their success is the fact that they are a complete group that includes a variety of both rappers and producers/DJ’s. This combo in rap groups is on point, as it ensures variety in their production and music in general, while still maintaining a consistent group sound. Ground Up's newest track “Clutch” is from their up coming mix-tape The Get Down which is sponsored by one of my favorite music sites GMAD. The song features an entertaining whistle oriented beat and some solid flow from each rapper, which has come to be expected from Ground up. I have recently found my self overwhelmed with the amount of solid music I have to blog and yet this song has still been on repeat. The video is also mad entertaining and has solved all my parking ticket woes, as they’ve established that all you have to do to get out of a ticket is get a child with a snapback to breakdance in front of those asshole ticket writers… who knew.  So until The Get Down comes out, have fun jamming this addictive track.

Tony Williams - Blazin High (feat. Wale, Emilio Rojas and Macklemore)

Recently I came across an absolute jam from a rapper named Tony Williams. Apparently he’s got a pretty gangster collection of friends, as his newest mix-tape is aptly titled Some of My Best Rappers are Friends. “Blazin High” features Wale, Emilio Rojas and Macklemore, which in its own is a crazy sick collection of hommies. The number one thing that bothers me about both Wale and Emilio is their production, which is usually a little to hood for my taste, but the instrumentals on this track are sick and if you listen closely you can here the background beat from Jay and Kanye’s hit “N*igga’s in Paris”.  Tony Williams doesn't rap on the track himself, but does sing a pretty nasty hook that is complemented at the same caliber by three verses from the rest of the crew. Get it below.

Tony Williams- Blazin High feat Wale, Emilio Rojas and Macklemore 

R3K's Approach to Remixes

The artist that's getting the most recognition for his remixes these last few days has been a DJ out of Boulder, Colorado named R3K, that's gone ahead and put his ubiquitous touch on some more popular hip hop tracks. Taking on the unique voices of Lil Wayne, Cudi and Wiz Khalifa, R3K does well to create interesting, smooth environments for select attributes of their sound to be further exposed. Pairing strong rappers with female vocalists, sampling Imogen Heap or Florence and the Machine, R3K subdues his remixes while still giving them that driving intensity. An intriguing approach that more and more of the hip hop sound seems to be moving towards. Contrast always makes things interesting.   

Kid Cudi - Falling Star (R3K Remix)

Lil Wayne - Fly By Night (R3K Remix)

Wiz Khalifa - Youngin on his grind (R3K Remix)

LiLa - 8 Bit Kid

This place has been a little quiet lately, which may be in part due to my lack of attendance. I moved more-downtown in Toronto and had to do the whole internet dance all over again, apparently they can't change that shit in a day's notice. It's all good now though and I'm going to use this as an excuse to post some music that is a few weeks old, but definitely still worth looking into if you didn't catch it. Starting with a track I heard about a month ago on the blog Sunset in the Rearview, this song has stuck around on my iTunes as a go to subway/traveling song. The lyrics match the almost autistic feeling that comes from the instrumentals, as the repetitive strings create an atmospheric nature that seems to take you in if you'll let it.

LiLa - 8 Bit Kid

2 AM Club Featuring Chiddy Bang - "Every Evening"

I've been listening to this song on repeat for days so I feel the need to share it with the vast fans of Straight Goods Music. I don't know much about this 2 AM club except that they are a 6 person band that features a vocalist Marc Griffin, Emcee Tyler Cordy and then a 4 person band. This Marc Griffin character has a dope voice and the instrumentals from the band are absolutely intoxicating. Both Chiddy and Tyler Cordy complement the beat perfectly with some smooth flow and solid lyrics. As we are currently enjoying some sunny January days here in Canada, this song provides the perfect background music as I stare out my window and pretend its summer time again... enjoy

2 AM Club - Every Evening (feat. Chiddy Bang)

Sammy Adams "Into the Wild" mix-tape

Sammy Adams has always intrigued me as an artist, but I often find my self defending him as a rapper to friends. For me Sammy is the definition of frat rap in its purest form. Does he have the most meaningful lyrics? obviously not, the kids in college living the god damn dream. The biggest decision of his week is if he wants to drink Pabst or some Old Milly’s. Sam’s Newest Mix-tape “Into The Wild” is a prime example of what I’ve always enjoyed about his frat rap sound. The man makes some damn good party jams like “Lost”, “Big Lights” and “Take The World” that I assume have frat houses around Americaland poppin off. Actually twitter has proven this, as there is a cult like following of college kids that adore the Boston native. His songs may not be meaningful or have more than 10 words in them but to many hip-hop fans or to those who black out 3 times a week he preaches the glory life that the youngens are currently living. But don’t get me wrong the man still has solid lyrical ability that is showcased in songs like “Thunderstorm”. So if your about to enjoy your first couple weeks back at school I strongly suggest you turn this shit to max volume and forget about the fact that your supposed to read at some point this semester. 

Sammy Adams- Big Lights 

Sammy Adams- Thunderstorm

Sammy Adams- Take the World 

Walk Off The Earth- Somebody That I Used To Know (Gotye Cover)

5 band members and one guitar. The original track by Gotye, posted here earlier by Surebuds, has absolutely blown up. It's got a hypnotic and haunting vibe that is like nothing I've heard in a while. And now we get a nice twist on the song brought to you by a local Canadian talent. Straight outta Burlington, Ontario, Walk Off The Earth's cover is receiving widespread recognition and has quickly become a youtube sensation. The view count went from 3,000 to 3 million almost overnight. This isn't even the first time we've seen the ol' "multiple people, one guitar" trick, but that takes nothing away from these guys. Oh, and blondey's voice is as sexy as she is. Enjoy.

Sleeping Giants - Not Another Teen Mixtape Preview

The remix of Rill Rill wasn’t the only thing that needed to be posted out of the SG mailbox. Sleeping Giants, the hiphop duo I post every now and then, have been making some major moves with their music lately. The duo is now a trio, adding featured artist Mary Zheng to the group, so you can look forward to hearing that haunting, real soul sound in their hooks permanently. To top this off, Sleeping Giants have their debut release, Not Another Teen Mixtape, in the oven and well on the way. Check the two tracks below that they linked over and keep your head up for the full release to drop shortly.

Sleeping Giants – Follow Me

Sleeping Giants – MNG

Rill Rill - Phi Unit Remix

Digging into the SG mailbox is always a good look when things are a little bleak in the general music world. Personally I think that Christmas makes for one of the worst times for music, with artists trying to include that spirit into their lyrics that won’t get played again once Dec 25th has passed. Rather than going that route, I’d rather listen to music that gets me in a good mood, but leaves out all the reference and religious overtone. Not that it doesn’t have a place, but when everyone tries to jump on something like that it seems too fake for me. That little rant takes me to Phi-Unit, a DJ out of New York that sent over his, (and my), interpretation of a good Christmas song he did some work to. Rill Rill is a song by Sleigh Bells that I posted a while ago with a Clique NewTrends remix to go along with it. Phi-Unit adds a little more hype than the other remix or original, but still keeps it light as it dashes onward. Check it below.

Sleigh Bells – Rill Rill (Phi-Unit Remix)
Sleigh Bells - Rill Rill (Phi Unit Remix) FREE DOWNLOAD by Phi Unit

Sol - Stage Dive

For the past 2 years when people asked me who my favorite rappers are I’ve always had a couple of Seattle artists on my list. Sol is the one artist from the west coast that always flies under the radar. He’s got an amazing formula for making the best laid back hip-hop tracks in the game.

Hip hop today has obviously gone in a different direction, but thankfully for old-school hip hop heads like myself, artists like Sol and the rest of Seattle have been supplying me with some solid head bumping tracks. “Stage Dive” is his newest track and it is no disappointment. This is the first single from his 2012 album Yours Truly, So take a break from the liquor, get a little lifted and enjoy the lyrical mastermind that is Sol.

Sol- Stage Dive