Chop Shop Podcast – Free Hip Hop Music

Review: Freeway and Jake-One, The Stimulus Package.

In the past few months Freeway has been saturating the internet with his stream-of-conscience style rapping, and along the way he has been collaborating with some of the big names in Hip-Hop; Damien Dash, 50 Cent etc. And if that wasn’t enough, he joins forces with DJ Jake-One for The Stimulus Package (Freeway’s first album to be overseen by one producer). What’s more the two of them have been given plenty of room to work on this album, due to Freeway’s constant resistance to label influence. A freedom which has made them state that the aim of this album is to shake up the rap scene, as Freeway said in a recent interview, when asked about why they choose The Stimulus Package as a title:

Because I feel as though we’re taking it back to real, raw Hip-Hop. We’re trying to get people to get back to their job of spitting and making music that you could feel and music that stimulates you and makes you feel good, that good music.

Ambition, ambition, ambition. When I read this I felt this may have been a conceited claim; especially bearing in mind how little time was given to the album (barely over two months, which certainly follows form for Freeway who put out 31 songs in December alone).

Frankly the relatively short period given to putting this album together makes it feel rushed. First of all even though Jake-One’s production is smooth, and has a heavy, soulful tone through-out, it’s interactions with Freeways hooks and lyrics let it down. Never Gonna Change is an example of this, the production in it just simply rips the song apart: we have Freeway telling a story of a fight he was involved in, as the song progresses it meanders between the aimless lyrics and back to this slowed-down heavy drum-beat, and consequently is a exasperates its listener. Some of the other hooks in the album are pedestrian and bring a rigid feeling to the songs they are suppose to cement, and none more so than in Throw Your Hands Up where the hook feels like something taken straight from Lil’ Wayne song.

Furthermore Freeway’s lyrics suffer from his hyper-active need to release new material every month. The lyrics in many of the songs are just too simple, and the lines interact with each quite awkwardly, case in point:

She’s like something outta Maxim/The swimsuit issue Tell her I miss her/I will back soon. (She Makes Me Feel Alright)

This gracelessness probably stems from Freeway’s method of just going into the booth and laying down whatever comes to mind. Thematically the lyrics drag as well; Freeway rarely strays from the clichéd ‘being a drug dealer from the streets’ and ‘I got hoes.’

Nonetheless the album has its highlights, really any part of the album that seems to have some planning such as the collaborators. Raekwon, Birdman and Young Chris contribute complimentary verses to the songs they all feature on, and the planned lyricism of their sections give an air of direction to the album. There are also some songs with just Freeway and Jake-One, that sound great; 3 in total. Once again it’s this feeling of planning that shines through on these songs; Stimulus Outro rises to the top as a result. The structure of replying to fans posts allows Freeways natural lyricism to stand out, which also allows Jake-One to create an authentic sounding beat for the song.

In closing this album is good in theory, just flawed in practise.

Rating: 2.5/5

The Green Ghost Project Reviewed

When looking at this mixtape it certainly has the ingredients to be a great record; a DJ in the fore of the rap, a lyrically astute MC who is part one of the more notable hip-hop groups of the 90s, and some great collaborators. Also Styles P and DJ Green Lantern have been plugging this mixtape for months, DJ Green Lantern and Styles P saying:

“Styles and I got together and made a monster,” said DJ Green Lantern of the project. Styles added, “Don’t call me ‘The Ghost’ right now, call me ‘The Green Ghost.’ It’s a different

display of talent.  We got together and brainstormed about it and it came out crazy.“

And I know I have been looking forward to this mixtape ever since they dropped the single Legal Money back in December. And so does the mixtape live up to its potential?

It certainly does, the mixtape is dark, and has lots of heavy beats, and is certainly a throwback to the days of 90s Hardcore. The mixtape has a haunting theme through-out; well it is called The Green Ghost Project, and this theme consists of piano beats and hollow snares. DJ Green Lantern, Alchemist, Scram Jones, Statik Selektah all contribute to the project. DJ Green Lantern looks like he carefully picked his contributors, and these makes the mixtape ‘monstrous’ through’, with all these big names on the production on this mixtape is pristine. The mixtape’s order makes for a fluid experience, even if the last song seems a small bit out of place.

Style Ps rapping is another high point of the mixtape. Styles drops some fantastic verses about his life in and out of prison, we get a deep insight into how troubled he feels towards his past, and a sense of regret lingers in each line. Also Styles P plays up to his “ghost” personality too, with lyrics that set him in situations where he is a phantom in his own life. It is not just Styles P’s wordplay, he also has great interplay with the collaborators on the mixtape. Jadakiss’s, from Lox, contribution on Invasion is one of the highpoints and the mixtape, and I hope to see Lox get back together for another mixtape after hearing this song. M.O.P., Raekwon and Noreaga all have cameos on this mixtape, each of which add a certain quality to the song.

In the end this is one mixtape that won’t be leaving my MP3 player for quiet some time.

Rating: 4.5/5

RJD2 – The Colossus Review

The first review of the decade, and I find myself listening to one the most experimental DJs on the Hip-Hop scene; RJD2. His previous work with Blueprint on Things Go Better with RJ and AL and the release of The Third Hand, saw him dealing with two different aspects of music; soulful hip-hop with Blueprint, and toned down indie in the later. So sitting down to listen to this album I wasn’t sure what to expect for this effort.

The first song Let There Be Horns, starts off the album with heavy beat brass based song which the next few songs build itself off, however with The Glow the album takes a twist into 60s pop-rock, with a song which could of be picked straight out of The Beatles repertoire. The structure of the album consequently begins to fall apart; with darker songs popping up here and there, yet others referring back to the introduction. RJD2 also travels down the path of R’N’B in his collaboration with Phonte Coleman: there is definitely something to these songs, the two certainly complement one another, and the song sounds quite pretty, however personally I wouldn’t bother with these songs.

RJD2 lays some vocals down on some of the tracks, 3 in total, and they are a bit lackluster for me. His voice seems to struggle with some of the more difficult aspects of his own production; once again these are songs I won’t be listening to these songs again.

On the other hand, the production on the album is crisp. Without much outside influence on this album, since the album is released off the back of RJD2’s own production company, we see an album produced with a definite sense of purpose. Unfortunately in saying that, I also have to say that the album lends itself to small bit of over-indulgence, where songs should have been cut, they have been left on the album, and this detracts from some stellar songs.

In summary, I don’t know how to feel about this album. RJD2 puts some wonderfully epic songs at the end of the album, there also some very danceable tunes at the beginning, and the middle, which is filled with collaborators, lags in places, and in just enough ways to detract from the over all tone of the album. Yet I know I will return to this album for another listen.

Rating: 4/5

Georgia Anne Muldrow & Declaime (aka Dudley Perkins) – “Endure” + EthNick Remix

Looking to start 2010 off with a bang, Georgia Anne Muldrow & Declaime (AKA Dudley Perkins) are dropping the track “Endure” from their upcoming joint album SomeOthaShip along with the fresh “Endure” EthNick Remix courtesy of beat maestro Nick Tha 1Da.

“Endure” is a song of contrasts – contemplative yet free-spirited, dark yet uplifting – and it gives listeners an all-access pass into the minds of Georgia & Declaime. The track, which also features the lyrical stylings of M.E.D. and Rapper Big Pooh, seems fit for the times as it urges listeners to “endure the storm” and to “remember that the bad times have only made you stronger.” The positive vibes are inspired in part by Georgia who says that the lyrics help pull her out of the past “and into a new and improved being that is ready to act in the liberation of [her] people through music.” As the lyrics end, the song endures for a full minute in a meditative instrumental state giving the listener a moment to pause and reflect upon the track’s central theme which, according to Georgia, is to “endure” and not to “give up on yourself, or your potential to be greater than you’ve chosen not to be.”

The “Endure” EthNick Remix by Nick Tha 1Da retains all of the potency of the original and also injects an infectious beat backbone into the mix. “Endure” has been requested to be remixed by numerous producers and, after having been reworked by Oh No, Oddisee, and Apollo Brown, Nick Tha 1Da seemed like a logical choice to pass the remix torch to. Hailing from Washington D.C., Nick Tha 1Da is no stranger to the game, having produced for the likes of Finale and Raheem DeVaughn, and his presence on the track is a game changer of melodious proportions. Neck-snapper curator, beat engineer – Nick Tha 1Da does “Endure” proud as he brings East Coast stylings to his bass heavy remix, and complements the positive vibes of the song by using a selection of strings guaranteed to put a smile on the face of the strictest non-believer. SomeOthaShip, a Mello Music Group release, will be available digitally February 16th and will be hitting physical retail locations February 23rd.

“Endure” EthNick Remix:  – “Endure” feat M.E.D. and Rapper Big Pooh:

Video: D.Black’s Video For “Yesterday” Up For Top Spot On MTVu’s The Freshmen

Seattle emcee D.Black has been nominated in this week’s contest for MTV’u’s The Freshman 5 for his first video “Yesterday” off his sophomore album Ali’Yah. Every week, five new and upcoming artists are presented an opportunity to gain regular rotation on the MTVu channel, which is exclusively broadcasted to college campuses and gives artists an excellent shot at obtaining exposure.

Set underneath a freeway overpass (perhaps the road that separates heaven and hell?), the video depicts an epic chess game for D.Black’s soul. Light and dark versions of the emcee face off against each other, with supporters shrouding and encouraging each player. The video’s lesson is to allow yourself to leave things, especially negative things, in your past. He combines this message with smooth, flowing rhymes and a classic soul feel, set over warm production by B. Brown and D. Black himself.

Also, D.Black gives his two cents on the ever-growing Seattle hip-hop scene, and how working with Vitamin D was the most rewarding and eye opening experience of his musical journey thus far in a new viral video.

2010: Hip-Hop of a new Decade

What is there to be excited about in 2010? Well I have to say there’s plenty of noise coming from the Slaughterhouse group (well supergroup). In the past hip-hop supergroups have been nothing but significant flops, here’s looking at you ‘The Firm’. However this group consisting of some the great names of noughties Hip-Hop (Royce 5’9, Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, and Crooked I) have begun their quest to conquer hip-hop. Now they are following up their first album with Slaughterhouse 2.0, and I am certainly expecting great things from this album, with their ability to inter-play with one another with great confidence and all having great flows, I feel this foursome could break through this year.
Joe Budden is also releasing The Great Escape the continuation of his Padded Room series, and its final album. Having listened to Escape Route, especially considering this album is made from the cut of The Great Escape, I am almost certain The Great Escape is going to be something brilliant.
Nas also returns to our shelves this year, or the iTunes equivalent of shelves, with the long awaited collaboration with Damien Marley. If the noughties thought us anything it’s that Nas is never dead and gone (Stillmatic and Hip-Hop is Dead both being defining albums) and it also thought us that alternative is the business. Furthermore Nas is returning after his politically charged album Untitled, so this collaboration is definitely going to be cutting at the problems of America and possibly the world.
What’s more Aftermath are making a significant return to the scene with the promise of two albums from Dr. Dre and Eminem. However I am greeting this news with a certain degree of trepidation. Firstly I wasn’t the biggest fan of the pre-packaged, commercially driven Relapse; Eminem knows how to play towards his target audience, and if I have to hear another song about him lampooning his public persona I might kill myself. Dre’s album should also be met with some disdain; his production of late has been definitely been lacklustre, he has dropped off the face of the earth when it comes to significant underground collaborations and as a result probably has alienated some of his more noteworthy ghost-writers.
Outside of the main-names in the game I am certainly looking forward to more independent work: Jedi Mind Tricks, Madlib (two albums on the cards so far), DJ Green Latern and Styles P are finally releasing their album, and Comrega is returning to the scene too (one of my favourite underground returners from the 00s.)
So in summary, it’s going to be a decent year for hip-hop.