MinneClassics #4: "De La Souls" by P.O.S.

Found some things I could relate with, I wore out the tape...

(P.O.S. by Dan Monick)

Well hello again, podcast fans! Welcome to the fourth installment of my short-running MinneClassics series!

Folks, last week marked the 10 year anniversary of the release of P.O.S.'s second full-length album Audition. To mark the occasion I thought I'd devote a few minutes to discussing one of my favorite tracks from this classic album.

 Like a lot of people, Audition was just that, a first look at the rapper P.O.S. and the Doomtree collective. It was an introduction to a world that had equal love for both hardcore punk and underground hip-hop and decided that there was no point separating the two. The album is full of highlights, from the aggression of opener "Half-Cocked Concepts," the anger of "The Kill In Me," the straight-banging "Stand Up (Let's Get Murdered)," to spot-on guest spots from Slug, Craig Finn, Greg Attonito & Mike Mictlan, the album more than meets the goal of opening the door to world of Doomtree (a door that, 10 years on, was quickly flooded with like-minded individuals).

However, looking back, "De La Souls" is still the moment when it all comes together. Over a simple beat and autobiographical rhymes, P.O.S. invites us all in by opening up and telling his story. In doing so, he's asking that we respond by telling our own stories. He's inviting everybody to join in not by becoming an anonymous face in a larger movement, but by reaffirming that a group of like-minded individuals is still a group of individuals, with their own hopes, dreams, goals, & disappointments.  He's knocking down whatever was left of the wall between performer and audience and extending a hand.

Anyway, give the show a listen to hear what I'm talking about. As always, Flatbasset Radio & these MinneClassics are free. Just click the Mixcloud player below to give it a listen.

MinneClassics #4: "De La Souls" by P.O.S. by Tcdroogsma on Mixcloud

Hard to believe it's been 10 years. Still a a classic.

Thanks for stopping by, everybody!

For more TCDroogsma be sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@TCDroogsma).  Previous episodes of Flatbasset Radio are archived on his Mixcloud page.  Stop by Flatbasset Radio's Facebook Page & give it a "Like" if you have the time.

Flatbasset Radio: Episode #69 (Rhymesayers 20th Anniversary Celebration)

You can be yourself and be a star...

Well hello again, podcast fans!  Welcome to a very special episode of Flatbasset Radio!

Folks, it's a big day here in beautiful Minneapolis. Rhymesayers Entertainment, pillar of the local music community and the national hip-hop world, is celebrating their 20th anniversary with a big ass show down at the Target Center.  It's a celebration, bitches!

As a tribute to all the hard work the label's done over the years, I decided to put together a show celebrating some of my absolute favorites RSE artists. It was a tough show to do, many great songs were left off, but that's a testament to the job they've done over the years.  RSE keeps their quality control on point.

So, in this week's show I talk a lot about the importance of the label for all kinds of reasons.  Rhymesayers isn't just about the music.  In addition to playing the jams I discuss the importance of Rhymesayers as a part of the community, an example of the spirit of independence that runs throughout the midwest, and a testament to the fact that hard work & a belief in the goal can go a long way. Even if you're not a hip-hop fan, it's indisputable that the label's success has provided a blueprint for independent businesses throughout the Twin Cities. It's provided a beacon in a city that prides itself on an independent streak that was burning before RSE existed and will continue to burn after it's gone. Rhymesayers Entertainment is both an institution itself an inextricable link in the chain of the Twin Cities history.

Of course, at its core, it's built on the jams.  Kick back and enjoy!

As always, Flatbasset Radio is completely free. Just click the Mixcloud player below and you're good to go.

Flatbasset Radio: Episode #69 (Rhymesayers 20th Anniversary Celebration) by Tcdroogsma on Mixcloud

01. P.O.S. - Let It Rattle

02. Freeway & Jake One - One Thing

03. Toki Wright - Devil's Advocate

04. MF Doom - Rap Snitch Knishes (w/Mr. Fantastik)

05. Aesop Rock - Cycles To Gehenna

06. BK-One - Love Like That (w/Aby Wolf)

07. I Self Devine - Sunshine

08. Brother Ali - 5 Line King

09. Soul Position - Priceless

10. Atmosphere - Smart Went Crazy

11. Eyedea & Abilities - Music Music









Thanks for listening!

For more TCDroogsma be sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@TCDroogsma).  Previous episodes of Flatbasset Radio are archived on his Mixcloud page.  Stop by Flatbasset Radio's Facebook Page & give it a "Like" if you have the time.

Album Of The Week: "Marbury" by Mike The Martyr

Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of January 19th-25th, 2014:

Mike The Martyr - Marbury

01. Marbury Intro
02. Players Of The Past
03. Nautica Van (w/Ali Vegas)
04. YSN
05. Dogg Pound
06. The Devils Plan (w/Joe Blow)
07. Karlton
08. Calendars (w/Muja Messiah & Termanology)
09. Build Clinton (w/Toki Wright)
10. Pager Codes

Flatbasset Radio's first hip-hop AOTW of 2015 comes from Twin Cities veteran Mike The Martyr.  As a semi-dedicated follower of the Twin Cities music scene I've heard Mike The Martyr's name about a thousand times over the years, but this is the first of his solo albums that I've spent any time with.

My curiosity was piqued a few months back when I spent a week with Manny Phesto's Southside Looking In back in August as an AOTW.  Mike The Martyr produced the entirety of that record and inspired me to write this:

"Mike The Martyr brings a sturdy set of beats that sound like they've been influenced equally by RZA & Kanye's early "chipmunk soul" sound.  In fact, the only real break in the beats are the interludes, otherwise Martyr continues to do his thing throughout without throwing in the token "slow song" or "banger."  It's just consistently excellent, good time beats."

Southside Looking In was definitely an album meant for summer spins and, in some ways, Marbury picks up on that same vibe.  Mike's flow is definitely more conversational than anything else, which suits his storytelling well.  Subject-wise, he sticks to such tried-and-true topics as how hard he works, how his crew is better than your crew, and the day-to-day struggle to get by.

Where Mike The Martyr's rapping really shines, however, is when he waxes nostalgic.  The easy highlights of Marbury are "Nautica Van" and "Build Clinton," both of which feature other rappers (which give a nice contrast to Mike's laid back tone) and which tell stories of the fun & innocence of growing up.



As you can hear above, "Nautica Van" is built around the childhood goal of, well, owning a Nautica van.  Mike & Ali Vegas trade verses like old friends who remember that dream like it was yesterday.



"Build Clinton" features local legend Toki Wright remembering what Minneapolis was like back before hip-hop & Target came to be the city's defining traits.  Here again, the excitement in Wright's voice plays nicely off of Mike The Martyr's matter-of-fact tone.

All of that being said, the real star of Marbury is yet another set of stellar productions.  Where I mentioned RZA & Kanye above, it's clear on this album that Mike's heart lies on the West Coast (a fact he makes crystal clear in his G-Funk homage "Dogg Pound").  Clearly a devotee of Dr. Dre's work as a producer, Mike puts his own Midwestern twist on the sound by scaling back the bass, thereby removing the warmth of California, and giving the individual instruments a cold, crisp feel that, intentionally or not, definitely reflects the feeling of Minnesota in January (give "Nautica Van" another listen, but this time just focus on the beat. You'll see just what I mean.).

Mike The Martyr's been a player in the Twin Cities scene for a long time now.  He's been aligned with the luminaries of Minnesota hip-hop forever.  While I have no idea if Marbury is going to be the album that finally causes the gate-keepers of Minneapolis to sit up and take notice, it won't be for lack of effort on his part.  Marbury is a thoroughly enjoyable album front-to-back and I definitely suggest you give a spin for yourself.

Marbury is available at Mike The Martyr's Bandcamp page as a "Name Your Price" download.  He's also having a Marbury release party February 14th at First Avenue, so, happy Valentine's Day on that one.

Album Of The Week: "TheStand4rd" by TheStand4rd

Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of December 1st-7th, 2014:

TheStand4rd - TheStand4rd

01. Binoculars
02. Stay
04. Simple Needs
05. Pretty
06. Vital Signs
07. Too Involved
08. Decisions
09. Tryna Fuck / No Reply
10. Weight
11. AsapRockyTypeBeat
12. Victims

First things first, let me apologize for posting this a day after the AOTW timeframe ended.  On the one hand, I'm very busy.  On the other hand, I needed an extra day to figure out just what the hell is going on with this record.

As you've probably read by now, TheStand4rd is made up of four up-and-coming St. Paulites: Bobby Raps, Allan Kingdom, & Spooky Black on the vocals with Psymun providing the beats.  Despite the fact that both Kingdom & Psymun have made appearances on this blog with AOTW posts, I still can't really wrap my mind around what's going on here.

Allan Kingdom has certainly seen his career take off since that City Pages article that declared him somebody who should be bigger.  According to the internet, Spooky Black is an "internet sensation," (though I'd never heard of him before this record, which is crazy, because I'm on the internet all the time).  And yet I came away from this album feeling like Psymun was the star of the show.

As I mentioned above, I've written about Psymun in the past and even played his collaborations with Chester Watson & K.Raydio on the podcast.  Psymun traffics is laid back, spaced out, beats that typically stand up brilliantly whether somebody's rapping over them or not.  From what I've gathered of his personality he's definitely a hip-hop fan (and making beats with the plan that somebody will rap on them), but he's certainly taking a different approach than just about anybody else out there.  I mean, you have to have some stones to put out hip-hop music that puts almost no emphasis on percussion.

Psymun's spaced-out beats are the perfect compliment for Kingdom, Spooky, & Bob.  As I mentioned in my write-up for Allan Kingdom's Future Memoirs, Kingdom's style seems to be the Upper Midwest's answer to the sing-song cadence coming from Atlanta (Young Thug) & Chicago (Chance The Rapper).  Unlike that album, however, the "Minnesota Nice" quality has been tuned down and these young egos are certainly up for a bit of indulgence in success.

Really, that's what I took away from TheStand4rd.  I've been following Twin Cities hip-hop for quite some time and the lineage that traces from Atmosphere, Kanser, & Heiruspecs take on traditional hip-hop to Doomtree's more skewed, wide open version seems to have led us here.  As far as I can tell, TheStand4rd at its core is four talented young men with a completely different idea of what "hip-hop" is supposed to sound like.  They put in plenty of work exploring these ideas as solo artists and, with this album, have combined their strengths to force the Twin Cities to sit up & take notice.  Like I said earlier, I'd be lying if I said I totally understood what was going on here, but if this album really is the opening salvo from the next generation in Twin Cities hip-hop then I think it's safe to say tat Minnesota's reputation for accessible, boundary-pushing hip-hop will remain intact for years to come.

To hear TheStand4rd for yourself take a minute and swing over to their Soundcloud page.

Album Of The Week: "Run The Jewels 2" by Run The Jewels

Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of November 3rd-9th:

Run The Jewels - Run The Jewels 2

01. Jeopardy
02. Oh My Darling Don't Cry
03. Blockbuster Night Part 1
04. Close Your Eyes (And Count To Fuck) (w/Zack De La Rocha)
05. All My Life
06. Lie Cheat Steal
07. Early (w/Boots)
08. All Due Respect (w/Travis Barker)
09. Love Again (Akinyele Back) (w/Gangsta Boo)
10. Crown (w/Diane Coffee)
11. Angel Duster

So I guess I'll throw my hat into the ring on this one.

Look, there's nothing I can say about Run The Jewels 2 that hasn't been covered by, almost literally, every other music website on the internet.  Stereogum had their profile of Killer Mike & El-P.  Pitchfork had theirs too.  Rave reviews have been written from the largest websites to the smallest blogs.  It's all been covered.

If, incredibly, this is the first you've read about Run The Jewels 2, here's the skinny.  El-P and Killer Mike teamed up a couple years ago for Run The Jewels and it was fucking legendary.  On the backs of two of their best solo albums (El-P's Cancer For Cure & Killer Mike's R.A.P. Music), the two teamed up for a tour, bonded, and decided it would be fun to release a shit-talking album together.  It worked out so well that, suddenly, Mike & El are having the peak years of their respective careers at the age of 39, certainly a first in the youth-oriented world of hip-hop.

RTJ2 picks up where RTJ left off.  The shit talking is still epic, however, the act has grown both lyrically and personnel-wise.  El-P & Killer Mike spend time on this album exploring their own troubled pasts, the state of the union, and the state of hip-hop with both smirks and fists firmly in tow.  As you can see form the track listing above, they weren't short on talented musicians eager to contribute to the group.

All things considered, RTJ & RTJ2 have been wild successes.

Now, let me digress just a bit.  I'd like to present you with a little anecdote from the other day.

I got to work the other day and a co-worker of mine says, "Hey man, have you heard that new Run The Jewels yet?"

"I have," I replied.  "It's my Album Of The Week on my blog."

"Nice."

A few hours later, we're chatting again.  I ask him, "Hey, didn't I try to get you to listen to El-P's stuff a while back?"

"I don't know.  Obviously it didn't really work.  Isn't he more of a producer?"

SCENE

Now, here's why I bring this little anecdote up.  I came to Run The Jewels (and R.A.P. Music) as an El-P junkie.  As such I've thoroughly enjoyed the Run The Jewels album and the subsequent widespread success El-P has found.

(And please, make no mistake, I don't wish El-P would stay an underground secret forever.  I'm genuinely thrilled that one of the most uniquely talented rapper/producers ever is finally getting his due.)

What concerns me is that a whole new audience of people is just finding out about El-P via Run The Jewels and, perhaps much like my co-worker, view him as "more of a producer."  Will those people go back through the catalog and discover Cancer For Cure, I'll Sleep When You're Dead, Fantastic Damage, & Funcrusher Plus?  Undoubtedly, yes, some of them will.  And that will be awesome.

But part of what made those albums so special (and make no mistake, they are some of the best albums of my lifetime, with ISWYD easily in the top five regardless of genre) is that they seemed to be singuluar, long-gestating dispatches from a man out of step with the world.  El-P obsessed over those records like a conspiracy theorist poring over newspaper clippings.  They stand as invaluable snapshots of the bizarre post-9/11/pre-Snowden days that we're just now emerging from. Now that he's finally getting the success he deserves, is that artist gone?  I mean, honestly, could El-P ever afford to take five years off between LP's again?  It seems unlikely and, more importantly, like a bad idea from both a relevancy & financial standpoint.  All of which is a shame since everything that's happened post-Snowden has proven that El-P wasn't crazy, but that he was actually the most sane man in the room.

I guess what I'm getting at is that it seems like that second act of El-P's career has come to an end and, from a very, very selfish perspective, that's a shame.  I'm know that El would much rather spend his forties making music with his friends and making money than hunkered down in Brooklyn sending out rattled, coded, 75 minute manifestos every five years, but those manifestos were fantastic, special albums.  Sad to see that chapter close.

If you'd like to check out Run The Jewels 2 it's available as a free download from the Run The Jewels website. Be sure to pick that up.  And be sure to listen to I'll Sleep When You're Dead.  The second half is mind-blowing.

Album Of The Week: "Field Notes" by Sims

Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of October 13th-19th, 2014:

Sims - Field Notes

01. L'Audace
02. Sims Jong Il
03. Uh Huh
04. Scope Or Claw
05. They Don't Work For Us
06. The Whale
07. This Is The Place

At this point you're probably all well familiar with Sims.  He's the socio-political voice of the Doomtree crew. He's also, relevantly, one of the most thoughtful MC's in the crew in the sense that he tends to take quite a bit of time in between releases.

Field Notes represents Sims first solo release since 2011's Bad Time Zoo and it's accompanying leftovers EP Wildlife.  Obviously he's been working within the Doomtree universe since then (most notably his star turn in Doomtree's full crew album No Kings).

So what's changed in the four years since we've heard from Sims?  Field Notes  represents addition by subtraction.  On his first two releases (Lights Out Paris & False Hopes 14), he found a balance between the personal, the boastful, and the vaguely political.  Bad Time Zoo continued this style, though he began phasing out some of the personal for a sharpened take on the political side.

As he grows older, it appears Sims has lost almost all interest in sharing his personal problems with his audience.  Field Notes, perhaps appropriately considering its title, is his most pointedly political record yet.  "L'Audace," "Uh Huh," & "They Don't Work For Us" take aim not only at society's ills, but at the perceived indifference of his audience to affect any real change toward solving them.  Lyrically, Sims is decidedly on point.  His arguments are no longer the grey-area complaints that dotted those early records.  He's angry and thoughtful on this EP, but more than anything, he's focused.  Like many of us easing out of the twilight of our youth, he's been around long enough to see the cycle played out repeatedly with a helping hand from American indifference.

He still takes time to talk up his own skill ("Sims Jong Il") and dip into his own psyche ("This Is The Place"), but the overall impression of Field Notes is that Sims is no longer concerned with matters of his heart as he is with matters of the same hands that he once claimed would, "take it brick by brick, fist over fist, with or without 'em."

To check out Field Notes for yourself, head over to Doomtree's Bandcamp page.

Flatbasset Radio's Most Played Albums: August '14

Here's a look at the 50 most played albums around Planet New Basset as summer wound down over August:

(Larger picture indicates more plays)

01. Manny Phesto - Southside Looking In (96 plays)

02. Dee Dee Mayo - Dee Dee Mayo Sweats It Out (51 plays)

03. Franz Diego - Equinox (40 plays)

04.  New Order - Singles (33 plays)

05. All - Greatest Hits? (32 plays)

06. Lil' Wayne - The Dedication 2 (25 plays)

06. De La Soul - 3 Feet High And Rising (24 plays)

07. Pete Doherty - Grace/Wastelands (24 plays)

08. Fountains Of Wayne - Fountains Of Wayne (24 plays)

09. Kool A.D. - Word OK (22 plays)

10. Hot Hot Heat - Make Up The Breakdown (20 plays)

11. Electric Light Orchestra - All Over The World: The Very Best Of Electric Light Orchestra (20 plays)

12. Wilco - Being There (19 plays)

13. Jaylib - Champion Sound (18 plays)

14. H2O - Thicker Than Water (18 plays)

15. Young Jeezy - The Recession (18 plays)

16. Roots Manuva - Run Come Save Me (18 plays)

17. R.E.M. - In Time: The Best Of R.E.M. (16 plays)

18. Dizzee Rascal - Boy In Da Corner (15 plays)

19. Bruce Springsteen - The Rising (15 plays)

20. MF Doom - MM Food (15 plays)

21. Hymie's Basement - Hymie's Basement (15 plays)

22. Golden Smog - Another Fine Day (15 plays)

23. Sparta - Porcelain (14 plays)

24. Deer Tick - War Elephant (14 plays)

25. The Lemonheads - Come On Feel... (14 plays)

26. The Suburbs - Chemistry Set: Songs Of The Suburbs 1977-1987 (14 plays)

27. Fountains Of Wayne - Utopia Parkway (14 plays)

28. Foo Fighters - The Colour And The Shape (13 plays)

29. R.E.M. - Eponymous (13 plays)

30. The Promise Ring - Nothing Feels Good (13 plays)

31. MK Ultra - MK Ultra (13 plays)

32. The Replacements - All Shook Down (13 plays)

33. A-Plus - Think Tank (13 plays)

34. Neutral Milk Hotel - In The Aeroplane Over The Sea (12 plays)

35. The Promise Ring - Wood/Water (12 plays)

36. Supergrass - In It For The Money (12 plays)

37. Semisonic - Feeling Strangely Fine (12 plays)

38. Sloan - Smeared (12 plays)

39. Wolf Parade - Apologies To The Queen Mary (12 plays)

40. Frankie Teardrop - Raiders (12 plays)

41. The Cribs - Ignore The Ignorant (12 plays)

42. Queens Of The Stone Age (11 plays)

43. At The Drive-In - In/Casino/Out (11 plays)

44. Brand New - Deja Entendu (11 plays)

45. Steely Dan - Can't Buy A Thrill (11 plays)

46. Gin Blossoms - New Miserable Experience (11 plays)

47. Modest Mouse - Baron Von Bullshit Rides Again(11 plays)

48. Portishead - Dummy (11 plays)

49. Paper Tiger - Made Like Us (11 plays)

50. Dark Time Sunshine - Cornucopia (11 plays)

All info via my Last.fm account. Stop by to keep track of everything we're listening to here at Planet New Basset.

Photo via Don't Drink And Root

Album Of The Week: August 25th-31st, 2014

Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of August 25th-31st, 2014:

Franz Diego - Equinox

01. Neo-Archaic
02. Purple City Pioneers (PCP)
03. New Era
04. We Feel
05. Zebra Party

For the second week in a row here at Flatbasset Radio I'm dipping into the Twin Cities hip-hop scene.  Unlike spending last week with relative newcomer Manny Phesto I spent this week with Twin Cities veteran Franz Diego's latest EP Equinox.

If you've done even the minimum amount of digging below the surface of the Twin Cities' hip-hop scene you've inevitably stumbled onto Franz Diego in some capacity or another.  He's a member of scene veterans Illuminous 3, host of the Turnt Up! dance party at Honey, frequent collaborator with fellow Twin Cities rappers, and all-in-all man about town.  If you care at all about the hip-hop scene he's basically inescapable (which I mean as a compliment).

The Equinox EP came out back in the first week of June, but I'm finally spending a week with it.  That actually worked out well since the album is meant to be heard in the summer and, considering the mild temps we've seen this summer, listening to it during a week when we broke 90 made sense.

Producer Xanja constructed the beats for the record, keeping the songs moving without attempting to make a "banger" or resorting to exhausted faux-trap sound (with the saxophone on "New Era" the highlight of his production).  He does a brilliant job of giving the album enough space to breathe that Diego is able to find the style he wants to use rather than having the beat dictate the flow.



To that end, Equinox features something that I'm really growing to love as a I get older: the perspective of older rappers.  While Franz Diego's not "old" by any definition of the word, he's been in Minneapolis long enough and seen enough things to know what's worth worrying about and what isn't.  Where Manny Phesto's album carried a youth-aided carefree air, Equinox is carefree because Diego's wise enough to know not to worry about things he can't change.  He spends the majority of the record representing his hometown and the scene that's given him a voice.  I suppose there's only so much that can be said over (and about) a sixteen minute long EP, and thankfully Diego doesn't try to force five separate ideas into the mix.  The goal of Equinox seems to be to have a good time and that's exactly what Franz Diego & Xanja delivered.

If you'd like to let the album soundtrack this last week off August for yourself, head over to Franz Diego's Bandcap page.  Equinox is available as a "Name Your Price" download.

Album Of The Week: July 21st-27th, 2014

Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of July 21st-27th, 2014:

Allan Kingdom - Future Memoirs

01. Souls
02. Moderation
03. Wavey (w/Spooky Black)
04. Evergreens
05. Famines
06. Imposters
07. Positive
08. Etiquette
09. Work Me Over
10. Context
11. Damn
12. Observe

If you've been following the Twin Cities hip-hop scene over the last year there's no doubt you've heard Allan Kingdom's name.  Going back to his previous album (and previous AOTW appearance) Talk To Strangers, Kingdom's been on the fast track to prominence in a scene that's been embracing plenty of new blood lately.

Future Memoirs picks up where Kingdom left off on Talk To Strangers.  He's still rapping over murky, keyboard heavy beats in a sing-song style that shares the same stage with Young Thug & Chance The Rapper.  The major difference is that, where Young Thug is the extension of the Andre 3000/Trap world of his native Atlanta and Chance sings to find his own sunshine in Chicago's notoriously cold hip-hop scene, Kingdom brings an natural Minnesota style to his songs.  He doesn't necessarily aim too high in his songs.  Instead he sticks to the small things in life.  He appreciates a good woman.  He debates going back to school.  He's concerned about the racial issues in his city while shouting it out at the same time.  When it comes down to it, Kingdom's very much an everyman despite his age.  He's hoping for the best while making sure that the worst doesn't come.

Future Memoirs is a fine record considering it's the first album Kingdom's put out that came with any expectations.  All things considered, it feels like a stepping stone.  I don't know what Kingdom's got planned after this one, but I believe he's yet to make his big move.  Until then, head over to his Bandcamp page and grab both Talk To Strangers & Future Memoirs.  Enjoy the journey now and it'll make that big moment all the more sweeter when it comes.

Album Of The Week: May12th-18th, 2014

Flatbasset Radio's Album Of The Week for the week of May 12th-18th, 2014:

Atmosphere - Southsiders

01. Camera Thief
02. Arthur's Song
03. The World Might Not Live Through The Night
04. Star Shaped Heart
05. I Love You Like A Brother
06. Southsiders
07. Bitter
08. Mrs. Interpret
09. Fortunate
10. Kanye West
11. We Ain't Gonna Die Today
12. My Lady Got Two Men
13. Flicker
14. January On Lake Street
15. Let Me Know That You Know What You Want Now

I shouldn't have to say too much about this one.  If you live in the Twin Cities you're probably well aware of this album's existence.  For what it's worth, however, it seems like this album has come with the least amount of any Atmosphere record since the boys finally broke through with Seven's Travels.  Maybe I just haven't noticed.

I won't get into too many specifics about this one since I plan on crafting a full review for Newest Industry at some point in the next week.  After a couple listens I'm really digging it.  Admittedly, I wasn't a fan of the "full band" direction" Atmosphere embraced on Blood Makes The Blade Holy & The Family Sign.  As such, my expectations for this one were pretty low.  Fortunately, it seems like they've figured out a much smoother way to integrate the live band sounds with Ant beats.  Again, after a few spins I'm really digging it.  We'll talk more about this one later.

Album Of The Week: April 28th-May 4th, 2014

My Album Of The Week for the week off April 28th-May 4th, 2014:

MaLLy - The Colors Of Black

01. Child Of America
02. Two World
03. Innervisions
04. City Of Fear (w/Rapper Hooks)
05. Hold My Tongue (w/Slug & Rapper Hooks)
06. Machine Gun
07. Not Never...
08. All Of My Life (Part 2) (w/K.Raydio)
09. Everything Else But Me
10. One Million
11. A Long Day
12. Crimson
13. Grow This Way
14. To The Future
15. The Colors Of Black

This is the third time that I've had a MaLLy record as my Album Of The Week.  Back before I started writing up blog posts about my AOTW's I spent a week with MaLLy's breakout album The Last Great.... Then, back in November, I spent a week with Strange Rhythm, MaLLy's first collaboration with producer Last Word.  Now here we are in early spring and MaLLy's & Last Word are back with their first full-length collaboration.

The Last Great... was produced by The Sundance Kid and found MaLLy in a happier place.  He hadn't yet broke through here in the Twin Cities and, as such, that record found him enjoying the little things in life, staying upbeat among the day to day drudgery of being a hard working MC.

Strange Rhythm was only 8 songs, but it found MaLLy taking a different approach.  Whether it was his new found success or Last Word's more aggressive beats, MaLLy was an angrier man.  He spent most of that record celebrating his place in the the Twin Cities scene with a middle finger in the air.  It was a victory lap of sorts, but MaLLy seemed hellbent on letting anybody who had ever doubted him know just how far he had come.

Which brings us to The Colors Of Black.  As you can probably guess from the title, race plays a huge role in this record.  Last Word's beats remain dark & angry, which feeds MaLLy's new sense of discontent.  While he's no longer as consumed with sticking it to doubters, MaLLy's raps are now concerned with the experience of being a black man in America.  The injustices that he sees either as a third party or through his personal experience leave him both angry & exhausted.  With success, it seems, MaLLy no longer needs to find his peace of mind in the day to day successes of making songs and staying out of trouble.  With those battles squarely in the rear view mirror, he's turned his attention to the problems facing society at large, and he's none too happy with the lack of answers.

The Colors Of Black is the logical extension of MaLLy the artist, but more importantly, it's the logical extension of MaLLy the man.  It seems MaLLy's days of "windows down, radio up" songs have come to an end.  In it's place we have a man fuming at the world around him.

If you're interested in checking out the album I sincerely suggest you head over to Fifth Element and pick up a hard copy of the record.  It contains three bonus tracks ("Grow This Way," "To The Future," & "The Colors Of Black") that are unavailable on the download.  Plus, it's an excuse to take a walk & support Fifth Element.  That's a win/win.

Album Of The Week: Feruary 17th-23rd, 2014

My Album Of The Week for the week of February 17th-23rd, 2014:

Moonlight Grammar - Lies, Cages, & Sharks

01. Everything's A Remix
02. Falling Apart/Coming Together
03. Lies, Cages, And Sharks (w/Whitney Chase)
04. Monitors (w/Whitney Chase & RAPPERHOOKS)
05. Holler At Sheboygan (w/Daniel Heavens & Rotten Ron)
06. BBQFU
07. Absolutely Clueless
08. Zach Brafghanistan
09. The Kit. The March. The Rubble.
10. 88 Keys
11. Severe Shit Storm (w/ECID)
12. By Any Means (Remix)
13. Spotlights (w/Ashley Gold)

Here's the short list of things I know about Moonlight Grammar:

01. He's a transplant from Michigan's Upper Penninsula
02. He has a fantastic name.

That's pretty much it.  I came across this one when Sims from Doomtree retweeted a treat from ECID referencing the album.  That's how you find out about music in 2014.

On first listen, Lies, Cages, & Sharks puts a Twin Cities spin on the the Strange Famous sound.  I'm certain Moonlight Grammar has had his compared to Sage Francis & B. Dolan more times than he'd like, but it's impossible not to notice the similarities.  Still, the beats are absolute monsters and spending a week with Moonlight Grammar's SFR-meets-MPLS sound will likely be a rewarding week.

Lies, Cages, & Sharks is available as a "Name Your Price" download over at Moonlight Grammar's Bandcamp page.  Give it a spin.

Album Of The Week: February 3rd-9th, 2014

My Album Of The Week for the week of February 3rd-February 9th, 2014:

Psymun - Heartsick

01. myintroheyguys
02. Fuck Bush
03. Banani
04. Dead Albatross (w/Chester Watson)
05. Tape Op
06. Long Ride Home On A Painted Path In The Underground Tunnels (R.I.P. Damacha)
07. Amya
08. King Krule - Neptune Estate (Psymun Remix)
09. Psymun & K.Raydio - Jupiter

Psymun is a producer from Minneapolis whose name just keeps getting bigger and bigger.  After spending the last couple of weeks with The Cloak Ox & Marijuana Deathsquads as my AOTW, I'm sincerely looking forward to spending this week with his beat tape Heartsick.

In a roundabout way I found out about Psymun via Minneapolis rapper MaLLy.  MaLLy got a lot of play out of the excellent single "Good One" from his The Last Great... album.  That song featured K.Raydio (who was new to me at the time) on the hook.  I started looking into her work and found that she and Psymun were working on a full-length album together after finding chemistry on their single "Jupiter" (which, hopefully, you heard on Flatbasset Radio: Episode #24).

Flatbasset Radio: Episode #24 by Tcdroogsma on Mixcloud

Anyway, this beat tape was designed as a stop-gap release between the "Jupiter" single and their collaborative LP LucidDreamingSkylines.  That album came out last December, but I feel like it will be well worth it to spend a week with Heartsick before digging into that album (especially during what will likely be another bitterly cold week).

The album is still available as a "Name Your Price" download over on Psymun's Bandcamp page.  Go give it a listen.

Album Of The Week: December 16-22, 2013

My Album Of The Week for the week of December 16th-22nd, 2013:

Homeless & The Van Gobots - Twenty-Dirt

It's hip-hop for the second week in a row here on the Flatbasset AOTW.  The similarity between Allan Kingdom's Talk To Strangers and this week's Twenty-Dirt is limited strictly to genre defenition.

Homeless (@HomelessRyanK) first came to my attention in August of 2012, when his single "Get Gone" (a collaboration with K.Raydio) turned up on The Current's Song Of The Day podcast (which MinneSarah & I reviewed way back in the second edition of Songs Of The Week.  We were so young & naive).

Anyway, that track had Big Cats! on the beat and cast Homeless as an angry, frustrated, but ultimately hopeful young man.  Twenty-Dirt takes those same character traits, but stretches them a bit.  Homeless is still frustrated, but some of that anger has been replaced with the good humor to recognize which fights are worth fighting.  Obviously it's not totally fair to compare a whole album to a lone single, but the lighter moments on Twenty-Dirt certainly give the album a nice balance, letting the listener know that, despite all the problems that surround him, Homeless is still able to enjoy the simple things in life.

In place of a producer on Twenty-Dirt, Homeless collaborated with The Van Gobots (@TheVanGobots).  I'd be lying if I said I was super-familiar with their work prior to Twenty-Dirt, but that may be for the best in this instance.  The band works up a nice post-punk racket for Homeless' rhymes.  Because I'm not familiar with their other work, it's possible for me to listen to these songs without wondering what they would have become without the restraint of the tracks being a canvas rather than the stand-alone art.  It's certainly enough to make me want to check out more of their work.

If you're interested in checking it out for yourself Twenty-Dirt is available as a name-your-price download on Bandcamp.  They'll be playing an album release show on December 21st at Cause.

Album Of The Week: December 9-15, 2013

My Album Of The Week for the week of December 9th-15th, 2013

Allan Kingdom - Talk To Strangers

Talk To Strangers is another album that I downloaded after checking out Erik Thompson's excellent 10 Twin Cities Acts Who Deserve To Be Famous column.  Though, I should note that this wasn't the first time I'd come across Allan Kingdom's name, it was the first time it was the first time I said, "Oh yeah, I gotta check that out."  Thanks to Erik Thompson (or his editors) for putting the link to Kingdom's Bandcamp page in the column.

As such, click on Allan Kingdom's Bandcamp to check out Talk To Strangers for yourself at whatever price you see fit.

I'm excited to spend the week with Talk To Strangers because, frankly, I need to hear more new voices in the Twin Cities hip-hop community (and I say that with all the love possible for the old voices I've been listening to for years).


After a couple of spins, Talk To Strangers makes for an interesting listen because Kingdom doesn't seem to be straining himself to fit in with the hipster set, which is refreshing, but he's also not presenting any sort of myth-building version of himself.  Honestly, he just sounds like a dude who's rapping over some laid back beats because it's fun to just kick back and rap over some laid back beats.  Definitely a welcome change of pace.

If you're interested in checking Kingdom out in person, he's part of a lengthy list of artists playing First Avenue on Saturday, February 15th for the release of the 5th The Best Love Is Free compilation.  Gotta believe that's a show worth checking out.

Album Of The Week: November 11-17, 2013

My Album Of The Week for the week of November 11th-17th, 2013:

MaLLy - Strange Rhythm

After a few years of bubbling underground MaLLy finally staked his claim in the Twin Cities hip-hop scene with last year's The Last Great, a collaboration with producer The Sundance Kid.  His profile in Minneapolis has only grown since then.  He's released a couple of songs since then, but Strange Rhythm is his highly anticipated official follow up.

Hopefully most of you remember that I opened Flatbasset Radio: Episode #21 with "Dead Art Painting," the first track off Strange Rhythm.  That track is indicative of the project as a whole, with Last Word (of the Get Cryphy crew) providing a more sparse canvas than The Sundance Kid.  Strange Rhythm is an intriguing EP for two reasons:  First, MaLLy is no longer rapping from the position of "underdog," a stance that shines through somewhat angrily on tracks like "Guillotine" and "Every Promise."  Second, if I'm not mistaken, Strange Rhythm is the first project Last Word has produced in its entirety.

I'm not going to write much more about this one since I haven't spent much time with it yet.  I'm definitely looking forward to spending the week with it.  It's available on MaLLy's Bandcamp site and I definitely recommend that you give it a spin.