St. Louis lyricist Rockwell Knuckles has caught national attention with his aggressive tracks and vocal intensity. He's blowing up the hip-hop scene by blurring the line between singing and rapping. "Play Catch" is one playfully catchy tune. Keep your ears perked for new work from Rocky.
http://yesyesyall.org/files/music/Rockwell_Knuckles_-_Play_Catch.mp3
Oddisee, a D.C. based MC / producer recently released a collection of some original beats recorded live in studio. Rock Creek Park is a favorite place of Oddisee’s where he used to ride his bike as a kid. Which is no surprise why the beats sound so organic and lush, like the park. This mixtape of sorts has been a beat retreat for my ears lately and I simply had to share my favorite track “Mattered Much” which has a Stereolab vibe to it. Do yourself, and Oddisee a favor, and head over to the bandcamp page and purchse the entire joint for $8. Well worth the money.
Blessy is an alias of Mad Buddy, one half of the Tasters duo from Palermo, Sicily, one of the most productive hip hop groups in Italy.
He's started producing in 2008 and has been since trying to expand the limits of his genre, having been influenced by the hip-hop/electronic offshoot scene and artists like J Dilla, Pete Rock and the Detroit Hip-Hop scene. He's been making both instrumental music and beats for other artists. A few months ago he came in third place at the Tokyo Dawn Records contest for the remix of Amalia's 'All the funk that I Need'.
His first EP 'Outtake$' serves as a prequel to the 'Limiter' EP, due in September, on LuckyBeard Records.
'Outtake$' is a collection of beats that didn't make the cut for the official EP simply because of their more classic form. Grab it for free from his bandcamp page.
http://yesyesyall.org/files/music/blessymusic_-_Outtake_-_04_Whoopi.mp3
I have been on a Cali kick lately when it comes to beat makers. From FlyLo to Salva, Teebs to the always classic Madlib, Cali is THE place to be if you are looking for next level head nodding bangers. One beat maker that is flying a bit lower on the radar is B.Lewis, a San Jose resident and part of the group Alora. Rumor has it that he has only been making beats for a little over a year. Seems like he picked it up pretty damn quick.
Tight Mike's Bobbin&Weavin is both ecclectic and astral in sound. Mike pulls off the additions of tiny bleep-bloop-blips that he sprinkles over fairly finished tracks. Those additions accentuate the solid melodies and help tie each track transition together. A solid beat tape that's worth throwing on your iPod and further more it's $free.99. Oh, and I don't remember where I came across this nice little remix Tight Mike cooked up of Ciara's Goodies but it's on point and on rotation...Heavy Rotation. Enjoy it. Download it. Listen to it over and over.
F&^%ing Massssssive. Put your Sun shields on, Ear plugs in, and strap your helmet on. This EP by Bassnectar ( very appropriate name yea? ) nearly blows my speakers each and every time it comes on. Wildstyle, style.
Can't help it that I came across this seriously dope remix of MJ's "Can't Help It" by Cuthead. Haven't heard much else from this cat other than the City Slicker free release which has a few bangers for true beat heads. Check the links below for more.
City Slicker Download Available Here
http://yesyesyall.org/files/music/20_Can_t_help_it_Cuthead_s_wonkyjackson_tribute_RMX.mp3
It's been a minute since Mux Mool has taken over my headphones. We have mentioned him a few times here on YYY. This time we have the Drums EP 2. It can be downloaded for free, or with the option to donate some cash. Please take the later option, support dope music!
What Mux Mool has to say about the release:
I made the first Drum EP in 2007. At that time I wasn't sure if I was going to continue making beats at all. I had only released one song, and despite how well "Lost and Found" had done, I just wasn't sure if this was the path I was going on. A good friend of mine, Medium Zach from Big Quarters suggested I challenge myself to make one beat every day for a week. I took him up on his challenge and did just that. 7 lo fi hip hop beats.
In 2010 I found myself in a similar funk, only this time I was traveling quite a bit. I decided that I wanted to challenge myself again. This time, I couldn't really do 7 songs in 7 days, and I wanted to improve in quality from the songs on the first Drum EP, but stay true to the nature of beat-making challenges. So, this EP is all songs I made while on a plane.
I don't know how this was made on a plane. I can hardly open my laptop on a plane, let alone make a record. Impressive. This track is called The Hundred Dollar Beat, hit the play button!
http://yesyesyall.org/files/music/4_The_Hundred_Dollar_Beat.mp3