Dirty South Joe & Flufftronix - Luvstep 2

Let me introduce you to the best dubstep mix you've never heard. On Valentines Day 2010, producers Dirty South Joe & Flufftronix dropped their first Luvstep mix, and they've done it again this year. I haven't decided which one I like better yet, but I think I'm just going to pretend they're one long, continuous mix so I don't have too. Honestly, they could be the same mix; Dirty South Joe and Fluff did a great job of sticking to the same sort of tracks on this second mix. This is really melodic, chilled out dubstep. Everyone loves a good face melter once in awhile, but this is the dubstep that I really love.

Hit the jump for the tracklist and download.

Gold Panda - Marriage EP

UK producer Gold Panda dropped a new EP on Ghostly International beginning of this last month. The title track "Marriage" is a house-music get down viewed from a cruising altitude of 20,000 feet, and the stellar Star Slinger, Baths, Halls, and Forest Swords remixes filling out the rest of the album solidify the vibe of the EP while also expanding the overall context of the sound. One track viewed from five different angles, Star Slinger's bassy groove versus Bath's pastoral echoes versus Forest Sword's entire restructuring of the song with sung children's choir vocal samples. It's a fabulous body of music, and one that is definitely worth picking up on vinyl, if they ever get around to pressing it. Check out the Ghostly International store to pick up the digital release.

Gold Panda: Marriage EP by Gold Panda

Video!: Chris Brown - Real Hip Hop Shit

Chris Brown on a song called "Real Hip Hop Shit"? I'm intrigued. Chris Brown rapping on a song called "Real Hip Hop Shit"? And he goes in for the entire song, not just the half-rap, half-singing he usually does? Now I'm really intrigued. I don't think it's half bad. What about you guys?

DJ Cones - Latitude (Feat. Kanye West, Drake & Lupe Fiasco)

 

Can't tell you guys how much I like this record. I've been bumping it for a year or so now, and it's honestly one of the best mashups/remixes I've ever heard. A lush piano loop, great verses, and a bangin' chorus (albeit all of the lyrics are recycled, but I hadn't heard a couple of the verses before I got this) make this one a must-have addition for your iTunes. GET IT. NOW.

This is off DJ Cones first mixtape, Beatconector Presents Stethoscope Remix-Mixtape Vol.1 (back when he was called Beatconector. There's some great stuff on that mixtape, so hit the link and grab it.

Check out DJ Cones on Myspace, where you can find links to his YouTube page, and his newest mixtape, DJ Cones Stethoscope Vol.2 Remixtape.

DJ Cones - Latitude (Feat. Kanye West, Drake & Lupe Fiasco)

Beans

Brooklyn-based MC Beans is out of his fucking mind. This is hip-hop, i guess, but its more unexpected than anything else. Beans is the style master of his own style. His Cut Chemist-esque attack on the mic is unparalleled, and certainly interesting to listen to. His latest album "End it All" is out on Anticon records, and features a host of production contributors, with heads like Nobody, Four Tet, and Tobacco banging out beats.

"..the landscape of NY has changed w/ more things we don't need like more MC's or another Duane Reade scratch and sniff your whole aura is flora most rappers bore me rotten like a dead skunk orgy or a girl jus laying there these weak fucks is lame spit on her back and pretend I came ...."



And here's the DJ Nobody produced cut here...



Check it wreck it read it.

Freddie Gibbs - Something New (Feat. YP)

Yes, those are speakers. Oh, and yes, this is the car you should be bumping this next song in. Anything less, and the speakers really won't do it justice.

So do you guys remember that one time, where Dr. Dre came out with one of the best hip hop albums of all time? And remember that time when "Xxplosive" (and every other song on that record, for that matter) was a cut? Producer Million $ Mano does. Here, he pulls the same sample (Soul Mann & the Brothers cover of "Bumpy's Lament" by Isaac Hayes) that "Xxplosive" uses and flips it and makes it his own. Freddie Gibbs owns this beat, and his smooth flow just feels right over the soulful production.

"I take a blunt to the face / And then I turn up the bass"

Freddie Gibbs - Something New (Feat. YP)

Mixtape!: Chip Tha Ripper - Gift Raps

Brand spankin' new Chip that Rip for all you heads out there. The entire tape is produced by Chuck Inglish (except for a two tracks), and his signature deep bass pervades the entire thing. I think The Cleveland Show was better, but this is a solid effort. It dropped at midnight tonight (east coast time), and #GIFTRAPS is a trending topic on twitter right now, so expect big things from Chip and Chuck/The Cool Kids in 2011. They both have official albums dropping, and are getting mad hype from all over the place.

Chip Tha Ripper - Gift Raps (Mixtape)

Video!: Gorillaz - On Melancholy Hill (Live Lounge Radio)

Another live, acoustic version of a song I love for you guys. For the past term, "On Melancholy Hill" has been my all-weather jam. I play it when I'm getting ready to go out, when I'm upset, or while I'm cooking dinner; it fits any occasion. The acoustic version strips down the original, getting rid of the catchy synths and replaces them with a xylophone, or maybe glockenspiel... Shit, maybe I should have paid attention in 5th grade music class. The guitar sounds raw and Alborn's wistful vocals make this a beautiful version of an already top notch song.

Gorillaz - On Melancholy Hill (Live Acoustic Version)

BONUS: Here's a great house mix of the original song, done by AN21 & Max Vangelis. Extra bass and the original melody, plus some great additions make this one is a definite keeper.

Gorillaz - On Melancholy Hill (AN21 & Max Vangeli Remix)

Make sure to listen to/buy the original over on iTunes; it's been one of my favorite songs of the past year.

Raekwon - Molasses (Feat. Ghostface Killah & Rick Ross)

Brand new Chef, ladies and gents. Well, more like a couple days old Chef, but that's new god damn it. I can't stand how music has no longevity anymore, especially in the blogosphere. I digress, however, from my original point. This song is a cut. Smooth like... Molasses? Funny how that works. Rae is on his usual wordsmith game, and Ghostface kills it per usual. Rozay, also as usual, is nothing special.


Shaolin Vs. Wu-Tang coming March 8th!

Raekwon - Molasses (Feat. Ghostface Killah & Rick Ross)
*Removed by request

Soul'd Out Music Festival

2011 is the year of the music festival. Although the festival scene has been going strong for over a decade now, in the past few years, festivals have seen increasing numbers, more hype, and not just at established festivals;  new festivals have been starting all across the country.

Soul'd Out Festivalm in Portland, Oregon, is one of those new festivals. Its first year was 2010, and its lineup included Pretty Lights, Gil Scott-Heron, Steel Pulse, and a 7-10 other artists who could all be placed under a very broad category of "soul". With Lauryn Hill, Mos Def, Ice Cube, Rusko, and more playing this years festival, the lineup is way bigger and much better than last years. With a slightly not-so-average festival schedule, Soul'd Out follows the form of Musicfest Northwest (another Portland festival), in that Soul'd Out will holds its events over a longer period of time (2 weeks) and at multiple different venues across the city.

Get venue info, tickets, schedules and more at Soul'd Out Productions website: souldoutfestival.com

A sampling:

Down for Whatever - Ice Cube

Burkina Faso - Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad

Soldier On (Rusko's F'kin Seagull Remix) - The Temper Trap