The Tape

Change my pitch up, smack my bitch up
Change my pitch up, smack my bitch up
Change my pitch up, smack my bitch up

So simple, yet so elegant.

Everyone’s favorite band in the world, The Prodigy have just released their first single in god knows how long. The British boys are most famous for their highly misogynistic hit, entitled “Smack My Bitch Up.” While “Smack My Bitch Up” (see lyrics above) is an undeniable classic, “Invaders Must Die” has me very excited for whatever The Prodigy decide to release next. Yes, a robotic voice screaming “Invaders Must Die” over blaring generic electro beats gets me very excited… Deal with it. Enjoy the single below!

The Prodigy- Invaders Must Die

Oh! (Oh So Spectacular) makes music exciting, creative, original music. That can be said about a lot of artists, but once you hear Oh! I am willing to bet you haven’t heard much music like it. Somewhere in between Outkast, Lupe Fiasco, and N.E.R.D. (Pharrell, specifically) lands Oh!. He has these interesting, intelligent stories just like Lupe, the genre defying music that Big Boi and Andre 3000 executed so well, and catchy choruses, sung with a nice voice (no auto-tune thank god), just like Pharrell. If you haven’t heard of him yet, I’m sure you will in the very near future. Here are a few of my favorites from his ep, located below… Enjoy!

Oh!- Venus (Feat. Paris Runway)

Oh!- So Many Windows (Feat. Esso & Nero)

Oh!- Love (Feat. Paris Runway)

Oh!- Footprints

Born in Russia, raised in the Ukraine, residing in Toronto, Dmitry Kichenko aka IMISSMYJUNO makes ridiculous, operatic, distorted battle cries. Or at least that’s what this remix sounds like which is his only work to this date. If Soulwax and Metal on Metal took acid together and had an all night rooftop jam session, excerpts might sound like this. It’s bleepy, and quirky, and distorted, and anthemic and it’s really cool to hear some lively electronic music that doesn’t just drop a 4/4 kick and put a bassline over it. I’m excited to hear what this guy can do, check him out and check out the Franz Ferdinand remix contest (if you do that stuff).

Franz Ferdinand – Ulysses (IMISSMYJUNO Remix)

Not a lot in hip-hop happened this week, so I have four songs and a video for you all… Enjoy!

Kanye West on the Conan O’Brien Show

This song sucks without Lupe saving it at the end.
Chris Brown- Forever (Remix Feat. Lil’ Wayne and Lupe Fiasco)

RZA- Drama (Spoolwork Remix)

B.O.B.- Middle Of The Day

Kanye West- Street Lights (Max Justus Remix)

Some describe Kanye West as a genius. An absolutely brilliant man who puts everything he has into each and every one of his songs. Others describe Mr. West as an egocentric ass hole who spends more time talking shit then he does making music. However you describe Kanye West, you have to admit one thing… The man is creative. From his ridiculously upscale, theatrical, Glow In The Dark Tour, to his latest venture, which is capturing the concept of an auto-tuned record. There is only one artist who has broken into the mainstream, while never using their actual voice on records. He goes by the name T-Pain, and most people think he’s a joke. So why did Kanye West decide to make a whole album auto-tuned, when he has had so much success rapping instead of singing like a robot? I personally believe that Kanye feels like he is too big for hip-hop. He is such a superstar, that he has to break away from hip-hop and turn into a pop star, or even a megastar. I personally don’t get this, because I consider Kanye West to be one of the most acclaimed, popular rappers in the world today. So I’m just wondering why he would erase any piece of amazing work he’s created in the past, by scarring his resume with this album. Kanye West is a rapper, not a pop artist.

The album starts off with Kanye melodramatically whining about his heartbreak. The auto-tune makes him sound whiny, even if his intention is anger or hate. The beat for the opening track, “Say You Will” sounds like a robot porno in which one robot has to dramatically leave forever, and cause heartbreak to both involved in the relationship. I feel awful criticizing his work, because this whole album is about his fiancee calling off their marriage, and his beloved mother dying. I just feel like if he were to rap this entire album, it wouldn’t be considered such a joke by a large portion of music critics.The auto-tune seemed to sap all creativity that Kanye had. My personal favorite, “Welcome To Heartbreak” is the next track. This song features a great, catchy chorus, by Kid Cudi. That alone is the only reason I enjoy this song. Kanye is trying to get sympathy from his audience, but I just feel like it’s a joke because of the auto-tune. He says “My friends showed me pictures of their kids, and all I could show was pictures of my crib.” That is a really, really sad line, but I can’t take it seriously. I sort of just laugh when I hear it, because the auto-tune has diminished any emotion that may occur from this song otherwise. Kanye sings (not raps) over a beat that came straight out of an anticlimactic movie chase. It seems that all these songs can be described as over dramatic, or anticlimactic.

I’m not going to talk about the songs that were leaked, because you all know how I feel about those. Another song I enjoy (besides the auto-tune) is “Street Lights.” People seem to enjoy this song, but I still can’t get over the auto-tune. Kanye is in a difficult position. The idea behind hip-hop is lyrics and the vocalist, and I can’t drown that out with this album, because I consider Kanye a hip-hop artist. I just can’t get over the fact that he’s using a machine to hide his perfectly pleasant rapping voice. Anyways, “Street Lights” sounds like a hit to me. It features a touching, building beat, and a timid, gentle voice. It has some nice backup vocals, reassuring Kanye’s voice, but it all goes to shit in the last 15 seconds when he puts some weird effect on his voice, on top of the auto-tune.

Kanye said that this was the most “gangster” album of the year. That is probably the most incorrect thing I’ve heard in a long time. Gangster rap, to me at least is tough, rebellious, and not afraid to say whatever the hell you want. 808′s & Heartbreaks is an ode to commercial radio, and timid music. So many people are saying that Kanye is so brave for making this album, but in all actuality he is really quite the opposite. Kanye made a safe album, because he’s afraid of failure. I imagine being the biggest star in the world can do that to you, but he has to realize what got him to be the biggest star in the first place.

Don’t get me wrong, Kanye West made three absolutely fantastic albums, and I will continue to love and support those three albums, but this is bullshit. I saw him on Conan O’Brien last night, and he said he used the auto-tune because he considered it “art.” Anyone defending Kanye answer me this question: Do you consider T-Pain an artist, or do you consider him a commercial radio god, feasting off ringtone checks and Billboard chart topping singles? How is Kanye West an artist when he uses the auto-tune, but T-Pain can be called a joke for essentially doing the same thing?

Here’s the last thing I’m going to say… I’ve been extremely harsh on Kanye for his latest work, but I feel like I have a right to be. People are saying he’s “experimenting.” I think he has the success to experiment and make an album for himself, but experiment with something interesting. It’s not experimentation if someone else has already conquered and beat the concept to death.

P.S. If you have a different opinion, I’d love to hear your comment… But if you’re just going to call me stupid or an asshole, please don’t leave a comment.

Kanye West- Welcome To Heartbreak (Feat. Kid Cudi)

Kanye West- Street Lights

After much delay, I’m back with #12 of my 20 favorite hip-hop albums ever.

As some of you may know by now, I’m in the process of counting down my 20 favorite hip-hop albums of all time. Kid Cudi’s A Kid Named Cudi came in at #13. Remember that I grew up on late 90’s and early 00’s music, so my hip-hop views are probably a lot more modern than a lot of “old school” hip-hop fans.

Coming in at #12, we have Saul Williams self titled albums. Saul Williams is one of my favorite musicians. I consider him a poet, as opposed to a musician, although he does make some amazing music. I prefer this album over his newest release, The Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust, even though the title of that album is amazing. He is also a great live act, and has a passion to make make the world a better place for music.

We start at the very first track, “Talk To Strangers.” This song really sets the tone for the album. It’s him speaking over a haunting piano line, and once in a while an opera-esque voice kicks in. This song is used to show the audience that Saul is a poet, not a rapper or an MC.

Highlight of the song:
And I ain’t got proper diction for the makings of a thug
Though I grew up in the ghetto and my niggas all sold drugs
And though that may validate me for a spot on MTV
Or get me all the airplay that my bank account would need

Saul Williams- Talk To Strangers

We then go straight to the second track, a hard rocking song entitled “Grippo.” It features a biting guitar line and heavy drums. The chorus features Saul screaming “I wanna show you what the stars are made of, I wanna show you the stars.” Some may be attracted to the rawness of his voice, but I find it a nice change from most music.

Highlight of the song:
I gave hip-hop to white boys when nobody was looking
Found it locked in a basement when they gentrified Brooklyn
Left a list of instructions, MPC and a mic
My sci-fi library and utensils to write
Right or wrong,
I think hip-hop is where it belongs
Where it comes from one is but son, we wrote them songs
It was a ploy
Got fools tied up with mechanized toys
We are beings to breath, beyond the beings of boys

Saul Williams- Grippo

Skip a track and we arrive at “Act III Scene 2″, featuring Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against the Machine. You can really hear the Rage influence in this song, as Zack screams lyrics over a hard rocking beat, and Saul attacks anything in his way using lyrics alone. This song has a really angry vibe to it. I guess that comes with all songs featuring a Rage Against the Machine member, but I can just imagine them throwing shit across the room while they were recording this.

Highlight of the song:
A machete in the heady, Hutu, Tutsi, Leone
An Afghani in a shanty, doodle dandy yank on
An Iraqi in Gap khaki, Coca Coma come on
Be ye bishop or pawn
In the streets or the lawn
You should know that these example could go on and on and
What since does it make to keep your ears to the street
As long as oils in the soil, truth is never concrete
So we dare to represent those with the barest of feet

Saul Williams- Act III Scene 2 (Shakespeare)

We go directly to the next song, which is probably the most popular song on the album, and entitled “List Of Demands (Reparations). There is an obvious theme to the beats of this album, and that theme is heavy and rocking. Almost every single song on this album has a beat that portrays a rock album, but then Saul comes in and rhymes these fantastic lyrics, and you realize this is hip-hop. You might recognize this song from a Nike commercial.

Highlight of the song:
I wrote a song for you today while I was sitting in my room
I jumped up on my bed today and played it on a broom
I didn’t think that it would be a song that you would hear
but when I played it in my head, I made you reappear
I wrote a video for it and I acted out each part
Then I took your picture out and taped it to my heart. I’ve taped you to my heart
Dear girl, I’ve taped you to my heart
And if you pull away from me you’ll tear my life apart..

Saul Williams- List of Demands (Reparations)

Skip a song and we arrive at my personal favorite, “Black Stacey.” “Black Stacey” is a story of a young black child who really struggles with his skin color. Saul tells the story over a jazzy piano and drum line, but as the song gets deeper, the heavy beat kicks in. This song is really a hip-hop song. It’s not like most of the other songs, bordering between rock and hip-hop. This song is truly hip-hop.

Highlight of the song:
Now here’s a little message for you
All you baller playa’s got some insecurities too
That you could cover up, bling it up, cash in and ching ching it up
Hope no one will bring it up, lock it down and string it up
Or you can share your essence with us, ’cause everything about you couldn’t be rugged and ruff.
And even though you tote a glock and you’re hot on the streets
If you dare to share your heart, we’ll nod our heart to its beat

Skip 3 songs, and we arrive at “Seaweed.” “Seaweed” is a really beautiful song. It features some spoken word by Saul, and a really nice beat. I’d say this is the most “experimental” song on the album, but unlike most music labeled “experimental”, I really like this track.

Saul Williams- Black Stacey

Highlight of the song:
Got a yellow Volvo, ’86 submarine
I drove it under water guided by my own high beams
Nothing’s left
Witness the demolition of the west
I feel like a little kid hiding in his mothers dress
I’m in space
The lone ambassador of every race

Saul Williams- Seaweed

Burial is a favorite here at The Tape, and “Archangel” is a personal favorite of mine. Anyways, I don’t know too much about this remix, other then that it’s real good. Phaseone adds a hip-hop type feel to the song. He also does a nice job complimenting the songs with good synth sounds, finding a nice balance between the original and his own creation.

Thanks to gorilla vs bear for the track. Check out the remix and the original below. Also be sure to check out Burial’s Myspace here, and Phaseone’s Myspace here. Enjoy!

Burial- Archangel
Burial- Archangel (Phaseone Remix)

Info is scarce on The Young Punx’s new signee Goshi Goshi but with one track so far, good things are bound to come. The Lock Shot sounds like a siren going off at 2 AM igniting a fire in a London club with feel good rave synths and a groove that should have you gyrating in your chair (and hopefully on the dancefloor). Remixes and other songs are soon to come including a remix of a Young Punx track. Keep an eye out. 

Goshi Goshi – The Lock Shot

For all you who were excited to get a taste of Noah and The Whale’s catchy, infectious, and sometimes overly happy melodies in person, we sadly found out today that they’ll have to cancel their tour. However, they have promised to reschedule for March.

Here are a few tracks to bring you through the wait.

Noah And The Whale -Shape Of My Heart
Noah And The Whale- Second Lover

You betcha. This week for GMM we have only one song. But it’s been so far overlooked that it’s worth it. A-ha’s 1985 smash hit “Take On Me” is iconic of the decade. Cheesy synths, vocal hooks. Not to mention the video. Take a look, and listen below.

A-ha – Take On Me