Tyler, The Creator (Odd Future) - Bastard

I remember when I first heard the Slim Shady LP. I was 12 when it came out and had seen the "My Name Is" video on MTV. I asked my dad to drive me to go buy it and popped it into the car CD player. As soon as I heard: "the views and events expressed here are totally fucked" I knew it would be something different. Eminem proceeded to rap about doing all types of drugs, growing up poor, killing people, rape, suicide, and pretty much every other taboo subject you can think of. Needless to say my dad was not pleased when he heard it but it was fascinating. Who knew he would later become one of the most popular pop stars of the noughties.

Odd Future are a collective of teenage rappers and producers from L.A.. Clearly they thought the same as I did since in this release they rap about the same things but they take it a step further. Except most of them are bastards...

"Fuck a deal I just want my father's email so I can tell him how much I fucking hate him in detail".

While Em was angry you could tell he was just fucking with you in some songs. Here when Tyler, and his depressed voice, raps about cutting himself and being suicidal you almost believe it. It's half confessional, half shock, and insane. The beats are bleak and minimalist.

The best hip hop album of the year is from a teenage misfit from L.A. who raps about doing coke, hating his father, and anally raping the Virgin Mary. Then he tells us to play this in church. 'Nough said.

They also have a ton of albums on their website you can download for free so check it out: oddfuture.tumblr.com

"I ain't no fucking Kid Cudi...."

Go to college, get a job, marry, have a kid/ Watch them grow and then you die? No. Nigga, fuck the system.

Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma

The latest from the low flier, this time he brings it with a badass bassist, Thundercat a.k.a. Stephen Bruner. This album shows how much flylo's concept of time has changed in the past few years, with unquantized loops streaming freely over each other, you might get confused at times, but the pocket is ALWAYS there. This reminds me of Zach Hill's (Hella) "hidden pocket" technique, where the beats are not so easy to follow, so pay close attention to where the downbeats are. The impressive thing is that even though some songs are very intricate, they won't let you go.

A mi entender, esto no es un link a cosmogramma.

Flying Lotus - Los Angeles

Released in 2008, Flylo returned with sweeter tones and even better progressions. He also lets us know how much he likes his synths. This album sets a darker and more melancholic vibe than it's predecessor.

Los Angeles

Flying Lotus - 1983

Debut album from the nephew of the man himself, John Coltrane. Without putting too much weight on the fact that he is so close to musical genius, Flylo has been known to produce some of the more interesting electronic/hiphop oriented music. I don't know if he has any musical training, but he seems to be able to go much further than the standard for producers of this genre. This is what happens when you soak in lots of music from Koji Kondo's Zelda compositions, Bruce Lee movie soundtracks, 70's orchestral works, Karlheinz Stockhausen's Elektroniche Musik, et cetera.

You might have heard some of his stuff while watching Adult Swim (I always asked myself who made those interludes).

1983

DJ/Rupture - Uproot

Sandunga already posted the excellent Nettle album, here's DJ/Rupture's mix from last year that was one of my favorite records of 08'. 

Rupture's mixes always have this unique cohesion to them. Drawing from a pool of worldwide artists these songs from varied genres and moods blend together perfectly going by with an almost dreamlike flow. The album feels like a journey from beginning to end which isn't very common amongst mix albums.

"Uproot oozes self confidence, with effortless mixing of disparate source material. The hour-long record does not seem to run nearly this long, due to the economy of ideas and excellent pacing. Dancehall bangers flirt with chamber music, Nigerian folk and Moroccan hip-hop, eventually decaying into an extended suite of near beatless ambient post-rock. The closing tracks recall Godspeed You! Black Emperor, a striking contrast with the first half of the record’s wobbling low-end bass and dub. It’s an exquisite way to cool off a mix. Uproot is an accomplished release from one of New York’s finest DJs, one that deftly illustrates his transition from showy wunderkind to an elder statesman of forward-thinking mixology."

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Blackfilm - S/T

The term Black film is the English traslation of "film noir". It's an apt title for music as cinematic as this. 

"Blackfilm's sound is a bricolage of downtempo, breaks, instrumental hip-hop, and an excellent selection of sampled modern classical strings.... Of course Blackfilm introduces his own cinematic and orchestral elements that move from fearsome, lonely frames to chaotic feelings of urban self-destruction."

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Handsome Boy Modeling School - So How's Your Girl...

Classic collaboration between two hip hop masters, Dan the Automator and Prince Paul. Also has guest appearances by: Dj Shadow, Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Kid Koala, El-P, ext...

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