Podcast 19 – The Best of 2017

Apologies for the lack of posts over recent weeks, life has been extremely busy recently and what with one thing another and putting a lot of time in to promote my own album (The Dust Man Stirs), I have not had the time needed to update the blog as I usually would. So as a final post of 2017 I have put together a podcast of music that I have enjoyed this year. I have called it the best of, which it is but there are many other songs and tracks that I have enjoyed that do not feature on this podcast. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! See you in 2018 – LongDistanceDan

Youth:Kill – A Hunters Moon

Walter Gross and rapper K-The-I??? come together on as Youth:Kill with “A Hunters Moon” to create a unique EP that pushes the boundaries of hip hop music. Gross provides the music, which is a harsh mix of industrial noise, metallic beats and distorted baselines, while K-the-I??? rhymes furiously, fitting in where ever he can, taking on any off kilter beat and laying into it hard. This is not easy listening, but it’s great to hear people out there still trying to push hip hop in different directions and not afraid of experimenting.
Grab the EP now!

Son of Sam – Cinder Hill

Son of Sam’s full length album, “Cinder Hill” is now released for your listening pleasure. The 4 piece live band have created a soulful, funky, with hints of rock, album in the vein of classic boom bap hip hop. The list of MC’s the band have got on board is highly impressive, including the likes of Sadat X, Guilty Simpson, Large Professor, Soundsci, Prince Po and more. The album works really well as a whole, but stand out tracks for us are “Forward March” featuring Oxygen and 7even Thirty, “Deep Breath” featuring Jamall Bufford and “Put It On Ya” with Soundsci and Mr Thing.
For anyone out there who likes their hip hop super funky, “Cinder Hill” is a must have for you!

fbcfabric & reindeer – It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Whom You Know

Originally released back in 2005, FBC Fabric and Reindeers album “It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Whom You Know” is being given a new lease of life with its debut vinyl release. Originally released on hand crafted CD, that are long sold out now, Mism Records have done an awesome of re-issuing the album on deluxe triple vinyl, strictly limited to 100 copies.
Musically the album is left-field, avant-garde, experimental hip hop, easily comparable to Anticon Records releases. As much as this is true, there is without a doubt a big influence, it still feels like a slightly lazy comparison. You can also hear influences from the likes of Taskforce, El-P and Def Jux, classic hip hop, folk music and much more.
This is serious music with depth and passion, left-field UK hip hop done well not sounding like a poor imitation of our state side counter parts. Perfect autumn and winter listening, we urge you to get a copy while you can.
Buy the album from Mism Records here.

Cutterz – 12 Inch Face

Here is an interesting new single from hip hop producer Cutterz. “12 Inch Face” is the first solo single from the producer who has been involved in the Manchester hip hop scene for over a decade, promoting, DJing and being 1/4 of Voodoo Black alongside Sparkz, Dubbul-O and Ellis Meade.
However, for his debut solo single “12 Inch Face”, Cutterz has swerved away from straight up hip hop to bring you a track that is heavily influenced by Detroit house and electric breaks. It works well, the track has a nice bouncy vibe and it’s great to hear hip hop producers spreading their wings a little further. Grab it now for free on Room 2 Records bandcamp and check out the video.

 

Jon Kennedy – Ha!

Jon Kennedy returns with his seventh studio album, “Ha!”. Mixing up elements of broken beats, trip hop, jazz, hip hop and even drum and bass, Mr Kennedy has thrown everything in there and come up trumps.
The title track and lead single, “Ha!” is a low slung, funky head nodder that gets you grooving for sure. “Slave to TV” is more upbeat, with blasts of electro bass with a slightly harsher sound, but keeps things smooth with the jazzy percussion and vibes. All tracks on offer here create different moods and feels, creating an album that keeps your interest, gets you dancing and lets you chill out.
“Ha!” could have come out sounding dated however the album fits perfectly into today’s modern sound, whilst appealing to the older trip hop fans. Released on September 22nd, we urge you all to get a copy.

Son of Sam – Flying Fist/Put It On Ya

Son of Sam unleash two new tracks from their forthcoming “Cinder Hill” album. “Flying Fist” features Organized Konfusion rapper Prince Po, where as “Put It On Ya” utilises the rhyming skills of Soundsci and the DJ skills of Mr Thing. We can’t wait to hear the album in full, it’s going to be pure heat!

 

Funky DL – Incognito In Soho

Funky DL returns with a fully instrumental album, “Incognito In Soho”. Here the UK vet mixes up super nice, laid back jazzy vibes, with solid head nodding hip hop beats. This is instrumental hip hop for all those “real” boom bap fans out there.
With each track crafted as a fresh landscape for this project, this cohesive listening experience of 10 tracks in under 40 minutes showcases Funky DL’s unmatched ability to curate beats and samples through layering, comprehensive filtering and effortless whilst meticulous arrangement. Many beat-makers release beat-tapes compiling old and second-rate throw away music from their archives, but DL’s approach here is no different from when he is preparing to produce new music for his vocal work; only the best beats will do. This one of the fundamental reasons that Funky DL has been for so long considered a global treasure in Jazz and Hip-Hop production. ‘Incognito In Soho’ intends to take the listener through various emotive states from the lament of “The Glimmer of Nightfall”, to the excitement of “Gallery of Glass”, as well as the contrasts in “Turbulent Serenity”, each track allows the listener to lose themselves into the exploration of the night; as if they were ‘Incognito In Soho’.
Buy it now from Funky DL’s bandcamp page, and check out the video to “The Glimmer of Nightfall”.

 

 

DJ Supreme – Arctic II feat. Ice T & Icepick

DJ Supreme returns with the “Arctic II” the follow up to his “Arctic” single. However, this isn’t just a remix, this is a full on follow up featuring live instrumentation, on point scratching, Icepick and Ice T, yep Ice T!
“Arctic II” will make you forget the cop shows, dodgy films and heavy metal, and remind you just how good Ice T can be. But don’t just take my word for it, listen for yourself.

The Difference Machine – Smoke (Anthony Nolan Remix) WORLD PREMIER

After releasing one of the best hip hop albums of 2016, The Difference Machine return with a brand new remix album, “Triangle Schemes”. Featuring remixes by the likes of Jel, Blockhead, PUDGE, DJ Nervex and more, along with some new material.
We are extremely excited to bring you the world premier of Anthony Nolans awesome, fuzzed up remix of “Smoke” featuring Homeboy Sandman. Pre-order the album here and enjoy this exclusive.