A plee to my fellow bloggers...

I realize all of you have fantastic taste in music and care a great deal about it. Why else would you have a music blog!? However, my tastes are not always yours. I don't need to have your music playing while I'm at your blog. I'm there. I get it. I'm interested. Yet even more frustrating is the placement of them. The bottom of the page? halfway down on the right or perhaps a quarter of the way down on the left hand side. If you need to have one (you don't) and if you use one (please don't) then at least make it the first thing that I see on the screen so I can press "mute" or "pause" or "stop" immediately. Then I can make the choice and your ultra rare remix of Spice 1 doesn't create the aural chaos that is inevitable when played in tandem with my Kenny G.

And Happy Veterans Day

I Need Your help...

As I've said before, I am without wit and devoid of any interestingly creative bones, juices, or complex internal structures. I therefore hope that you will help me. I have won my round of the mix competition and have moved to the second. Honestly, I didn't think I would win but now that I did I want to. The first mix was thrown together pretty much except for the I Get Top Billin (and even that was a little lame) and now I'm competing with some cats that are more serious. I'm not scared of the, I just don't know what to do for a mix. This is where you come in. Now, I don't have turntables setup (baby took over my room) so there will not be any scratching but I can still tweak some shit, mash some shit up and I have stuff I've done over the years. Here's what I don't want to do:

1. a mix of all contemporary hip-hop (there's not enough really that would make a mix to win, if that makes sense to you.)
2. A mix of all old school (it just seems cliché and lame.)
3. A dirty south or hyphy mix (A: I don't really like it, and B: see #1)
So, what I was thinking was making a mix of rock that's more hip hop-y and hip hop that's a little more eclectic. What do you think? Do you have any requests for me to put in? Also, any requests (that I have or you can provide for me) I'll put in. It probably won't be the whole song but some element of it will be there. I promise. So, there's my dilemma. Help a brova out. The picture has nothing to do with anything, I just like her bum.
Pace.

Treebeats A To Z Posting Compilation Of Really Dope Things. The Letter L

Fall is falling. The air is crisp. The Red Sox are champions of the entire world. You might have 5 more minutes to vote for the mixes on Dumpin.net by the time this is posted. Dancing is coming back to Hip Hop. Sadly, I hate it and all the people that snap, wiggle, walk and superman. Hope you are all well.
Enjoy the letter L
01 - Lamb - Lusty
I don’t really know about overseas, but one of the bands that got slept on a great deal here was Lamb. Andy Barlow, a.k.a. Hipoptimist (not to be confused with the Hip Hopatamus), and vocalist Lou Rhodes made up one of the more experimental and interesting groups that resulted from Portishead’s fame. While groups like Morcheeba did more of the same, Lamb explored breaks and made, at times, straight up noisy tracks that sounded fucked up and different. I liked them a lot, but I also liked Sean Cassidy doing “Do Run Run” so what do I know? The track here is easier to listen to than when they got totally fucked but also isn’t the Amen Brother break chopped with a distorted bass. I really think this was their best album, but I typically like when groups are more raw and unrefined then when they get polished.
02 - Laquan - Now’s The B Turn
I’m not sure if he released anything after this but it was the height of the New Jack Swing movement and besides Redhead Kingpin, I felt this record did it best. Some people think New Jack Swing was totally worthless but I hate them and if you were into hip-hop at that time it was hard to ignore. You can say what you want now but if you lived in the North East in the late 80’s, Teddy Riley was the man. And I know I am constantly defending the fact that I liked Teddy Riley, but Fuck you. You’re ugly and stupid.
03 - Laura Veirs – Galaxies
Hippie indie folk rocker Laura Viers grew up in Colorado, camped with her family and was a patchouli wearing hippy freak. She studied rocks and Mandarin in college. “Year Of The Meteors” was the third release she had and the first record of hers I heard. She’s got a great voice and sings about science a lot but this is basically a love song wrapped in a high-brow ribbon. Galaxies has a great hook and would have been a big pop record if The world was right.
04 - Lauryn Hill - The Sweetest Thing
The bitch is crazy but she was really talented. This song helped me get many women naked. “Oh yeah, I think she’s amazing. There’s so much pain and beauty in her voice. Why don’t you take off your pants?” Now she doesn’t let people walk in front of her and prays to alters drenched in chicken blood, or some such nonsense.
05 - LCD Soundsystem - Never As Tired As When I'm Waking Up
The blog-nerd darling that I never really liked but felt pressured to listen to since everyone said it was such an amazing record and I don’t have the ability to think for myself. I didn’t like and/or get “Daft Punk Is Playing In My House” but I really liked this track which is nothing like the rest of the disc and therefore, I think it’s awesome cause I’m counter-culture and really cool.
06 - Leaders of the New School - Case Of The P.T.A.
Before Busta-Bus had a 32 inch bicep and Dinco and Charlie went on to…They released 2 records as the Leaders of the New School and blessed the shit out of us with their participation on “The Scenario” which could be the best “posse” cut ever besides “The Symphony”. This is off their first release, when they were still young and thirsty and more interested with the idea of getting on and rocking shows than whatever happened to them after.
07 - Led Zeppelin - Hey Hey What Can I Do
Zeppelin is one of my favorite groups of all time and spent many years in high school taped to my walls next to pictures I cut out of Word Up and Rap Pages magazines.
There was a time when the only way to get this song in the States was either in the bootleg “Destroyer” which my brother had, or as an import single as a b-side of “The Immigrant Song.” It was officially released on the 4 disc boxed set in 1990, and thusly all of the wind was removed from my pompous sails and the steed from which I toted my “Zoso” superiority broke all four legs, collapsed and decomposed instantly.
08 - The Libertines - Horror Show
When I went to go see these guys, Pete Doherty, in true form, stumbled on stage and nearly knocked the mic stand down with his guitar (he may have been intoxicated.) They proceeded to rock the rest of the set. I’m not a huge Babyshambles fan but I thought the first Libertines release was some get-in-your-ass rock and roll. This was, by far, the song that slammed your anus until it was raw and blistered.
09 - Lightheaded – Orientation
So Lightheaded is part Omega Watts, part Braille, part Othello and part Muneshine. A collective of really talented cats whos only problem is they are Christian Rap. Now it’s weird how bad a rep Christian rap gets. I’ve spent nearly 30 years listening to idiotic interpretations of Islam like 5% douche bags and somehow I’m a big Brand Nubian fan. But, put “Jesus” or “church” in a rhyme and I start bugging out. It’s stupid, I know, but that’s just the way shit is. God bless.
10 - Lily Allen - Nan You're A Window ShopperI thought this song was funny. I thought her debut was a great record but then my wife played it until it was dead and I hated it. It’s too bad she eats and pukes now because I thought she was cute enough as she was.
11 - Little Brother - Slow It Down
This was the Little Brother album that I really liked and this was the song off of it I liked the most. The beat is sick (9th Wonder I miss you.) Phonte and Big Pooh catch wreck. It’s just one of those songs that work really well.
12 - L.L. Cool J - I'm Bad
My High School Soccer and Basketball teams started every game with either this or “Cut Creator”, “Ace Of Spades” by Motorhead, or “We Got The Beat” by the Go-Go’s. Does that make us gay? I’m one of those cats that’s not mad at LL. He made seriously monumental tracks in rap history and besides “The Bitch In You” wrote my favorite dis record ever.
13 - Lord Finesse & DJ Mike Smooth - Track The Movement
I went to school with this kid Mike Johnson. He was from Harlem and I spent a couple vacations at his house. I think the official tally of times that we listened to this record was nearly Elventy bazillion. It was the beginning of the DITC crew for me and my real taste of Premier as a producer outside of Gang Starr. We also cuddled to this song.
14 - Louis Armstrong - That Old Feeling
Satchmo is another one of those cats that gets kind of slept on. I mean everyone knows him. His voice was unmistakably unique, but most people think of “What A Beautiful World” and not a really good jazz musician. He was a band leader. He appeared in a slew of films, he recorded 3 records with Ella Fitzgerald. The dude was really amazing and somehow his accomplishments have kind of faded into obscurity. Take some time and check him out. The dude was ill.
15 - Lovage - Strangers On A Train
I really liked this record a lot. Jennifer Charles is sexy as shit (in a world where feces is unbelievably sexy) and her, Dan and Paul make up a majority of what made Lovage work. I wish I liked Mike Patton more but I don’t and I hope he gets hit by a bus.
16 - Low Profile - Funky Song
I got this record when it came out. I also had the Rhyme Syndicate record but I didn’t really check for them on it. Anyway, MC WC and DJ Alladin made the best debut of any of the Syndicate and then broke up. I don’t really remember hearing this a lot, but I went to boarding school in the Berkshires and everyone else that listened to Hip Hop there was pretty much from New York and they weren’t interested in it. I was. I loved this whole joint. WC ended up with Coolio and Alladin spent more time making out with Ice-T. I highly recommend this record if you enjoy late 80’s Hip-Hop and are cool.
17 - Lupe Fiasco - Daydreamin' (Feat. Jill Scott)
If you’ve ever read anything that I wrote, you know I have a crush on Jill Scott. Not enough to go to a Tyler Perry freak show of a film mind you, but me likey. You might of heard of this Lupe cat too.
18 - Lyrics Born - Bad Dreams
Oddly enough, the last show I remember going to was the Quannum tour with my wife, who was my “friend” at the time. Both of the last groups I saw started with “L.” Now, “L” is the 11 letter of the alphabet and there are two 1’s in 11. If you add those you get 2 and “B” is the second letter. Which is where these mixes actually started since “A” was just one group. If you take the 1 from “A” and the 2 from “B” you get 3, and that’s a magic number. I hate mathematics and I think they are stupid. Lyrics Born is dope though.
Pace.

01 - Lamb - Lusty
02 - Laquan - Now’s The B Turn
03 - Laura Veirs – Galaxies
04 - Lauryn Hill - The Sweetest Thing
05 - LCD Soundsystem - Never As Tired As When I'm Waking Up
06 - Leaders of the New School - Case Of The P.T.A.
07 - Led Zeppelin - Hey Hey What Can I Do
08 - The Libertines - Horror Show
09 - Lightheaded – Orientation
10 - Lily Allen - Nan You're A Window Shopper
11 - Little Brother - Slow It Down
12 - L.L. Cool J - I'm Bad
13 - Lord Finesse & DJ Mike Smooth - Track The Movement
14 - Louis Armstrong - That Old Feeling
15 - Lovage - Strangers On A Train
16 - Low Profile - Funky Song
17 - Lupe Fiasco - Daydreamin' (Feat. Jill Scott)
18 - Lyrics Born - Bad Dreams

Them's fightin words...

Alright, if you haven’t been to Dumpin.net then you need to for two reasons. First, it’s one of my favorite blogs out there. It’s one of the few that make me laugh out loud, a lot. And not in a douchey LOL way either, those cats are funny as shit.. Second, they are currently running a mix contest that I’m in. It’s four groups of four mixes and my group is currently up. Check out the other mixes (Dart’s in my group, if you haven’t gone to his spot, stop fucking around) and then vote for mine even if you don’t like it because they promised me a pony show that I played a special part in.

Check mine here

Track List:
01 - Mr. Cooper - Amongst Strangers 01
02 - OC - Times Up
03 - Zion I - Critical
04 - Mass Influence - Twenty 20
05 - Joe Beats - Don't Front
06 - Arts The Beat Doctor - The Anthem (Feat. Pete Philly)
07 - Shithop Interlude
08 - 50 Cent & Milk D - I Get Top Billin (Treemixified)
09 - Black Moon - I Got Cha Open (Remix)
10 - Blue Scholars - North By Northwest

Treebeats Shitty Reviews Of Not Shitty Artists Presents: Gnotes

So Canyon Cody from the mighty Gnawledge empire actually asked me to write about something and since I am without wit and creativity I decided I’d take him up on it. There is also a great interview from Dan Love at From Da Bricks you might want to check. Now, while there is the proverbial curse on any musician trying to make it in Boston, there are some cats or bands that shine. Aerosmith for instance, Tracy Bonham, and The Cars were reasonably successful, Sean Dwyer aims to be next, by releasing "Rhymes And Beats". Dwyer, A.K.A. Gnotes (not pronounced “guh-notes” or “G Notes” but rather “notes” like gnome or Gnarls) is part of a goofily named independent, bohemian, underground hip-hop movement and represents Beantown (617 bitches!).
Raised on Pearl Jam and Public Enemy simultaneously, Gnotes started making mix tapes in middle school and sharpening his axe for the day he would one day rock crowds and make heads nod. It’s these varied influences that have created his sound. Not totally “Teenage Love” and not totally “Teen Spirit”, he crosses over well. I don’t mean “crossover” in the sell out sense but more in the bridging genres sense. The music these cats make(all self produced by the crew at gnawledge with a few contributions) is pretty dope. One of the tracks that is not included here but can be found on the disc has my favorite Muddy Waters song sampled. Another, “Samba-tryst” blends in Latin influences. Sun Don’t Chill (dope beat!) kind of reinterprets C.R.E.A.M. but subtly and devoid of diddyness. More of a celebration of the beat than a straight jack. It’s all a mix of samples and live instrumentation, which blend seamlessly and force neck muscles to contract and heads to bob.
Lyrically, Gnotes is skilled. My one qualm is sometimes he gets too vague in his metaphysics and social commentary and I’m left scratching my head not knowing what the hell he is talking about anymore. However, I’m not the brightest cat so this may just be my inability to be cerebral. He’s obviously talented and, while he’s no Souljah Boy, he is leaps and bounds beyond a lot of trite shite released by major labels today. My wife says he’s not “Poppy” enough and he “sounds white”. Both are true but irrelevant to what he’s trying to do I think. I included a couple tracks (good lookin Canyon) here and you can get the whole jawn at the site.
My first officially requested review, and perhaps the last, is now officially over.
Pace.

Probably my favorite track of the ones here.

The single for which there is a visual collage of stills that is called a video.

Another pretty dope track.

"Video" of "Throw Your Nickels Up".

Perdition, Paradise, Peanut Butter Wolf Proudly Presented In The Pentaconta Post

Chris Manak has been DJing and producing as Peanut Butter Wolf for nearly 20 years now. He is probably most known for, or has the most influence with his Stones Throw record label.
He started out in a crew with his homeboy Charizma who, sadly, passed in 1993 before the group had a major release besides a single which came out the same year as his death. Chris was obviously jaded and fell into a warranted seclusion for a while. Thankfully, after a couple of Bomb Records releases (including a spot on the first Return of the DJ) he got back to Hip-Hop and channeled that dopeocity into working on starting up, Stones Throw (home to Quasimoto, Madvillian, other internerd blogging favs and joyfully, a number of obscure funk and jazz reissues.) Nowadays he’s doing more DJing than production and this leads us to these 2 little gems.

First is the 666 mix, released on June 6th 2006 (get it?) which is chock full of the typical Death Metal and, Industrial and Punk we have all grown so accustomed to from DJ’s like Ron G and Scribble. Filled to the brim with the likes of Revolting Cocks, Black Sabbath, Ministry, Led Zeppelin and many more, it’s a ("nice" wouldn’t be the best word here) "interesting" break from the norm.

Secondly, is the 777 mix. Released on July 7th 2007 (aha!) this was part of a grander 7 day tour in which each gig had completely different play lists about god in all of her Multiple-Armed, Mohammed-Appointing, Mary-Bonining, Level 6 Magician Spell Casting glory. The CD version sports the likes of the Street Christians, Brand Nubian, and Pharoah Sanders. It's a lot of random yet fitting holy shit that he makes work. So there it is. Do you pick the fiery pits of satanic rock or the glorious speakers of the Lords words bitches?

Pace.

666 Mix

777 Mix
There are a couple of weird issues with the audio of the mix but it sounds like he just fucked up a few times.but it's still, very easy to listen to

15,000 Bitches!!

So, it's not as exciting as turning 2 (big up Trav) or a mix competition (dump in yo mouth) or a Rev Shines exclusive (massive) or any of the other myriad things going on in the terrific links located on the right of this blessed site, but I got 15000 hits today or yesterday and that's cool with me. Granted only 6 of them returned but I like to think the 2 seconds they spent here before they realised they mistyped their intended URL that I made them better people and they pressed the back button feeling sublimely calm and/or comfortably numb. I got some ish on the kettle so stay tuned you 3.