Kyle_ has written the following articles:
I’ve always had a love/hate relationship with Kanye, swinging back and forth between the two more times than I care to remember. His talent as producer has never been in question, that much is inarguable, but despite having a lot to say he’s always been a clumsy rapper. For every moment of inspiration, there are usually two more clanging punchlines and ten rhymes mushed together like an imperfect puzzle.»
“Fuck Snoop Dogg,” says Snoop Lion, as he describes his conversion to Rastafarianism in this new Vice-made documentary. Snoop is 41 years old and he is tired of making rap music, a genre in which he has long played a leading role. Why then, is Reincarnated such a non-event? »
London has always had a place for rap music - it’s too great a city not to - but finding the right club is a little trickier.»
If you didn’t notice already, hip hop has gotten weird. The sound of rap in 2013 is no longer shaped by baggy-jeaned Dre and Premier worshippers mining their parents funk and soul records, but is being made by kids who grew up on the internet, bombarded by a broad spectrum of culture. That isn’t meant to in any way to discredit hip hop production of the past thirty years, only to acknowledge that it’s an exciting time to be a rap fan. At the moment it feels like anything is possible, as new sounds are created with increasing frequency and old styles are revived from new perspectives.»
LongLiveA$AP is a hollow, characterless listen from a young artist who we still know next to nothing about.»
It's time again for us to look back over a year's worth of music - meaning, for me, it's time to think of some way to make sense of a year's worth of rap records. In some regards, trying to round up a year in hip hop is even harder than in other genres. The division between chart-friendly, club-ready singles and wordy, underground writtens can sometimes feel like you're dealing with different types of music entirely. How exactly should we compare the dense, poetic ramblings of say - Aesop Rock, with the synthetic energy of somebody like Future or Gunplay? Yet all these things have their place, and hip hop without one or the other would feel sorely lacking.»
With this edition of Champion Sound we’ve mixed it up a little, taking a look at Ice T’s recently released hip hop doc The Art of Rap, while also rounding up some of our favourite videos of the past two months. »
This edition of Champion Sound features Ian Bavitz, better known as Aesop Rock; an artist who has not only just released a rather brilliant new album, but also – in part – can be held responsible for this column’s existence. Having discovered hip hop through the back door, it’s difficult to overstate the influence that Aesop Rock records had on me in the early part of my hip hop education. »
If this column had an official remit it would be to act as a filter, condensing the overwhelming world of hip hop mixtapes down into a useful bi-monthly guide. While there will seemingly never be a shortage of free rap music to talk about in this space, it sometimes feels like a shame not to cover the wealth of material being released by more traditional means. You remember, the kind of music exchanged for money? In shops? You’ll have to take my word for it.»
To pretend that Life is Good is flawless would be misleading, but it’s a thoroughly enjoyable return to form. »
‘Hip hop on trial’; this was the name given to a global debate that took place in London just two weeks ago, the third in a series of discussions hosted by Intelligence Squared in association with Google+. A panel of expert speakers were assembled at the Barbican Centre and around the world via video links, from Q-Tip and KRS-One to Benjamin Zephaniah and Jesse Jackson, with the intention of going back and forth over the motion “Hip Hop Doesn’t Enhance Society, It Degrades It”.»
DOOM, the artist formerly known as MF DOOM, is one of modern music’s great mysteries. According to one rumour emerging from a recent issue of Q Magazine (of all places), the masked emcee/producer has been living amongst us since 2010, relocating to South London where he’s been working on his forthcoming collaborative album with Jneiro Jarel. He’s also supposed to be, among other things, working alongside Madlib on a sequel to rap classic Madvillainy, as well as putting the finishing touches to other full length collaborations with Ghostface Killah and Masta Ace. »
For all the endless discussion about the future of music in the digital age, we’ve so far seen very little in terms of innovation in musical form. Of course there’s no simple answer to that, but it’s surprising to me that more people haven’t deviated from standard release formats and challenged the way in which we engage with music. One person who shares this view is Eric Wahlforss, co-founder of Soundcloud and the man behind electronic music moniker Forss.»
Whether or not Regina Spektor has her own masterpiece left in her it's hard to say, but it’s good to have her around.»
Like many others I’m sure, I first became aware of Killer Mike through OutKast’s 2001 single ‘The Whole World’. The song’s video was played a lot on music television that year, but that didn’t stop me coming home from school and flipping through channels until I found it. I had no idea who Killer Mike was back then, but just sharing the screen with OutKast made him a total hero in my thirteen year-old eyes and ears.»
It’s to hear a new artist not looking to stamp their mark on whatever minute variation of house or dubstep is in vogue, but forge their own path and produce something of its own.»
The year’s first Champion Sound column picks up pretty much where it left off before Christmas, with Big K.R.I.T., whose ReturnOf4eva was my favorite rap release of 2011. K.R.I.T. was also featured in the first ever edition of this column last June, so it’s a pleasure to bring things full circle by catching up with the Mississippi rapper/producer about a busy year ahead. With the release of 4eva N A Day just weeks away, there’s another free project to look forward to very soon, followed by K.R.I.T.’s long-awaited major label debut on Def Jam this summer. »
I’m sure you’re all pretty sick of end-of-year lists by now, having been inundated with the things for the last month. I personally have a sort of love/hate relationship with 'list season', but in the spirit of things I thought I’d attempt to make sense of the year in hip hop. Rather than forcing only my own critical opinions down your throats, though, I’ve opened the column out to some of the artists that have made hip hop so exciting in 2011.»
It’s comforting to know that whatever The Smashing Pumpkins look and sound like in the present day, Gish will still exist as a time capsule remaining in pristine condition.»
Untapped potential and wonky computer graphics from this heavyweight hip-hop doubleheader.»
Since the last Champion Sound there has been a lot of great mixtapes released, making the selection of what to include here all the more difficult. Not featured here are good to great tapes from the likes of Young L, Maffew Ragazino and Odd Future’s Domo Genesis, as well as one of the finest releases of the year in the form of Main Attrakionz’s 808s and Dark Grapes II. Such is the output of those guys that I’d probably be writing about them in every column if I didn’t purposely exclude them, but rest assured there’s some great stuff in their place.»
Emika’s successful merging of techno and dubstep can only be credited to her great understanding and enthusiasm for both.»
Having heard Chris Taylor’s fingerprints over a dozen fine records, it’s great to finally hear one that he can call his own.»
As well as a round-up of recent noteworthy mixtapes, this edition of Champion Sound sees us speak with LA beatmaker Samiyam, whose new LP on Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder label was released in late June. The eponymous Sam Baker’s Album has been one of the label’s most hotly anticipated releases, following in the footsteps of an encouraging debut, Rap Beats Vol. 1, and subsequent EPs on Hyperdub and Poobah. Needless to say, the record did not disappoint, and we caught up with Baker to chat hip hop, mixtapes and the LA beats scene.»
Hello and welcome to a new regular column documenting hip hop through the mixtape, and other loosely released rap records that I decide to include. Because let’s face it, the term mixtape has become basically meaningless in recent years other than being synonymous with being given away for free. Importantly to this column, though, the ready availability of mixtapes says nothing of their supposed quality, many of them bettering the content on official albums made by the very same artists. »
It may take just 20 minutes to listen through, but Parting the Sea… is an album which plays hard on the emotions.»
While some may have expected the chef to fall on his Shaolin sword, Raekwon has delivered another consistent and occasionally inspired body of work.»
While Jamie XX uses this album as an outlet to explore a variety of different styles, importantly he never loses sight of the source material. »
If iyou’ve lost your copy of Loveless, you could do far worse than listen to Colour Trip.»
Given the chance it’s both a moving and rewarding listen.»
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