A Tribe Called Quest

If you can't envision a brother who ain't dissin',
Slingin' this and that, 'cause this and that was missin'.
Instead, it's been injected, the Tribe has been perfected.
Oh yes, it's been selected, the art makes it protected.

One year after De la Soul re-drew the map for alternative rap, fellow Native Tongues brothers A Tribe Called Quest released their debut, the quiet beginning of a revolution in non-commercial hip-hop. People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm floated a few familiar hooks, but it wasn't a sampladelic record. Rappers Q-Tip and Phife Dawg dropped a few clunky rhymes, but their lyrics were packed with ideas, while their flow and interplay were among the most original in hip-hop. From the beginning, Tribe focused on intelligent message tracks but rarely sounded over-serious about them. With "Pubic Enemy," they put a humorous spin on the touchy subject of venereal disease (including a special award for the most inventive use of the classic "scratchin'" sample), and moved right into a love rap, "Bonita Applebum," which alternated a sitar sample with the type of jazzy keys often heard on later Tribe tracks. "Description of a Fool" took to task those with violent tendencies, while "Youthful Expression" spoke wisely of the power yet growing responsibility of teenagers. Next to important message tracks with great productions, A Tribe Called Quest could also be deliciously playful (or frustratingly unserious, depending on your opinion). "I Left My Wallet in El Segundo" describes a vacation gone hilariously wrong, while "Ham 'n' Eggs" may be the oddest topic for a rap track ever heard up to that point ("I don't eat no ham and eggs, cuz they're high in cholesterol"). Contrary to the message in the track titles, the opener "Push It Along" and "Rhythm (Dedicated to the Art of Moving Butts)" were fusions of atmospheric samples with tough beats, special attention being paid to a pair of later Tribe sample favorites, jazz guitar and '70s fusion synth. Restless and ceaselessly imaginative, Tribe perhaps experimented too much on their debut, but they succeeded at much of it, certainly enough to show much promise as a new decade dawned.

--Review courtesy of AllMusic.com

Some essential hip hop for you today. This, along with Nation Of Millions and Licensed To Ill, is a masterpiece and a record you need to listen to before you pass judgement on the genre. If one more person says 'can't spell crap without rap lol!' I might just have to cut a bitch.

Go ye and listen.

Artist: A Tribe Called Quest

Album: People's Instinctive Travels And The Paths Of Rhythm
Genre: Hip-Hop, Alternative Hip-Hop
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/atribecalledquest

Track Listing:
1. "Push It Along" – 7:42
2. "Luck of Lucien" (featuring Lucien Revolucien) – 4:32
3. "After Hours" – 4:39
4. "Footprints" – 4:00
5. "I Left My Wallet in El Segundo" – 4:06
6. "Pubic Enemy" (featuring DJ Red Alert) – 3:45
7. "Bonita Applebum" – 3:50
8. "Can I Kick It?" – 4:11
9. "Youthful Expression" – 4:52
10. "Rhythm (Devoted to the Art of Moving Butts)" – 4:01
11. "Mr. Muhammad" – 3:33
12. "Ham 'n' Eggs" – 5:27
13. "Go Ahead in the Rain" – 3:54
14. "Description of a Fool" – 5:41

Download

Apologies for the rapidshare, megaupload has been giving me shit lately.

Baile Funk

Based on the driving rhythm and aggressive vocal delivery of Miami Bass, Baile Funk is the music of Rio's favela populace, the true music of the streets. While the middle class kids listen to rock and metal, the street kids find their emotions expressed in this powerful, exciting blend of hip-hop and dance. Maligned by the press as a means by which the drug syndicates can sell, the parties that the style developed at remain popular, and are a means of expession for people otherwise ignored by the Brazilian middle and upper classes.
Nowadays, Baile Funk is gaining popularity worldwide, with artists such as M.I.A., Diplo and Kelis incoporating the influence into their own work, and CSS taking Bonde do Rolê on tour with them. Obviously a lot of it sounds a bit rough around the edges, but the music is expressly about freedom, the freedom to escape the favela and party, and that shines through.

DJ Marlboro- Funk Brasil

DJ Marlboro's Funk Brasil is the album credited as the start of Baile Funk. I've yet to download it at the time of writing. The download is megaupload.

Bonde do Rolê- With Lasers

Having toured with CSS is a good advertisment for BdR, who have that same party atmosphere in their music. They were until recently on Diplo's label, but this latest album, With Lasers is on thier old label. It's worth checking out, as they incorporate a variety of sounds through use of samples, so it's a bit like listening to someone rap over a constantly retuning radio.

Fernanda Abreu- Raio X

Hailed as the 'Queen of Brazilian Funk', Fernanda Abreu has been on the scene for a long time, and this album shows why. This is Baile Funk in its purest form, addictive and fun.

Tigarah- Self-titled EP

This is an interesting album, in that Tigarah is not in fact a Brazilian, but a Japanese girl who, after majoring in politics in University, decided to become a Baile Funk MC and spread her political message through her music. It's not quite up to par with the Brazilian music, because Japanese is not a language that lends itself to the vocal style in my opinion, but the music is fun and not awful. Definately worth a look, if only for interest's sake.


The following albums are collections of various artists, so I can't account for the quality on offer, but there are some gems in there:

Baile Funk Vol.1

Baile Funk Vol.2

Baile Funk Vol.3

Baile Funk Vol.4

Baile Funk Vol.5

Baile Funk Vol.6

Baile Funk Vol.7

Baile Funk Vol.8

Baile Funk Vol.9

Baile Funk Vol.10

Baile Funk Vol.11

Baile Funk Vol.12

Baile Funk Vol.13

Baile Funk Vol.14

Baile Funk Vol.15

Baile Funk Vol.16

Baile Funk Vol.17

Baile Funk Vol.18

Baile Funk Vol.19

Baile Funk Vol.20

Public Enemy

So here it is again, another def jam

I don't think my own review could do this album justice, so I'm going to copy and paste one from Public Enemy's official site. Just know that this is an amazing album, and probably one of the best rap records ever released (along with Licensed To Ill by The Beastie Boys, which is also on this blog BTW). Download and listen to this now, you won't regret it.

Yo! Bum Rush the Show was an invigorating record, but it looks like child's play compared to its monumental sequel, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, a record that rewrote the rules of what hip-hop could do. That's not to say the album is without precedent, since what's particularly ingenious about the album is how it reconfigures things that came before into a startling, fresh, modern sound. Public Enemy used the template Run-D.M.C. created of a rap crew as a rock band, then brought in elements of free jazz, hard funk, even musique concrète, via their producing team, the Bomb Squad, creating a dense, ferocious sound unlike anything that came before. This coincided with a breakthrough in Chuck D's writing, both in his themes and lyrics. It's not that Chuck D was smarter or more ambitious than his contemporaries — certainly, KRS-One tackled many similar sociopolitical tracts, while Rakim had a greater flow — but he marshaled considerable revolutionary force, clear vision, and a boundless vocabulary to create galvanizing, logical arguments that were undeniable in their strength. They only gained strength from Flavor Flav's frenzied jokes, which provided a needed contrast. What's amazing is how the words and music become intertwined, gaining strength from each other. Though this music is certainly a representation of its time, it hasn't dated at all. It set a standard that few could touch then, and even fewer have attempted to meet since.

--Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Artist: Public Enemy
Album: It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
Genre: Hip-Hop
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/publicenemyofficial

Track Listing:
1. Countdown To Armageddon
2. Bring The Noise
3. Don't Believe The Hype
4. Cold Lampin' With Flavor
5. Terminator X To The Edge Of Panic
6. Mind Terrorist
7. Louder Than A Bomb
8. Caught, Can We Get A Witness?
9. Show 'Em Whatcha Got
10. She Watch Channel Zero?!
11. Night Of The Living Baseheads
12. Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos
13. Security Of The First World
14. Rebel Without A Pause
15. Prophets Of Rage
16. Party For Your Right To Fight

Download: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=I27EPDCS

-Steel Lord

Beastie Boys

Let it flow, let yourself go, slow and low, that is the tempo

The Beastie Boys are a hip-hop act from New York City who found success with their rock-influenced style of rap music.

Licensed To Ill was their debut album and is often hailed as one the best hip-hop records of all time. It's certainly one of my favourites.

And an interesting note, Slayer's Kerry King provides guitar on the song No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn, which is itself a reference to the Motörhead live album No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith.

Artist: Beastie Boys
Album: Licensed To Ill
Genre: Hip-Hop
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/beastieboys

Track Listing:
1. "Rhymin' & Stealin'" – 4:08
2. "The New Style" – 4:36
3. "She's Crafty" – 3:35
4. "Posse in Effect" – 2:27
5. "Slow Ride" – 2:56
6. "Girls" – 2:14
7. "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party!)" – 3:28
8. "No Sleep till Brooklyn" – 4:07
9. "Paul Revere" – 3:41
10. "Hold It Now, Hit It" – 3:26
11. "Brass Monkey" – 2:37
12. "Slow and Low" – 3:38
13. "Time to Get Ill" – 3:37

Download: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=LYE16OLO