The next Wes Anderson pelicula needs J-ZONE.

The master of witty anecdotes and compositions returns but with a project that stands out against his previous four LP's. J-Zone embodies everything going through the mind of a regular dude on the verge of becoming half Frank the Tank from Old School, half Christian Slater from True Romance". "To Love a Hooker" is an imaginative ride. Be ready for fucking, snuggling, smuggling, smashing and crashing. Track by track, Zone reveals the ins and outs of what being an entrepreneur in the field of desperation ultimately evolves into. The mood is both hilarious and fluid at the same time, a rarity in terms of instrumental records now-a-days. Sadat X makes a few guest spots just to add that raw appeal to an already rugged beatscape. There's no doubt this soundtrack could easily be utilized as a tutorial for those interested in the ways of pimp. Trust me, after you listen to the album, you'll clearly see the picture. Old Maid needs to make a DVD quick and J-Zone needs to score Adult Swim or Nick Short Break.



http://www.myspace.com/jzoneoldmaid

I'm Back Like Nene. Mighty Healthy with Bronze.

Bronze Nazareth's The Great Migration rings old bells of glory. Loud at times and even louder others. It's been awhile since Killarmy and the Gravediggaz were standing as proud sprouts of the original swagger generals. Since then nothing and nobody from the Wu has really taken the initiative to build past what history's already seen done. Bronze has. Production credits on the Wu Tang Think Differently "Wu Tang Meets Indie" project signaled something new, bold and raw. From bottom to top the beats are never less than knocking. I'm talking about "in the heat of the moment" bed rocking, knocking. Although the content of the Wu, especially now a days remains hit or miss for many, Bronze keeps it remotely close to hitting. Guest spots from Wu affiliates Timbo King, Killa Sin (!!!) 12 O'Clock and Prodigal Sunn keep the LP tightly woven in styling. All around this is a solid pickup if you see it sitting in Amoeba's used lots. Migration has begun I can happily conclude that the Wu is still reinventing the gritty.

Beat: "Here What I Say"
Verbal: "Black Royalty"

Coincidence SANsei

Good Ole' Ghosty Does It Again...

The man with a thousand aliases and alter-egos has conducted a masterpiece yet again.

Fishscale only solidifies Ghosty's title as the greatest in storytelling this side of the sun. His wordplay and humor are witty as ever and definitely match up with the top notch production. Faces of consistency are all over as J-Dilla (RIP), Pete Rock, MF Doom and the Wu Camp help Ghost sling to his supreme clientele. A Ne-Yo song is the only nod against the album's greatness in it's entirety, but the dude is on Def Jam, he gots to sell SOME records. Even on that track Face is still Tony Starks, raw and on edge, complaining about a dime piece who just got on the wrong side of the robe rocking wallaby king. I admit, I had my doubts about Big Jay signing up Mr. former Ghostface Killah, but I feel stupid for the impulse of second guessing him. His reign is complete and I can only await what lies next for the dude who admits to fucking his fans.

Awol One meets Mascaria

Chemikillz. The title of recently released Awol One and Mascaria production. At a time where music has once again turned grey, something unexpectedly dope like this is always a great come up. That's what this album is to me... a CD that I wasn't meant to discover.
Like many of the Awol One CD's, that seem to come a dime a dozen, I was reluctant to give it a listen purely to avoid hearing Awol ramble about his personality. But after I got over my fears of Awol's lifelessness, and Mascaria's fresh approach to production sparked my interest, I paid attention to something I thought was lost long ago... C-R-E-A-T-I-V-I-T-Y.

I hadn't heard much, in fact anything, from Mascaria before, and I think this is a proper introduction to him for anybody who is interested in checking out socal independent music. I grew up in an area where everybody had demos. Everybody had computers and recording equipment to record whatever they damn well pleased, most of the time however, it was so-called gangsta rappers talking about guns. Regardless, on the local hiphop note, it's great to see independent talent created close by. Mascaria's production makes this cd a must hear. I'd be happier with less Awol on it though.

Awol has always been somebody that I thought was good only in certain cituations. With an addictive flow and controversial topic discussion, Awol brings interest in the form of a performance rather than as an MC. Which isn't always for everybody.

The album features a few heads you may or may not have heard of: nite n dae, akuma, liferaxall, lord zen, 2mex and existereo.

Favorite track: Mechanical Dolphins

So checka-check it out. Be on the lookout for more Mascaria... and watch Awol continue to release opinionated rambling.

J-Dilla brings the Donuts

It's been a good run for record label Stones Throw. With record producer Madlib releasing a seemingly neverending streak of otherwise undiscoverable breaks, and news from fellow canklesandwaffler/talented MC/Stones Throw marketing intern ohgeeyah feedin me happs, the Stones Throw family is becoming more and more of a positive role model than a record label. That said, let it be known that I'm proud to be representing hiphop in an area blessed with their music.

Stones Throw has changed my feelings about music. With up and coming artists like Aloe Blacc (of Emanon) and Madlib to resident legends like Peanut Butter Wolf, Stones Throw has created a monster of a hiphop crew, dedicated to bringing the good shit.

We've all heard that J-Dilla/Jay Dee has passed away. Let me first stress my sympathy and condolences to his family and friends in this emotional time before going on with this review.

Rest in peace. February 7 1974 - February 10 2006.

It was not my intention to do this review on dilla based on his passing, let it be known that I had previously written up an informal draft of this review that has been purged and recrafted to suit the present conditions. I had actually copped a sampler of this a while back and was absolutely stunned by the selection of music in which it held. As with any Stones Throw release, it showed me that hiphop is evolving... Not into a gangster or baller ridden plague, but something that can be enjoyed by all, respectively, based on things other than lyrical talent. This concept is upheld by J-dilla in its essence, perfectly, with absolutely no exceptions made.

Funk, Soul, Jazz, R&B, and even Classical are represented on Donuts with a twist of a somewhat modern yet old school pimp slap. This is the type of mix ohgeeyah talks about, completely out of context, after his third beer. This is the type of music you want to share with your elders... your significant other, and your friends because after listening thoroughly to this, even after only one time, you feel connected to its creator.

People like myself may listen to this compilation in disbelief. Speaking from the heart, it took me almost a week and a half to fathom dilla's death while this music spoke to me. Take a brief second and imagine your favorite CD of all time... Think about how you dwell on the songs: the production, the sound, the lyrics, think about how you dream of creating something as equally and beautifully as brilliant, think about how many people like you the songs on it have reached... and then imagine that artists suffering, painfully producing positivity and love through smooth peaceful music, all while slowly peering over the edge of life all the while. It saddens me... as I reflect and listen to Donuts, thinking about the possibilities of this man.

I've sincerely enjoyed Donuts, as I hope you have. I struggle reviewing this without mentioning how J-Dilla speaks on through his production. I also struggle with facing this simple fact of life... And it's not only as a stubborn and educationally ignorant music critic, but also as a fan, and firm believer in the Stones Throw family. I look at Stones Throws accomplishments as my own as I've developed as a person all while watching them grow as well.

J-Dilla you'll be missed. Your music lives on and I can't wait to hear from you on your unreleased work. We shall forever believe in your message, and will do our best to represent what you, as well as your label mates, have shown us.

Thank you Stones Throw and J-Dilla for bringing us crate diggers something to believe in other than blingy materialistic garbage. We appreciate your efforts and positive message.

All images courtesy Stones Throw.

Talib Kweli let ME down

I absolutely (or used to) love Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Hi-Tek, Reflection Eternal, Blackstar, etc so don't get me wrong about any of the following. To start this off, I have to say that Talib Kweli is in my all time top 5 non questionable favorites. So what the hell happened?

First of all, yes I understand this CD Confidential is a so called "bootleg" or "mix" CD. Yes I understand that this isn't his *new* album. Yes I understand that Talib Kweli has a dope history. But (and this is one hell of a "but") this shit (and I do mean shit) is absolutely fucking garbage. Riddle me this: Who seriously releases tracks featuring Slim Thug? Hmm, let's think about that: Everybody creating crappy new wave Rap music including, now, Talib Kweli.

Secondly, the production is fucking dick. Give me 20 mins, samples, and a microphone and I'll personally recreate half of this album. Hi-Tek, man, learn how to play an instrument, take up chess, or do something dude because sadly producing just isn't for you any more. Where the hell was the inspiration? You two of all people should know good music must, and this must is a must, have heart.

Although this CD is not worth the purchase price, there are a few tracks that are great and should definately be checked out. Track 17 featuring Kanye West entitled "We can make it better" featuring Q-tip and Common and Rhymefest caught me off guard. It's like a sweet taste of reality as a prisoner serving 25 to life. Production on this track is what should be expected out of these guys and it lets them live up to every bit of fame they've achieved thus far. The following track featuring MF Doom entitled "Old School" was also featured on MF Doom's newest album with Danger Mouse called "The Mouse and the Mask" so in my mind, although this track is great, because it was featured on another album it doesn't bring up the curve. The 19th track featuring Jaylib entitled "Raw Shit" is up to par with Talib Kweli's 2002 album Quality meaning it's good (these days what else would we expect from Stonesthrow?) The album ends with a song featuring Leela James which is a remix to the Leela James' original song "Music" off of "A Change is Gonna Come" which was good to begin with and it's kind of hard to fuck that up, so it doesn't really raise the curve either.

Not featured on this album, and I'm glad, is the b-side to track 8 entitled "Fly that Knot" featuring MF Doom off of Talib Kweli's upcoming retail album not yet released. Despite it's a-side, Fly that Knot has everything that makes a good song great, it contains solid production, catchy enthusiastic lyrics, and most importantly a message that is worthy of attention.

Lastly, in all hopes, I pray that this mix CD is not a preview of what is to come from Kweli. I mean, we've all seen great things from him as well as his peers, why stop now? Hopefully upon future album releases his shit is together, production is tight, and his lyrics aren't so generic.

Let this album come to you, support good music, don't buy it. In hopes of seeing better things from Talib Kweli, until next time...

Oh, and David banner maybe you should watch how you use the word "cracker," boy.

One of Those Mixes We All Need

You hear them all the time. Pause while somebody else is fiddling through the deposit envelopes at the ATM, it starts up. The moment right before your first swig of good ole' Captain Morgan; again the smooth sounds of love hit. Cosmo Baker masterminds through a whirlwind of unmistakably essential calm you down classics. Currently the disc lies in a pile of many fellow thin jewel cased mixes so I can't exactly pinpoint song titles or artists that I recall most. Yet, I know the whole damn thing was a revolutionary experience in itself. Subtle hints of sample mania strike with nostalgia with almost every track. It's like Baker wanted the mix to revolve around chess and the anticipation for the next move. Each blend is precise. Calculated perfectly, swiftly. So if you wish to engage in a 70 minute trip to funky junky humpy town, holler at the LAB and get yourself a copy on the hurry.

Coincidence

Zook - Music From the Accumulator

Who would I be if I didn't offer to you (our loyal readers) insight to more profound and elaborate music which you may have never heard of? We all know we here at canklesandwaffles are die hard music fans, each with a different interpretation and colorful ways to describe what's out there in the world. With that said, I'd like to establish that my purpose here is to get you thinking about what you haven't heard. I want to be consistent to those of you who actually read my posts by constantly bringing you reviews of albums which I like on a personal level in hopes that you haven't heard them yet. This was the best way I could think of to introduce you to one of my new favorite groups: Zook.


Up until a month ago, I hadn't ever heard of Zook. Somehow I wandered through Jazz, Lo-Fi, Funk, Hiphop, to Zook's Acoustic Soul. Zook is a band of 2 members from London on tummy touch records: SIMON CHARTERTON (percussion and drums), WILLIAM DENTON (guitar and harmonica). Tummy Touch is kind of like a ninja tune for funky soul rock heads. After hearing what Zook has to offer, I definitely need to hear more from tummy touch.

The album begins with "Slinky," kind of a slow drum kick acoustic guitar breakbeat in a way. Come to think of it that can be said for any of Zook's music on this cd. This is minimalistic music. You wont find any bloated or instrument overpopulation on music from the accumulator. Every track is recorded as if the band had absolutely no point in making any of the tracks, yet somehow each song establishes so much! With no lyrics (aside from an occasional whistle), multi-track production, or electronic equipment (yes, this album was recorded acoustically), zook takes us on a journey back into time when music was about more than just the notoriety. In fact, to them music is all about the sound impression. Modern music these days (especially radio worthy hoopla) is plagued with bulky remastered tracks and enough sound effects to overdo a daffy duck cartoon from the 30's. It's through these means that zook creates a clean sound full of warmth and serenity.

music from the accumulator gets you relaxed. To me, music is all about enjoyment. There's nothing like having it at that perfect volume (to me it's coffee shop talking level), a nice comfortable place to sit, and an appropriate atmosphere. When I listen to Zook, the lights are dim and incense burns. The windows stay shut and my cozy apartment glows warm.

As for production, zook's is top notch. Recorded with 0% electronic media, zook's methods, although daring, paid off with a warm vinyl-like sound on CD. Cymbals are sharp, bass is smooth, percussion is crisp, and ambiance is thick. For the break inspired lo-fi loving funk fans out there, there is none better than zook. Look for more music from tummy touch records, I have a feeling we'll be hearing more from them shortly.