The Patriots defense has not played particularly well this season. Or for the last couple of seasons, to be perfectly honest. But the strength of a Bill Belichick defense has always been that they take away your greatest strength, essentially daring you to beat them with one hand tied behind your back. Last night, the Patriots D was able to do that to the Broncos, and as good as Tom Brady and Co. were, the play of the defense was why the Patriots so utterly dominated the Broncos.
The Broncos were a running team this season. Overall, they averaged 4.8 yards per carry (6th in the NFL) and 164.5 yards per game on the ground (1st in the NFL by 11.5 yards per game). Last night, the Patriots took away the run. The Broncos only averaged 3.6 yards per carry, and while they did pile up 144 yards, much of that was due to the fact that they refused to abandon the run in the second half.
Stopping the run stops all of the Broncos' offensive momentum, as they seem most effective at throwing the ball when they can utilize play action. With the threat of the run neutralized early, the Patriots were not fooled by the Broncos' play action. This was most notable when Gerard Warren came bursting through the line and went straight for Tebow, wrestling him to the ground before he even had a chance to turn around.
The Patriots put the game out of reach in the final two minutes of the first half, but up until that point Denver still had a chance. But the reason they weren't able to gain much traction is because the Pats forced them to win without their best weapon, and they simply aren't a good enough team to do that.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Monday, January 02, 2012
Sixth Annual End Of Year CDs
Each year, in a (mostly) vain to stay up to date with the music world, I put together an end-of-year CD set, and give them out to some close friends as Christmas presents (you can see my 2009 and 2010 writeups here). I finally handed out the last one on New Year's Eve, so I figured it was high time to put up this year's list.
As a reminder, nearly all of the songs on the Aboveground mix reached the Billboard Top 100, while the Underground mix are songs that are decidedly the opposite. The only other rule is that the song had to be released commercially during 2011.
Aboveground Mix
1. Adele: Rolling In The Deep
This one was solidified early in the year. I don't really think there was a better candidate for song of the year.
2. DJ Khaled: I'm On One f/ Drake, Lil' Wayne & Rick Ross
One question -- is DJ Khaled still the DJ for the Terror Squad? Ha. The beat here shines the brightest, and that's saying something, as all three rappers turn in excellent verses, particularly Rick Ross. It's funny that Ross pops up here, since I don't care for him at all. But despite his lackluster catalog overall, he finds a way to put up or be a part of one good single every year -- he's managed to find his way onto my collection in five of the six years I've done it. He's like the Michael Young of hip-hop.
3. Coldplay: Paradise
Any song that features people dancing in elephant costumes in its video is a winner in my book.
4. Jay-Z & Kanye West: Ni**s In Paris
I know some people didn't care for Watch The Throne's decadent ways, but I loved it. Of the two most popular singles from the album, this and "Otis," this was the clear choice for me. I actually found "Otis" to be one of the weaker tracks on the album overall, and even liked tracks like "No Church In The Wild" and "Murder To Excellence" better than Paris, but I stuck to my format here, for better or worse.
5. Gym Class Heroes: Stereo Hearts f/ Adam Levine
Feel free to hate on this one, but this track really bangs. I kind of think of Gym Class Heroes as the poor man's and pop man's GZA.
6. Britney Spears: Till The World Ends
The most over-the-top Britney single ever? The world could be collapsing all around you, but hey, as long as we're dancing, it's all good!
7. Bad Meets Evil: Lighters f/ Bruno Mars
I've only been waiting for this reunion since 1999. "Scary Movies" is still one of my favorite tracks of all time.
8. Nicki Minaj: Super Bass
Pink Friday didn't meet my expectations, but this bonus track, which was for some reason not released until this year, is hard to deny. Yes, she uses her voices, which I don't much care for in general, but here, they intertwine nicely. A runner-up for song of the year.
9. Foster The People: Pumped Up Kicks
This song was apparently first written in 2009, but became the little pop song that could only in this year. I relish in songs that have violent themes but catchy little dittys, where you end up merrily singing the chorus without even realizing what you're singing. Good times.
10. Kelly Rowland: Motivation f/ Lil' Wayne
A second song where the beat is the champion, it's always nice to see Kelly Rowland -- who I always felt got unfairly shafted out of further fame and fortune when Beyonce set off on her own -- see some success. The brief cameo from Weezy here gives him three appearances on the mix, the most for the year and tied for the most in any year (Kanye West, 2008; Drake, 2010). I find this amusing, because I really didn't think it was that great of a year for him. But he keeps turning up.
11. Dr. Dre: I Need A Doctor f/ Eminem & Skylar Grey
This is the second straight year where the maddening doctor has released a single for an album that has not yet been released in full, and may never be at all. I didn't like this song when it first came out because I was upset that Nate Dogg didn't get to sing the hook, but that's kind of silly -- Skylar Grey did a good job with the hook.
12. David Guetta: Without You f/ Usher
David Guetta gets the heavy hitters, and I preferred this track to the Nicki Minaj/Flo Rida track. I do have some standards, and not including Flo Rida songs is one of them.
13. Maroon 5: Moves Like Jagger
Of course, my standards aren't that high.
Me: I need to get going on my end-of-year CD's.
Wife: Oh! Are you going to put "Moves With Jagger" on it? I love that song.
Me: Uh.......sure.
14. Lil' Wayne: 6 Foot 7 Foot f/ Cory Gunz
Six foot, seven foot, eight foot, bunch! There wasn't much that stood out on Tha Carter IV -- this and "Outro" was about it.
15. Beyonce Knowles: Countdown
I really enjoyed 4, and might have included the track with Andre 3000 here, but "Countdown" was the standout single.
16. Lady Gaga: You And I
I'm not really concerned with the way in which she was born, especially since that song was more of the same from her. But this was a departure, and while I generally don't care for country music, I thought this was a well-done song, and more still, a brave effort that should be commended. She could have easily churned out 10 "Born This Way's" and still sold a gazillion records, but she didn't. That's refreshing.
17. Drake: Headlines
This album has stirred so many different emotions in me it isn't funny, but the bottom line is that it's an awesome piece of work. I would have preferred "Marvin's Room" here, but the track is simply too long, so "Headlines" it is.
18. Kreayshawn: Gucci Gucci
Between her beef with Rick Ross, and her girl's use of the N word, people may tire of Kreayshawn quickly, but if she ends up a one-hit wonder, it certainly was a memorable hit. "I got the swag and it's pumping out my ovaries" was one of the funniest, if not best, lines of the year.
19. Rihanna: We Found Love
At this point, Rihanna is a legend, and legends are comfortable standing at the back while everyone does their thing, patiently waiting to explode and re-claim the crowd when it's their turn. And explode is exactly what "We Found Love" does. It also fits well at the end since it debuted late in the year.
20. The Muppets: Life's A Happy Song Finale
I'll be fairly pissed when The Muppets is inevitably ignored for Best Picture, but that's a discussion for another time. This was a pretty good year for me personally, and I thought this was a fitting way to cap it. If you think that's corny, well then corn me up. Life's a happy song, when there's someone by your side to sing along.
Underground Mix
1. Aaron Spacemuseum: One Night Standard
A gratuitous lead entry, and it's not even hip-hop. Aaron is a good friend of mine, and it's been a long time since he put out any music in a long time, so I was excited for his EP, which was an excellent five song set. Do me a favor and pick it up, you won't be disappointed!
2. A$AP Rocky: Peso
One of my favorite albums of the year, I thought about putting one of the versions of "Purple Swag," but I felt the original was too short, and Chapter 2 was too long.
3. NaS: Nasty
"Any rebuttal to what I utter get boxcutter." Indeed. It's been too long since we had a NaS solo album, and this was a marvelous appetizer.
4. Kendrick Lamar: HiiiPower
"Trying to stay above water, that's why we shun the Navy." Classic, and that's not even the best line of the song.
5. The Roots: Make My f/ Big K.R.I.T. & Dice Raw
I kind of like "Kool On" a little better, but it's an upbeat song and the album overall is more morose, so "Make My" is a more emblematic choice (plus it was the single they released, which I do like to try to stick to when there is one). And while it may seem odd to see The Roots on an underground disc, the album really hasn't sold that well. It hasn't charted at all, and had only sold 84,000 copies between its Dec. 2 release date and Christmas, which is a shame.
6. Action Bronson: Larry Csonka
Full disclosure, I'm late to the party on Action Bronson, and still haven't listened to either of his projects from this year in full. But I knew I needed to include something from him here, and I have a hard time turning down songs named after athletes.
7. Freddie Gibbs: Menace II Society f/ Dom Kennedy & Polyester
I liked Freddie's take at a west-coast style song.
8. Apathy: Stop What Ya Doin' f/ Celph Titled & DJ Premier
Any time a rapper titles his album Honkey Kong, he gets a song on my CD!
9. Tyler, The Creator: Yonkers
TTC is another guy who I haven't fully delved into yet, but this song and video will undeniably go down as the most memorable of the year.
10. Azealia Banks: 212
This chick is filthy. She's like a sped-up Nicki Minaj, which I didn't think was possible. Looking forward to her debut album.
11. Childish Gambino: Bonfire
Pitchfork famously lampooned this album, but I enjoyed it. I actually enjoy "Fire Fly" a little more, but I was so squeezed for time trying to fit everything in that I couldn't spare the extra 10 seconds, so "Bonfire" will have to do. Sometimes you gotta make the hard decisions!
12. Danny Brown: DNA
Realistically, I could have just copy and pasted all of XXX here and just called it a day, it's that good. You could make a case for a half-dozen other tracks from the album.
13. Random Axe: Chewbacca f/ Roc Marciano
"Your tough talk, I don't get it / you wouldn't fight a ticket, so why recite a lyric." Tough-guy rap sometimes gets lost in the shuffle these days, making this even more important to include.
14. Mobb Deep: Get It Forever f/ NaS
Speaking of tough-guy rap, thank goodness for Mobb Deep's return. Black Cocaine wasn't their strongest effort, but "Get It Forever" was good enough to whet my appetite. "I did my little bid." You did Prodigy, now get back in the lab!
15. Curren$y & The Alchemist: Scottie Pippens f/ Freddie Gibbs As Kramer would say, Curren$y is so prolific! Curren$y plus The Alchemist equals pure gold, to borrow another Seinfeld-ism, and Freddie Gibbs here is the icing on the cake.
16. Lil' B: I Hate Myself
Lil' B goes on a personal journey over a lush track. Just like Drake's Take Care, Lil' B's I'm Gay disc was great music to write to at the end of the year.
17. Ski Beatz: Looking For Me f/ L.E.P. Bogus Boys & Terri Walker
Ski is an awesome producer, just check this resume. He actually gets the production credit on this track and the next.
18. Talib Kweli: Cold Rain
With each passing year, Kweli seems to slide further out of the zeitgeist, but he still hits as hard as he ever did. I have my fingers crossed that the Black Star album actually happens.
19. Pete Rock & Smif-n-Wessun: That's Hard f/ Sean Price & Styles P
Rounding out the album with two awesome posse cuts. The song's title says it all.
20. Mr. Muthaf**kin' eXquire: The Last Huzzah! Remix f/ Despot, Das Racist, Danny Brown & El-P
This song is just bananas. One of the best singles of the year, and perhaps one of the best remixes of all-time, even if breast milk doesn't really make my day.
BONUS CHRISTMAS TRACK. Eazy-E: Merry Motherf**king Christmas f/ Menajahtwa, Buckwheat, Will 1X & Atban Klann
I ended the Aboveground Mix with a sappy cut, so you know I had to go in the complete opposite direction for the bonus Christmas track. Merry motherf**king Christmas!
As a reminder, nearly all of the songs on the Aboveground mix reached the Billboard Top 100, while the Underground mix are songs that are decidedly the opposite. The only other rule is that the song had to be released commercially during 2011.
Aboveground Mix
1. Adele: Rolling In The Deep
This one was solidified early in the year. I don't really think there was a better candidate for song of the year.
2. DJ Khaled: I'm On One f/ Drake, Lil' Wayne & Rick Ross
One question -- is DJ Khaled still the DJ for the Terror Squad? Ha. The beat here shines the brightest, and that's saying something, as all three rappers turn in excellent verses, particularly Rick Ross. It's funny that Ross pops up here, since I don't care for him at all. But despite his lackluster catalog overall, he finds a way to put up or be a part of one good single every year -- he's managed to find his way onto my collection in five of the six years I've done it. He's like the Michael Young of hip-hop.
3. Coldplay: Paradise
Any song that features people dancing in elephant costumes in its video is a winner in my book.
4. Jay-Z & Kanye West: Ni**s In Paris
I know some people didn't care for Watch The Throne's decadent ways, but I loved it. Of the two most popular singles from the album, this and "Otis," this was the clear choice for me. I actually found "Otis" to be one of the weaker tracks on the album overall, and even liked tracks like "No Church In The Wild" and "Murder To Excellence" better than Paris, but I stuck to my format here, for better or worse.
5. Gym Class Heroes: Stereo Hearts f/ Adam Levine
Feel free to hate on this one, but this track really bangs. I kind of think of Gym Class Heroes as the poor man's and pop man's GZA.
6. Britney Spears: Till The World Ends
The most over-the-top Britney single ever? The world could be collapsing all around you, but hey, as long as we're dancing, it's all good!
7. Bad Meets Evil: Lighters f/ Bruno Mars
I've only been waiting for this reunion since 1999. "Scary Movies" is still one of my favorite tracks of all time.
8. Nicki Minaj: Super Bass
Pink Friday didn't meet my expectations, but this bonus track, which was for some reason not released until this year, is hard to deny. Yes, she uses her voices, which I don't much care for in general, but here, they intertwine nicely. A runner-up for song of the year.
9. Foster The People: Pumped Up Kicks
This song was apparently first written in 2009, but became the little pop song that could only in this year. I relish in songs that have violent themes but catchy little dittys, where you end up merrily singing the chorus without even realizing what you're singing. Good times.
10. Kelly Rowland: Motivation f/ Lil' Wayne
A second song where the beat is the champion, it's always nice to see Kelly Rowland -- who I always felt got unfairly shafted out of further fame and fortune when Beyonce set off on her own -- see some success. The brief cameo from Weezy here gives him three appearances on the mix, the most for the year and tied for the most in any year (Kanye West, 2008; Drake, 2010). I find this amusing, because I really didn't think it was that great of a year for him. But he keeps turning up.
11. Dr. Dre: I Need A Doctor f/ Eminem & Skylar Grey
This is the second straight year where the maddening doctor has released a single for an album that has not yet been released in full, and may never be at all. I didn't like this song when it first came out because I was upset that Nate Dogg didn't get to sing the hook, but that's kind of silly -- Skylar Grey did a good job with the hook.
12. David Guetta: Without You f/ Usher
David Guetta gets the heavy hitters, and I preferred this track to the Nicki Minaj/Flo Rida track. I do have some standards, and not including Flo Rida songs is one of them.
13. Maroon 5: Moves Like Jagger
Of course, my standards aren't that high.
Me: I need to get going on my end-of-year CD's.
Wife: Oh! Are you going to put "Moves With Jagger" on it? I love that song.
Me: Uh.......sure.
14. Lil' Wayne: 6 Foot 7 Foot f/ Cory Gunz
Six foot, seven foot, eight foot, bunch! There wasn't much that stood out on Tha Carter IV -- this and "Outro" was about it.
15. Beyonce Knowles: Countdown
I really enjoyed 4, and might have included the track with Andre 3000 here, but "Countdown" was the standout single.
16. Lady Gaga: You And I
I'm not really concerned with the way in which she was born, especially since that song was more of the same from her. But this was a departure, and while I generally don't care for country music, I thought this was a well-done song, and more still, a brave effort that should be commended. She could have easily churned out 10 "Born This Way's" and still sold a gazillion records, but she didn't. That's refreshing.
17. Drake: Headlines
This album has stirred so many different emotions in me it isn't funny, but the bottom line is that it's an awesome piece of work. I would have preferred "Marvin's Room" here, but the track is simply too long, so "Headlines" it is.
18. Kreayshawn: Gucci Gucci
Between her beef with Rick Ross, and her girl's use of the N word, people may tire of Kreayshawn quickly, but if she ends up a one-hit wonder, it certainly was a memorable hit. "I got the swag and it's pumping out my ovaries" was one of the funniest, if not best, lines of the year.
19. Rihanna: We Found Love
At this point, Rihanna is a legend, and legends are comfortable standing at the back while everyone does their thing, patiently waiting to explode and re-claim the crowd when it's their turn. And explode is exactly what "We Found Love" does. It also fits well at the end since it debuted late in the year.
20. The Muppets: Life's A Happy Song Finale
I'll be fairly pissed when The Muppets is inevitably ignored for Best Picture, but that's a discussion for another time. This was a pretty good year for me personally, and I thought this was a fitting way to cap it. If you think that's corny, well then corn me up. Life's a happy song, when there's someone by your side to sing along.
Underground Mix
1. Aaron Spacemuseum: One Night Standard
A gratuitous lead entry, and it's not even hip-hop. Aaron is a good friend of mine, and it's been a long time since he put out any music in a long time, so I was excited for his EP, which was an excellent five song set. Do me a favor and pick it up, you won't be disappointed!
2. A$AP Rocky: Peso
One of my favorite albums of the year, I thought about putting one of the versions of "Purple Swag," but I felt the original was too short, and Chapter 2 was too long.
3. NaS: Nasty
"Any rebuttal to what I utter get boxcutter." Indeed. It's been too long since we had a NaS solo album, and this was a marvelous appetizer.
4. Kendrick Lamar: HiiiPower
"Trying to stay above water, that's why we shun the Navy." Classic, and that's not even the best line of the song.
5. The Roots: Make My f/ Big K.R.I.T. & Dice Raw
I kind of like "Kool On" a little better, but it's an upbeat song and the album overall is more morose, so "Make My" is a more emblematic choice (plus it was the single they released, which I do like to try to stick to when there is one). And while it may seem odd to see The Roots on an underground disc, the album really hasn't sold that well. It hasn't charted at all, and had only sold 84,000 copies between its Dec. 2 release date and Christmas, which is a shame.
6. Action Bronson: Larry Csonka
Full disclosure, I'm late to the party on Action Bronson, and still haven't listened to either of his projects from this year in full. But I knew I needed to include something from him here, and I have a hard time turning down songs named after athletes.
7. Freddie Gibbs: Menace II Society f/ Dom Kennedy & Polyester
I liked Freddie's take at a west-coast style song.
8. Apathy: Stop What Ya Doin' f/ Celph Titled & DJ Premier
Any time a rapper titles his album Honkey Kong, he gets a song on my CD!
9. Tyler, The Creator: Yonkers
TTC is another guy who I haven't fully delved into yet, but this song and video will undeniably go down as the most memorable of the year.
10. Azealia Banks: 212
This chick is filthy. She's like a sped-up Nicki Minaj, which I didn't think was possible. Looking forward to her debut album.
11. Childish Gambino: Bonfire
Pitchfork famously lampooned this album, but I enjoyed it. I actually enjoy "Fire Fly" a little more, but I was so squeezed for time trying to fit everything in that I couldn't spare the extra 10 seconds, so "Bonfire" will have to do. Sometimes you gotta make the hard decisions!
12. Danny Brown: DNA
Realistically, I could have just copy and pasted all of XXX here and just called it a day, it's that good. You could make a case for a half-dozen other tracks from the album.
13. Random Axe: Chewbacca f/ Roc Marciano
"Your tough talk, I don't get it / you wouldn't fight a ticket, so why recite a lyric." Tough-guy rap sometimes gets lost in the shuffle these days, making this even more important to include.
14. Mobb Deep: Get It Forever f/ NaS
Speaking of tough-guy rap, thank goodness for Mobb Deep's return. Black Cocaine wasn't their strongest effort, but "Get It Forever" was good enough to whet my appetite. "I did my little bid." You did Prodigy, now get back in the lab!
15. Curren$y & The Alchemist: Scottie Pippens f/ Freddie Gibbs As Kramer would say, Curren$y is so prolific! Curren$y plus The Alchemist equals pure gold, to borrow another Seinfeld-ism, and Freddie Gibbs here is the icing on the cake.
16. Lil' B: I Hate Myself
Lil' B goes on a personal journey over a lush track. Just like Drake's Take Care, Lil' B's I'm Gay disc was great music to write to at the end of the year.
17. Ski Beatz: Looking For Me f/ L.E.P. Bogus Boys & Terri Walker
Ski is an awesome producer, just check this resume. He actually gets the production credit on this track and the next.
18. Talib Kweli: Cold Rain
With each passing year, Kweli seems to slide further out of the zeitgeist, but he still hits as hard as he ever did. I have my fingers crossed that the Black Star album actually happens.
19. Pete Rock & Smif-n-Wessun: That's Hard f/ Sean Price & Styles P
Rounding out the album with two awesome posse cuts. The song's title says it all.
20. Mr. Muthaf**kin' eXquire: The Last Huzzah! Remix f/ Despot, Das Racist, Danny Brown & El-P
This song is just bananas. One of the best singles of the year, and perhaps one of the best remixes of all-time, even if breast milk doesn't really make my day.
BONUS CHRISTMAS TRACK. Eazy-E: Merry Motherf**king Christmas f/ Menajahtwa, Buckwheat, Will 1X & Atban Klann
I ended the Aboveground Mix with a sappy cut, so you know I had to go in the complete opposite direction for the bonus Christmas track. Merry motherf**king Christmas!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Bells. Rocked: How the greatest hip-hop show on the planet keeps getting better
Note: I wrote this on Sunday, September 4, and submitted for possible publication. That didn't pan out, so I thought I'd put it up on the blog, but have had a busy week and am just getting to it now. Hope you enjoy!
Saturday, on a sun-scorched field on Governor’s Island in New York, thousands of hip-hop faithful turned out to witness the latest incarnation of Rock The Bells, a tour that in its eighth year has become the holy grail of hip-hop festivals. It has raised the stakes the past two years with one important change -- having the headlining artists perform their classic albums in their entirety.
“That’s like the second time we’ve done that song in 10 years.” Talib Kweli, after performing “Hater Players”
Bands performing albums in their entirety is certainly nothing new in the music world. Whether it be tribute performances, live shows at festivals such as South By Southwest, All Tomorrow’s Parties and the Pitchfork Music Festival, or even as a tool of self-promotion, performing whole albums serves as both a treat for devoted fans and a primer for uninitiated or casual ones. But it is not something that is common in hip-hop. The Genius/GZA has performed Liquid Swords live for years -- he even built a tour around it in 2008 -- and Public Enemy has performed It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back (and is also slated to perform Fear of A Black Planet) -- live, but neither has ever been accused of existing inside the mainstream mold of hip-hop.
Last year, the festival was headlined by hip-hop force Wu-Tang Clan, who performed their seminal work Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s first-born son, who goes by both “Boy Jones” and “Young Dirty Bastard,” and is the spitting image of his late father, performed his parts). Raekwon the Chef said it was the first time the group would perform the whole album live, while The GZA elaborated that the group would prepare for the show by actually rehearsing, something he claimed they had done only three times in their nearly 20 years as a collective. Also performing full albums were Rakim (Paid In Full), KRS-1 (Criminal Minded), Slick Rick (The Great Adventures of Slick Rick), Snoop Dogg (Doggystyle) and A Tribe Called Quest (Midnight Marauders). Lauryn Hill was rumored to be on the bill, but was instead a special guest, performing only selections of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill rather than the whole work in full. With such a tour de force lineup, and a demanding set of performances, the number of destinations was pared down noticeably, from 10-16 in previous years to just four. This year the destinations included Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Boston. Promoters Guerilla Union had a tall task in trying to top the bill from last year’s festival, but if they didn’t top it, they came damn close.
“This is the first time me and Nas gon’ do this shit on stage.” MC Serch, before joining Nas for Serch’s “Back To The Grill.”
In 2005, MTV named Paid In Full the greatest hip-hop album of all-time. Number two was Illmatic, the debut album from one Nasir Jones, better known to the masses as Nas. But while everyone in the late ‘80’s was no doubt influenced by Paid In Full, the number of MC’s who were influenced by Illmatic likely dwarf that. Nas is also more relevant these days than Rakim, as he is still pumping out hits, and this was to be the first time he performed the album live. Co-headlining with the Queensbridge legend was Ms. Hill, who the promoters locked down this year to perform Miseducation in its entirety. Also prominent on the bill were Cypress Hill (performing Black Sunday), Black Star (Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star), GZA (Liquid Swords), Mobb Deep (The Infamous), Raekwon and Ghostface Killah (Only Built 4 Cuban Linx) and Erykah Badu (Baduizm). Newbies Curren$y and Mac Miller got top billing on the west coast leg, and Common (Be) did every stop but New York.
Never mind the headliners, the prime cuts of that undercard are monster-sized. Anytime hardcore hip-hop heads can see GZA, Raekwon and Ghostface on the same day it’s a good day, to say nothing of Cypress Hill, Badu or Mos Def and Talib Kweli. But most of them tour constantly. The same cannot be said for Mobb Deep, who had not toured together in three years thanks to Prodigy’s incarceration. Even before that, their mostly underground status -- though legendary in the five boroughs -- generally precluded them from big shows like Rock The Bells, and as a result, many diehard fans had never seen them live. They did not disappoint. While they strayed from The Infamous at will and weren’t joined by collaborators like Raekwon, Nas, Ghostface or Lil' Kim (Big Noyd was there of course, rocking an updated version of the crew’s old “Hennessy” jerseys), but they kept their set at a fevered pitch, crushing some of the greatest hits in their catalog, concluding with what is probably the greatest underground hip-hop song of all-time, “Shook Ones, Part Two.” The crowd -- many of whom had been on their feet at that point for seven-plus hours -- left energized. They would need that energy as the festival drew to a close.
Despite speculation in the crowd, Hill did take the stage for her set, and though she seemed thoroughly annoyed with her mic at points, she turned the crowd out. After seemingly drawing her performance to a close with hit “Everything Is Everything,” Hill stunned the crowd. Last year, she brought out several hip-hop and R&B luminaries who were in attendance at the New York show, but none performed with her. This year, she brought back former band mate Pras Michel, with whom she had not been seen with in public since 2006. Together, they performed “Fu-Gee-La,” “Ready Or Not” and “Killing Me Softly,” during which Hill broke from character even further by bringing her children onto stage to share the moment with her. It was a moment that seemed like it would be hard to top. Nas, however, was up to the challenge.
Nas has anointed himself with several personas through the years, but when he started, he was Nasty Nas, and that fire was evident from the beginning. After album intro “Genesis” played, he launched into “New York State Of Mind.” The crowd hung on every word, and when Nas turned the mic to the crowd they bellowed the bars, none louder than the priceless quip “I never sleep, ‘cause sleep is the cousin of death.”
Like Black Star earlier in the day, Nas would burn through each track of the album in order, but unlike Black Star (who did add a couple of hits at the end of their set) Nas detoured from the album twice to pay his respects. The first time was following “The World Is Yours,” when peerless DJ’s Premier and Pete Rock engaged in a lengthy DJ battle. Then, following “Memory Lane,” Nas brought MC Serch to the stage. Nas credited Serch for giving him a shot when he was still young in the game with the song “Back To The Grill,” which they performed to monster effect. Joe Fatal, Large Professor and Akinyele then jumped on stage to perform the song that Nas first appeared on, “Live At The BBQ,” from Main Source’s Breaking Atoms, with the Aktapuss sticking around to thrill the crowd with his cult fave “Put It In Your Mouth.”
The posse cuts seemed to give Nas new life, as he sped through the last few cuts off Illmatic before delighting the crowd with several of his singles, including his new joint “Nasty,” “Hate Me Now,” and “Nas Is Like,” before capping the festivities sooner than he would have liked with the banger “Made You Look” (to his credit, he kept claiming he didn’t want to stop, and looked ready to perform far deeper into the night. This may have been the fault of the crew who set up the stage for him, as they seemingly took forever to set up the most basic props and thus pushed the beginning of Nas’ set closer to the show’s end time.). The crowd was treated by the presence of Steve Nash, who was brought on stage, and giddily danced with the rest of Nas’ crew. He even brought Hill back out for “If I Ruled The World (Imagine That),” though Hill’s mic was once again not working properly.
As will always be the case with a show of this magnitude, mic problems were the bugaboo of the day, as Hill wasn’t alone in that respect. It was one of a few issues that cropped up, though the most notable issue was that with three main stages, fans had some very hard decisions to make -- in particular having to choose between Nas and Raekwon and Ghostface for the final act (My cohorts and I picked the following schedule -- Random Axe, Black Star, GZA, Mobb Deep, Lauryn Hill and Nas, breaking for dinner between GZA and Mobb Deep. This meant missing several acts -- more than a full day’s worth -- that we would have liked to have seen, such as Donald Glover/Childish Gambino, Masta Killa, Slaughterhouse, Evidence and of course, Raekwon and Ghostface.). But just as there were unexpected potholes, the unexpected performances from The RZA, Serch, Akinyele, as well as the DJ battle between Premo and The Chocolate Boy Wonder more than balanced the scales.
Recently, Watch The Throne and Tha Carter IV set records for album downloads, but far too frequently these days, we consume music song by song rather album by album. With the cost of music so low, fans are increasingly hesitant to pay to see even the best artists live. By applying the whole album formula for its largest acts, Rock The Bells has hit the sweet spot of giving fans a unique experience that is also well worth the money, and it has brought out the best of its performers. As an added bonus, they have rekindled the love for the long player, something that in today’s 140 characters or less world is a welcome respite. Stuck off the realness, indeed.
Saturday, on a sun-scorched field on Governor’s Island in New York, thousands of hip-hop faithful turned out to witness the latest incarnation of Rock The Bells, a tour that in its eighth year has become the holy grail of hip-hop festivals. It has raised the stakes the past two years with one important change -- having the headlining artists perform their classic albums in their entirety.
“That’s like the second time we’ve done that song in 10 years.” Talib Kweli, after performing “Hater Players”
Bands performing albums in their entirety is certainly nothing new in the music world. Whether it be tribute performances, live shows at festivals such as South By Southwest, All Tomorrow’s Parties and the Pitchfork Music Festival, or even as a tool of self-promotion, performing whole albums serves as both a treat for devoted fans and a primer for uninitiated or casual ones. But it is not something that is common in hip-hop. The Genius/GZA has performed Liquid Swords live for years -- he even built a tour around it in 2008 -- and Public Enemy has performed It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back (and is also slated to perform Fear of A Black Planet) -- live, but neither has ever been accused of existing inside the mainstream mold of hip-hop.
Last year, the festival was headlined by hip-hop force Wu-Tang Clan, who performed their seminal work Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s first-born son, who goes by both “Boy Jones” and “Young Dirty Bastard,” and is the spitting image of his late father, performed his parts). Raekwon the Chef said it was the first time the group would perform the whole album live, while The GZA elaborated that the group would prepare for the show by actually rehearsing, something he claimed they had done only three times in their nearly 20 years as a collective. Also performing full albums were Rakim (Paid In Full), KRS-1 (Criminal Minded), Slick Rick (The Great Adventures of Slick Rick), Snoop Dogg (Doggystyle) and A Tribe Called Quest (Midnight Marauders). Lauryn Hill was rumored to be on the bill, but was instead a special guest, performing only selections of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill rather than the whole work in full. With such a tour de force lineup, and a demanding set of performances, the number of destinations was pared down noticeably, from 10-16 in previous years to just four. This year the destinations included Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Boston. Promoters Guerilla Union had a tall task in trying to top the bill from last year’s festival, but if they didn’t top it, they came damn close.
“This is the first time me and Nas gon’ do this shit on stage.” MC Serch, before joining Nas for Serch’s “Back To The Grill.”
In 2005, MTV named Paid In Full the greatest hip-hop album of all-time. Number two was Illmatic, the debut album from one Nasir Jones, better known to the masses as Nas. But while everyone in the late ‘80’s was no doubt influenced by Paid In Full, the number of MC’s who were influenced by Illmatic likely dwarf that. Nas is also more relevant these days than Rakim, as he is still pumping out hits, and this was to be the first time he performed the album live. Co-headlining with the Queensbridge legend was Ms. Hill, who the promoters locked down this year to perform Miseducation in its entirety. Also prominent on the bill were Cypress Hill (performing Black Sunday), Black Star (Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star), GZA (Liquid Swords), Mobb Deep (The Infamous), Raekwon and Ghostface Killah (Only Built 4 Cuban Linx) and Erykah Badu (Baduizm). Newbies Curren$y and Mac Miller got top billing on the west coast leg, and Common (Be) did every stop but New York.
Never mind the headliners, the prime cuts of that undercard are monster-sized. Anytime hardcore hip-hop heads can see GZA, Raekwon and Ghostface on the same day it’s a good day, to say nothing of Cypress Hill, Badu or Mos Def and Talib Kweli. But most of them tour constantly. The same cannot be said for Mobb Deep, who had not toured together in three years thanks to Prodigy’s incarceration. Even before that, their mostly underground status -- though legendary in the five boroughs -- generally precluded them from big shows like Rock The Bells, and as a result, many diehard fans had never seen them live. They did not disappoint. While they strayed from The Infamous at will and weren’t joined by collaborators like Raekwon, Nas, Ghostface or Lil' Kim (Big Noyd was there of course, rocking an updated version of the crew’s old “Hennessy” jerseys), but they kept their set at a fevered pitch, crushing some of the greatest hits in their catalog, concluding with what is probably the greatest underground hip-hop song of all-time, “Shook Ones, Part Two.” The crowd -- many of whom had been on their feet at that point for seven-plus hours -- left energized. They would need that energy as the festival drew to a close.
Despite speculation in the crowd, Hill did take the stage for her set, and though she seemed thoroughly annoyed with her mic at points, she turned the crowd out. After seemingly drawing her performance to a close with hit “Everything Is Everything,” Hill stunned the crowd. Last year, she brought out several hip-hop and R&B luminaries who were in attendance at the New York show, but none performed with her. This year, she brought back former band mate Pras Michel, with whom she had not been seen with in public since 2006. Together, they performed “Fu-Gee-La,” “Ready Or Not” and “Killing Me Softly,” during which Hill broke from character even further by bringing her children onto stage to share the moment with her. It was a moment that seemed like it would be hard to top. Nas, however, was up to the challenge.
Nas has anointed himself with several personas through the years, but when he started, he was Nasty Nas, and that fire was evident from the beginning. After album intro “Genesis” played, he launched into “New York State Of Mind.” The crowd hung on every word, and when Nas turned the mic to the crowd they bellowed the bars, none louder than the priceless quip “I never sleep, ‘cause sleep is the cousin of death.”
Like Black Star earlier in the day, Nas would burn through each track of the album in order, but unlike Black Star (who did add a couple of hits at the end of their set) Nas detoured from the album twice to pay his respects. The first time was following “The World Is Yours,” when peerless DJ’s Premier and Pete Rock engaged in a lengthy DJ battle. Then, following “Memory Lane,” Nas brought MC Serch to the stage. Nas credited Serch for giving him a shot when he was still young in the game with the song “Back To The Grill,” which they performed to monster effect. Joe Fatal, Large Professor and Akinyele then jumped on stage to perform the song that Nas first appeared on, “Live At The BBQ,” from Main Source’s Breaking Atoms, with the Aktapuss sticking around to thrill the crowd with his cult fave “Put It In Your Mouth.”
The posse cuts seemed to give Nas new life, as he sped through the last few cuts off Illmatic before delighting the crowd with several of his singles, including his new joint “Nasty,” “Hate Me Now,” and “Nas Is Like,” before capping the festivities sooner than he would have liked with the banger “Made You Look” (to his credit, he kept claiming he didn’t want to stop, and looked ready to perform far deeper into the night. This may have been the fault of the crew who set up the stage for him, as they seemingly took forever to set up the most basic props and thus pushed the beginning of Nas’ set closer to the show’s end time.). The crowd was treated by the presence of Steve Nash, who was brought on stage, and giddily danced with the rest of Nas’ crew. He even brought Hill back out for “If I Ruled The World (Imagine That),” though Hill’s mic was once again not working properly.
As will always be the case with a show of this magnitude, mic problems were the bugaboo of the day, as Hill wasn’t alone in that respect. It was one of a few issues that cropped up, though the most notable issue was that with three main stages, fans had some very hard decisions to make -- in particular having to choose between Nas and Raekwon and Ghostface for the final act (My cohorts and I picked the following schedule -- Random Axe, Black Star, GZA, Mobb Deep, Lauryn Hill and Nas, breaking for dinner between GZA and Mobb Deep. This meant missing several acts -- more than a full day’s worth -- that we would have liked to have seen, such as Donald Glover/Childish Gambino, Masta Killa, Slaughterhouse, Evidence and of course, Raekwon and Ghostface.). But just as there were unexpected potholes, the unexpected performances from The RZA, Serch, Akinyele, as well as the DJ battle between Premo and The Chocolate Boy Wonder more than balanced the scales.
Recently, Watch The Throne and Tha Carter IV set records for album downloads, but far too frequently these days, we consume music song by song rather album by album. With the cost of music so low, fans are increasingly hesitant to pay to see even the best artists live. By applying the whole album formula for its largest acts, Rock The Bells has hit the sweet spot of giving fans a unique experience that is also well worth the money, and it has brought out the best of its performers. As an added bonus, they have rekindled the love for the long player, something that in today’s 140 characters or less world is a welcome respite. Stuck off the realness, indeed.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Moving Forward, Falling Behind
Tumultuous: Marked by tumult: loud, excited and emotional.
That's pretty much the way I would describe my move back to Massachusetts. Without going into too much detail, it's been four months since I left Denver, and I can still hardly believe it. But between raising Xander, figuring out a routine with two new jobs, trying to get even more additional freelance work, getting the house packed up, moving back in with my parents, dealing with some serious family medical issues, moving out of my parents' house, getting settled in a new apartment and exploring our new surroundings, I somehow fell behind on my music purchases.
Two weeks ago, I was trying to cajole a friend on Instant Messenger into buying tickets to the "Rock The Bells" show in New York that I'm heading out to in a couple of weeks, and he mentioned that he probably wasn't going to that, but that he was working on getting "Watch The Throne" tickets. I stared at the screen blankly, not knowing what "Watch The Throne" was. When he explained what pretty much the entire planet already knew -- Jay-Z and Kanye West made an album together and are going on tour together to perform it. I knew if this had slipped past my radar that I really needed to redouble my efforts on the music front.
I had been saving a couple of Amazon gift cards, and I tore into them a little bit last night. I picked up Adele's "Rolling In The Deep," Nicki Minaj's "Super Bass," the Bad Meets Evil album and "Watch The Throne." I haven't listened to Bad Meets Evil yet at all, and the others have only gotten one listen. I'll be back (hopefully) later with comments on all of them. I also have made a lengthy list of releases that I need to catch up on since the start of the year (I think the only other album I've bought all year was the Raekwon "Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang" disc -- which, while solid, was underwhelming when compared to Only Bulit For Cuban Linx II and when you take into account how much he hyped it on his Twitter account).
I've always told myself that I would never fall out of touch with music, and after getting my first taste of being out of touch I can tell you that I did not care for it one bit -- even if I had valid reasons for falling behind. But now that we've moved forward, fear not selfless reader, I will not fall behind again.
That's pretty much the way I would describe my move back to Massachusetts. Without going into too much detail, it's been four months since I left Denver, and I can still hardly believe it. But between raising Xander, figuring out a routine with two new jobs, trying to get even more additional freelance work, getting the house packed up, moving back in with my parents, dealing with some serious family medical issues, moving out of my parents' house, getting settled in a new apartment and exploring our new surroundings, I somehow fell behind on my music purchases.
Two weeks ago, I was trying to cajole a friend on Instant Messenger into buying tickets to the "Rock The Bells" show in New York that I'm heading out to in a couple of weeks, and he mentioned that he probably wasn't going to that, but that he was working on getting "Watch The Throne" tickets. I stared at the screen blankly, not knowing what "Watch The Throne" was. When he explained what pretty much the entire planet already knew -- Jay-Z and Kanye West made an album together and are going on tour together to perform it. I knew if this had slipped past my radar that I really needed to redouble my efforts on the music front.
I had been saving a couple of Amazon gift cards, and I tore into them a little bit last night. I picked up Adele's "Rolling In The Deep," Nicki Minaj's "Super Bass," the Bad Meets Evil album and "Watch The Throne." I haven't listened to Bad Meets Evil yet at all, and the others have only gotten one listen. I'll be back (hopefully) later with comments on all of them. I also have made a lengthy list of releases that I need to catch up on since the start of the year (I think the only other album I've bought all year was the Raekwon "Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang" disc -- which, while solid, was underwhelming when compared to Only Bulit For Cuban Linx II and when you take into account how much he hyped it on his Twitter account).
I've always told myself that I would never fall out of touch with music, and after getting my first taste of being out of touch I can tell you that I did not care for it one bit -- even if I had valid reasons for falling behind. But now that we've moved forward, fear not selfless reader, I will not fall behind again.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
2010 Holiday Mixes Explained
I feel like I have a lot of blogging to catch up on - updating my favorite movies list, looking at how I did with my NFL regular season picks, discussing my annual post-Christmas music shopping spree, talking baseball and probably some other stuff. But I need to get the holiday mixes off my chest.
For the fifth consecutive year, I made a double disc holiday mix collection for some close friends and family. I do it for two reasons. First, as far back as I can remember, I've loved making mix tapes; compiling the best of what I've been listening to into one handy tape or cd. And I've always loved sharing these mixes with other people, and people seem to enjoy them, which is nice. Second, as I get older, I have less and less time to devote to music. So doing these holiday mixes is kind of like a year-in-review for me. I can dive in in late November, figure out what have been my favorite, and/or the best tracks of the year. I split the mixes into "Underground," which is mostly underground hip-hop, and what I call "Aboveground," which is popular music. On the underground disc it's anything goes, though I try to use actual singles, rather than just picking random tracks I like. On the aboveground mix though, I try to keep it to records that went gold (500k sold) and/or were on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at some point during the year. I'd say I stick to those guidelines about 95% of the time. My only other rule, which I am a fantastic stickler about, is that the song had to come out in 2010. So many songs become popular the year after they are released, and I don't like to include those. If you weren't good enough to get popular right when it came out, well, them's the brakes.
This year, the aboveground mix was pretty hip-hop heavy. Drake and Nicki Minaj were everywhere, and had to be represented. Drake gets on three tracks and Nicki on two, one of their own, with the others being guest shots. Even though he's from Pittsburgh, and the song is about Pittsburgh colors, I loved Wiz Khalifa's "Black & Yellow" for two reasons. One, it's awesome when people pen songs like that about their city, it'd be nice if someone could make a track half as good about Boston ("Dirty Water" is great and all, but it'd be nice to have a newer anthem for the city). Second, black and yellow are the colors of the Boys & Girls Club branch I volunteer at, and all the kids there love the song, which it makes it a little more special to me. One late addition to the mix ended up being a great one - Cali Swag District's "Teach Me How To Dougie." It's easy to discount this as a party jam, but the lyrics on it are actually pretty good. We'll have to see how they follow it up. Another last minute add was Dr. Dre's "Kush," featuring Snoop Dogg and Akon. Let's hope this is the year that Detox finally gets released.
The mix isn't all hip-hop though. I led the mix off with Shakira's "Waka Waka," the World Cup theme song. I figure that we are going to remember this year for the riveting World Cup, and it's such a good song, so it deserved to lead off. Elsewhere, Rihanna made the cut once again with "What's My Name," the fourth straight year she is on the mix - tied for longest streak ever with Jay-Z and Kanye West. I also had to tip my hat to Taylor Swift and throw "Mine" in the mix, something that absolutely shocked my wife. And you know I had to place her song right before Kanye's!
Speaking of Mr. West, he once again scored a song, with "Monster." Kanye is the all-time leader in the aboveground mix, with a total of seven songs. I also considered "Power," "All of the Lights" and "Runaway" for this slot, but "Power" just doesn't have the X-factor, "All of the Lights" wasn't yet a single, and "Runaway" is just too long. Plus, the unanimous verse of the year was Nicki Minaj's verse on "Monster," so I had to have it on there.
Some songs that just missed the cut were Flo Rida's "Club Can't Handle Me," Michael Jackson & Akon's "Hold My Hand," Enrique Iglesias' "I Like It," Trey Songz' "Bottoms Up" and The Roots & John Legend's "Wake Up Everybody." The only tough decision was Flo Rida, and after I saw him perform on New Year's Eve at MTV, I was glad I left him off. He's really just not good. I give him another year or two, tops. MJ I left off because while the song came out in 2010, it was obviously recorded a few years ago. It just didn't feel right to include it.
Here's the track listing for the "Aboveground Mix:"
1. Shakira - Waka Waka
2. B.O.B. - Airplanes f/ Hayley Williams
3. Katy Perry - California Gurls f/ Snoop Dogg
4. Wiz Khalifa - Black & Yellow
5. Waka Flocka Flame - No Hands f/ Wale & Roscoe Dash
6. Cali Swag District - Teach Me How To Dougie
7. Taylor Swift - Mine
8. Kanye West - Monster f/ Rick Ross, Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj & Bon Iver
9. Rihanna - What's My Name f/ Drake
10. Far East Movement - Like A G6
11. Big Boi - Shutterbugg f/ Cutty
12. Cee-Lo - F**k You
13. Drake - Find Your Love
14. Nicki Minaj - Right Thru Me
15. Janelle Monae - Tightrope f/ Big Boi
16. Pitbull - Hey Baby (Drop It To The Floor) f/ T-Pain
17. Lloyd Banks - Beamer, Benz or Bentley f/ Juelz Santana
18. Lil' Wayne - Right Above It f/ Drake
19. Dr. Dre - Kush f/ Snoop Dogg & Akon
20. Eminem - Not Afraid
The underground mix can sometimes be a grind for me. Back in the day, I'd just go to Hip Zepi if I was in Boston, or Fat Beats if I was in New York, I would ask the man behind the counter what's hot, drop $20-$80, and I'd have all the latest and greatest on the underground circuit. Easy. Now, you have to comb the internet to really distinguish between what's good and what isn't. I trust a few sites to guide me - Pitchfork and HipHopDX more than any others. But while it can sometimes be a painstaking process, this was not one of those times. I actually had a much easier time of it this year than usual. Maybe I kept up better this year, who knows.
Over the years, I have included about 40% more artists on the underground mix as on the aboveground mix, which makes sense. The people that dominate the pop charts simply don't turn over as quickly. But the mainstays on the underground have been the Wu-Tang. Raekwon has been on the mix every year, and a mix-topping eight times overall. Ghostface Killah has been on six times, good for second-highest, and Method Man a respectable four times as well. They all get on on the same track this year, their group effort "Our Dreams," which was produced by The RZA and featured a Michael Jackson sample.
The mix leads off with Aloe Blacc's "I Need A Dollar," which was the theme song to HBO's summer hit "How To Make It In America." Next up was J. Cole, who we should hear a lot more from in 2011 now that he is signed to Def Jam, with "Who Dat," the one song he currently has that is available for purchase. Next was Lil' Kim's "Black Friday," a diss record referring to Nicki Minaj's LP "Pink Friday." This may have been Nicki's year, but Nicki definitely fed her hype through her beef with Kim, and Kim absolutely slays her on this track. Hopefully this will be a good (but non-violent) beef for awhile.
Overall, the mix had two different vibes. On the one hand, there are three tributes to Keith Elam, better known as Guru from Gangstarr, who passed away this year. That was terrible, and since he's a Bostonian, I had to represent a little bit extra for him. On the other hand, there were several uplifting/lighthearted songs, such as the Wu-Tang track, Maino's "Hold On," Cypress Hill's "Armada Latina," and Statik Selektah's & Termanology's "Wedding Bells." That Massachusetts duo dropped hard in 2010, and hopefully there will be more good things to come from them. Another favorite Mass duo - 7L & Esoteric - finally returned this year, and they did so with Inspectah Deck, who helped bless their first LP nearly ten years ago. Their track, "12th Chamber," is lovely. One more Bostonian who made the cut was newcomer Dutch ReBelle, whose LP also is slated to drop in 2011. I'm excited for that one.
I always try to get one really good transfer on the underground mix, which is difficult when you're just burning these mixes in iTunes, as opposed to using real recording equipment. But in any case, I think I pulled off a good one with the transfer from Wale's "The War" to Kno's "Spread Your Wings." The first time I heard that, I knew it was seamless.
As always, the mix closes with a bonus Christmas track. Since Christmas music usually sucks and is also timeless, I waive the 2010-only rule for this song only. I've already heard rave reviews about this year's track, Tha Dogg Pound's "Santa Claus Goes Straight To The Ghetto." It's just a whole lot of awesomeness, if you've never heard it, you should check it out.
Here's the track listing for the underground mix:
1. Aloe Blacc - I Need A Dollar
2. J. Cole - Who Dat
3. Lil' Kim - Black Friday
4. Jay Electronica - The Ghost of Christopher Wallace f/ Diddy
5. Freddie Gibbs - National Anthem (F**k The World)
6. Fat Joe - I'm Gone
7. Celph Titled & Buckwild - There Will Be Blood f/ Sadat X, Grand Puba, AG, OC & Diamond D
8. Maino - Hold On f/ Mya
9. Method Man, Raekwon & Ghostface Killah - Our Dreams
10. Cypress Hill - Armada Latina f/ Pitbull & Marc Anthony
11. Statik Selektah & Termanology - Wedding Bells f/ Jared Evan
12. 7L & Esoteric - 12th Chamber f/ Inspectah Deck
13. NaS - Snitch Alibi
14. Dutch ReBelle - I'm Ill Remix
15. Curren$y - Michael Knight
16. Wale - The War
17. Kno - Spread Your Wings f/ Deacon The Villain
18. Group Home - G.U.R.U. f/ Jeru Tha Damaga
19. DJ Premier - The Gangstar Bus f/ Freddie Foxx
20. BONUS CHRISTMAS TRACK Tha Dogg Pound - Santa Claus Goes Straight To The Ghetto
I can always be talked into burning a set or two, so if you'd like one, drop me a line.
For the fifth consecutive year, I made a double disc holiday mix collection for some close friends and family. I do it for two reasons. First, as far back as I can remember, I've loved making mix tapes; compiling the best of what I've been listening to into one handy tape or cd. And I've always loved sharing these mixes with other people, and people seem to enjoy them, which is nice. Second, as I get older, I have less and less time to devote to music. So doing these holiday mixes is kind of like a year-in-review for me. I can dive in in late November, figure out what have been my favorite, and/or the best tracks of the year. I split the mixes into "Underground," which is mostly underground hip-hop, and what I call "Aboveground," which is popular music. On the underground disc it's anything goes, though I try to use actual singles, rather than just picking random tracks I like. On the aboveground mix though, I try to keep it to records that went gold (500k sold) and/or were on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at some point during the year. I'd say I stick to those guidelines about 95% of the time. My only other rule, which I am a fantastic stickler about, is that the song had to come out in 2010. So many songs become popular the year after they are released, and I don't like to include those. If you weren't good enough to get popular right when it came out, well, them's the brakes.
This year, the aboveground mix was pretty hip-hop heavy. Drake and Nicki Minaj were everywhere, and had to be represented. Drake gets on three tracks and Nicki on two, one of their own, with the others being guest shots. Even though he's from Pittsburgh, and the song is about Pittsburgh colors, I loved Wiz Khalifa's "Black & Yellow" for two reasons. One, it's awesome when people pen songs like that about their city, it'd be nice if someone could make a track half as good about Boston ("Dirty Water" is great and all, but it'd be nice to have a newer anthem for the city). Second, black and yellow are the colors of the Boys & Girls Club branch I volunteer at, and all the kids there love the song, which it makes it a little more special to me. One late addition to the mix ended up being a great one - Cali Swag District's "Teach Me How To Dougie." It's easy to discount this as a party jam, but the lyrics on it are actually pretty good. We'll have to see how they follow it up. Another last minute add was Dr. Dre's "Kush," featuring Snoop Dogg and Akon. Let's hope this is the year that Detox finally gets released.
The mix isn't all hip-hop though. I led the mix off with Shakira's "Waka Waka," the World Cup theme song. I figure that we are going to remember this year for the riveting World Cup, and it's such a good song, so it deserved to lead off. Elsewhere, Rihanna made the cut once again with "What's My Name," the fourth straight year she is on the mix - tied for longest streak ever with Jay-Z and Kanye West. I also had to tip my hat to Taylor Swift and throw "Mine" in the mix, something that absolutely shocked my wife. And you know I had to place her song right before Kanye's!
Speaking of Mr. West, he once again scored a song, with "Monster." Kanye is the all-time leader in the aboveground mix, with a total of seven songs. I also considered "Power," "All of the Lights" and "Runaway" for this slot, but "Power" just doesn't have the X-factor, "All of the Lights" wasn't yet a single, and "Runaway" is just too long. Plus, the unanimous verse of the year was Nicki Minaj's verse on "Monster," so I had to have it on there.
Some songs that just missed the cut were Flo Rida's "Club Can't Handle Me," Michael Jackson & Akon's "Hold My Hand," Enrique Iglesias' "I Like It," Trey Songz' "Bottoms Up" and The Roots & John Legend's "Wake Up Everybody." The only tough decision was Flo Rida, and after I saw him perform on New Year's Eve at MTV, I was glad I left him off. He's really just not good. I give him another year or two, tops. MJ I left off because while the song came out in 2010, it was obviously recorded a few years ago. It just didn't feel right to include it.
Here's the track listing for the "Aboveground Mix:"
1. Shakira - Waka Waka
2. B.O.B. - Airplanes f/ Hayley Williams
3. Katy Perry - California Gurls f/ Snoop Dogg
4. Wiz Khalifa - Black & Yellow
5. Waka Flocka Flame - No Hands f/ Wale & Roscoe Dash
6. Cali Swag District - Teach Me How To Dougie
7. Taylor Swift - Mine
8. Kanye West - Monster f/ Rick Ross, Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj & Bon Iver
9. Rihanna - What's My Name f/ Drake
10. Far East Movement - Like A G6
11. Big Boi - Shutterbugg f/ Cutty
12. Cee-Lo - F**k You
13. Drake - Find Your Love
14. Nicki Minaj - Right Thru Me
15. Janelle Monae - Tightrope f/ Big Boi
16. Pitbull - Hey Baby (Drop It To The Floor) f/ T-Pain
17. Lloyd Banks - Beamer, Benz or Bentley f/ Juelz Santana
18. Lil' Wayne - Right Above It f/ Drake
19. Dr. Dre - Kush f/ Snoop Dogg & Akon
20. Eminem - Not Afraid
The underground mix can sometimes be a grind for me. Back in the day, I'd just go to Hip Zepi if I was in Boston, or Fat Beats if I was in New York, I would ask the man behind the counter what's hot, drop $20-$80, and I'd have all the latest and greatest on the underground circuit. Easy. Now, you have to comb the internet to really distinguish between what's good and what isn't. I trust a few sites to guide me - Pitchfork and HipHopDX more than any others. But while it can sometimes be a painstaking process, this was not one of those times. I actually had a much easier time of it this year than usual. Maybe I kept up better this year, who knows.
Over the years, I have included about 40% more artists on the underground mix as on the aboveground mix, which makes sense. The people that dominate the pop charts simply don't turn over as quickly. But the mainstays on the underground have been the Wu-Tang. Raekwon has been on the mix every year, and a mix-topping eight times overall. Ghostface Killah has been on six times, good for second-highest, and Method Man a respectable four times as well. They all get on on the same track this year, their group effort "Our Dreams," which was produced by The RZA and featured a Michael Jackson sample.
The mix leads off with Aloe Blacc's "I Need A Dollar," which was the theme song to HBO's summer hit "How To Make It In America." Next up was J. Cole, who we should hear a lot more from in 2011 now that he is signed to Def Jam, with "Who Dat," the one song he currently has that is available for purchase. Next was Lil' Kim's "Black Friday," a diss record referring to Nicki Minaj's LP "Pink Friday." This may have been Nicki's year, but Nicki definitely fed her hype through her beef with Kim, and Kim absolutely slays her on this track. Hopefully this will be a good (but non-violent) beef for awhile.
Overall, the mix had two different vibes. On the one hand, there are three tributes to Keith Elam, better known as Guru from Gangstarr, who passed away this year. That was terrible, and since he's a Bostonian, I had to represent a little bit extra for him. On the other hand, there were several uplifting/lighthearted songs, such as the Wu-Tang track, Maino's "Hold On," Cypress Hill's "Armada Latina," and Statik Selektah's & Termanology's "Wedding Bells." That Massachusetts duo dropped hard in 2010, and hopefully there will be more good things to come from them. Another favorite Mass duo - 7L & Esoteric - finally returned this year, and they did so with Inspectah Deck, who helped bless their first LP nearly ten years ago. Their track, "12th Chamber," is lovely. One more Bostonian who made the cut was newcomer Dutch ReBelle, whose LP also is slated to drop in 2011. I'm excited for that one.
I always try to get one really good transfer on the underground mix, which is difficult when you're just burning these mixes in iTunes, as opposed to using real recording equipment. But in any case, I think I pulled off a good one with the transfer from Wale's "The War" to Kno's "Spread Your Wings." The first time I heard that, I knew it was seamless.
As always, the mix closes with a bonus Christmas track. Since Christmas music usually sucks and is also timeless, I waive the 2010-only rule for this song only. I've already heard rave reviews about this year's track, Tha Dogg Pound's "Santa Claus Goes Straight To The Ghetto." It's just a whole lot of awesomeness, if you've never heard it, you should check it out.
Here's the track listing for the underground mix:
1. Aloe Blacc - I Need A Dollar
2. J. Cole - Who Dat
3. Lil' Kim - Black Friday
4. Jay Electronica - The Ghost of Christopher Wallace f/ Diddy
5. Freddie Gibbs - National Anthem (F**k The World)
6. Fat Joe - I'm Gone
7. Celph Titled & Buckwild - There Will Be Blood f/ Sadat X, Grand Puba, AG, OC & Diamond D
8. Maino - Hold On f/ Mya
9. Method Man, Raekwon & Ghostface Killah - Our Dreams
10. Cypress Hill - Armada Latina f/ Pitbull & Marc Anthony
11. Statik Selektah & Termanology - Wedding Bells f/ Jared Evan
12. 7L & Esoteric - 12th Chamber f/ Inspectah Deck
13. NaS - Snitch Alibi
14. Dutch ReBelle - I'm Ill Remix
15. Curren$y - Michael Knight
16. Wale - The War
17. Kno - Spread Your Wings f/ Deacon The Villain
18. Group Home - G.U.R.U. f/ Jeru Tha Damaga
19. DJ Premier - The Gangstar Bus f/ Freddie Foxx
20. BONUS CHRISTMAS TRACK Tha Dogg Pound - Santa Claus Goes Straight To The Ghetto
I can always be talked into burning a set or two, so if you'd like one, drop me a line.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Who Could Use Manny Ramirez?
We've seen this before. The last time Manny Ramirez was a free agent, his agent Scott Boras dragged out the process until March, before Ramirez resigned with the Dodgers. At the time, he was coming off a torrid second half after joining the Dodgers, and parlayed that into a two-year, $40 million deal. Since then, Manny has seemingly been in decline. However, had he accumulated enough plate appearances to qualify for leader boards last year, Ramirez's .409 OBP would have ranked fifth in the Majors, behind only Joey Votto, Miguel Cabrera, Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton. In case you forgot, these were the top two finishers in each league's MVP race last season. By advanced metrics, he did well also - a .330 TAv with the Dodgers, and a .286 mark in limited action with the White Sox. His wOBA of .382 ranked 23rd in the Majors (minimum 300 PAs). The power might not be where it once was, but Ramirez still gets on base at an extraordinary clip. And his on-base numbers weren't overly inflated by intentional walks, as he only had four last year. Bottom line, a lot of teams could use Ramirez's on-base prowess, and if his power comes back at all, he could easily be a steal on a one-year, $10 million, two year, $25 million type deal.
But while there are plenty of teams that could use him, like the Giants for instance, there aren't a lot of teams that can conceivably fit him on their roster. For instance, the Giants outfield already has Mark DeRosa, Pat Burrell, Cody Ross, Andres Torres and Aaron Rowand, so they probably aren't going to be in on Ramirez. Here are the teams that could use his bat and have room for him, from worst fit to best fit:
10. Atlanta: Atlanta still needs a bat, but it's not obvious where the fit is here. The one opening is center field, as Nate McLouth shouldn't be handed a job at this point. But moving Heyward or Prado to center is a tricky proposition. You could stick Ramirez at first as well, but then that's blocking Freddie Freeman. Not the end of the world certainly, but then again, Ramirez has never played first.
9. Chicago Cubs: Kosuke Fukudome was actually been a poor man's version of Ramirez's 2010 season offensively, but with better defense, so the fit here isn't tremendous. But it's the kind of situation you could see Ramirez thriving in, and it's the kind of deal you could see Jim
8. San Diego: Will Venable probably shouldn't be handed the right field job. The Pads could easily slide Ryan Ludwick from left field to right, and plug Ramirez in. I have San Diego ranked a little lower since they are less likely to contend this season given the trade of Adrian Gonzalez, though I love how the Pads have remade their up the middle positions this winter. In fact, look for an article on that soon.
7. Colorado: The Rockies spent the last two months of the season claiming Seth Smith didn't deserve a starting job, and Ryan Spilborghs has certainly shown himself not capable of holding down a starting job. The Rockies also went out and signed Ty Wigginton this offseason, but Wigginton, to be polite, is not the answer there either. So the Rockies do have an outfield hole. The Rox could easily slide Gonzalez over to right field and plug Ramirez into left. But file that under "probably won't happen."
6. Tampa Bay: Matt Joyce at DH is probably fine. Desmond Jennings in LF is probably fine. Sean Rodriguez at second base is probably fine, thereby lessening the need for Ben Zobrist to log infield duty. But if the Rays want to protect any of those players, Ramirez and his .623 career SLG at Tropicana Field would fit well there.
5. Philadelphia: The Phillies are clearly pushing all in this season. So it really doesn't make a lot of sense that they will have an ancient Raul Ibanez in one outfield corner and a rookie (Dominic Brown) in the other. And since both hit left-handed, Ramirez would make a perfect platoon partner.
4. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: Their listed DH's are Mike Napoli and Howie Kendrick, who ostensibly have other positions. Peter Bourjos dominated Triple-A last season, but his 193 Major League PA's were uninspiring to say the least, so he may not be ready to handle center full-time, which would push Torrii Hunter back to the middle. Couple that with the fact that the Angels have been left out in the cold this winter, and they may start to feel pressure to do something here. That something really should be Adrian Beltre, but the Halos have so little offense that they have room for both. Originally, I had Anaheim first, but I bumped them back to fourth due to Juan Rivera, who lessens Ramirez's outfield value to the Halos.
3. Los Angeles Dodgers: The Dodgers could actually use Ramirez back at Chavez Ravine, unless they really are planning on running out Jay Gibbons and Tony Gwynn, Jr. in left field in 2011.
2. Texas: This is probably my favorite fit. I realize the Rangers just played this game with Vlad The Impaler last season, but even with his balky hamstrings, Ramirez is more mobile than Guerrero was, making him less of an albatross in games in National League parks, or just when other guys need a day off. With Josh Hamilton still more than capable of manning center field, Ramirez and David Murphy could trade off playing left and DH'ing, with Julio Borbon getting fill-in starts in center when Hamilton needs a breather.
1. Detroit: Brennan Boesch is not the answer in left field, nor is Ryan Raburn. The Tigers have spent some coin this offseason, but are still an underdog to the White Sox, and perhaps to the Twins as well, depending on how Justin Morneau comes back. On days that Ramirez needed to rest his legs, you could let him DH, give Boesch or Raburn a spot start, and slide Victor Martinez back behind the dish. A lineup core of Cabrera, Martinez, Ramirez and Magglio Ordonez would be pretty tasty, and would rival what the White Sox are putting on the field.
So there you have it - ten teams that could use Manny Ramirez this offseason. Who will it be? Hopefully, this time we find out before March.
But while there are plenty of teams that could use him, like the Giants for instance, there aren't a lot of teams that can conceivably fit him on their roster. For instance, the Giants outfield already has Mark DeRosa, Pat Burrell, Cody Ross, Andres Torres and Aaron Rowand, so they probably aren't going to be in on Ramirez. Here are the teams that could use his bat and have room for him, from worst fit to best fit:
10. Atlanta: Atlanta still needs a bat, but it's not obvious where the fit is here. The one opening is center field, as Nate McLouth shouldn't be handed a job at this point. But moving Heyward or Prado to center is a tricky proposition. You could stick Ramirez at first as well, but then that's blocking Freddie Freeman. Not the end of the world certainly, but then again, Ramirez has never played first.
9. Chicago Cubs: Kosuke Fukudome was actually been a poor man's version of Ramirez's 2010 season offensively, but with better defense, so the fit here isn't tremendous. But it's the kind of situation you could see Ramirez thriving in, and it's the kind of deal you could see Jim
8. San Diego: Will Venable probably shouldn't be handed the right field job. The Pads could easily slide Ryan Ludwick from left field to right, and plug Ramirez in. I have San Diego ranked a little lower since they are less likely to contend this season given the trade of Adrian Gonzalez, though I love how the Pads have remade their up the middle positions this winter. In fact, look for an article on that soon.
7. Colorado: The Rockies spent the last two months of the season claiming Seth Smith didn't deserve a starting job, and Ryan Spilborghs has certainly shown himself not capable of holding down a starting job. The Rockies also went out and signed Ty Wigginton this offseason, but Wigginton, to be polite, is not the answer there either. So the Rockies do have an outfield hole. The Rox could easily slide Gonzalez over to right field and plug Ramirez into left. But file that under "probably won't happen."
6. Tampa Bay: Matt Joyce at DH is probably fine. Desmond Jennings in LF is probably fine. Sean Rodriguez at second base is probably fine, thereby lessening the need for Ben Zobrist to log infield duty. But if the Rays want to protect any of those players, Ramirez and his .623 career SLG at Tropicana Field would fit well there.
5. Philadelphia: The Phillies are clearly pushing all in this season. So it really doesn't make a lot of sense that they will have an ancient Raul Ibanez in one outfield corner and a rookie (Dominic Brown) in the other. And since both hit left-handed, Ramirez would make a perfect platoon partner.
4. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: Their listed DH's are Mike Napoli and Howie Kendrick, who ostensibly have other positions. Peter Bourjos dominated Triple-A last season, but his 193 Major League PA's were uninspiring to say the least, so he may not be ready to handle center full-time, which would push Torrii Hunter back to the middle. Couple that with the fact that the Angels have been left out in the cold this winter, and they may start to feel pressure to do something here. That something really should be Adrian Beltre, but the Halos have so little offense that they have room for both. Originally, I had Anaheim first, but I bumped them back to fourth due to Juan Rivera, who lessens Ramirez's outfield value to the Halos.
3. Los Angeles Dodgers: The Dodgers could actually use Ramirez back at Chavez Ravine, unless they really are planning on running out Jay Gibbons and Tony Gwynn, Jr. in left field in 2011.
2. Texas: This is probably my favorite fit. I realize the Rangers just played this game with Vlad The Impaler last season, but even with his balky hamstrings, Ramirez is more mobile than Guerrero was, making him less of an albatross in games in National League parks, or just when other guys need a day off. With Josh Hamilton still more than capable of manning center field, Ramirez and David Murphy could trade off playing left and DH'ing, with Julio Borbon getting fill-in starts in center when Hamilton needs a breather.
1. Detroit: Brennan Boesch is not the answer in left field, nor is Ryan Raburn. The Tigers have spent some coin this offseason, but are still an underdog to the White Sox, and perhaps to the Twins as well, depending on how Justin Morneau comes back. On days that Ramirez needed to rest his legs, you could let him DH, give Boesch or Raburn a spot start, and slide Victor Martinez back behind the dish. A lineup core of Cabrera, Martinez, Ramirez and Magglio Ordonez would be pretty tasty, and would rival what the White Sox are putting on the field.
So there you have it - ten teams that could use Manny Ramirez this offseason. Who will it be? Hopefully, this time we find out before March.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Madison Square Garden
This is a little belated, but last Friday night I got to drink in Madison Square Garden for the first time. I was in town to see family, and was swinging into the city at the last minute for an interview with what turned out to be my future employer. When I told my good friend and college roommate Kevin of my impending arrival, he said, 'boy, too bad the prices for the Heat-Knicks game are so expensive, that would be fun to go to.' I agreed, and we moved on. Thirty minutes later, he emailed that he had found tickets. So much for them being too expensive - though he wouldn't tell me how much he paid. Like I cared - I was going to my first game at MSG! And it was against the Heat, so I didn't even have to root against the Knicks, which was a double bonus (like a double rainbow, but not as fruity).
I finished my interview just in time to change and hustle over to the Garden. The first impressive thing? Security. They managed to inspect everyone coming through without creating a traffic jam, an impressive feat for an outfit in New York City. Tickets - same thing. Everyone got right in. We were on the escalators for what seemed like forever, but then we realized we had actually gone up one level too far.
After getting to the right level, we decided to grab a beer and head for our seats. The beers were $9 a piece, which was steep, but I gladly picked them up seeing as how Kevin had sprung for the tickets. Our seats were in the very last row of the 300 level, but the view was still more than good. A couple of people around me were using binoculars, but I thought that was pointless. Even from the distance, and with my poor eyesight, I could read the names and numbers on the backs of the player's jerseys. That may have been the best part of MSG right there. Even in the bad seats, you were still pretty much right on top of the action. When the crowd got loud at the start of the game, it was absolutely electric.
The first quarter was filled with lead changes, exciting dunks and breathtaking threes. The Knicks got down a bit at the end of the quarter, and sensing that it might be time for the starters to take a breather, I grabbed the opportunity to get us food (and more beer of course). I ended up missing the first five minutes of the quarter, as I ordered hot dogs that still needed some time to cook, but the girl behind the register, Renee R., was incredibly polite about the situation. I dare say that I have rarely, if ever, received better customer service at a sports venue. At this point, I was basically ready to give MSG a solid A - good seating bowl, good atmosphere, good service, good times. I wish I could say the same for the Knicks.
After mounting a furious comeback to tie the game at halftime, the Knicks came out ice cold in the second half. Amar'e Stoudemire wouldn't drive the lane, which is a major issue for the Knicks. He is their only inside prescience, and when he is settling for 15-foot jumpers, it clogs up the perimeter and makes it harder for the Knicks' wing players to score. And that's exactly what happened. The Knicks were outscored 33-17 in the third quarter, and the Heat cruised from there. Looking at the box score afterward on Kevin's phone, we were amazed that LeBron James was credited with nine misses, because it didn't seem like he had missed all game. Without Stoudemire unwilling to kick it up a notch, the Knicks were forced to turn to Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler, and they were no match for LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. But while on the hardwood, the Knicks didn't fulfill their expectations, everywhere else, MSG certainly lived up to its billing as the "most famous arena in the world."
I finished my interview just in time to change and hustle over to the Garden. The first impressive thing? Security. They managed to inspect everyone coming through without creating a traffic jam, an impressive feat for an outfit in New York City. Tickets - same thing. Everyone got right in. We were on the escalators for what seemed like forever, but then we realized we had actually gone up one level too far.
After getting to the right level, we decided to grab a beer and head for our seats. The beers were $9 a piece, which was steep, but I gladly picked them up seeing as how Kevin had sprung for the tickets. Our seats were in the very last row of the 300 level, but the view was still more than good. A couple of people around me were using binoculars, but I thought that was pointless. Even from the distance, and with my poor eyesight, I could read the names and numbers on the backs of the player's jerseys. That may have been the best part of MSG right there. Even in the bad seats, you were still pretty much right on top of the action. When the crowd got loud at the start of the game, it was absolutely electric.
The first quarter was filled with lead changes, exciting dunks and breathtaking threes. The Knicks got down a bit at the end of the quarter, and sensing that it might be time for the starters to take a breather, I grabbed the opportunity to get us food (and more beer of course). I ended up missing the first five minutes of the quarter, as I ordered hot dogs that still needed some time to cook, but the girl behind the register, Renee R., was incredibly polite about the situation. I dare say that I have rarely, if ever, received better customer service at a sports venue. At this point, I was basically ready to give MSG a solid A - good seating bowl, good atmosphere, good service, good times. I wish I could say the same for the Knicks.
After mounting a furious comeback to tie the game at halftime, the Knicks came out ice cold in the second half. Amar'e Stoudemire wouldn't drive the lane, which is a major issue for the Knicks. He is their only inside prescience, and when he is settling for 15-foot jumpers, it clogs up the perimeter and makes it harder for the Knicks' wing players to score. And that's exactly what happened. The Knicks were outscored 33-17 in the third quarter, and the Heat cruised from there. Looking at the box score afterward on Kevin's phone, we were amazed that LeBron James was credited with nine misses, because it didn't seem like he had missed all game. Without Stoudemire unwilling to kick it up a notch, the Knicks were forced to turn to Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler, and they were no match for LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. But while on the hardwood, the Knicks didn't fulfill their expectations, everywhere else, MSG certainly lived up to its billing as the "most famous arena in the world."
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