444trumpets Ft. KILLAH PRIEST - "Galaxy Release"

444trumpets is a new artist on the block who's new single "Galaxy Release" is a tight joint that also features a vintage guest verse from Killah Priest. Check it out above, and head over to 444trumpet's Soundcloud if you want to hear more of his stuff.

[2014 in Review] O.C. - "Ray's Café"

The Diggin' in the Crates crew has really been going strong this year, with exceptional albums and EP:s from Diamond D, OC, AG, Buckwild (w. Meyhem Lauren), Lord Finesse (instrumental double album), and even a D.I.T.C. remix project of classics. Several of this are among my favorites of the year and one of them is without a doubt OC's mini album with Ray West, called "Ray's Café". It's somewhat of a concept album in the sense that it metaphorically takes place within a fictional jazz club called "Ray's Café" where OC is the headliner for the evening, playing the smoky night club with his mix of jazz and hip-hop. It's quite different from OC's earlier projects, considering how laid back Ray West's production is, yet the chemistry between the seasoned veteran emcee and the relatively new beat maestro is extraordinary. 

Since I heard his debut with "Word... Life" OC has been very close to the top of my list of my favorite emcees and aside from some sidesteps he has managed to stay there with incredible projects like "Jewelz" (1997), "Starchild" (2005), "Oasis" w. AG (2009) and more recently "Trophies" with Apollo Brown (2012). "Ray's Café" is another real gem from the D.I.T.C. emcee, and Ray West's sophisticated jazz sampling production brings out the best in OC in the creation of the grown man rap displayed here. This is music for grown men made by grown men - over accoustic bass lines, accoustic piano lines and keyboard melodies, and ocassional guitars and heavy drum programming, OC invites listeners into his everyday life. With that unmistakable cadence, and top flow OC speaks on having barbecues and parties with his close friend, seeing a hot chick on the subway and dividing with himself about tyring to get that number, how thanful he is he made it this far, and so on. If you've followed OC's career like I've had, you'll definitely feel like you know him and the way his mind works at this point and "Ray's Café" is another crown achievement that is a must for any fan of O, Ray West and the D.I.T.C. crew. Speaking of Ray West, I think this is his finest production yet, considering that every song is exceptionally ill and extremely coherrent.

Originally released on CD, cassette and digital, the record was released on CD a few month later now including five additional songs from the same sessions, making it feature a total of 14 songs and a running time of about 35 minutes. While most of the bonus tracks doesn't necessarily live up to the high standards set by the original tracks, there are some absolutely fantastic joints here that add to the concept in a great way. "Just Cause" is actually one of my favorite songs on the entire CD, with a addictive one-bar guitar loop and a double time flow by OC that's stops between each verse to make room for a beautful sampled female hook. Why this wasn't on the original release is beyond me. "After House" is a smooth, laid back joint where OC reflects on the "After Hours" after a long night, and is built around a deep guitar sample; I'd say this is worthy of the original version as well. "Learn Lessons" is produced by NYC-based electronic musicna Phil Moffa rather than West and it sticks out like a sore thumb as it has more of a club sound to it - throwing this on in a jazz club would definitely turn the crowd off. OC rhymes good as well but the track itself is plain weak, luckily it clocks in in least than two minutes. The final cut on the so calld "After Hours" version is the smoothest, most laid back cut on the entire record. "My Hearts in the Street" is a beautiful closing to a great album that plays great from front-to-back with the exception of the aforementioned "Learn Lessons". Just like OC did on "Trophies", working exclusively Apollo Brown (an album that also made my top LP:s of 2014), it's evident that O works best when recording an entire album worth of music with one producer exclusively. Omar Credle truly hasn't lost a step and Ray West is getting better with every new release he drops. Last but not least, if you don¨t mind purchasing a CD I strongly recommend copping the deluxe edition which I personally count as OC¨s new album, rather than the EP it¨s advertized as. TURN IT UP!

[EP] ROME CEE - "Glimpse"

You know that we here at The Lost Tapes are big fan of Maryland emcee Rome Cee. Constantly coming out with terrific material, and more often than not, always given away for free. This is a greatt way to build up a fanbase before his official retail debut finally drops, and you can count me in supporting. Cee's latest project is called "Glimpse" and features six tracks and a bonus songs, and is an excellent showcase of Rome's talents both in picking beats and going IN in the microphone booth. Don't sleep on this!

ALI SHAHEED MUHAMMAD - "CPR" (Ft. Merna/Ayah, JaPoet & David Luke)

Ali Shaheed Muhammad more or less never dissapoints, from his days in A Tribe Called Quest, to his outside remixes and his productions, and his soul days in Lucy Pearl he's easily one of the  most interesting DJ:s and producers in al of hip-hop. I'm not sure if he's working on a new project or if this is just a loose single but his new single "CPR" is a real ill hip-hop song both from a lyrical and musical standpoint. Ali himself opens the song while Tenesee's JaPoet, Georgia's David Luke and beautiful voiced singer Merna (previously known as Ayah) whose album "The Calling" (don't sleep on this great soul/R&B album) was entirely produced by Ali Shaheed. The track is not only a strong piece of music but is also a response to the bubling tension between the black young americans and the police.

MIKKEY HALSTEDT - "Web We Wave" / "Salom Croquettes"

Chicago is coming out with more and more real emcees and producers, cats like Vince Staples and Mikkey Halstedt is really representing that real Chi-Town hip-hop with a venegance. Halstedt is working on his debut album "Bulletproof Dreams" which is slated for a March 4 release and will be overseen by No ID, so you know the quality is there. So far two singles have been released, the earlier one is called "Salmon Croquettes", produced by No ID, that was originally released early 2014. I had made a post on it when it droped but it turns out that I had forgotten to add the song so I'm additing it here within as well. The new single is a real true school banger produced by Da Internz with cuts by DJ Alo, entitled "Web We Wave" (posted up top, while the No ID joint is available below). This album should be serious; also don't sleep on his "CASTRO" mixtape featuring loads of No ID beats and 

[2014 in Review] NEHRUVIANDOOM - "Nehruviandoom"

Despite being a huge fan of MF DOOM I can't say I had that high hopes for his collaboration with Nehru Bishop. I wasn't all that familiar with Bishop and the few tracks I had heard didn't exactly kill me. However it was to be released on LEX Records, a record label that always has treated hip-hop records with respect, letting the artists have complete creative control. And with both Nas and MF co-signing this young kid Bishop Nehru, who I believe is only 19 years old on this album, he can't be that bad right? Either way you know I had to check it out as soon as it dropped and I was definitely pleasantly suprised. While Bishop is no virtuos lyricist he's got a pretty cool voice and he's a good writer, touching upon topics that a lot of young people easily can relate too, including young love, loneliness, street stories, maintaining and putting your best in whatever you do.. There's of course also a couple of more typical braggadocio type battle rhhymes which are also welcome, but mainly this is a thematic record focusing on the lifes and times of Bishop Nehru set over the one-of-a-kind soundscapes of Metal Fingerz. Listening to this, there's no question that the combination between DOOM and Bishop are actually a brilliant combination, and there's no song on here I would skip.  DOOM himself has a bunch of verses as well, about three or four that are all classic Metal Fingerz ish, and one of the most interesting things of all is the inclusion of a new Madvillain joint if you will. Madlib produces the final song "Disastrous" where both NehruvianDOOM members goes in.

"NehruvianDOOM" starts off in typical DOOM fashion with a low-key beat with a muffled guitar and bass melody, a hypnotic female vocal sample and tight drum programming. Over this the Villain places his classic audio excerpts of weirdness from various films and TV-shows that all together really sets off the piece lovely. An audio excerpt on meditation segues right into the first single, "OM", which is classic DOOM all the way. Contrasting the laidback intro it's a powerhouse performance by both MF and Bishop set over a high-energy beat based around two different keyboard samples (one of them being an electric organ). Another of my favorite joints is the jazz-infused "Mean The Most" where Bishop gives a beautiful dedication to that special girl while MF DOOM prepares an extraordinary beat that's heavily influenced by jazz music, yet done in such a way as only the Villain can. With a heavy bass and a repeating trombone hook, various percussive instruments and smacking drums, With an addictive beat like this Bishop is given a perfect platform to express his love - "I still think about being with a being of your caliber/ You hold your own down/ My queen with a gold crown/ Your leaving the whole town astounded". The jazz element is strong on this mini album, and no one does jazzy hip-hop like DOOM because he uses the sampled instruments in such an unorthodox and unexpected way. There's a number of small musical interludes tying the songs together (man I love that), including the outro to "Casket" which features booming drum programming underlining a hypnotic accoustic jazz piano sampled from a classic early number by Miles Davis and Charlie Parker. As a vocal album this is probably one of the most interesting pieces of DOOM productions I've heard in several years - there's so many different sounds and combinations of instruments that it never get the least repetitive despite the sound always being 100 percent Metal Fingerz. The music in itself is experimental, crafting beats from a wide range of different and rare sources, but the pairing of NehruvianDOOM is quite epxerimental in itself as Bishop isn't the type of emcee you'd expect to hear an entire album together with MF with. But that's the beauty of it, Bishop's style is realatively scaled down, simple or rather straight forward if you willl while the beats are way out there, and it's exactly that contrast that makes it work so beautifully, 

I'm not that familiar with the "Special Hebs" series and I'm not sure whether or not the production on this is all new beats or lifted from the aforementioned volumes, but to my ears everything on here are brand new beats. Clocking in at just over thirty minutes I've found this to be an extremely rewind worthy LP and the chemistry displayed between the emcee and producer makes me fiend for another project from these two gentlemen. It's by no means a perfect record though, I have a feeling that Bishop is not fully molded as an emcee but he got a dope voice and plenty of sick, if simple, lines. Another thing that bugs me is with such a short running time and a total track number of 9 songs, iTunes customers actually get an extra song. That track, "They Say Bishy Bish", is hardly a throwaway  cut either although it's not as strong as the rest of the material but it would be a decent bonus cut to have on the physical copies as well. Overall the debut offering from NehruvianDOOM is an interesting album , that though not mindblowing is a great front-to-back listen created by two different artists with a great chemistry.

CAPONE-N-NOREAGA w. TRAGEDY & RAEKWON - "Foul 120"

Capone-N-Noreaga reunite with Tragedy Khadafi and Raekwon, their main collaborators from "The War Report" volume one and two, respectively. As expected Tragedy absolutely murders this beautiful hardcore beat, but they all came correct. Not sure who produced this but this beat got me HYPE! "Foul 120" is lifted from N.O.R.E.'s new EP "Militainment Presents DRINKS" which also features cameos from Busta Rhymes, Styles P, Mack Wilds, Troy Ave, Chinx Drugs and a bunch of singers and/or rappers that I've never hard of. Production is handled by The Alchemist, Scram Jones, Jahlil, SPK, etc. Check out "Foul 120" below, thanks to WTCFoLife Blog, and cop the nine track EP @ iTunes. You can also stream the project for free @ Spotify.

[Revisited] CALL O' DA WILD - "Straight Out The Wilderness"

Back by popular demand! I've been getting crazy requests for a reupload of the Call O' Da Wild compilation that me and the homie Pattch82 put together back in 2011. There's not any additional songs or different sequencing on here as I always felt that it flows just like an album and features each and every song ever released under the name of Call O' Da Wild, along with both sides from Barron Ricks only 12" single. Since its been a while since it was originally posted I'm sure a lot of Lost Tapes readers missed it the first time around and this is definitely one compilation/album that fans of Cypress Hill, DJ Muggs and Soul Assassins do not want to miss out on. The reason I couldn't upload it before was that I had lost all of the songs and been on a hunt for a while to find the best versions of each songs, striving for 320 kbps though some are between 192 and 256 kbps as well. The only tracks I couldn't find in better than 128 kbps are the two songs from the singles "Andrews Ave." / "Urban Wilderness", but I'm on the hunt and as soon as I find them I'll update it. This compilation flows fantastiic and plays just like the Call O'Wild album  that DJ Muggs was supposed to executive produce but never materialized. Overall it sounds a whole lot clearer and better than the 2011 version that I uploaded so Merry Christmas all the Soul Assassins heads!

For those not in the know Call O' Da Wild was a Harlem duo consisting of emcees Barron Ricks and Angelo Campioni that DJ Muggs took under his wing in the mid-'90s and made them part of the Soul Assassins crew. Signed to the SONY label in '96/'97 after a series of soundtrack apperances and a trio of 12" singles, the plan was for Call to be the first group to record an album overseen and mainly produced by DJ Muggs outside of Cypress Hill. If you check out the booklet for Cypress' "Unreleased  & Revamped" EP (which features the Call O' Da Wild collaboration "Intellectual Dons") you can actually see an ad fo their album with the text saying coming soon. As evident by this collection of all their released songs prove that they made extremely gritty, hardcore and dark music, and by the time '97 or '98 came around when the LP was planned for release, its very likely that a major record label like SONY got cold feet due to artists like Pappa Diddy Pop dominating the airwaves. However the relationship between the producer and the group eventually had soured as well. "Call O' Da Wild broke up right after their album was finished for SONY, and they thought their were superstars before they record was even out... I have the DAT tape in a storage somewhere", the super producer/DJ told the Los Angeles Time in an article published in 1998. It's a real shame though considering how fantastic these tracks sound together; I'm glad we at least got forty minutes of these guys getting busy over hardcore beats mainly by Muggs, with some additional input by The Alchemist, Jerome Foster and Knobody/Sean C. Barron Ricks did however appear on several songs on Cypress Hill's "IV", including the hit single "Tequila Sunrise" so it's possible that the main beef was with Campioni.

All songs execurtive produced by DJ Muggs for Soul Assassins Music. All songs produced by DJ Muggs except track #1, "Sometimes the Neighborhood", produced by Jerome Foster and Sean Matthews, track #4, "Harlem River Drive", produced by The Alchemist, and track #6 produced by Sean C & Knobody. All songs are from either Call O'Da Wilds singles, the soundtracks for "Gravesend" ("Ninth Symphony") and "Bad Boys" ("Clouds of Smoke"), respecitvely. "New York Undercover" and "Runnin' Wild" are lifted from the first DJ Muggs' "Soull Assassins" compilation (though the latter only appeared on certain versions of the LP). Last but not least, the songs "Harlem River Drive" and "Rags to Riches" was first released on a solo single by Barron Ricks, released in early ¨98. So what you're waiting for'? Even if you had the original download the sound quality is much greater here so press play and TURN IT UP all my Soul Assassins. Peeace to Pattch82 once again too, as well as Supreemo for the artowrk.

01. "Sometimes the Neighborhood"

02. "Rurterrain"

03. "Intellectual Dons" (Ft. B-Real)

04. "Harlem River Drkv 

 05."Andrew¨s Ave."

06. "Clouds Of Smoke" (Ftl Wayne-O)

07. "Ragsto Riches" (Ft. Cypress Hill & Self Scientific')

08. "Urban Wilderness"

09. "New York Undercoverr"

10. "Ninth Symphony" (Ft. Cypress Hill)

11. "Runnin¨Wild (Outro)"

CALL O' DA WILD - "STRAIGHT OUT THE WILDERNESS"

AUDIBLE DOCTOR / GUILTY SIMPSON - "Leave Me Alone" [Remix]

You might know that Audible Doctor is one of my current favorite producers, and his seasoned theme EP:s still stand as one off the finest pieces of music released in the last couple of years. A month back The Good Ol¨Doc dropped another EP for the fans, consisting of eight soulful but hardhitting joints packing that unmistakable Audibe sound. Called "Can't Keep The People Waiting" the mni album  is made up of eight strongs, featuring Audible getting busy on both mic and boards with heavyweights Bumpy Knuckles, John Robinson, Consequence, Hasaan Mackey, Astro and Guilty Simpson provide a breath of fresh air with their guest verses. Since I totally forgot to post this when it first hit, I posted the free stream below for y'all (don't sleep), and you can also purchase the digital EP or a limited CD pressing (w. also includes instrumentals) @ The Official Audible Store. But the more acute reason for posting this now is that Oddisee just unleashed a popping new remix of  "Leave Me Alone", the Guilty Simpson blessed cut and it¨s just as dope as the original!

[Snippet Reel / Singles] JOEY BADA$$ - "B.4.DA.$$"

MusicHeadz got a hold of an advance copy of Joey Bada$$ highly anticipated official debut album "B.4.Da.$$" and got the permission to post an almost nine minute snippet reel of the project. The LP is completed and is scheduled for a January 20, '15 release date. Though early report stated that producers would include DJ Premier, BJ The Chicago Kid, J Dilla, Statik Selektah, Lee Bannon and more. The thireen track album is being released in January, is mads up of 15 tracks, and while nor all of rhe announced producers will appear you are going to hear Joey going in over beats by Dj Premier, The Roots/J Dilla, and Statik Seltakh. Now a eight minute snippet reel is here to hold us over to the release of the album, which sounds very good. Check it out below a long with thte single released up until now.

JOEY BADASS - "B.4.DA.$$" [SNIPPET REEL]
01. "Save The Children"
02. "Greenbax" (Introlude)
03. ""Paper Trails" [prod. by DJ Premier]
04. ""Peace Of Mind"
05. ""Big Dusty"
06. ""Hazeus View"
07. ""Like Me" (Ft. BJ Chicago Kid)" [p5oe. by J Dilla & The Roots)
08. ""Belly Of ThBeast" (Ft. Chronix)
09. "No .99" [prod. by Statik Selektah]
10. "Christ Conscious"
11. "On & On" (Ft. Maverick Sabre &  Deymond Lewis)
12. "Escape 130" 
13. "Black Beetles"
14. "OCM"
15. "Curry Chcken" [rpdo. Statik Selektah]