[EP] THE AUDIBLE DOCTOR - "The Spring Tape"

Wow this is hard as nails and much anticipated! Super producer and Lost Tapes favorite The Audible Doctor is back with the third installment in his Seasons EP:s - the 2015 version of "The Spring Tape". Capturing the sound of a hot Spring Audible experiments with exquisite soul samples, boom bap drums that is guaranteed to keep your head nodding for its full running time. Featuring only four tracks with guests including Tragedy Khadafi, Hus Kingpin, Masta Ace, Wordsworth, Has-Lo and Davenport Grimes, this is definitely worth the 4 dollars it cost you to download a HQ version of your choice @ Audible's Bandcamp. You can of course stream the entire project in 128 kbps below, and let me tell you that this is nothing short of excellent and is an excellent follow-up to the previous volumes in the series.

HAS-LO / CASTLE - "Go To Work"

Has-Lo and Castle, two of Mello Music Group's perhaps msot popular artists, have been working on a collaborative full-length album on the low for quite some tme. The fourteen tracks deep opus is titled "Live Like You're Dead" and features the grim reaper (on the cover anywayz). Both artists doubles as both producers and emcees and are skilled in both forums, so as you can expect this project combines and flows like water. It's definitely a fun project with a lot of weird stuff going on but it's far from a joke, this is pure hip-hop no doubt so don't hesitate to press play on the stream below. An interesting fact is that this actually marks the second time the pair has functioned as a duo - following Has-Lo's reivist of Castle's debut album ("Gasface") which was then released as "Return Of The Gasface" last year. Check this quote on the LP from the press release

"Coming out of that projects intense creative process, Has-Lo and Castle decided to let loose. In true collaborative fasion, both produced, both emceed, and they decided to have som fun with an all nre, original project". So yessir, the album drops on June 29 and can be pre-ordered @ iTunes amongst other sites. Also the first single is now available, check out the groove infected "Go To Work" and get your head reay for some neck-break nodding.

MIDAZ THE BEAST - "The Architext" (Ft. Has-Lo)

Two of the most interesting underground artsits to emerge from the last few years goes at it hardbodie on "The Architext". It is produced by MidaZ' P.N.C. #1 IMAKEMADBEATS and features strong performances on all parts. Originally recorded for the "Dare Iz A Doxside Part II", and while it might still appear there fans are treated to it as the twelvth entry in the New 52 series, so enjoy!

[Album] CASTLE - "Return Of The Gasface" [The Has-Lo Passages]

Mello Music Group artist Castle's "Gasface" album from last year gets an interesting touch-up courtesy of label mate Has-Lo and released as "Return Of The Gasface" [The Has-Lo Passages]. Instead of simply adding new beats to old accapellas, Has-Lo and Castle instead uses the remix album as a concept to take a fresh approach to previously released music. From the press release: "MMG vet Has-Lo built the album from the ground up - having Castle re-spit verses, adding verses, ad-libs, a guest verse from Has, and even a pair of new tracks". Definitely sounds interesting on paper and as of now I'm a few cuts in and it's got a nice vibe fo' sho' sho'.

[VIDEO] Has-Lo - "Hindsight" [Apollo Brown Remix]

Has-Lo's debut "In Case I Don't Make It" was a seriously dope affair back when it first dropped in 2011, and it still sounds as fresh as ever. Vinyl fetischists might very well have missed out on this gem since it was only released on CD, something that Mello Music Group is about to change this year; better late than never, right! The limited edition 180 gram vinyl should be available early this fall so keep an eye open for that, as well as a project with North Carolina emcee Castle that Has' is currently working on.

 

The video for "Hindsight" that you see above is not from "In Case...", but rather from its sister album "Conversation B" which dropped a few months after it's predecessor. The video is brand new however, as this Apollo Brown laced gem deserves all the praise it gets!

[Single] HAS-LO - "MMG Series #7"

Has-Lo's dropped some of the more impressive music of the last couple of years with his LP's "In Case I Don't Make It" and "Conversation B". A few days ago, he and his label Mello Music Group decided to give away the digital version of his very first 45 RPM 7" single which you can pre-order here. The A-side features my clear favorite of single, the Apollo Brown produced "Stained Glass" but !llmind's "Make A Beat" is definitely real good too. In case you haven't, make sure to stream it for free or enter your e-mail for a free download in the bitrate and format of your choice (definitely worth it).

Has-Lo - "Light Years" (J-Zone Remix)

Has-Lo releases his new project "Conversation B" via Mello Music Group today and I'd be suprised if it isn't another solid effort. From what I understand it'more of a remix album than an entirely new LP, the press releases has stated it to be "a complete re-envisioning of Has Lo's debut "In Case I Don't Make It"". While the original was fully produced by the artist himself this one features takes by respected beat makers such as Exile, Oddisee, Kev Brown, Apollo Brown and Eric Lau. This particular joint is a remake of the song "Kinetic Energy" and is laced by J-Zone, a producer that has released loads of dope shit throughout the years but still remains severely underrated. "Conversation B" is available on CD and limited vinyl @ UGHH.

HAS-LO - "LIGHT YEARS"

Free EP: HAS-LO - "Illegaly Yours"

In collaboration with Mello Music Group and Illegal-Promo.com, Philly emcee Has-Lo has cooked up the EP "Illegally Yours" to give away for free download. Although it's fucked up how great artists can hardly sell records anymore, you also gotta love the internet for all the good free music artists are giving out these days. On the five tracks that make up "Illegally Yours", Has-Lo provides rhymes as sharp as those found on his praised 2011 debut album, "In Case I Don't Make It", over smooth, feel-good production. Just the beats is one of the main differences between the LP and this new EP, rather than spitting over his own productions he has here enlisted the help of DJ Soulclap, Odin Smith and Danny Diggs. My personal favorite is the closing chapter, "Live to Write", a chopped up soul sampling, ruff banger. So if you're interested in 15 minutes of good, relaxing hip-hop that might very well put a smile on your face while keeping your head nodding, this is for you!

Thanks to Armenio Miranda, who painted the cover artwork, for reaching out to The Lost Tapes with this joint! Below you'll find two links, the top one is a direct download while the SoundCloud links gives you a chance to stream all the songs as well as download them track-by-track. Enjoy!

HAS-LO - "ILLEGALY YOURS EP" @ MEDIAFIRE
HAS-LO - "ILLEGALLY YOURS EP" @ SOUNDCLOUD

Mello Music Group X3

Since I saw the Mello Music Group logo for the first time, which I believe was on the Diamond District LP "In The Ruff", it has grown into one of the absolute best underground labels there is today. Not only do they have a very impressive roster of highly skilled hip-hop cats, they release ill shit around the clock and I don't know any other label that gives away so much for free; from full-lenght albums to singles, EPs and mixtapes. And it's all quality too! Today they continue their promotional run for three of their most recent projects with one single from each of those albums.

First out is what is said to be the final single off Apollo Brown's and Hassaan Mackey's just released "Daily Bread". Their album stands as one of my favorite releases of the year so far and this particular track, "Something" is a great representation of the sound find on this project. You can pick up "Daily Bread" on CD and wax via UGHH right away, the CD is shipping while the vinyl lovers will have to wait til' August 16 - it's worth the while though.

APOLLO BROWN/HASSAAN MACKEY - "SOMETHING"

The next single comes from Trek Life's remix project, "Wouldn't Change Nothing", which features producers like Oddisee, Apollo Brown, Has-Lo, J. Bizness and SlimKat78. I've only heard the latter through his featured production on Diamond District's debut album but since his contribution actually was an album highlight, I'm eager to hear more from him. Here Slimkat78 remixes Trek's "Jump Out There" and while it ain't as crazy as the DD track I mentioned ("Off The Last Night"), it's definitely worth hearing. "Wouldn't Change Nothing" is available on CD @ UGHH.

TREK LIFE - "JUMP OUT THERE" [SLIMKAT78 REMIX] 

And last, but definitely not least, is another single from Has-Lo's crticially acclaimed debut album "In Case I Don't Make It", another severely ill 2011 release. Even more impressive is that it's 100% self-produced, and it's hard to pick out whether he's a better emcee or producer. The track just released as single is "Storm Clouds". You can order the Cd @ UGHH, I have no clue if it's a vinyl release out there yet though?

HAS-LO - "STORM CLOUDS"