Why It Doesn't Matter that Joey Bada$$ is 17.

Every bit of ink spilled about rapper Joey Bada$$ starts with the fact that he is only 17 years old. Though it initially seems noteworthy that Joey is producing quality music at such a young age, last weeks' release of his mix tape, 1999, proves that Joey's age is entirely inconsequential. Rap has a long history of teenage artists emerging and gaining popularity, from The Fresh Prince and Soulja Boy to Bow Wow and Romeo. Most young rappers undergo a rebranding in an attempt to remain relevant. Bow Wow and Romeo proved to be mere youth novelties, after dropping the "Lil" in front of their names, both have been inconsequential as MCs. Soulja Boy transitioned from pop-rap internet superstar to spaced out Lil B associate. After releasing a few acclaimed albums in the late 80's and early 90's, The Fresh Prince became Hollywood superstar Will Smith. Even the Odd Future crew, who rode a wave of success due in equal parts to their youth and shocking lyrical content have already reached a point of diminishing returns. Odd Future leader Tyler the Creator seems very aware of this, and in an interview with Spin Magazine, talks about his music evolving in a completely different direction.

The Wildly Divergent Careers of Fiona Apple and D'Angelo (Coming Full Circle?)

Singers Fiona Apple and D'Angelo are very different stylistic performers, but both emerged in the mid-90s on a wave of critical success, the strength of their artistic visions and breathtaking, affecting voices. Both singers scored unlikely top 25 hits and burst into public consciousness because of controversial, body barring videos (D'Angelo for "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" and Apple for "Criminal.") At this point the similarities seem to end. D'Angelo fell into addiction and stopped making music while Apple, after battling years of label drama, released the well-recieved Extraordinary Machine and toured extensively in support of it.

Coachella 2012 Diary April 22, 2012

After two full days of festival-going, I got a little later start to the third day, but with such a stacked lineup Sunday evening there was no time for fatigue to set in.

Santigold: Not much of a Santigold fan, her Sunday afternoon warm-up set was in no way noteworthy. She had dancers in crazy outfits and performed her uninspired M.I.A./Gwen Stafani hybrid songs. And that was that.

araabMUZIK: Basically only knowing his production work with Dipset and his Electronic Dream hit "Streetz Tonight," I didn't really know what araabMUZIK's live show was all about. I heard rumors about  his skills on the MPC drum machine, but had my doubts. araab-produced Dipset cuts "Get it in Ohio" and "Salute" are solid hip hop beats, but don't hint at an exceptionally talented drum machine master. Initially, I was surprised at how dubstep-y araabMUZIK's set sounded, incorporating almost none of the hip-hop of his Dipset work or the dreamy electronica of Electronic Dream. As a casual electronica/dubstep listener, araab's set wouldn't have done much for me without his calling card, the MPC. While simultaneously dropping beats and jamming away at the drum machine, he solved the one problem I tend have with live electronica music, that the live shows seem so sterile. To my untrained eye, I can't really tell what the artists are doing onstage at any given time, being unable to differentiate what is preprogramed and what is improvised in a live environment. And if you need any video proof, araabMUZIK is just ridiculous and must be seen in person.

Coachella 2012 Diary April 21, 2012

Since the writing delay has been entirely too long we will jump right into thoughts about Coachella Day 2.

Destroyer: With temperatures reaching 106 degrees, Destroyer breezed through a set of songs mostly from their excellent 2011 album, Kaputt. The lounge-y saxophones and soft rock harmonies were a perfect accompaniment to the oppressive heat, but it seemed strange that Dan Bejar, one of the elder statesmen of literate indie rock, was relegated to a side stage in one of the day's first time slots.




Azealia Banks: Azealia Banks, a highly blog-hyped cross between Lil Kim and M.I.A., was a huge letdown. Only playing slightly over half of her allotted 40 minute stage time, she didn't seem ready or polished enough for a big league Coachella performance. She did bring the energy and got the crowd going with her performance of "212" but as recent post-Coachella single "Jumanji"proves, Banks has a lot more to offer.

Coachella 2012 Diary April 20, 2012

With the post-Coachella fun hangover finally starting to subside, its time to write some thoughts about the festival. Some of these ideas might be expanded into their own posts later but for now heres a short running dairy:

Kendrick Lamar: Though it would have been nice to see Mea open the festival or Abe Vigoda early in the day, but getting prepared for the long haul and a slight wristband malfunction prevented this from happening. Despite slow start, Kendrick Lamar proved to be an ideal Coachella kick-off. Obviously unintimidated by the main stage, Kendrick ripped through his set with amazing technical skill and stage presence. In this interview Kendrick talks about the energy of weekend two being much better (probably due to weather) and playing a few more songs. After coming out for one of the only impromptu encores I saw the entire weekend, Kendrick blew the top off with "Cartoon and Cereal." Overall, one of the best hip-hop shows from one of the most talented and promising rappers in the game.




Gary Clark Jr: Not knowing much about Gary Clark Jr, he was a plesant virtuosic surprise. On record he comes across as a solid blues-rock frontman, but in concert he shines, shredding his guitar relentlessly for minutes at a time before bringing it back with his roughly beautiful blues voice. Definitely a can't-miss live performer.

A Tale of Two Soundtracks: "Drive" vs "Themes For An Imaginary Film"

Here are the three immediate courses of action I took after watching Ryan Gosling's performance as a stuntman/mechanic/getaway driver in director Nicolas Refn's recent film, Drive:

1. Got in my car. Put on my leather driving gloves. Drove an intense ten minutes to the nearest Dick's Drive-In. Ordered a Deluxe with extra tartar sauce.
2. Googled "white scorpion jacket from Drive." Started planning my next Halloween costume.
3. Downloaded and listened to the movie's amazing soundtrack for the rest of the night.

New El-P album "Cure For Cancer"

Five years after El-P's last solo release, a new album titled Cure for Cancer is set to drop on May 22. The elder statesman of underground alternative rap, El-P founded the important independent label Def Jux (home to RJD2, Aesop Rock, Del tha Funkee Homosapien, Cage, Murs and Mr. Lif) and has released four classic hip-hop albums: as a member of the seminal 90's group Company Flow (Funcrusher Plus), producer of Cannibal Ox (The Cold Vein), and under his own name (Fantastic Damage and I'll Sleep When You're Dead). El-P has managed to maintain a remarkable level of quality throughout his career as a rapper and producer and both released tracks from Cure for Cancer fit right in with the rest of his catalogue.

"Drones Over BKLYN" is an unmannered virtuoso track about the end of the world backed by an unnerving spliced drum sample that was one of the best but most underrated hip-hop tracks from 2011.
El-P-Drones Over BKLYN.mp3

The brand new "The Full Retard" is an abrasive slice of boom-bap filtered through the production of The Bomb Squad.
El-P-The Full Retard.mp3