Scrobble Scribble #11: I Want it Back by The Professionals

This is a belated post that I meant to do when the album that this belonged to got released. That album is "WLIB AM: King of the Wigflip" by Madlib who has in recent years grown to become one of my favourite artists, currently holding the number 1 spot on my Last.FM. He is very prolific, uses different aliases, has many side projects and, being a Hip Hop producer, has created beats for many Hip Hop artists. He has created straight Hip Hop albums, abstract Hip Hop, Dance, Jazz and even Funk albums. Just this year, he's released five projects (inclusive of this one). He is signed to the Stones Throw label.

For "WLIB", Madlib contributes the last addition to the BBE Beat Generation series which was started by J Dilla, Madlib's Stones Throw label mate and Jaylib (J Dilla + Madlib = Jaylib) partner. Although I didn't really notice much of a radio theme, that seems to be what Madlib was aiming for with this release showing how he can move between diverse sounds. However, since I suppose it is Madlib's radio station you get more of the music that he's experienced in which is Jazz, Soul, Hip-Hop and other urban-drenched sounds. On "WLIB", you get RnB, typical Hip Hop, abstract Hip Hop and instrumental beats. There is a few Stones Throw label mates that show up on a few tracks, and other guests include Talib Kweli, Murs and Stacy Epps.

I Want it Back is a collaboration between Madlib and younger brother Oh No as The Professionals. Oh No is also signed to Stones Throw being a fairly original artist in his own right. I'm assuming that Madlib provides the beat while Oh No does the rapping over this track, as Oh is the only one that can be heard rapping. I love the beat, it's a looped violin? Or organ? I'm not sure but it just works and is an epic beat . Oh No drops lyrics about how Hip Hop basically sucks because noone listens to the older Hip Hop, which was when it was better and "had more meaning". It's the same argument that pretty much every rapper gets on on every album, especially conscious rappers. But sonically, I can still dig it and maybe you will too. And this is one station I won't turn off.

The Professionals - I Want It Back



Scrobble Scribbler uses Last.FM and Last.FM's "Audioscrobbler" software. However, Scrobble Scribbler is not employed by Last.FM and thus views expressed by its author are not those of Last.FM. Join Last.fm here

Scrobble Scribble #9: We're Through by James Pants

Ahhh, James Pants. He's pretty odd. Signed to the Stones Throw label, which sung praise for in #4, the story goes that Pants met label head honcho Peanut Butter Wolf at his prom, or something. Oh and I just found out this week that he named himself after one of his pets and he was doing journalism but dropped out. To be honest thoug, before his debut album was getting hyped he just seemed so weird for the sake of standing out on the Stones Throw label. But obviously he uses this to his advantage and backs it up with a thoroughly the original and likable "Welcome", a great introduction to the musical style of James Pants.

Well maybe not a great introduction if you're trying to figure out what music he's actually making. Do you call it Funk? Electronic? I prefer to call it new age Disco but maybe that's me. Key quote from Pants' page on the Stones Throw website:

"Mr. Pants is a purveyor par excellence of that unmistakable “fresh beat”: 80’s Soul, Electro Boogie, Early Rap, New Wave, & Post-Punk Disco, all of which can be found on Welcome where James plays drums, keys, guitar and sings."
James Pants on Stones Throw Website

I'm also hard-pressed to find a recommended artist. However if you like Justice, Jamie Lidell & M.I.A. and other artists in that vein, you'd like James Pants. It's the irony of "Welcome" that the album itself is so out there. You get a few vocal tracks, you get a few instrumentals and its a wild ride of an album that should really be experienced. As it says on the Stones Throw website, "There's enough pants to fit any style."

Just a bit of a side note before I mention a bit on the track We're Through. The artist who did the cover for James Pants was Parra who has also done some other prior artwork for Stones Throw. I couldv'e sworn though that he did Kanye West's Good Life video but apparently I couldn't find anything to back that up.

I have choosen We're Through out of many because I love the way it builds at the start and opens those bells. It's got a pretty constant bassy sort of thing going through it. Pants' vocal work doesn't really deliver on her but that doesn't matter but the intrumentation just allows you to enjoy the track in all it's bouncy spaceness.

James Pants - We're Through


Scrobble Scribbler uses Last.FM and Last.FM's "Audioscrobbler" software. However, Scrobble Scribbler is not employed by Last.FM and thus views expressed by its author are not those of Last.FM. Join Last.fm here

BONUS:

Here is the clip for Good Life (also look up Justice's D.A.N.C.E. as its done by the same people in the same style). Is it similar to Parra's artwork for this album?

Scrobble Scribble #4: Stones Throw 101 Mix CD by Peanut Butter Wolf

To coincide with the camera task I have to do for this week's DIGC101 class and continuing the Hip Hop music, I bring you the "Stones Throw 101 Mix CD" by Peanut Butter Wolf - the record label's head. I just bought this, and 69 Love Songs by The Magnetic Fields, and the picture to the left is a picture of the box from my phone. For those who don't know, Stones Throw is home to some of underground/indie Hip Hop's finest with my personal, current favourites being Madlib, J Dilla (and their duo Jaylib), Percee P, Oh No, Koushik and James Pants (who actually isn't featured on this mix). Madlib, J Dilla and Oh No are 1st, 2nd and 20th in my top 50 most listened artists (and actually, Madlib and Dilla have more entries as well under Jaylib, Madvillain, Quasimoto and Jay Dee in the top 50). Oh, and I have MF DOOM at 28 - but I don't know if he's officially with the Stones Throw label.

And can I indefinitely say -- Dilla and Stones Throw changed my life. I did discover Dilla after his untimely death, a few days after the release of his masterpiece Donuts. That album is definitely one of my personal favourites no doubt, and once I discovered it I started going back through Dilla's catalogue. Of course, this led me to rediscover his work with A Tribe Called Quest, The Roots which I already owned but didn't know he produced. Beyond that, he opened me up to the amazing talent on the Stones Throw label (and in my personal opinion, he has led to some sort of renassiance in Hip Hop with so many tributes still dedicated to him more than two years after his passing and trust me there are so many more). Of course through Stones Throw, you get Madlib who also goes by the aliases of Yesterdays New Quintet, DJ Rels, Quasimoto (which all have their own musical styles) AS well as being part of many groups formed under Stones Throw. Trust me on this if you don't know, Madlib's solo discography is exhaustive in itself with the exclusion of the production he has done for others.

And this is just a taste of the oddness of the Stones Throw catalogue that, in itself, is an abstract label of any musical genre. Where, say, you might have the straight Hip Hop sound of MED, you get the weird new-wave disco of James Pants, the psychadelic groove of The Heliocentrics and the oddly slow but human breakbeat of Koushik. They're a very eclectic record label that also owns Now-Again and Soul Cal records which re-release old funk and soul classics.

Their eclecticism works however as a cohesive whole, as so made poignantly clear by Peanut Butter Wolf in this mix CD. Their all very short snippets of songs made by artists on the label but dammit if it doesn't feel perfect - just the right amount of music for a mix. For example - you get the abstract Accordion by Madvillain followed by the jazzy Little Girl by Yesterdays New Quintet. It's a more than competent mix in giving you an idea about the sound of Stones Throw or what you have missed out on if you can't get a grasp on the whole catalogue - I'm definitely hearing some new things on here. Besides, with 42 tracks deep you really can't lose.

May I also add that STH101 totally owns STH102 - that was only a DVD (released after STH101). I bought that before this one and in comparison, not only do you get a DVD with STH101 but yeah get this sweet ass mix that I've been playing since I got home from the city.

Out of all the Hip Hop songs on here, I choose to give you Space Slut by Funkaho which is a lot more like dance music. Don't say I don't give you a mix of all different types of stuff here on Scrobble Scribbler.

Funkaho - Space Slut



Scrobble Scribbler uses Last.FM and Last.FM's "Audioscrobbler" software. However, Scrobble Scribbler is not employed by Last.FM and thus views expressed by its author are not those of Last.FM. Join Last.fm here

BONUS:

The history of Stones Throw - Peanut Butter Wolf

And next post...

"69 Love Songs" - by The Magnetic Fields (if I can chose 1 song...)