One half of the team that brought you the essential Soul Boulders soul master mix album has done it again. This time he's teamed up with Max Kane to drop a seriously stellar list of bangers (click the pic above for tracklist) on his new Night of the Remix Vol. 1.

From the mouth of B.Cause himself:

Max Kane & I are proud to bring you our latest cd joint, "Night Of The The Remix Vol.1". Inspired initially by a live 4 turn set we did last fall at the homie Satva's monthly at Milk Bar in SF, this is another adventure into harmonious blends and subtle funky cuts akin to my unreleased multitrack endeavor, "Play Crater" (rouch mix )."

The album art is ridiculous! I guess I just have a thing for skeletons but I am loving it. If only the AG skeleton could be flossin' like BCause's. Gold grill and aviators...awesome. Drop B.Cause a Pay Pal for this disk its only 10 bucks! If you pre-order he throws in some other cool crap. Check him out.

Bonus Mp3: DJ B.Cause - "Had A Gun"
(Not on the Record, but dope and downloadable nonetheless)

I'll host a couple tracks as soon as I get the hardcopy of this record. There might even be a contest of sorts. Stay tuned till then.

Before you head off to enjoy your weekend I thought I would offer up a little Rockability curtousy of A-trak. Here are some of the dude's remixes, productions, and blends. The blend is thanks to DJ Ayres of the Rub. Check that guy out he knows how to rock.

Mp3: Bonde Do Role - "Melo Do Tabaco" (A-Trak Remix)
Mp3: GLC - "Chi State of Mind" (A-Trak Production)
Mp3: Nelly Furtado vs. The Raconteurs - "Steady As She Goes Promiscuous" (A-Trak remix)

Anywhoos. Be sure to pick up some A-Trak merchandise, if you are in Brooklyn get to a DJ Ayres show or pick up a Rub disc and as always have a great weekend!

Just wanted to give everyone the heads up that there is this solid mix by Caps and Jones up at The Stencil. Get over there and download it.

Mp3 link: Caps and Jones - "Smoky Shuffle" (1/2 Hour Mix)

Killer Mike takes Sinatra's "That's Life" modo and totally twists it into a venomous diatribe about whats wrong in the world and the powers that be. Most notably he takes on Bush I and II, Barb, Bill Cosby, Oprah, doctors, Bill O'Reilly and Martha Stewart. The track isn't catchy but it isn't meant to be this is a great piece of protest music. Check it out and download it just for the message alone.

Mp3: Killer Mike - "That's Life" *fixed

My guess this track isn't going to be a big hit on the radio or hype machine for that matter. But songs with real messages rarely are.

Ayatollah's beats are what drove Mos Def's hit "Ms. Fatbooty" and have worked for countless other leading hip hop figures from Ghostface, Rakim, Talib Kweli, Pharoahe Monch, and R.A. the RUGGED MAN. Ayatollah's 2006 release Now Playing showcases his superb production skill. Its an instrumental collection of his favorite compositions. Be sure to check it out.

Mp3: Ayatollah - "Nag Champa" (Intro)

You have no excuse not to grab this its on eMusic.

We rescued her from Kentucky after she was abandoned. Taylor is Cooper's 15 week old sidekick. Don't know Cooper? He's the fella at the bottom of the blog...take a scroll down. Should be fun to watch these too rough it up in the years to come.

Mp3: Bob James - "Nautilus"

One of my favorite soul tracks check it out. Might have to be Taylor's theme song. Everyone needs a sidekick, a partner in crime, you have got to believe that.

These remixes of Alice Smith's track "Love Endeavor" are killing me this summer. Both have been top notch. Alice's upcoming The Lovers, The Dreamers and Me (Sept 5th) is shaping up to be a great one. I am very eager to check out this R&B rising star. She is definately a throwback to R&B's glory years. Check out this latest remix.

Mp3: Alice Smith - "Love Endeavor" (Maurice Fulton Remix)
Mp3 stream: Alice Smith - "Secrets" (NPR Song of the Day)

Don't forget the album drops September 5th. Be sure to grab it when it does.

Bronx based DJ Jason Kibler a.k.a DJ Logic of Rope-a-dope record has a new record out. Its definately a worth a check out. Zen of Logic show cases Logic's Dub/Drum & Bass/Hip Hop sound. Logic has gotten some serious praise most notably by URB magazine:

“Logic's not just a skilled DJ, he's also a talented all-around musician. Eschewing flashy scratching displays, he fronts chunky hip-hop beat slinging, knob-twisting dub, and chaotic sound sculpting -- sonic trademarks that've made him the man to call when jazz cats want to tap into the hip-hop zeitgeist. The results - both on the album and in concert - favor multi-textured grooves over highflying solos.” – URB

Be sure to check out a couple of my favorites off the record and then go snatch it up here.

Mp3: DJ Logic - "9th Ward Blues"
Mp3: DJ Logic - "Hypnotic"

Those crazy Canadians. Whether its Kid Koala cooking up the turntables, No Luck Club or Toronto-based Shaw-Han Liem Canadians know how to add a fresh unique vibe to the music scene. I would love to throw Boards of Canada in there but they are actually from Scotland. What Liem does is very much like Boards of Canada, however.

So if you like Boards of Canada, the Boats or Clogs you will definitely enjoy I Am Robot and Proud. Liem excels at combining both electronic and organic instrumentation to produce soothing instrumental electronic pop. He has been operating relatively under the radar since his debt release The Catch in 2001 (but aren't all electronic pop artists operating under the radar?). AMG has this great description about Electronic in Your House Wants to Sing:

I Am Robot and Proud's third release continues Shaw-Han Liem's never-ending quest to forge previous melodies with scattering rhythms into melodic compositions that make the Postal Service seem like a death metal band.

Mp3: I Am Robot and Proud - "The Work"
Mp3: I Am Robot and Proud - "Electronic in Your House Wants to Sing"

Buy this record: here, here and here (iTunes).

I contributed a piece on the Blue Scholars over at FMGT for their retrospectives month. Be sure to check it out. I tossed some of my favorite NW hip hop tracks up there as well. Check it out and let them know what you think.

I was dogging indie mashup blog golden boy Girl Talk last Friday so I thought I should offer up some mashup alternatives. 3 are from the group Soulwax (aka Too Many DJs) and a young gun from Baltimore named Dave Nada. I can't get over the novelty of hearing two great tracks blended together. Check them out and enjoy the weekend.

Mp3: Fresh Prince & DJ Jazzy Jeff vs. Lupe Fiasco - "Kick Push Summertime" (Dave Nada Mix)
Mp3: Survivor vs. Skeelo - "Eye of a baller" (Soulwax Remix)
Mp3: The Clash vs. Basement Jaxx - "Magnificant Romeo" (Soulwax Remix)
Mp3: Grandmaster Flash vs. Blackstreet - "No Diggity is the Message" (Soulwax Remix)*

Support this! get some Soulwax over here and head over to Mr. Nada's space here.

Repping Washington State's Tacoma breakbeat record creator Eliot Lipp has a couple new 2006 offerings. Lipp's instramental records are typically strictly breaks and synths, but that doesn't hinder him in the least bit.

A keyboard cowboy of sorts, with his manipulation of analog keyboards and drum machines, [Lipp is] influenced by the complex and somewhat neurotic beats of Shadow, Prefuse 73, Dabrye, Dosh and other detail-oriented producers.” -URB Instant 2006 Pick Feature, Jan/Feb 2006

Check out Lipp's "Rap Tight" track off his 2006 Tacoma Mockingbird EP or check out the steller unreleased "Glasspipe" remix by Daedulus.

Mp3: Eliot Lipp - "Rap Tight"
Mp3: Eliot Lipp - "Glasspipe" (Daedulus Remix)

Buy: Get Tacoma Mockingbird or The Days EP here (iTunes).

If you haven't grabbed the new Spearhead album you have got to. It's a great record and has something powerful to say. One of the great protest tracks is "Light up your lighter" and while I'm not crazy about the hook I definately appreciate the lyrics.

Mp3: Spearhead - "Light up your lighter"

The new album Yell Fire! was produced by Franti and Mario Caldato Jr. (of Beastie Boys' fame). Franti has always had a great ability to write progressive challenging and political lyrics and that shows through fantastically on this record. I think I still like Stay Human better but that shouldn't be a detractor to picking up this record.

Buy it: From eMusic.

Dabrye's Two/Three album came out 6.13.06 to mixed reviews. Its a follow up to his One/Three album that was dropped in 2001. Two/Three does an excellent job of highlighting Dabrye's (Tadd Mullinix's hip hop alter ego) production skills and really shows that he has the ability to make a stellar record (think along the lines of Prefuse 73 (aka Scott Heren)).

However, the record gets muddled with all the guest MC spots (and its not for lack of MC talent MF Doom and Jay Dee show up). In contrast Heren choose to stick with what he does best, on Two/Three Dabrye in part misses. His haunting and varied production certainly shouldn't be overlooked, but like others that came before me, I found that this record would have been more enjoyable had it just been an instrumental piece. Guest spots can sometimes add variation and edge to tracks on a record, but when its entirely made up of guest spots its hard to create an album that flows regardless of the level of production. Here are a couple cuts off the disc courtesy of the label Ghostly International.

Mp3: Dabrye - "Truffle No Shuffle"
Mp3: Dabrye feat. Kadence "Encoded Flow"

I think he would do well in the future to find an MC that matches his vibe and go with that for the whole record. It worked moderately well for RJD2 and Ace this year, of course works for Blackalicious, and worked wonders for Murs when he teamed up with 9th Wonder from Little Brother on Murray's Revenge.

I try and stay current on the latest hip hop and electro music and I think of myself as fairly knowledgeable of what is going on in the indie world. While a bulk of my time might be consumed in listening to hip hop and electronic music a close second is listening to jazz. I don't know alot about the nuances of jazz nor am I much of a jazz theorist, but I really love listening to the old stuff (would you say traditional?) especially after a long day pushing papers.

While much of the music I listen to can be criticized as not being organic, spontaneous or improvised, jazz doesn't suffer from this and does a fantastic job of filling that void. A quick run through my iTunes and I have about 211 tracks defined by Apple as "Jazz" many of them are standard big names like Mingus, Monk, Powell, Ellington, Tyner, Rollins and Marsalis. Oscar Peterson and Bud Powell stand out as my favorites. My two favorite jazz albums are Oscar Peterson's 1951 and Duke Ellington's Money Jungle (I think there is possibly no better jazz song than "Fleurette Africaine") Here are the two most listened to AG jazz tracks.

Mp3: Charles Mingus - "Boogie Stomp Shuffle"
Mp3: Oscar Peterson - "For You"

If there are any jazz buffs out there with recommendation of others to listen to I am all ears.