Jazz-Rap

Today’s Track: Jitwam – ‘Brooklyn Ballers’

May 5, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Chalo co-founder Jitwam in a promotional photoshoot for ‘Brooklyn Ballers’ (2022) (Photo via PR)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for me to give a shout-out to the Broolyn Ballers and each of the readers from elsewhere as we get prepared for yet another daily track on the blog, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! A self-described “Psychedelic Soul Savant” who was born in North-East India, now based between New York and Sydney, moved to New Zealand and Australia to spend his formative years there, later living in monasteries in Thailand and washed-out apartments in London, Jitwam is the co-founder of Chalo, an ambitious creative project alongside Dhruva Balram that supports up-and-coming Indian, Pakistani and Kashmiri artists, with a full-length self-titled album being released via The Jazz Diaries in 2020 that had its proceeds donated to the Human Rights Law Network and the Zindagi Trust. As a solo artist, however, he’s released a string of EP’s and a few albums, with 2019’s ‘Honeycomb’ serving as his latest LP. Jitwam has also collaborated with numerous artists including Dam Swindle, Mike Bloom and renowned Broken Beat maestro Kaidi Tatham. Other career highlights include his placements on Moodyman’s DJ-Kicks compilation series, embarking on a national NTS Radio tour in India, touring across the US and Europe, and opening a show for the acclaimed Funk virtuoso Roy Ayers with his full live backing band. His brand new single – ‘Brooklyn Ballers’ – is a one-off release from what I gather, but it offers an energetic ode to his passion for (just) one of the area’s that he has lived in throughout his eventful lifetime. Give it a spin below.

“Brooklyn Ballers is a homage to the city in all its hustle and bustle“, Jitwam explains about the far-reaching notes of the track which are delivered below the soulful and radiant instrumentation, adding, “The magic in the air, that can make dreams come true and can turn your fears into your worst nightmares“, in his own single’s product description on the Bleep website. The opening reminds me of one of Skule Toyama or Night Tempo’s modern Chillwave records, where the summer atmosphere shines right through thanks to the raucous sampled guitar hook that induce the nostalgia of the 70’s Disco-Rock era, before the track soon evolves into more of a Detroit House style of record with additional elements of Hip-Hop and World Fusion music. The lead vocals have a spoken, but catchy and rhythmic, delivery to them where subtle nods to Guns ‘N’ Roses ‘Paradise City’ and Joe Smooth’s ‘Promised Land’ creep in due to the lyrics and the key song structure. A myriad of styles, including Psychedelic Soul and Vaporwave, make their way into the instrumental-driven sections of the track. Jitwam melds together the Gospel-esque backing vocals, some Madlib-style sampling and some Maribou State-style cues of World-Funk and Dub into the mix too to finalise the package, which plays out as a chilled soundtrack to his simple love for the location and a very deep, percussive groover that acts as an ode to some of New York’s most respected producers. The area’s energy is almost embodied by the Jazz inflections and the Detroit House influences, creating a laid back shuffle that gradually builds and draws upon various elements to expand it beyond the original state. A chef’s kiss.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Brooklyn Ballers’ (Single) (Released on March 23rd, 2022) (via Roya Records)

That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest blog post, and I’ll be ready to take you through a new entry of ‘New Album Release Fridays’ tomorrow as we take a quick preview of one of the weekend’s new and notable album releases. The record in question comes from the Prog-Jazz and Electronica sides of the Alternative Music spectrum by a duo made up of two members from The Comet Is Coming. The duo’s drummer has also toured with Sons Of Kemet, Melt Yourself Down, and Yussef Kamal.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Eric B. & Rakim – ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’

April 27, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ (LP) (Released on June 23rd, 1992) (via MCA Records)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for you to send a distress call to DedSec (A short soundtrack-related reference for those who know) right after reading your latest retro-filled edition of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Although not entirely remembered in the discussions of Hip-Hop’s greatest artists to lace up a pair of rhymes by the general public, Eric B & Rakim have still been named as two of the genre’s greatest talents by publications like AllMusic and NPR, while Rolling Stone have ranked them as #5 on their list of the 20 Greatest Duo’s Of All Time published in 2015. They were also among the many victims who were affected by the 2008 Universal fire, which caused their tapes of lost material to be destroyed in the incident. They could still take a lot of the newer artists to school though, and we are currently in session with them today on One Track At A Time, and so I’m going to pay attention and listen up to the title track from their final album – ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ – released in 1992 via MCA Records. Like many of the Long Island-formed duo’s critically acclaimed albums, the LP was handled mostly by Eric B. & Ralim themselves in terms of production duties at The Hit Factory in New York city. The titular track itself was a minor radio hit, while the associated album reached #9 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Chart in the US. This is a powerful track, but it is somewhat disfigured in the memory by a music video that is riddled with the typical tropes of 90’s Hip-Hop in which the album, and Rakim’s career as a whole in particular, usually stood in a more creative opposition against. It strikes me as a piece that was designed by label executives in order to sell more records. That said, the album debuted at #22 on the US Billboard 200 chart in its first week of release, a healthy result for an alternative act. Try not to Sweat The Technique below.

Eric B & Rakim’s ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ was not intended to be the duo’s final album, but their contract with MCA Records was due to expire, eventually leading to lots of legal wrangling, including a court case, that would cause the duo to disband completely. However, things did not meet a grisly end because a re-union tour took place in 2018. Summing up what they do most thoroughly on releases like this LP with the frantic beats and cuts, ‘Don’t Sweat The Technique’ (the title track) is built off an infectious and funk-driven instrumental that expands into Rakim’s rhymes that feel razor sharp and cutting edge on arrival. The main bass line (Which is a sampled loop from Young-Holt Unlimited’s ‘Queen Of The Nile’) is a perfect partner for the recurring blasts of Horns (A Kool N The Gang sample), developing elements of Jazz and Soul among the Boom Bap style of production and the percussive, clicking Drum loops. Lyrically, we are dealing with a love letter to the art form of rapping itself, with Rakim giving light testimonies about his career and his relationship with Eric B. as he continually performs his methods of mental alchemy. He uses sequences like “They want to know how many rhymes I have ripped and wrecked/But research has never found all of the pieces yet/Scientists try to solve the context, Philosophers are wondering what’s next” to give the boisterous track its energetic and conscious character. His delivery is absolutely swift and nimble too, as his syllables bounce between the elastic bassline like a rubber band and syncopated rim-shots, as to aid the rhythm of the instrumentals with his internal melodies. Together, they boast a DJ/Producer dynamic that has still influenced combinations like Run The Jewels and Nas & Hit-Boy to this day, and that’s simply because the formula feels timeless. To conclude, it is a classic track that Eric B. & Rakim delivered without breaking a sweat.

Pictured: DJ Eric B. & MC Rakim (William Michael Griffin Jr.) (2018) (Photo by JLN Photography/REX/Shutterstock)

That brings us to the end of roughly another 24 hour period on the blog, and I thank you, as always, for reading what I had to say about Eric B. & Rakim today. Tomorrow, I’ll be reviewing a recent single by an all-female Pop, R&B & Funk trio who became mainstays on the DIY L.A. club circuit after they started jamming together in 2017. They are currently signed to Stones Throw Records and they have a new LP – ‘Excess’ – releasing in June. They will also tour with Tame Impala and Parquet Courts in 2022.

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Today’s Track: Junior – ‘Long Way Home’

April 12, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Junior (aka 24-year-old rapper/producer James Watkinson) (2022) (Photo via TheMusicEssentials.com)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time to walk in the light of a potential future star for yet another daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Making music is central to the coming-of-age story of the 24-year-old rapper, songwriter and producer Junior – whose real name is James Watkinson – who grew up recording a bunch of self-produced work while growing up in a summer cabin, being influenced by his surroundings to pen music about his career aspirations. Although he cites one moment where he got up on stage with Pharrell Williams as an adolescent fan as a definitive one in his career, Junior is becoming one of the best new kids on the block within the UK’s independent Hip-Hop and Grime music scenes for himself. He hails from a self-described “sleepy town” in Bedfordshire, located just outside of London, and his key influences include Jay Z, 90’s R&B and the supporting work of SBTV (An organisation based in London who promote emerging artists through their platform). ‘Lone Way Home’ is a fantastic new single by Junior, which was recently played by Tom Ravenscroft during a recent episode of The New Music Fix on BBC Radio 6 Music.

“I look at music as a way to summarize my life, treating every release like a chapter of a book, starting with my first project, ‘Adolescence’ to my most recent, ‘When A Flower Blooms'”, Junior explains about the statement of intent that he intends to fearlessly communicate on the fresh single, explaining, “On a journey to find my own sound and become who I am meant to be, I have had to walk a long way home”, in a press statement. The wonky soundscape of the track is clearly noticeable from the offset, with a Chill Hop-oriented backing beat comprised of fluctuating Synths and a hazy, psychedelic inverted guitar hook that feels playful and, all the while, Junior uses sharp percussion and a gently cinematic range of Hip-Hop instrumentals to ground himself and think carefully about his songwriting for the material. Vocally, his flow is not too unfamiliar to fans of Eminem or Mac Miller, where he matches a smooth and melodic flow to the offbeat tune of the quirky Hip-Hop backdrop. Lyrics like “From a small town/Breaking walls down, you can guarantee I’m a find way” talk about his ambitions to live an adventurous career despite a less than ideal living situation for his desires and wishes. His songwriting manages to feel intimate, while drawing and expansive. The result is a track that feels equally anthemic as it does personal, with his fresh percussion and his confessional style of lyricism standing out in a Hip-Hop world plagued by Meme-targeting commercialism. There’s no auto-tune here in that sense, but there’s simply an inspiring ballad about taking a leap of faith regarding your next big step in your career and, for Junior personally, revealing your ambitions when the Hip-Hop world takes a hold of you. It gets his personality as an open-minded and well-mannered rapper across nicely, while also establishing some relatable themes for his audience that takes influence from the mildly differing styles of Hip-Hop across the spectrum. This is a great showcase for Junior’s abilities to write, produce and record his own music all at once. This could be a star of the future.

Pictured: Junior in a promotional photoshoot for a ‘Live At Esquires’ gig (2021) (Photo via juniorthe40/Twitter.com)

That brings me to the bottom of the page for another morning! Thank you for reading all about what I had to say about Junior today, and I will be back tomorrow to go ‘retro’ with a new entry of our weekly ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ feature on the blog. We will be revisiting a classic 80’s Arabic Pop/Dance track by a Cairo-based musician who is largely seen as the godfather of Al Jeel Music throughout Egypt and Libya. In 2011, he condemned the actions of Muammar Gadaffi – his native country’s then-leader, against the Libyan population and issued a plea to the fellow Egyptians to help them.

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Today’s Track: Kojey Radical (feat. Knucks) – ‘Payback’

March 12, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Kojey Radical in a glamorous photoshoot for a Q&A feature with The Badger Online (2022) (Photo via PR)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it is time for us to take a quick look at one of the UK’s most well-received Grime upstarts for yet another track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Rapper, creative director, mixed media visual director and a first class degree graduate in Fashion Illustration from the London College Of Fashion – is there anything that Hoxton-based musician Kojey Radical can’t do? His debut mixtape, 2016’s ’23 Winters’, debuted at #3 on the UK’s Rap & Hip Hop Albums Charts and reached the top 40 of the UK Singles Charts and, since that point, he has received three MOBO music awards nominations. He has also collaborated with a wide variety of artists such as Mahalia, Lex Amor, Ray BLK, Tom Grennan and MJ Cole. He has recently given us another ‘Reason To Smile’ with his titular first full-length studio album that was released last Friday – on March 4th – via the major label Atlantic Records. The new record is about giving people greatness and striving for self-perfection, and it features a guest appearance from his own mother alongside a plethora of other featured credits, which he explores through a progressive range of Grime, Spoken Word, Alternative Hip-Hop and Psychedelic Funk backdrops. The latter is the most prominent option on ‘Payback’, the lead single, which finds Kojey enlisting the aid of Knucks. The Jazz/Soul-oriented production was also handled by frequent collaborator Swindle. Let’s give ‘Payback’ a listen with the opulent music video below.

“When you’ve been taught to be the victim for so long, it feels great to stand up and say, no one can bully me”, Kojey says in a simple statement about ‘Payback’ as a single. Talking about the ambitions of his new album, he says, “This is the first time I’ve done it to the scale and ambition of what I speak. Previously it’s been ‘I’m warming, I’m warming, I’m warming up’ – but I’m warm now, put me in the game”, in a press release. ‘Payback’ gets off to a heated start with the brassy refrains of “Dark and bullseyes/the dress code black/Count my money up, I need my racks” in the opening chorus, before Knucks takes the lead for an equally strident verse where he raps about the different qualities that are perceived to represent black success, all of the while that a Saxophone-enhanced bassline and a taut sample-based backdrop helps to glide his vocals above the melodies with a floating flow. There’s references to popular culture, such as the Netflix series ‘Top Boy’, while there’s nods to the sample-based production of Madlib and J Dilla in the richly Funk-influenced backing beats. Some of the strongest lyrics, like “Rap my freedom like a gift/and I ain’t seen the trap since” and “From 1993, I’ve been f***ing up the narrative”, are also the most bold ones, as they speak candidly of finding wealth and measuring power with a nonchalantly poetic flair. There are subtle themes about flexing over your enemies and justice being made, where hooks like “Until we multiply black wealth/**** a statue” and “Don’t let the ivory towers come distract you” make reference to recent cultural events, but it never feels too pretentious or as if Kojey or Knucks are flaunting too much, as black financial generational wealth is the goal instead of personal ambitions within the songwriting. A very fast and furious Hip-Hop anthem with a light touch of Kojey’s undeniably Jazz-oriented and soulful Funk influences, ‘Payback’ comes at you with a hard and honest personality that makes it feel like a cut above the rest. I would have liked to hear a tad more expression from Kojey on his own, as ‘Payback’ shows that a host of collaborators have been behind the steering wheel of it, but this is a strong effort from all involved that gets a lot of the fundamentals right.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Reason To Smile’ (LP/Album) (Released on March 4th, 2022) (via Atlantic Records)

That’s all for now! Thank you very much for taking a moment out of your day to check out what I had to say, and I’ll be back tomorrow to review some more rhythms as we head back to our teenage years for a new entry of my weekly ‘Scuzz Sundays’ feature. We’ll be listening to a modern classic from one of the few female-led bands of the era who have collaborated with Tom Morello and last released an album in 2021. The single in question was memorably used in the edgy comic book movie ‘Kick-Ass’ that bought Hollywood actors like Chloe Grace Moretz and Aaron Taylor-Johnston to fame.

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Way Back Wednesdays: The Specials – ‘Gangsters’

March 9, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Art for’The Best Of The Specials & Fun Boy Three’ (LP) (Released In 2006) (via Pegasus Records)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for us to go retro with another weekly blog entry of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the site, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Today, we really are going ‘Way Back’ because we are talking about the British Ska revival band The Specials, who were part of the 2 Tone and Alternative Reggae movements all of the way back in the late-70’s and they have continued to represent these styles through to the present day. I was going to see a tribute band for The Specials in Stoke-On-Trent before the pandemic hit in 2020 – which I was very much looking forward to, in a way – but, unfortunately, we know how that turned out in the end. Known for combining uplifting Dub melodies with the ferocious spirit of Punk, The Specials were formed back in 1977 when they lived in Coventry – and that is way before my time. They used to wear mod-style 60’s period ‘rude boy’ outfits complete with pork pie hats, tonic & mohair suits, and loafers on-stage, likely performing their greatest hits like ‘Ghost Town’ and ‘Too Much Too Young’ that reached #1 in the UK’s singles chart. They continued their career throughout the 80’s and 90’s under a revised line-up with an alternate name of The Specials AKA, which represented their informed political stance and their wry social commentary on British society. Most impressively, The Specials are still recording new material today, and they most recently released ‘Encore’ in 2019 – an original album that re-introduced vocalist Terry Hall to their ranks, and it was a #1 entry on the UK Albums Chart. ‘Gangsters’ was another of their classics, which was recorded in Studio One of Horizon Studios in Coventry during 1979 to be released as their first track under The Specials AKA name, and it peaked at #6 in the UK Singles Chart following release. Let’s give it a spin below.

Terry Hall created the vocals for ‘Gangsters’ by mixing an “angry” recording and a “bored” recording that were cobbled together, while Horace Panter had to re-cut the Bass parts because they were originally so extreme that they “blew the needle out of the record’s grooves” and pianist Jerry Dammers overdubbed a treble-heavy Piano instrumental on to the track to compensate for the low-end of the Bass. Lyrically, ‘Gangsters’ was allegedly written about a real-life incident where The Specials had to pay for damage caused to a hotel by another band (rumored to be The Damned) as they were held responsible, and the track is also reportedly a re-working of Prince Buster’s 1964 ska track ‘Al Capone’ because ‘Gangsters’ samples the car sound effects which played at the beginning of Buster’s track. Moreover, The Specials changed the refrain in the opening line to “Bernie Rhodes knows, don’t argue” as an insult aimed at Bernie Rhodes, who was the band’s manager for a brief stint. Taking all of these different stories into account, The Specials telling a story of dis-establihment in a bizzare way as they reference incidents like a mis-step involving a guitar above a perky variety of gently Skanting Dubplate beats and odd Middle Eastern-sounding instrumentals, while the lead vocals retain an energetic – yet eeire – delivery. The guitar melodies sound different to Al Capone’s track, and so The Specials did an excellent job of re-writing that track in their own image, with the deadpan vocals conveying a feeling of self-awareness about them. Overall, ‘Gangsters’ was a vital step in introducing The Specials’ take on British Ska to wider audiences at large by paying tribute to some nice influences in clear, yet poignant ways. The vocals have a quality of vagueness which retains an aura of mystery throughout, and the danceable Rocksteady drums are likely to encourage weird great uncle’s to partake in some questionable “jerky dancing” at some family parties. Injected with humor, darkness and youth – The Specials had a big hit on their hands when they released ‘Gangsters’.

Pictured: A LEGO r-ecreation of the ‘A Message To You, Rudy’ music video (2018) (Photo Credit: Musical Brick)

That same year, The Specials also re-created ‘A Message To You, Rudy’ with the famous British-Jamaican saxophonist Dandy Livingstone. You can find out more about that here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/02/06/todays-track-the-specials-a-message-to-you-rudy/

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘A Message To You, Rudy’ (Single) (Released in 1979) (via 2 Tone/Chrysallis)

That brings me to the end of another nostalgic breakdown of a beloved classic for another week on the blog, and I thank you for spending a moment of your day with me on the site today. I’ll be back to bringing some new music to your eardrums tomorrow, as we take a light gander on a downtempo soul track by an experimental Toronto-based performance artist and producer whose music encompasses Pop, Indie Rock, Jazz, Neo-Soul and Bossa Nova. She has learned to play several exotic instruments including the Harp, a Pairometer and the Tenori-on. She has shared the stage with the likes of Janelle Monae and Aloe Blacc, and she contributed her vocals to Bob Wiseman’s ‘Giulietta Masina At The Oscars Crying’ that was first issued in 2012.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Jurassic 5 – ‘Concrete Schoolyard’

February 16, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Charli 2na, Cut Chemist, DJ Nu-Mark, Akil, Zaakir & Marc 7 (Date n/a) (Photo by Paul Natkin/WireImage)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has arrived for me to take you on a ride in my musical DeLorean as we pay a small tribute to one of the seminal sounds of the past for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the blog, which fits my theme of writing up about a different piece of music every day! Comprised of MC’s Charli 2na (Charles Stewart), Akii (Dante Givens), Courtenay Henderson (Soup aka Zaakir), Marc 7 (Marc Stuart) and DJ’s/Producer’s Cut Chemist (Lucas McFadden) and DJ Nu-Mark (Mark Potsic) – Jurassic 5 were actually a six-piece crew who came out the Los Angeles venue of Good Life and they were trailblazers on the global hip-hop scene, both critically and commercially, throughout the late-1990’s and the 2000’s. They were very much known for being old school and proud of it, with their lyrics mixing braggadocio rhymes with simple tributes to the art form of Hip-Hop and street poetry itself. There were no over-produced auto-tune melodies, no blatant money-waving, obvious misogyny, no outrageous grand-standing and just a sprinkling of swearing – but they simply packed out live sets throughout the UK and the US by encouraging a live crowd to get on their feet and interact with them, with most of their success coming directly from good word-of-mouth and a mixture of sought-after EP releases, to start off with, that were initially only available through Import in the UK. They had hits including ‘What’s Golden?, ‘The Influence’ and ‘Quality Control’ that made the likes of Charli 2na and Cut Chemist household names. Their highest-charting single in the UK is ‘Concrete Schoolyard’, which reached #35 and it was taken from their debut self-titled album released in 1998, but it also appeared on the self-titled EP release from a year prior. The Jurassic 5 logo’s that you can find on the front cover of the EP and the album were designed by Charli 2na himself, and NME named the album as their 9th best from 1998. Let’s play on the ‘Concrete Schoolyard’ below.

Although they offered something fresh to many listeners of all backgrounds, Jurassic 5 decided to call it ‘Quits’ in 2007 shortly after releasing their fourth studio album – ‘Feedback’ – citing creative differences as the reason, yet they returned to the stage and recorded some new material for a reunion during 2013 and 2014, and each member of the band has continued to release new music individually. As for ‘Concrete Schoolyard’, the core ethos of their message was “Let’s take it back to the concrete streets/Original beats from real live MC’s” as they aimed to provide their freshest Hip-Hop sound yet. At the time, Hip-Hop was decidedly either Dance Pop-oriented or Grunge-influenced in terms of visceral production, and so Jurassic 5 naturally decided to keep it simply by incorporating thick and floating Piano chords into their backing beats on ‘Concrete Schoolyard’ with a kick drum beat that makes the soundscape feel warm, but making for a slower tempo than a typical Hip-Hop release where elements of Soul and Baroque can peek in. It is melodic enough, however, with a final breakdown that increases the danceability of the recording. Refrains like “Playground tactics/No rabbit-in-the-hand tricks/Just that classic rap S**t from Jurassic” also provide a clear sense of clarity as the Alternative Hip-Hop collective make it their mission statement to disregard sleight of hand tricks or conform to pre-conceptual trends and place a larger emphasis on their influences instead. In conclusion, on ‘Concrete Schoolyard’ – which was reportedly recorded with Dave Matthews of all artists – Jurassic 5 were admittedly good and they were a much-needed breath of fresh air. There was no tropes and no tricks, just good old-fashioned MC’s with a solid sense of slight satire which was a clean cut above the rest.

Pictured: Charli 2na & Krafy Kuts in a PR shot for ‘Adventures Of A Reluctant Superhero’ (2019) (Photo via Last.FM)

That’s all for now! Thank you lots for checking out the blog that I’ve been working on today, and I’ll see you again later as we break down some more brand new music. Tomorrow, we’ll be listening to the album announcement track from a brand new artist who is based in London but originally hails from Calabar, Nigeria. He does a lot of interesting things with Afrobeat and his 2020 EP ‘Which Way Is Forward?’ landed a spot on my Top 5 EP’s list of that year, and he’s recently collaborated with Little Simz.

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Today’s Track: Nas – “Moments”

September 11, 2021 — Leave a comment
  • Pictured: Track Listing for ‘King’s Disease II’ (Released on August 6th, 2021) (via Mass Appeal Records)

Good Morning to you! I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and I’m going to be putting the ‘Hip’ into the ‘Hop’ on this rather cloudy Saturday morning to up its ante with another daily track on the blog, because it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! It’s only been under a year since legendary 90’s rapper Nas won the Grammy Award for ‘Best Rap Album’ with 2020’s ‘King’s Disease’. However, that was more of a ‘legacy Grammy’ if you ask me, and I feel that his new direct continuation of that record – ‘King’s Disease II’ – released a handful of short weeks ago, is a bit better and more representative of such an award. Another victory lap for the famous associate publisher of Mass Appeal magazine, and a New York-based musician whose debut album – 1994’s ‘Illmatic’ – has been inducted into the Library Of Congresss National Recording Registry, ‘King’s Disease II’ once again finds the multi platinum-selling entrepreneur bringing the Fontana-born producer Hit Boy on-board with him, and the frequent pair have seemed to become something of a collaboration cheat code in recent years. The new album also features fruitful guest appearances from the likes of Eminem, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Charlie Wilson, EPMD and more. The new record also comes highly recommended from the critics, scoring an excellent 88/100 on review aggregate site Metacritic to indicate “Universal Acclaim” from lots of music publications. Check out the mid-album highlight ‘Moments’ below.

‘King’s Disease II’ was released in early August through Nas’ own label, Mass Appeal Records (of course) and, as well as performing strongly in review sections, this new release marked another commercial milestone for the famous rival of Jay Z, as it went straight to #3 in the US Billboard 200, becoming Nas’ highest charting album in nine years, and its first week sales of 56,000 units outmatched those of its predecessor in his ‘King’s Disease’ string of recent releases last year. An introspective anthem that matches chopped old time Soul samples with a clear, witty backdrop of nostalgic realizations, ‘Moments’ reminds me, in terms of its narrative thread, to recent movies like Disney Pixar’s ‘Soul’ and Amazon Prime’s ‘The Map Of Tiny Perfect Things’, where it feels like a grounded celebration of the little beauties in life, and this really connects with me on a decent personal note because I recently had my sister’s wedding, and that was a ‘Once In A Lifetime’ deal of enjoyment. Lyrics like “We used to all put in and go half on bail money/F**k making it rain now, we makin’ it hail money” harken back to the youthful days and the emerging stages of his career, and reflective sequences like “My whole career I stayed away from features/But I figured its perfect timing to embrace the leaders” are calling cards for the album as Nas speedruns through his personal growth through the decades. The catchy chorus, with quick hooks like “Movin’ in ya first crib or having your first kid/Moments you can’t relive” really hammers the point home with a near equal mixture of accessibility and relatability. I love how these rhymes feel a little clumsy at points, as the straightforward meaning of the track really helps to give them a freestyle flair that charms. Plenty of credit goes to Hit Boy too, who works very hard behind the DJ decks to make everything flow together elegantly. The whimsical mix of laidback Horn sections, the strutting muted drums, the fluttering Glockenspiel melodies and self-satisfied Bass beats feels nicely endearing and complements Nas’ relatively unpolished vocals well to tell the story, and it gives the brief lyrics that may otherwise come across as a bit too slap-dash a well-contained, apt Jazz influence for the backdrop to flourish. He’s perhaps not a brilliant producer on his own, but when he works with Nas, there’s a really coherent chemistry that feels very engaging. It is a bold statement – but this is one of Nas’ best.

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Illmatic’ (LP) (Released on April 19th, 1994) (via Columbia Records)

As Nas’ quietly declares in the track that we just heard, he is now considered a legacy artist and so he’s no stranger to making appearances on my blog already. Last year, we took a listen to the lead single ‘Ultra Black’ from the first ‘King’s Disease’ record, which you can still read here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/10/14/todays-track-nas-feat-hit-boy-ultra-black/. Meanwhile, earlier in the year, we looked back at his culturally significant debut album ‘Illmatic’ with the single ‘It Ain’t Hard To Tell’ for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ – a moment that you can relive from my site here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2021/04/21/way-back-wednesdays-nas-it-aint-hard-to-tell/

  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘King’s Disease’ (LP) (Released on August 21st, 2020) (via Mass Appeal Records)

That brings us to the end of the page for today, and thank you very much for being a part of this particular moment with me! It’s ‘Scuzz Sundays’ tomorrow, and so we’ve nearly reached the part of the week where we take things a little less seriously and either head-bang or cringe to some of the Pop-Punk anthems from the teenage time of our lives. My pick for this week comes from a rather successful Kanas City-bred Post-Grunge band who have sold over seven million albums worldwide. Since 2012, the band’s leading man has been hit with accusations of lip syncing during live shows.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Black Sheep – “The Choice Is Yours”

July 28, 2021 — Leave a comment

Let’s see if this 91′ Hip-Hop classic still has any of it’s seminal wool. Let’s go Way Back!

  • Pictured: Cover Art for ‘The Choice Is Yours’ (LP) (Released on August 6th, 1991) (via Mercury Records)

Good Morning to you! It’s Jacob Braybrooke, and we’re both here for an in-depth look back at one of the sounds of the past that has been influential to the sounds of the present for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ – because its always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! ‘The Choice Is Yours’ was an East-Coast Hip-Hope tune, released in 1991, that would have been inescapable at the time. It comes from the rap duo Black Sheep, who were formed in Queens, New York by Andres “Dres” Vargus Titus and William “Mista Lawnge” McLean, who were a part of the Native Tongues collective, which also included A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and The Jungle Brothers. The duo were only an act for six years together, having formed in 1989 and split up in 1995, due to creative differences, but, in that time, they made a mark with their hit single ‘Flavor Of The Month’ and their album ‘Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing’ from 1991, with the duo receiving attention in the East Coast Hip-Hop community for their intelligent, unique rhythms and their witty, sardonic lyrics. ‘The Choice Is Yours’ was arguably their biggest hit single from their aforementioned LP, ranking on #73 on VH1’s Greatest Hip-Hop songs poll and being notably used in a commercial for the 2010 Kia Soul. It was also used in popular films like ‘Step Up’ and ‘Lakeview Terrace’, as well as being used in video games like ‘True Crime: New York City’ and ‘Aggressive Inline’ too. It appeared on the album twice, with a ‘Revisited’ rework of the track also gaining massive popularity. Check out the OG version below.

Black Sheep’s ‘The Choice Is Yours’ famously sampled New Birth’s ‘Keep On Doin It’, ‘Her Favourite Style’ by Iron Butterfly, ‘Big Sur Suite’ by Johnny Hammond Smith, ‘Impressions’ by McCoy Turner and ‘I’d Say It Again’ by Sweet Linda Divine, as well as paying homage to Roger Miller’s ‘Engine Engine Number 9’ by quoting it in the post-bridge, and, the song itself was covered by The Bloodhound Gang in 1999, of all acts. Kicking off with the opening riff of “Who’s the Black Sheep, what’s the Black Sheep?”, Vargus and McLean quickly talk about combating early-90’s racism with punchy rhymes like “The styling is creative/Black Sheep of the Native/Can’t be violated, or even decepticated” and call to the local community of musicians for a plea to unity, riffing “I got brothers in the Jungle/cousins on the Quest” in reference to the Native Tongues collective. They also talk about the gain that developing their own work provides for them, spitting “Black Sheep, get play like the Sony innovator/Never the traitor, party inflater” over the top of the thick basslines in the speedy second verse. The references to earlier songs are blatant and mimic sampling, layering some denotative lyricism with the fast delivery of the vocals, and adding some Boom-Bap production to the diverse vocals. It has a slightly rough and aggressive quality to it, with subtle Vinyl scratches and brief Horn arrangements whipping up a Jazz influence for the smoky beats to conjure up a slightly dark and late-night mood. The bass really kicks in during a fast set of verses to match the uptempo rap vocal delivery, and there are a couple of twangy licks on the guitar here and there, within the soundscape, to call back to early Funk. Understated, chiming and melodious, the shimmering vibe of ‘The Choice Is Yours’ was drastically different to the ‘Revisited’ remix that appeared later on the same album. A classic cut with bars and beats that slice easily like a Knife.

  • Pictured: Black Sheep (Andres Vargus Titus & William McLean) (Date n/a) (via Paul Natkin/Getty Images)

That brings us to the end of the page for another day! Thank you for the support, and please feel free to reconvene on the site again tomorrow for some brand new music tomorrow. It comes from one of the brightest stars on the UK’s Bedroom Pop circuit, and BBC Radio 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq seems to be a big fan of the tune too, which has received airplay on his shows. He describes himself as a “Lo-Fi Pop noodler” who writes witty music about Patrick Swayze, Pizza toppings and defunct TV game shows.

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New Album Release Friday: Greentea Peng – “Nah, It Ain’t The Same”

June 4, 2021 — Leave a comment

It’s New Album Release Day – and it’s time to get this Par-Tea started! New post time!

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “MAN-MADE” (LP) (Released on June 4th, 2021) (via Virgin/EMI Records)

Good Morning to you! It’s Jacob Braybrooke here – and I’m here to deliver your daily track on the blog, as always, since it’s my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! It’s ‘New Album Release Friday’ on One Track At A Time – and this week’s notable releases come from James (Who are looking for their third consecutive UK Top 10 album), the rave-reviewed UK indie rock band Wolf Alice, the debut EP from the Hackney Punk trio Deep Tan and The Avalanches’ ‘Since I Left You’ receives a 20th Anniversary Deluxe re-issue. However, the spotlight deserves to go to the self-described ‘Psychedelic R&B’ South London-based Neo-Soul Singer-Songwriter Greentea Peng (aka Aria Wells) who has been slowly building up to the long-awaited release of ‘MAN-MADE’, her debut solo album, over the last handful of years with the Earbud-produced singles like ‘Ghost Town’, ‘Revolution’ and ‘Hu-Man’. The record arrives at shop shelves from today onwards on Virgin’s EMI label, and the long-player’s release date was previously shared along with ‘Nah, It Ain’t The Same’, as a promotional single. Fusing Dub, soft Hip-Hop and soulful Garage, Wells blends her influences of Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill and Ms. Dynamite with her love of Green Tea and the London slang word of ‘Peng’ – meaning cool or attractive. Debuted alongside a Machine Operated-produced music video, Wells says ‘Nah, It Ain’t The Same’ is “an expression and exploration of my utter confusion and inner conflicts amidst shifting paradigms”, as per her relevant press notes. Check it out down below.

Posting on Instagram, Wells writes of ‘MAN-MADE’, “Thank you to everyone who helped to bring this together. Its been a real process forming this album, a real trip. I’m so excited to begin this roll out.”, elaborating on it’s themes, “Deliberations of a (hu) man subject to the Pendulum swing, a reflection of my utter confusion and inner most conflicts/contradictions amidst these shifting paradigms. Always love. Always mushrooms. PEACE”, in her own wildly amusing words. Supported by her own backing band, Wells conjures up a very intriguing mix of Dub instrumentals and Neo-Soul rhythms as she expresses the modern life of men through a female perspective. Wells sings “Inner battles dwell like city kids beneath the poverty line/I’m feeding my senses” and “Food for thought is money well spent/Cause most of our so-called knowledge is rented” with her familiar, radiant croon, as she discusses female poverty in deprived areas of London with a calm and relaxed attitude. The backing beats keep bending and evolving, starting off with a soft Drum melody that permeates through the track, before a sequence of Garage-like electronic beats and a more hostile series of entrancing Jazz-like Hip-Hop rhythms ensues. An Upright Bass instrumental, the continually crackling Drum beats, spacious keyboard melodies and light Vinyl scratches make up the concoction. Imbued with the Punk-rooted assertion that we’ve come to expect from Wells, she tugs at the heart of her own personal matters by mixing Reggae-like melody with Spoken Word poetry that feels noticeably downcast, but quite natural and self-conscious, re-enforcing herself as a voice worthy of hearing.

  • Pictured: Greentea Peng (aka Aria Wells) in an early photoshoot (in 2019) (Photo Credit: Emma Williams)

If you think that Greentea is ‘Peng’ – you may want to seek joy in some of her other offerings. Still my favourite, ‘Ghost Town’, was previously covered on the blog here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/04/16/todays-track-greentea-peng-ghost-town/. In her early days, and my own early days on the blog, we also looked at ‘Mr. Sun (Miss Da Sun)’, when she was a younger upstart. Check it out here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2019/11/12/todays-track-greentea-peng-mr-sun-miss-da-sun/

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “Ghost Town” (Single/EP) (Released on 4th March 2020) (via Melody Maker)

That’s everything for today! Thanks for sticking with me until the end, and be sure to check back with me at exactly the same place again tomorrow, as we cover the announcement of the sophomore album release later this summer from a young lady from Northumberland, who has previously made an appearance on the blog, who attended the BRIT’s School in Croydon. During the Covid-19 pandemic, she has kept herself busy as the first artist to appear on Microsoft’s virtual ‘RE:Surface’ live-streamed concerts. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: CHAI (feat. Ric Wilson) – “Maybe Chocolate Chips”

March 16, 2021 — Leave a comment

Seven days without any chocolate consumption makes one weak. It’s new post time!

  • Pictured: Cover Artwork for “WINK” (LP) (Available from May 21st, 2021) (via Sub-Pop Records)

A good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s now time for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, as per usual, because it’s routinely my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of new music every day! An all-female Alternative Pop 4-piece group from Nayoga, Japan – CHAI have never shied away from a playful pun or edgy reference or two, in their lyrics and track titles, to different types of food. ‘Donuts Mind If I Do’ is a particular favourite of mine. That trend continues with ‘Maybe Chocolate Chips’, which is the latest single taken from their upcoming third studio album, ‘Wink’, which is currently set for release on May 21st. That feels like ages away, but the Alt-Rock creatives have been building a steady stream of anticipation for the new full-length release with their fun, wonky blend of shape-shifting R&B influences and sugar-sweet (if you mind the pun) DIY Post-Rock aesthetics. Signed to the Sub-Pop Records label, the girls have drawn their influences from CHVRCHES and Justice. A recent collaboration with Gorillaz and a support tour run for Superorganism has also developed their cult following. The new track features Ric Wilson, who met CHAI at the Pitchfork Music Festival in 2019. Check it out below.

Bassist and lyricist Yuuki spoke of the meaning of the track, penning: “Things that we want to hold on to, things that we wished went away. A lot of things happen as we age and with that for me, is new moles! But I love them! My moles are like the chocolate chips on a cookie, the more you have, the happier you become! and before you know it, you’re an original.” in their latest press release. Of course, the subject matter may sounds interesting and rather bizzare upon your initial instinct, but the lyrics of the track soon actually take the form of a unique ode to self-love, and a little social commentary on the quirks that make us all individuals, and how we can perceive our own physical appearance. Led by a synth-inflected backing that feels ambient and polished, with mellow synth grooves that softly wash over the layered vocals, which are more high-pitched and slightly downtempo. The vocals are quirky, but they feel lightly catchy, with a whirring beat that evokes a laidback, gentle tone. The rap section from Ric Wilson beautifally flows above the crooning backing vocals of the main artists, with lines like “Come and stroll in the park with me” and “They can’t define you with beauty myths” giving off a more introspective and understated mood. The chorus is a little more involved, but still kept relatively restrained and with a sugar-coated Soul style, as hooks comparing skin moles to the delicacies of a cookie with gooey chocolate chips gradually move more towards the forefront, while the instrumentation is kept pretty minimalist. All in all, this channels a sleek and synth-led R&B sound, but the hip-hop sections and the quirky lyricism give it a subversive, fun character. The result, for me, is a track which grows on you very effectively with repeated listens. The track showcases the band’s USP for the lyrically creative, with a sound that I find quite ‘undefinable’ overall, but it’s gorgeous. I love this one. Brilliant.

  • Pictured: KANA (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar), Yuuki (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals), MANA (Keyboard and Yuna (Acoustic Drum Kit) in a promo shoot for “WINK” (2021) (via Conversationsabouther.net)

Thank you for checking out my latest blog post! We’re taking a break from the new music reviews tomorrow for our weekly ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ as we revisit one of the most enjoyable rarities that became available before the 2000’s. Tomorrow’s artists have been featured on the blog before, and they are a well-liked (especially on the internet, and not so known in terms of the mainstream) Scottish electronic duo who were known for pulling off possibly the best ‘Easter Egg Hunt’ in music marketing history prior to the release of their fourth main album in 2013, which was their first new album in seven years, and still stands as their most recent release to this day. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/