MORLACK: Will Not Be Cool (2012) – Free download

MORLACK: Will Not Be Cool (2012) – Free download
Will Not Be Cool? What will not be cool? Nowadays it’s bankers bonuses, when I was at school it was flared trousers but neither of those is what Morlack is on about. Nope his rework of Tower Of Power’s seventies cut-with-environmental bent There’s Only So Much Oil In The Ground is all about – well – the fact that fossil fuels are running out. It’s a message that humanity seems quite content to ignore and given Tower Of Power’s quite egregious jazzy delivery it’s no surprise that forty years later we’re still driving to the corner shop and putting up national grid-draining displays of lighting on the outside of our houses …READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

BROTHER ALI: UK Tour (2012)

BROTHER ALI: UK Tour (2012)
He recently dropped the wicked little Jake One-produced Writer’s Block video and now there’s more good news regarding Rhymesayers best export, rapper Brother Ali, who’s back in the UK in May with a five date tour. The good news doesn’t end there though. Ali will be touring to promote his upcoming LP Mourning In America, Dreaming In Color and that whole package is exclusively produced by…Jake One. Ali and Jake One together – …READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

I SELF DEVINE: ‘Up Aboves’ video + The Upliftment Struggle (2012) – free download

I SELF DEVINE: ‘Up Aboves’ video + The Upliftment Struggle (2012) – free download
I always get a bit nervous when Rhymesayers send me stuff in case it’s any more tedious emo hip-hop with rock pretensions. You know you’re safe with Brother Ali as he’s never going to pull that kind of shit but anyone else (especially if I haven’t heard of them, like rapper I Self Devine) is guilty until proven otherwise. Step forward then, I Self Devine, I find thee innocent of all charges. I wouldn’t exactly call Up Aboves a party tune though but it’s beautifully produced and manages to be both menacing and soulful. Talking of menacing – check the video which captures how annoying it is when your parents leave you locked in the car and swan off for hours tossing an airy and (frankly mendacious), “I won’t be long,” over their shoulder as they disappear. In this one we…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

DISCO CAKES present JFB feat. Mr Dero: The Fizzy Bubla EP (2012)

DISCO CAKES present JFB feat. Mr Dero: The Fizzy Bubla EP (2012)
…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

PULPFUSION: Goodbye To Humanity EP (2012)

PULPFUSION: Goodbye To Humanity EP (2012)
Now – admittedly – I was aware of this at least a fortnight ago now but since I’ve been harbouring biohazard-strength flu germs for the last week or so and since everyone I live with was a walking biohazard the week before that you’ll maybe excuse the delay in posting. Frankly, the sentiment Goodbye To Humanity pretty much captured my prevailing mood last week. There’s no way I could have listened to this then though – way too lairy for a sick man – for PulpFusion has only gone and made…‘quasi-metal-breaks.’ Yep
…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

DILATED PEOPLES: European tour (2012)

DILATED PEOPLES: European tour (2012)
It says here that, ”since their inception, Dilated Peoples have been energizing the rap underground.” I was surprised to learn that they were still energizing anything since their last LP was six years ago and the last thing of any actual note that they did was This Way back in 2004. Still, on the scale of criminal porkies it’s hardly ‘they definitely have weapons of mass destruction,’ ‘the economy’s fine’ or ‘yes, I do deserve my obscene bonus’ is it? In any case…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

JASMINE KARA: Blues Ain’t Nothing But a Good Woman Gone Bad (2012)

JASMINE KARA: Blues Ain’t Nothing But a Good Woman Gone Bad (2012)
Swedish/Persian singer Jasmine Kara’s Marlena Shaw-referencing debut album Blues Ain’t Nothing But A Good Woman Gone Bad finally gets a physical UK release then. And when I say finally, this must have been kicking around for anywhere up to two years since official videos for two album tracks were up on Youtube a year ago and one a year before that. Plus it’s been available on iTunes since the autumn. Maybe it was a legal thing – what with…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

SMOOVE & TURRELL: Slow Down/ In Deep (2012)

SMOOVE & TURRELL: Slow Down/ In Deep (2012)
Slow Down might be the first-named track on the cover but this one’s all about the neo-disco adventures of coal-soul duo Smoove & Turrell with their ‘creators-of-Last-Night-A-DJ-Saved-My-Life’-referencing In Deep. How deep? Balls deep my friends! We’re not just flirting with the bouncer at Studio 54 here either – more…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

DIZRAELI & TOM CARUANA: People Taking Pictures (2012)

DIZRAELI & TOM CARUANA: People Taking Pictures (2012)
People Taking Pictures, the lead single off new Tom Caruana and Dizraeli hook–up LP White Man (Moves) (due 15 March) reprises TC’s penchant for Bollywood-fuelled beats (check his excellent Okayplayer – The Bollywood Remake LP) while rapper Dizraeli lays into western backpackers. You may be surprised to learn that it’s the picture-taking he doesn’t like – that and the people who take them. So pretty much all of them then..? Well actually…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM

VARIOUS: Carnibal Records 001(2012)

VARIOUS: Carnibal Records 001(2012)
RATING: 5/5
I may have said this before but I’ve got a playlist on my iTunes called “When this is full enough get Serato.’’ It’s not full yet but this is definitely going to boost the numbers since every track on here is going on it. Why? Because everyone involved on this four-track collection of Latin breaks has produced such a banger this is essentially a miniature digital carnival. Or even carnibal.…READ FULL POST @ MONKEYBOXING.COM