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Listen To Unreleased Max B Track From 2005

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October 17, 2012
New Music
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Like countless other rappers before him, the legend of Max B has grown exponentially since he was sentenced to 75 years in prison in 2005 on murder conspiracy and armed robbery. In the years since, forums have obsessed over minuscule details of Charlie Wingate’s career and while petering out, the “wavy” phenomenon still has some stamina. The whole legal situation is really unfortunate, and while I clearly don’t know the first thing about it, I feel for all of the parties involved. With the whole introspective, post-808s and Heartbreaks taking over hip hop with Drake as patron saint, Max B comes to mind a lot. While often drunk and silly (as opposed to talking about being drunk), he was years ahead of his time with regards to introspection and self-awareness. “Keep Your Head Up” is a an unreleased Cool and Dre produced track circa 2005 and is especially apt considering Charlie’s dire situation. The beat is pretty similar to Jay Rock’s “All My Life” (which Cool and Dre also produced) and is quintessentially mid-aughts for better or worse. Not Mr. Wingate’s best work, but boy does it feel good to hear that voice again. It’s been too long.

Stream New Shelter Point EP, Out Next Week On Hotflush

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October 17, 2012
New Music
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While I generally assume that every city in Britain has a wealth of multi-talented teenage producers just aching to break out of their dreary lives, apparently Nottingham is somewhat lacking in the sonic creativity department, Whowuddathunk? Two 20 year-olds are single handedly changing that image (at least in my mind). Liam and Robin, who together form Shelter Point, are pushing vocal-driven garage rhythms into new territories and will release their debut EP on Scuba’s Hotflush Recordings, titled Forever For Now. Mount Kimbie is the first name to come to mind when listening to the Forever For Now’s vocal-driven, garage-indebted rhythms, but Shelter Point take a more overt, pop-oriented approach than Kimbie (although that might change on the new album). With a pretty clear understanding of pop conventions, Liam and Robin fit their lo-fi, dubstep tempo sound into 3-4 minute long tracks, replete with enough hooks, bridges and verses to make Paul Epworth proud. Forever Now is out next week, but you can stream the full EP right now over at XLR8R. Stream the first track off the release, “Braille”, below.

New Keyboard Kid – “666Seance”

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October 16, 2012
New Music
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For a guy who references satan a lot, Keyboard Kid’s music is generally pretty positive. The #basedworld don is gearing up for the release of Don’t Leave Basedworld and has let loose a steady stream of tracks, both on and off the album, to garner excitement. While the Seattle-based producer has often proven prolific, some have questioned his ability to stand alone as an artist as opposed to just hip hop producer. Actually, this sad sap is probably the only doubter. Anyways, the Keyboard Kid joint is “666Seance” a bonus track from the album and one his more abstract outings to date. Stream and download below and keep your eyes peeled for Don’t Leave Basedworld.

Citymouth Presents Any Octave Screwtape Series

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October 16, 2012
New Music, Remixes
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It has been far too long since we’ve posted a screw tape so sit down with a double cup and indulge with me. You know the deal.  Dropping Gems representative Citymouth has jumpstarted a tape series called Any Octave featuring screwed/chopped/slopped/wetted/spyked/psyched tunes that all probably fall under the broad “purple” category. The first tape features Citymouth himself and Seattle’s own DJAO. It’s difficult to pick out what Citymouth plays, but you can peep the individual DJAO screwmixes, including takes on Flying Lotus, Cooly G, Baths and Grimes, over here. If you’re in the Portland area next week, be sure to catch a special late-night screwset from DJAO. Stream and download (name your price) below.

New Riley Lake – “Ain’t No Sunshine” (Feat. Julio Sharp)

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October 16, 2012
New Music
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For his latest stunt, friend of the blog and sometimes contributor Will Mitchell aka Riley Lake (formerly Viette) flips Bill Withers’ ubiquitous rainy day anthem into a smooth-as hell-groover. Percussive organic sounds and Julio Sharp’s brilliant jazz guitar allow Mitchell’s beautiful Withers approximation to ride effortlessly over the top, building and relieving tension simultaneously. Refreshing a classic like “Ain’t No Sunshine” is far from an easy task, but Mitchell has shown a penchant for covering classic voices, previously editing Gil Scott-Heron. Oh and Rihanna. Stream below and be on the look out for a very nice collaborative project from Mr. Riley Lake and Wisconsin MC Milo.

Vince Staples And Michael Uzowuru Get Busy In Eastern Europe

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October 16, 2012
New Music
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As far as supremely talented Los Angeles rappers/producers go, Vince Staples and Michael Uzowuru have flown low over the past few years, opting to to their music speak for itself instead of relying on absurdist antics. Vaguely Odd Future affiliated, the duo makes struggle rap that belies their location in sunny CA. Staples is still not the most polished MC, still engaging in juvenile rape talk and the like, but his monotone flow and come up lyrics reflect contemporary Los Angeles to a T. That Uzowuru’s production sounds distinctly un-LA makes Staples that much more effective. Winter In Prague is a bare bones approach to hip hop that puts the listener in a small room with Staples and Uzowuru. The tape doesn’t feel personal in the sense that Staples is speaking to you (like say Main Attrakionz), more than his raps are so eminently relatable. If you’re willing to take a step back from the hype and overblown production, indulge in Winters In Prague for the next 25 minutes. Stream below and head here to download the whole tape (and here to grab the instrumentals).

New Daedelus – ”Looking Ocean” (Feat. Austin Peralta)

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October 15, 2012
New Music
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Scion A/V continues their run of putting out incredible releases (check out Nick Hook’s debut here) by getting behind the new EP from Daedelus. Set to drop tomorrow as a free download, Daedelus let loose the title track before the release. “Looking Ocean” features the handy work of Brainfeeder pianist, Austin Peralta, over Daedelus’ jarring percussion and synths. Peralta’s live instrumentation on the piano blissfully rises above the heavy synthesizers  and are wonderfully juxtaposed against Daedelus’ production. Stream “Looking Ocean” here and another track off the EP, “Platforming”, below.

New Toro Y Moi – “So Many Details”

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October 15, 2012
New Music
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Whether he’s ascending above his brethren in the much maligned chillwave category or remixing Tyler, The Creator, Chaz Bundick aka Toro Y Moi has stood alone sonically. With a sound indebted in 80’s pop that sounds nothing like 80’s pop, Bundick has never been one to pigeonhole himself, bouncing from sound to sound. It’s all funky as hell though and his new single “So Many Details” might just be his most polished attempt yet. Off of the upcoming Anything In Return EP (January 22) and a 7″ single due on November 23, “So Many Details” abandons much of the fuzz/washed out vibe that sometimes dominated Bundick’s earlier releases. Oh and I really fuck with the cover art. Love that Keith Haring-esque frame. Stream below.

Rap Class Guest Mix For The Astral Plane

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October 15, 2012
2012, Mixes, New Music, Remixes
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Remember the days when hip hop party tunes were about having a good time, sippin’ on a cold one and maybe snagging yourself a fine Applebaum? When names like Big Daddy Kane, Redman and The Pharcyde rung true? When Dr. Luke was your endocrinologist and David Guetta was another anonymous floppy haired muppet? The times have changed young grasshopper. If you asked the average teenager what party hip hop is, the answers would probably boil down to a collection of MMG, Young Money and G.O.O.D. Music artists with a Chief Keef or two thrown in here or there. It’s easy to be a golden era yearning curmudgeon after spending a night at a (read: any) club and listening to “Niggas In Paris” and “Ass” on repeat.

We recently enlisted Portland’s own Rap Class aka John Kammerle of Dropping Gems to lay down some tracks for our Guest Mix series and while it is firmly nested in old school hip hop and R&B, it remains decidedly fresh. We tend to focus on “future music” here at The Astral Plane, but even we need to indulge in some nostalgic listening every so often. It is called the “golden era” for a reason. Anyways, my words don’t really do the mix justice so I’ll let John take it away:

This mix, is like, all about my go-to songs. When I DJ out, these are the songs that loosen up the crowd. Some of the songs are from records that I think are rare (maybe?), then some chillers + some original remixes and songs from me. I’m proud of this mix because it represents where my initial love of rap music started, and has taken me. From the beginning, this is where I find myself today.

For more Rap Class music, download Greatest Hits (or buy the cassette) here. As always the mix is up for stream and download. Be sure to give the man behind the art and team member Sam Andrus some love.

Mak & Pasteman Remix Debian Blak’s “Hawks & Spies”

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October 14, 2012
New Music, Remixes
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As much as I loved the split Mak/Pasteman The Throwback EP, the duo works best when they’re in a collaborative mood as we saw last week in their remix of Cassie’s “Me & U”. Like their take on “Me & U”, Mak & Pasteman (I like the ring of that) take a poppy approach to bass music remixing Debian Blak’s “Hawks & Spies”. Like most Mak & Pasteman releases, this sounds amazing on a big system so don’t skimp on the headphones/speakers. Stream below and pre-order the Hawks & Spies Remix EP here.