Yunker extras

Some cool extras from Yunker.

 I filmed the second to last clip in here :)

Virtue & DJ Emoh Betta - Never Made it to O'Briens

These two hunks(Emoh and Virtue) made an album back in November of 2011.

Pay what you want, cheapo's!

Pittsburgh north shore montage

Saturday was one of the first all nice days of the year, the sun was shining, birds were chirping, and girls were wearing skimpy clothes. All signs pointed towards a street session with the homies. However every spot in downtown Pittsburgh proved to be a bust with warnings from cops of getting fines. When you're rolling about 8 kids deep you chances of ducking to police all afternoon are slim to none. So we decided to go to north shore to skate the bust free Heinz ledges/knobs. A few days later I found this old montage of some heads ripping it back in the day.

Mikal kHill - Burning Bright

Remember Mikal kHill? Not really? Well he was the dude that remixed Threewrite by Sage Francis to win some remix contest in like 2005 or whatever. It literally took me years to figure out he was the dude who did it...

Either way, this is what he's up to now.

Name your price cheapos!

Nick Panza's part in Yunker

You can't go wrong with Nick Panza skating to GZA.

New cool rap videos

These all came out this week.
Dinosaur Burps - Hasil Fatkins

Fortified PhonetX feat. Frigid Giant - Your Life

Proseed - Depth of Shallows

Mini Ramp sesh @ Printshop

     I found this gem of a video Rob Starr made from winter of 2011. I don't know if I've ever been to a session at that ramp that Misfits haven't been playing.

     Support Pittsburgh's first ECO print shop, Pure Screen Printing started by Henry Panza

Nobs - This is Me

     For those of you who don't know Nobs (of Dez and Nobs) raps as well as produces/plays a MPC in Astronautalis' live band. He raps better than most, but doesn't really do it very often anymore from what I've been able to tell. I found this video of him spitting 'Panic Attack' when he was on tour with Dezmatic and had to find what it was from.

Turns out he put out "This is Me" in 2010. He produced, wrote, recorded, and put this out in two weeks and still has it for free off his lastfm page.

Nobs - This is Me
Last FM

Alleys and Avenues trailer

I'm still an idiot and don't know how to share things from Vimeo. But here is a trailer featuring mostly Head Board Shop skaters. Trust me and click the link...

<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/60656578" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe>

DWEEP Lifestyles - Dropping Knowledge vol. 2

I'm a bad blogger, I don't know how to soundcloud links look inviting to click. Either way, DWEEB Lifestyles put out volume 2 of their mistapeDropping Knowledge for free. It's got some pretty cool features including; Ced Hughes, B. Done, and more. Check it out... https://soundcloud.com/dweeblifestyle/sets/dweeb-lifestyle-dropping-knowledge-2

Smoke Screen x Urbindex - Turquoise EP

free download

OneUp full length promo

Plots interview

Plots is like the renaissance man of many different genres of underground music. He's from Philadelphia but went to college in Pittsburgh and within the few short years he's kicked up a serious buzz in the local "scene" as well as places a little more distant, like Italy when working with producer Jammineye. Check it out as I ask him a bunch of annoying questions.

TheThrowAwayDays) Are people usually more surprised when they find out you're a rapper or a rocker?
Plots) People are definitely more surprised to hear that I rap, or at least when I first started taking it seriously. I'm not sure if surprised is the right word, though. People are usually just like "oh, I didn't know you did that. Cool."

T-TAD)  I dare you to list every band/rap group you've been in and what you've done in it.
Plots)That is an impossible task. Seriously, there's over 50. Right now I'm playing guitar in Latecomer, and we have a record (fucking finally) coming out this spring. Off the top of my head, some of the Pittsburgh bands I've been in are Leaps & Bounds, Unit 731, MTG, Terminate and Jarvis.

T-TAD) Did being in a rap group with a lot of hype like The 1's and 2's get you a lot of chickies in college? If so you ever think about going back and 'Billy Madison-ing' that shit?
 Plots) Well, it's important to note that I'm actually still in college. If all goes according to plan I'll be be graduating in August with like 5 pieces of paper saying I can write, play/read music and talk politics with you. That wasn't your question though, so I'll play ball...the answer is no, the 1s and 2s never really got me any extra female attention, and if it did I'm obviously too dense to have noticed. Rap, in general, has done more harm than good to my love life.

T-TAD) What did you go to college for?
Plots)  I'm a non-fiction writing, political science, and music major. I have no idea how it happened and I'm counting the seconds until I can be done with it and start selling my body to pay off the debt I'm destined to drown in.

T-TAD) Where are each of the members of The 1's and 2's now?
Plots) Right this second? Dave is more than likely at Tree Lady Studios working on some kind of project, because he is an absolute workaholic and it's 2:30 on a Thursday. Joe is probably somewhere in Friendship or Bloomfield closely guarding the small collection of fitted hats and tshirts I've left at his house. 

T-TAD) How did you meet Doomshark and how is he the laziest producer on earth?
Plots) I met Doomshark through a mutual friend a few years ago and moved in with him 3 weeks later. I suspect his laziness has something to do with being exhausted from living with the weight of being a shark of doom. Side note: he raps now, and his shit is dope. He's highjacking at least part of my set on the 13th.

https://soundcloud.com/the1sand2s/plots-blasphemy-produced-by

T-TAD) I heard after your show February 13th you may never play a live rap show again, how come?
Plots) As much as I love doing shows, it's just time to fade into the background for awhile. I never meant to imply that I'd never play a rap show again, I just don't see it happening for a long time, and by then I'll probably be living elsewhere.


T-TAD) When you put out 'The Struggle vol. 1' did you have any "goals" with rapping? If so what were they and how did you get from recording demos on a Mac to doing cds with Jammineye
Plots)When I put out The Struggle Vol. 1 I was fucking around with Garageband because my friends gassed me up enough to think I might be able to make something that wasn't total garbage. They were wrong, because those first few "mixtapes" were absolute trash, haha, and I hope they never turn up on the internet someday when I'm 30 or have kids. That shit was vulgar. So Social was the first record I sank real time and feeling into, and I think it shows. I have Preston Rahbari to thank for that. I went from making records with him to the Jammineye material, he got a job making real records and apparently is helping out with the Roots latest. Yeah, those Roots.

Jammineye, for the record, is a fucking genius. I'm doing him a favor by hanging it up. If I can help him "get put on" from the records we made together, then it was all a success.

T-TAD) Are you ever going to put out a physical copy of anything?
Plots)I'm going to burn my entire "discography" onto blank CDs, play them on my old Walkman on full volume, and record that with that little tape recorder thing from Home Alone 2. Then I'll give you that tape recorder, because you can't take the tapes out. You gotta give it back, though. I love that thing.

T-TAD) What projects  are you working on in the near future?
Plots) Latecomer's record should be coming out by the end of March. I'm quite excited for it. I just tell people we're Tony Hawk Pro Skater-core. If you like punk rock, you'll dig it. It's pretty eclectic.

I'm also hesitant to say this, because there's a good chance it might take me a lot longer to put together, but I'm almost done writing a third Jammineye record. Dave and I might get really drunk and track it in one night, like we did the first one.
Thanks for the luv, Pittsburgh. Let's go Flyers.


Facebook
Twitter
Soundcloud
Bandcamp

Pittsburgh skate footage dump 2009-2011

Never enough Jesse Thomas footage...

Yunker extras

More skate videos. Here are some extras from Eric Calfo's video 'Yunker'

http://vimeo.com/57829262

Does anyone know how to link Vimeo videos on here?

Adam "Fargo" Barton and Todd Richards by BK

While I'm thinking of it here is another skate footy dump for you to waste your time watching. This is filmed all in Pittsburgh with Adam Barton and Todd Richards by BK.

Adam 'fargo' Baton designed this tour poster for me a while back. Get in touch with him and make him a millionaire.

FORTHEHOMIES skate montage

Ryan McKowen put a montage together of super old skate footage some of it from Pittsburgh. I donated a few things I filmed of Nick Panza, Dan Sotak, and Drew Windon for this.

Raymond Strife, Stillborn Identity, and Cornelius III April 2012 tour recap.

Raymond Strife, Stillborn Identity, and Cornelius III April 2012 tour recap.

April of 2012 I was fortunate enough to go on tour with one of my best dude I’ve met through rap, Raymond Strife. Ray suggested bringing his friend Cornelius the Third (then known as DMk). At first I was pretty hesitant because over the last few months I had been working pretty hard on getting these dates booked, and then all of a sudden this random dude wants to show up and wants to milk me dry. Eventually I agreed to let him come along, and luckily I did because he’s pretty rad too. This sounds like it’s about to be some boring sentimental crap, but I’ll try my best to not let it end up like that.

The first night we played in Pittsburgh at Inn Termission Lounge with Amuck, Fortified PhonetX, GINO, and Jack Wilson who showed up out of nowhere and rocked a quick set. Nothing to eventful happened this night but it was still a rad show, the venue made us meatballs and beans which sounds disgusting but it was delicious and those leftovers kept us nourished the entire tour. Ray and Cornelius stayed with Ray’s friend in Coraopolis, and I went with like five of my dude friends all chasing one girl to Oakland where I passed out on my friend’s floor.

The second night we were supposed to play in Cleveland, OH at Bela Dubby, but it ‘temporarily had to close for repairs’ aka it went out of business. So we got a last minute show in East Lansing, MI at The GTG House with some of Ray’s friends.  We went there pretty early to hang out and the entire time Ray talked about how these were the coolest people ever, after the first or second hour I just tuned him out and read books in the back not believing anyone could be that cool.

When we showed up at the house venue the beers were already flowing, it was like they’d been preparing for ‘Raymond Strife’ for days. Cats were wearing his old shirt, someone brought their leather jacket and wanted his new stencil on it. I broke my rule of not drinking until I at least know what time I’m supposed to play and started cheersing beers with everyone.

The Guest Stars opened, Cornelius III went second, I was third, and as far as I know everything after that is just hear say. Ray dropped my computer when he was using it during his set and I didn’t seem to care at all because I was drunk. I only remember this because there was a huge dent in it the next day. They had real strong IPA’s at the show for anyone who donated money to the touring acts. So in some way in my drunken stupor this made me feel entitled to all the beer I could stomach… and more.

After drinking a river dry during every acts set, some girl asked me if I wanted to smoke some chebba. Typically I’d say no, but they were cute and I was drunk, and I thought being drunk was the same thing as being charming so I accepted thinking they wouldn’t be able to resist me. We went to a “bedroom” behind the “stage” in the basement and smoked.

 

What felt like was hours later, but was probably only 2 minutes later I emerged from the room back to the show space where the party where was still bumping. Apparently there was a DJ who was spinning dance music. I see Ray in the middle of the dance floor killing it. I try to join but I’m walking all bowlegged looking like a drunken cowboy that has just been on a horse for days falling slightly forward with every step. I inform Ray of my problem and he tells me just to go with it. “Genius!” I think to myself, and partner up with the wall for stability in the dance room and start pointing my index fingers to the sky as I bob my head back and forth like a baby without any neck muscles. Before long I realize I’m not the world’s best dancer and somehow make my way upstairs to pass out on the couch.

Here is where the story literally becomes hear say, but I believe every word of it. At some point in the night I get up from the couch I’m sleeping on to look for a bathroom (so I can barf). There is a glass table next to the couch that I knock everything off of and then step on as the person sleeping on the bean bag next to the couch tells me to not step on the glass coffee table, somehow it doesn’t break.

Luckily the first room I go into is the bathroom. Except after a quick assessment I come to realize it’s not the bathroom, but I’m already committed so I’ll be damned if I don’t throw up somewhere in this room. I spot a window and start trying to open it so I can throw up out of it (not being able to open windows when I’m blackout drunk is a reoccurring trend, luckily for me or else I probably would have fallen to my death 10 times by now). The kid whose room I’m in is outside with Ray, they spot me upstairs stumbling around pretending to be the world’s best mime, except there is actually a window in front of me.

He comes up (I can’t remember his name, big surprise, I can’t remember anything from that night) and asks me if I need to throw up. I nod and he takes me to the bathroom, where I pass out on the cold floor. A while later he comes back and tells me he’s got a bed set up for me. I follow him to the dining room where he laid a blanket sheet under the table for me to pass out. To me this looks perfect; I thank him and lie down, only to wake up a few minutes later, rush to the bathroom and puke my brains out.

As we’re getting ready to make our way out of town, I get informed that our show in Kalamazoo is cancelled. I break the news to the group expecting them to be bummed, but they’re pumped to get to hang out in East Lansing for another day while I’m worried I may have worn out my welcome. The locals assure me that I haven’t and after a few phone calls they get us on a show at Macs Bar for a roller derby benefit then offer to show us around town. I guess Ray was right that these were like the nicest/raddest people ever.

I try to stay pretty mellow this night, but it’s damn near impossible. When we walk into the venue and the DJ from the night before is bartending, without saying much he pours us three draft beers, gives a convincing wink, and walks away. He must have admired my dance moves. Plus some of the East Lansing homies held us down pretty hard at the beer store and gave us a killer deal on a case so when we didn’t have a free draft at the bar, we had plenty of car beers to go around

                While watching the merch table with Cornelius towards the end of the night some maniac that’s a self-proclaimed ex-WWF bouncer for Hulk Hogan or Andre the Giant or something like that comes over and starts chatting us up, but not in a friendly manner at all. I ignore him, while the drunken DMk’ becomes buddies with this roid-raging asshole. After a few minutes he asks Cornelius if he wants to smoke some weed in his van, although he doesn’t usually smoke he accepts the offer because he’s drunk and that’s what beer does.

                                    this is the show we jumped on >

       

        “He’s dead,” I think to myself. I’m never going to see Cornelius the again. There is no way that guy smokes reefer, he’s way to high strung. It’s a trick, he’s going to take him in his van and strangle him with his wiener and strangle him with his hands. All I can do at this point is hope that he kills him before he rapes him.

To my surprise Cornelius comes back in a few minutes seemingly unscathed. Except whatever he smoked wasn’t pot at all, I have no idea what he was, but he started turning into a total weirdo. I started to notice traits in him that I saw in that guy, super high strung, abrasive , eyes totally glassed out, and just plain uncomfortable to be around. He’s was like this for the rest of the night and part of the drive out of town the next day.

(Appleton flyer?)

LO Double T hooked us up with a show in Appleton, WI. We stopped by his place before the show and checked out some of his tracks off his upcoming release. One of the tracks Ray was on and Ray absolutely despised his verse but LO Double T said he liked it so wouldn’t let him redo it, which I thought was kind of funny. Mac Lethal was also featured on the release.

LO Double T requested this song from Raymond Strife(no homo)

Streams of Consciousness came to the show and put us up for the night. Which ended up being a huge relief he was able to put us up because LO couldn’t and it was way too cold to sleep in the car. Ray and Cornelius didn’t even bring blankets and Streams only had one for us to use in his living room. Cornelius got the blanket, and Ray got the abnormally tall girl at the show to keep him warm. Ray has fans in every city, for better or for worse. At the end of the night when we were getting ready to leave the venue and Ray was trying to duck out before this girl tracked him down I thought it would be funny to invite her (I was drunk, sorry Ray). But luckily I did or else he probably would have frozen to death without her, or worse yet had to cuddle with Cornelius or me to stay warm!

                Bloomington, IN was the next show. As far as I know no one we’re real tight with has played Indiana (especially not Bloomington), so it was kind of a “milestone” even to get a small show there. We played with some groups that were heavily influenced by Oddfuture, and they killed it. It was one of those shows that you thought was going to be horrible but ended up being pretty rad.

                Athens, OH got cancelled so we decided to drive through the night back to Pittsburgh. I picked up the last shift of driving that ended when the sun was coming up. Ray is super anal about letting people drive his car so he pretended not to sleep the entire time and would just sleep talk to himself thinking that I was responding. A few times when he finally did fall asleep he’d wake up for 30 seconds and rap along to the Wu-tang cd we were listening to then pass back out.

Raymond Strife

-facebook

-soundcloud

-bandcamp

-twitter

-IG @RaymondStrife

Stillborn Identity

-facebook

-bandcamp

-IG @CodyCodyJones

Cornelius III

-facebook

-soundcloud

Ordeal - Beat On, Beat Off Jesus

Ordeal – Beat On, Beat Off Jesus

Writing another review right now would be torture, both for me and whatever lost soul actually reads this crap. Yet I still have time to kill at work and artists that I want to plug on this dumb blog. So I’ll write a little about my experience with Ordeal, his music as well as him.

                It’s kind of hard to believe that I’ve only met Ordeal one time, but have known him for years and still stay in loose contact with him. But it was an interesting enough encounter to leave a strong impression on me. I met him when he toured through Pittsburgh on the ‘Never Ending Gun Show Tour’ with Kristoff Krane, Sadistik, and Bodi. The night before they played in Portland, ME, and that trek is at least a 10 hour drive. Not to mention the show that night was at an art gallery and started at 8pm and had to be over by 11, a fact that seemed to slip the tours mind until they were already late on their way to Pittsburgh.

                When the group arrived to the venue only 45 minutes late, they wasted no time in setting up and playing. Bodi went first, while Ordeal and the rest of the tour filled me in on their drive. It consisted of the usual things you do when you’re late, don’t pull over to eat, piss in bottles, etc. etc. Except when it was Ordeals time to perform he let the crowd know of one extra detail about the drive, that he had some acid (or mushrooms, I can’t remember) about halfway through the trip, and was still tripping.

                With that in mind, he still killed his set. I found it weird/hilarious/awesome that anyone would willing eat psychedelics when they’re around to stuck in a stinky, dirty, van with four other sober people for hours on end. The show was so long ago that’s about all I remember of his set, but whatever that was still enough to make me a fan of him.

               In 2004 when ‘Beat On, Beat Off Jesus’ came out I was 16 sneaking rap cds in my car listening to them alone because I was worried my band mates would make fun of me for listening to this stuff. Meanwhile Ordeal was making music that internet hip hop geeks (like me I guess) are still gawking about. The fact that the cd starts off with a skit dates it as old right there.  Rap skits have pretty much been extinct since the iPod had become the standard method for listening to music.

                Abbadon is featured on this release a lot, and I think he is responsible for producing almost the entire album. But good luck to finding any sort of internet presence from him.  According to Ordeal he has none. Apparently he’s been recording music for somewhere around 10 years and has never even bothered making a cd. He’ll record a song one week, save it on his computer, and if he loses it then the song is lost forever. Ordeal says if you ever want to hear anything Abbadon has made more than likely you have to go through Ordeal to hear it. These two have been teaming up for years and you can still see Abbadon featured on some of Ordeals newer releases. Crude Perdition is my favorite one they collabed on together off this release.

                If you like gritty, unconventional, hip hop then check Ordeal out.

"official" site

bandcamp

facebook

freeeeeeeeee downloaddddddd of Beat On, Beat Off Jesus

HW - Wall Papered Exit Wounds

HW – Wall Papered Exit Wounds

                Here it is, another day at this lame temp job and another sorry excuse for a review…

 Wall Papered Exit Wounds, released by HW (aka Josh, formerly known as Hazardous Waste, but not the punk band) of Boston in July 2012 is produced by MobRobb with cuts by DJ Emoh Bettah is a release that will stand of the test of time and be relevant to people (and not just ‘rap fan people’ everyone can find something in the release) because each of the song topics are something that all listeners are able to relate to regardless what age or social status they’re living in. From relationship troubles, to feeling like everywhere else on earth is better than where you are (This Old Town), to dealing with your own internal struggles, and more all of which are mentioned during the duration of this coming to age 8 track album by HW.

1.)    Memories of Linwood

The album starts off with an overtly personal song over a cool calm beat with a flow so smooth and subtle you almost don’t notice how depressing the track is. And even more depressing than the song topic is beating able to relate to it, from the breakup at the beginning of the track to being 25 and still feeling lost.

2.)    Blueprints to Your Inner Workings

Track two elaborates on the (presumably) breakup that was mentioned in the first track. From what I grasp the female the song is about is jaded, but HW refuses to let her give up on all the potential beauty in the world, and thinks that she can find again in the love they use to have. What a nice guy, I’d never do that, I’ll never be happy for any of my ex’s without me.

(I have no idea what I used this photo. Not that it isn't him, but it's a pretty bad representation of what he normally looks like)

3.)    Brutally Beautiful

Brutally Beautiful is a little me of the “emo-rap” that fans have grown to expect from HW. But as usual it’s done way to good (should I have used ‘well’ here?) to be slumped into that category. Josh is such a better lyricist than most other emcees that get labeled as “emo” it’s an insult to even put him in the same sub-genre as them, he’s more so a great story tell (even though the stories aren’t always true) than a winey heartbroken mc.

4.)    Hello Stranger

This is another incredibly personal story by HW. Even to the point where he mentions his muse, Mellissa by name. Perhaps Mellissa is to HW what Lucy Ford is to Atmosphere, only except I don’t think Lucy Ford is “her” real name, but I’m willing to bet Mellissa is. HW must have balls of steel to not only write this “emo-song” and not only share it with the person it’s written about, but everyone who listens to his cd! There are more awesome cuts on this track by Emoh.

5.)    Moving On feat. Sarah Lynn Bowler

The only feature on this rap cd isn’t by a rapper. This is another reason HW is appealing to more than just rap fans. Sarah Lynn Bowler sings the hook in ‘Moving On’ over a soft jazzy beat with relaxing bass lines, piano, and horns scattered here and there.

6.)    Faded Memories

If you’ve seen HW live chances are you’ve seen him perform this song.  Also, it’s funny to hear him make reference to “surviving on lunch meat” in this song now he’s a vegetarian. Supposedly this cd was done almost a year before it was released.

7.)    Insecurities

Not every rapper can do a song about not being promiscuous. In fact most cats rap about the exact opposite, boasting about humping out girls with no sentimental attachment at all. So hearing HW do a track like this is a total breathe of fresh air.

8.)    This Old Town

‘This Old Town’ is an ode to boring hometowns. In the song Josh realizes the importance in in recognizing your roots, and pays homage to Fall River in this track even though he resides in Boston (well Cambridge, but whatever) now.

 

 Website

facebook

bandcamp

twitter

FREEEEEEEEE DOWNLOADDDDDDDDDD

Then buy it with the poster, and shirt.

Wow, I’m terrible at writing reviews.

Emily Rugburn - I Wish I Could Grow A Beard

                Typically I don’t do reviews. I hate them. I hate reading some has-been-who-never-was-rappers jaded opinion on someone’s release that got more shine than theirs. I never wanted to be the dude bashing someone else’s art, giving praise is alright I guess, but saying something is garbage because the person reviewing it doesn’t like it is totally bananas.

                However, all this week I’ll be at some temp job that the first 6 hours of my work day each day is supposed to be spent writing. That’s it; all I have to do is write. I guess they’re scanning like 10 peoples writing style each week and see if you can identify them just by the way they type. The speed, the words they use, amount of times they use back space, all that shit.

                So I figured whatever, I’ll plug some of the stuff I’ve been listening to lately that is available for free online. Maybe it will make this painstakingly slow work week go faster. Plus technically I’m getting paid a pretty penny for this, and I can guarantee I’ll never get paid this handsomely again for writing about underground rap. So here it is, the worst excuse for a review you’ll ever come across.

 

                First off Emily Rugburn is T.M.F.S.E. (The Man From Somewhere Else, formerly known as abc-def) and Junkwaffel of Slangcorp. TMFSE is known for his slow delivery, unique cadence, bizarre vocabulary, intricate internal rhyme schemes, clever puns, and songs about drugs.  I think ‘I Wish I Could Grow a Beard’ came out in early 2010.

1.)    Imaginary Friend

The cd starts off with a soliloquy from an ‘imaginary friend’ and Junkwaffel drops some soft jazzy samples in the background that set the pace for the ep. For the longest time I thought this quote was from a movie, and I was determined to see it. However, after google searching direct quotes from it more times than I'd like to admit I came to the conclusion that it’s not a movie. I guess a movie about an imaginary friend wouldn’t be that visually stimulating anyway.

 

 "...skate dude who shaves pubes, blaze doobes, and pays dues on credit...”

2.)    Slam Dancing with the Stars

Yep, this song is pretty cool. I don’t really know what to say. Starts and ends with another quote I don’t know the origin of, but I tried to find the movie for a while. As TMFSE said he rocked the posse cut solo… and he laced it. I think this track came out when rappers saying “no homo” was the thing to say, kind of like swag is now. So TMFSE drops the line “fuck homo” in there, but I really doubt a vegan (self-proclaimed) junkie is homophobic. Or maybe he meant literally fuck homos and he’s down? Either way people take the shit rappers say to seriously sometimes.

3.)    Perms, Sperm, and Sherm feat. GDP

Starts off with another quote I don’t know what it’s from. In case you can’t read, this song features fellow Slangcorp alumni, GDP. GDP did a good job rapping at TMFSE’s super slow bpm.  Yep, this is another cool song by Emily Rugburn. And it ends with a relevant Bill Hicks quote about drugs, hell yeah finally something I can pin point.

4.)    Watermelon Lemonade

Arm Arm Leg Head. I don’t get it but sure, why not. TMFSE does 8 bar verses in this song instead of the standard 16. I’m always into different structures, but sometimes I wonder how incredibly short his already short tracks would be is he rapped at an average pace. “…Smack your ass no homo,” there it is, the token ‘no homo’ line of the time.

5.)    Pumpernickle

I have no idea who the girl who dubs her vocals behind TMFSE’s vocal track is, but I’ve heard her on a few Emily Rugburn tracks. I think you have to be from Jersey to be able to rap anything about pumpernickle.

6.)    One More Bag feat. Pistol

Another Slangcorp affiliate featured on this release, this time it’s Pistol. Pistol is only featured on the hooks though. Tracks like this always make me wonder how these dudes on heroin are able to be so prolific with their music, when there are so many clean people out there that can’t get anything done. It’s like, “Hey look what these people did while heavily addicted to such a deadly drug. What’s you’re excuse for not getting anything done again?” Remind me to never to work in a rehab center.

7.)    The Girl with the Thorn in her Arm

For the longest time this was my favorite track on the release. Everything about it, from the title being a pun on The Smiths song ‘The Boy with the Thorn in his side’ to the guitar (I think that’s a guitar) loop that TMFSE raps over with no drums, to how the drums kick in and he does the “refrain” or whatever a real critic would call that. Is it bad to like songs about someone else’s struggle drug addiction? I like this song so much I used a line with it to try and pick up a girl before. We didn’t have anything to do, so I suggested “let’s get high and drive all night.” I don’t think it worked, but that’s alright because I can use it again on another girl out there because chances are she doesn’t read this blog or listen to Emily Rugburn.

8.)    Star-Belly Sneech

This is another good jam to finish off this ep. At the end Junkwaffel drops the beat and lets you get a better listen to TMFSE’s unique style.

     Bonus track)

But wait, there’s more! This song became my favorite over ‘The Girl with the Thorn in her Side’ once I discovered it. I feel like for the most part bonus tracks are fading away because so much stuff is only digital, but they were always my favorite part of a cd when I was younger. I really dig beat boxing drums and the sample and am pretty curious of the origin. “Just cause my name on the flyer don’t mean I’m gonna show up,” was an awesome line, then I heard it was true. On the ‘Only Rule: Eyes Out’ tour with HW, ESH, and DJ Halo I saw according to their dates a few days before they played in Pittsburgh, those guys were playing Trenton, NJ with Raymond Strife and TMFSE. I told HW that was pretty rad they were getting to play with TMFSE. A few days later when I met played with those guys in Pittsburgh they told me he showed up so late he didn’t even get to play. On one hand that really sucks, but on the other I think it adds to his “enigma” if you will. But then again, I can’t stand when I book something and people don’t show up. “TMFSE the black Heath Ledger.”


Get 'I Wish I Could Grow a Beard' for free.

John Bachman aka Jumbled of Napalm Def interview about Our Only Escape Vol. 2

John Bachman aka Jumbled of Napalm Def, is the brains, bank, and balls behind Our Only Escape. Here he takes a minute to fill you in on some of the history of his compilation.

TheThrowAwayDays.) What exactly is "Our Only Escape" and how did it come to be?
John Bachman) Our only escape is the name of the 2 compilations I have put together. The idea  was inspired by the “Underground Hip Hop Essentials” comps from Cory of Sass Bologna. I thought they were really great  and very DIY. He said he was not releasing anymore so I decided I would try to put something out. The first one was cassette only, and consisted of friends, and some other acts I found on Myspace that I really liked. I asked a lot of people, and only a few followed through. It features one of the first real Napalm Def songs, where both me and salk spit on the same track. There were many Baltimore acts (Height, AK Slaughter, PT Burnem) as well as some acts from other parts of the country (Shed dwellaz from California, Unified Theory from the northwest, Iz-Real from Atlanta). The acts got most of the copies. I’ve also sold some at shows and had them in distros. It is pretty much out of print by now, but I put it up on my bandcamp page for free. The name comes from one of my first songs, in which I use the line “beat tapes, our only escape, wish I could rhyme to every beat that I make.”

T-TAD) How has it progressed since the last release?
JB) I have put out 7 other releases on my label (Harford and Reckord) and started asking people if they would be interested in participating. This line-up is much more diverse and widespread. It started out as a message chain on facebook and some emails. A few acts reached out to me after hearing the first comp, so I tried to follow up with them.
A few acts on the comp I saw at local shows and really liked their stuff, like Taylo and Dilligence. I wanted to include local Baltimore acts I am into so I talked to Collectible Humans, Something compleX, Disturbed Individuals, and Detale. I came across White Mic, Michael Riggs and Lurch Lightning online and asked them to be on the release.
Since there were so many more people involved, I decided to get pro-printed cdrs, and hand make the covers (to save some money). Since the first comp had stenciled covers, I tried to keep that theme by stenciling the OOE on the covers of Volume 2. When I layed out and sequenced the tracks, it was almost too much to fit on one CD.

T-TAD) Describe your relationship with some of the artists featured on this?
JB) I could start with salk and Dwell. Salk is in Napalm Def with me, and we played in many bands together over the years. Dwell is an old friend and mentor, that records most of our vocals and helps produce our stuff. I have played a bunch of shows with Something compleX and we are trying to work together to build bridges between local acts. Jack Wilson was living in Baltimore at the time, so we hung out a few times, he gave me a track for the comp and did a verse on my last album. I’ve booked and played a few shows with JE double F, AK Slaughter and Stillborn Identity. It’s funny to think that I’ve never met some of these people, but am still a big fan of their music.

T-TAD) There are some “bigger” names on this compilation, what would you do if you saw one of your students wearing one of the featured artists shirts? Would you say anything/try to sell them a cd for their lunch money?
JB) That’s a weird line. I just took a job at a new school [I teach Technology Education at a school in Baltimore City] and they only talk about Meek Mill and 2Chainz. A few years ago at my old school, I got excited when I found out one kid in the whole school was into Odd Future before they blew up. Since more stuff is online/on youtube, kids are finding out more about people like Jay Electronica and Childish Gambino, instead of only listening to what’s on the radio. To answer your question, I would probably just give them a copy of the comp!

T-TAD) Do any of your student, past or present, know about Napalm Def?
JB) I keep my facebook profile private, but after students graduate, some will ask teachers to be their “friend.” I think I only follow 2-3, but since I promote a lot on there, a couple realized that I was Jumbled. I had one of their little brothers in class last year and he knew, but was cool about it.
The funniest thing I found while looking on Tumblr was one former student posting a song I made about Snowballs (a Baltimore sno-cone sort of treat) and it said something like “oh my god, I just found out my old shop teacher raps” and someone else responded “you mean the one that looks like the guy from Fall Out boy?”
I have been doing this for only about 7 years, but feel like I’ve come a long way. It started as just loops in my bedroom, and making a demo (limited to 3 copies.) I settled on the name of Napalm Def, and asked my friend Clint to start rapping (which I don’t think ever occurred to him, but we shared a love of grindcore and hip hop, so it fit.) We turned to Dwell to help record and point us in the right direction, as he was winding down his short career as an mc. This past year was my best and most productive, I put out an album and a comp, started doing out of town shows, a ton of local shows including the 2 biggest shows I’ve ever played. I started performing and working with dj Franco, made my first video, scored a short film and web tv show, and have been sending out more beats to collaborate with more people.

T-TAD) Will there be an "Our Only Escape 3" if so, what are some of your plans for it? (artists, work, theme maybe?)
JB) No plans for one right now. I am working on production for salk’s solo album, and a Napalm Def full-length, that I hope to get pressed on Lp. Next up for the label is the reissue of Height’s album “Winterize the Game” which is my favorite album of his.
thanks
John Bachman aka Jumbled
mc and producer / Napalm Def // Baltimore, MD
http://jumbled.bandcamp.com
harfordandreckord.tumblr.com
napalmdef@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Napalm-Def-Jumbled-and-Salk/137860689584633



I wanted to include the track listing at the end of this interview but somehow it ended up looking like this. Whatever, you get the picture. Download it for free!

1.	Diligence - Burnt 02:00
	2.	salk. – Nothing’s Changed (Jumbled remix) 02:34
	3.	Collectible Humans – Devil Do (ft. DJ Addikt) 03:16
	4.	Amable – New Take 02:29
	5.	Michael Riggs – Cryin in Public 03:07
	6.	Taylo – Lovin’ It 02:04
	7.	Ak Slaughter with Rap Dragons – We don’t suck dicks 04:19
	8.	E.T. – Graveyard 02:45
	9.	Marshall Willenholly – Driving Drunk at Speed Dating 00:47
	10.	Disturbed Individuals - What 03:53
	11.	Detale – Smokestacks 03:42
	12.	Jack Wilson – Jimmy Legs 04:49
	13.	Dwell – Give Praise 03:41
	14.	JE double F - Inferno ft. King Struggle & Ronin 04:06
	15.	Pinpoint ft. Only - Real 03:01
	16.	Roebus One – Which Ways 03:05
	17.	Something compleX – Eating, Keeping, Feeding 04:53
	18.	Leopard Opera - 419 02:18
	19.	Lurch Lightning – Your Majesty, It’s Our Fault 02:40
	20.	Ray Strife ft. Idiot Boy - Shatner 03:09
	21.	Warning 01:47
	22.	Rick Rab – P.O.M.E. 03:15
	23.	Stillborn Identity – Write Quick (Deep Cover) 02:56
	24.	White Mic – A Game of Inches 02:23
	25.	Xrin Arms – Virgin Hologram 02:48