More Dilla, Please

One can never have enough Dilla. And who doesn't love jazz and Donuts? What if we could combine all three into one, gooey, sticky mess? It would sound exactly like this. That's right, Dilla's Donuts, covered in its entirety, but a funked up jazz band. You're welcome.

With Storm Siegel on skins, Dave Mainella on piano and Evan Crane on bass, the trio called Stray Phrases performed an instrumental set of the album on Sunday, October 17, 2010. Unfortunately, it's all crammed into one mp3, but once you have a listen, maybe you'll decide that's for the best. Some things are just meant to be listened to a certain way.

mp3: Donuts Live (Stray Phrases from Live Donuts)

And then Stones Throw just keeps giving and giving and giving...

From Madlib's latest Medicine Show (#11 Low Budget High Fi Music), a formerly unreleased track from Jaylib, the collab between Dilla and Madlib, originally slated for their second album, which, sadly and criminally, never came to fruition.

mp3: Louder (Blast Your Radio Theme) (Jaylib from Madlib Medicine Show #11 Low Budget High Fi Music)

Beat Week: J Dilla Day

If the cosmos see fit to send me two Dilla-related tracks on the same day, well, who am i to deny the kid a try?

Luminary Youth recently opened for Bonobo and TokiMONSTA, so you should know off the bat the kid has skills. Upon receiving his new EP, Paper Constellations, two things struck me immediately: 1. If remixes by other artists are any indication, this kid keeps good company (read: Boards of Canada, Persona La Ave, and Washed Out, among others) 2. LY knows the Masters, as evidenced by this excellent J Dilla Tribute. i understand he's got a new LP in the works. Based on this bad boy, i can't wait to hear it.

mp3: Cloud Walking (J Dilla Tribute) (Luminary Youth from Paper Constellations)

As i am apt to do, i was checking out some of my fave artist sites yesterday and stumbled across this gem from my beat hero, Alex B. In his own words: "I found the original sample that dilla used on his track 'Players.' For personal enjoyment i remade the track to sound similar to his with my own twist on it. Enjoy!" i think you'll find that last command an easy thing to do.

mp3: Players (J Dilla_SV REMIX) (Alex B from his website)

And this last number came out months ago (early April, to be exact), but for whatever reason, it got lost in the piles of music constantly going through ye ode iPod. i intend to make amends today by sharing this mixtape banger by the Roots putting their instrumental spin on some of Dilla's classics.

mp3: The Stars (The Roots from Dilla Joints)

mp3: Look Into Her Eyes (The Roots from Dilla Joints)

Beat Meet: The Embarassment of Riches Edition

Since the holidays screwed up my blog week last week, ye olde inbox received a horn o' plenty's worth of stellar beats. And because i'm such a helluva guy, i'm going to share them with you.

Ah, Project: Mooncircle, how i love thee and thy dopish ways. Continuing with their kick ass Finest Ego series, this time up, the label features some of today's hottest Russian beatmakers doing their thing. Now, i know what you're thinking about Russian DJs, but, c'mon, man, that's racist. Allow me to confirm the fact that P:M yet again knocks this one out of the park, particularly on tracks by Pavel Dovgal and Shawalski. Here's what i'm trippin' on, though--how come all these foreign compilations only use English language samples? i'm just asking. Regardless, here's a little mini-mix to prove my point about just how good this bad boy is.

mp3: Finest Ego Russian Beatmakers Compiliation Mini-Mix

i can't tell you much about the Cutler beyond what you can read on their website yourself, other than that their latest, The Best Things in Life Aren't Things, is a stone cold groove, baby. Jazzy/funky instruments, cymbal-ic percussion and Charlie Brown sounding vocal samples? Yes, please.

mp3: PAYR (The Cutler from The Best Things in Life Aren't Things)

mp3: Sync Estate (The Cutler from The Best Things in Life Aren't Things)

You didn't think i was going to allow LET to falter in its goal of maintaining its place as THE leading source for heavily and probably illegally sampled children's movie beats, did you? Hells no, i'm not. So let's check out Pogo's latest update to his already classic take on Alice in Wonderland.

mp3: Alice (Extended) (Pogo from Deeper Down the Rabbit Hole)

mp3: Oyster Dreamland (Pogo from Deeper Down the Rabbit Hole)

i'm normally not a huge remix fan, but when one of my fave up and coming beatmakers is behind the board, what can i do? Here's oOoOO's take on Marina & the Diamond's "Obsessions." i've got to be honest, i'm not at all familiar with the original, but i sure as hell am digging the remix.

mp3: Obsessions (oOoOO Remix) (Marina & the Diamonds from Soundcloud)

If the cats at the WEDIDIT Collective give a song props, i'm going to have to give it a listen. So far, they have yet to let me down. And they maintain that streak with this Juj-recommended track by Ackryte. i'm assuming the instrumental is NOT about Ackryte's problems with the Alabama Police Department, but what the hell do i know?

mp3: Ackryte_x_AL_PD_-_Untitled (Ackryte from Soundcloud)

Is there anything better than "re-released" Dilla? Maybe "re-released" Dilla remixed by Madlib? OK, i'll buy that.

mp3: The $ (Madlib Remix) (J Dilla from Hella International)

My Blogger Went to Vegas And All I Got Were These Dope Beats

Damnation, what a vacation! You'd love to know about the time spent with the supermodels and various celebs in the VIP section of the club, but this isn't some celebrity sighting blog, folks. Go elsewhere for that bull crocka. i will say it was a true blast to reconnect with an old friend and welcome her new hubby into the fold, as it were.

As you fellow working schlubs can imagine, i had quite a plateful of work when i got home, but what can you do? It certainly was worth it, ain't no 'bout a doubt it. That being said, i haven't really had time to come up with a meaningful mix for the weekend or anything like that just yet. To ease back into the saddle, here are a couple of dope beat joints i've found recently to share with you fine people.

You've probably heard about it before now, but Stones Throw is offering all the tracks from J Dilla's Donut Shop for the low, low price of signing up for their newsletter. i strongly recommend you do so.

Sign up for the newsletter here.

mp3: Safety Dance (J Dilla from Donut Shop)

mp3: Sycamore (J Dilla from Donut Shop)

i keep telling you people that the We Did It Collective does not fuck around, and i keep telling you the truth. i don't exactly know how they continually find the new talent, but if my on-going beat production lessons bear fruit, maybe i can get an invite, too. Depakote is the latest to drop a bomb on me, The Gummo Album. Deft mixes and cuts of overall soulful and funky grooves. Yes, that is some Funkadelic in there.

mp3: Darby (Depakote from The Gummo Album)

mp3: Freak of Nature (Depakote from The Gummo Album)

And to round things out, a little something from ye olde inbox. It took me a while to decipher just who was who on these projects since i didn't have a handy chart, so allow me to allow him to elucidate.

"Museum is the name of the whole crew: Art&Craft, 3rd Party, the Contortionist, the Hermit and Keno 1. The museum album was released in 2002 on CD only and was a very limited run. It was very popular so I am re-issuing the album as a free mp3 download for all the folks who missed it first time round.The Hermit went on to record as Nostalgia 77 and Keno 1 went on to record as Natural Self. Myself and 3rd Party record as Left Channel and Products of the Secondhand Circus is our album."

Both are master blasts, featuring tricky cuts and sample work. Like most of the music that works in the genre, these cats have an obvious ear for pastiche and apparently deep crates. i'm a bit more fond of Products myself, but that's simply because it strikes me as the more eclectic of the two pieces, and i lurvs me some weird assed eclecticism when i hears it.

mp3: Splinters (The Hermit ft. Art&Craft from Museum)

mp3: Standard Bearings (Left Channel from Products of the Secondhand Circus)