Track Of The Day: 'Serious' - Delusionists

Delusionists are back with another heavy UK Hip Hop track - 'deliberate' would be one would that sums this up - aside from 'serious', that is. Ben Black and DBF spit forcefully over Slim Pickens' curt beat which is oh so well mastered and produced; there is no muddiness like you find on a lot of the more homegrown releases - this is pro stuff.

The package comes with the acapella, instrumental and also a great track entitled 'Snow'. You can download it now at Bandcamp.

Delusionists also feature heavily on UK producer Figment's download album 'Love H.E.R. Madly' which is an album using samples of The Doors with UK MCs spitting over the top. Check it out now and hopefully I'll get time to give it more shine.

Track Of The Day: 'The Mighty Binoculars' ft. Braille - Mr. Fresh

Yo peeps! Track of the day - not strictly UK but Mr. Fresh is 100 percent bona fide British (but don't quote me on this). The track features Braille, one of my favourite underground US rappers, although the EP also features Chrome and Coherent who are also from the UK.

'The Mighty Binoculars' is all about looking forward in time, and seeing that Braille is a Christian, it's clear to me that he's looking forward, through his mighty binoculars, to heaven.

Even if you don't share his beliefs this track contains a positive message for all. The old school, big beat, is also suitable for all.

Buy the EP, or just the track, now at Bandcamp like I did.

'Life Music' - Grit Grammar (review)

Watch out for Grit Grammar's album 'Life Music' - it's a professionally finished and very solid selection of tracks from the MC and his go-to producer Baron Samedi.

Grit bucks all current radio fodder trends without just sounding like another UK MC with another UK Hip Hop album - this LP has memorable moments.

'Hard Times' is an obvious choice - one most of you will have heard with its Genesis Elijah feature but picking out others is fairly difficult - but only because of the high quality of each track.

'Sound of the City' is a funky ode to Grit's London which showcases his ability to really rhyme and flow. Strangely, the last three tracks are all ones that really stick in my mind: 'Trapped From The Beginning' (an exploration of love, life and attitudes to both, 'Going Under' (an honest diatribe on drug struggles) and 'Rich & Famous' featuring Baron Samedi on the mic as well as the optimistic production are some of the best tracks on the album.

Elsewhere Grit finds perfect rhyme partners in Kyza, Iron Braydz and Verb T (in thoughtful, serious mode).

The album drops on 27th September and everyone is invited to the album launch on Tuesday 28th Sept 2010, The Social, 5 Little Portland Place, London. The event is free and features full live performances from Grit Grammar, Verb-t & Fliptrix, Genesis Elijah, Iron Braydz, Baron Samedi and Lixx with a special guest appearance from Kyza Smirnoff and DJ CWD holding down the decks all evening. Check out: http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=154728551206519&ref=mf for more.

'Run Walk Crawl' - J-Treole (review)

OK, so this came out in August and I'm just way behind - I've been busy ya'dig? Following on from their 'Three Point One Four' EP is 'Run Walk Crawl' - a three tracker worthy of your monies.

J-Treole are a Hip Hop band with real instruments and inspirations drawn from the golden age of jazz. This combination leads to something just that little different musically (and no, don't even think Guru's Jazzmatazz - it's not like that). The MCs voice is also not your usual UK MC's - closest comparison? A less eccentric Roots Manuva at times, at other times; a down-to-earth tone which is well suited to J-Treole's alternative take on Hip Hop.

'Mister Wolf', 'Sky Dive' and 'Symphony of the Shrapnel' all put a severely abstract twist on everyday ideas and thoughts - thinking caps are required as a listener.

'Run Walk Crawl' can be tried and bought from Bandcamp now.

'Run For The Hills' ft. Ed Strong & King Kaiow - Prose (free download)

More music relating to The IRS: 'Run For The Hills' by Prose featuring Ed Strong and King Kaiow of The IRS. This is a free download in order to drum up business for their forthcoming album 'Force Of Habit' with music and artwork this good best believe Prose are going to be a name you hear a little more.

If you haven't already heard their name then get digging backwards on that there Bandcamp page. They've really got their back catalogue on over there so you can go stream or download some classic-sounding boom bap UK Hip Hop in order to familiarise yourself with these boys. Can you hear the jungle drums?

'There It Is' - The IRS (free download)

Whoa! Just found out that UK Hip Hop group The IRS are giving away their album 'The World Is Theirs' as a free download on Bandcamp! How good is that?

You should download and particularly look out for these tracks: 'Windy Weather' , 'Day With The Devil' and 'Big Day In' - you'll like 'em.

Whilst you're there grab yourself the download of 'There It Is' taken from their forthcoming release 'The IRS Presents: Offcuts'.

This is all in preparation for the release of 'The IRS Presents: Speaks Volumes' LP which is due out in January 2011. They say "the 2nd LP is much more polished than our first LP but features the same style of raw and thoughtful lyricism. It features production from in-house producer Ed Strong, as well as guest spots from Beat Fanatic’s very own Wizard and also Pete Cannon, both of whom have been making waves with their high quality production. It also features MC guest spots from Stig of the Dump and Skandal. We aim to stream the album online from 25/12/2011 with an official release in all formats early January 2011. In the meantime, enjoy some tasty treats from our Offcuts release."

Track Of The Day: 'Diggers Anthem' - Mike-L

Commencing with some jolly kid's entertainer enthusing about finding sounds 'Diggers Anthem' does exactly what is says on the tin. The folksy country yokel-sung refrain about "noble diggers" is the perfect rallying call for all of those out there who love nothing better than to be in a dusty basement rooting through crates looking for that rare gem, that dope break or that hilarious sample. With some modernised sounds thrown in for good measure and and some great sub bass this is an absolute corker of a track taken from an excellent album.

Mike-L's album 'On A Columbo Tip' is a real spiritual journey through Hip Hop, Jazz, Blues and Big Beat with tracks like 'Wade In The Water' and the happy time vibes of 'Sing That' really backing up the 'spiritual' part of my statement. The album will be out on the most excellent First Word Records on 25th October 2010 on CD, vinyl or as a digital download.

Track Of The Day: 'What's Ya Name?' - Rick Fury

I love LPs that kick off with a pummelling of great tracks (see Outkast's 'ATLiens' for a good example). Dialect crew member Rick Fury's 'Full Belt' comes with a left, right, left of tracks to assault your ear holes. The track I've chosen is 'What's Ya Name?':

With a beat (produced by Gaz) that sounds more like early noughties US Hip Hop than anything any other UK rappers are spitting on (and I'm saying that's a good thing) and humour-tinged real-life lyrics which flow nicely from Fury's Geordie mouth this is definitely worthy of Certified Banger's Track Of The Day.

You can buy 'Full Belt' now for £5 by clicking here and you can listen to it all at Soundcloud first if you want.

'Album Of The Year' - Black Milk (preview)

'Album Of The Year'? It's a bold claim but a lot of folk are saying the title's justifiable. Black Milk's totally down with the net and has himself a Bandcamp page from which you can download the first two tracks from the LP. 'Welcome (Gotta Go)' and 'Keep Going' both have beats which bang with that latter incorporating some pretty heavy rock drumming and the former that dope shuffling synthiness you'll have come to expect from the Detroit producer. The two tracks remind me, for some reason of the times when Kanye used to get things so right although Black Milk is a better who rapper, not dissimilar to Jay-Z, strangely. Download the tracks at Bandcamp.

The album is only available for Pre-order right now but hold tight, it won't be long.

'Bring Me' ft. Klayz - Sway (video)

I'm always wondering if Sway is returning to his roots or not, but I think I'm going to give in because I can't tell any more. His last offerings have been quite poppy and he's featured on some tracks with some whack artists (who must just have the cash) but I like 'Bring Me'. I can well imagine this on 'This Is My Demo' even though it does have a more up-to-date sound. Whatevers with my analysis. Have a listen.

'Ballad of Belmarsh' - Plan B (teaser video)

Has Plan B's plan B been to actually return more to his heavy-hitting spitting after luring all the radio heads in with his sing songs? This is the trailer for the more radio-friendly 'The Recluse' but appears to have nothing whatsoever to do with that track. Come on Plan B - let's hear 'Ballad of Belmarsh' for real.

Track Of The Day: 'Bang For The Cause' ft. Iron Braydz - Manny Moscow

I've been thinking about how I can keep the blog more up-to-date now I'm pretty busy elsewhere in life. I've also been thinking about how to give whole albums the shine they deserve when I don't have time to do a full review. My solution? Track Of The Day. What I'll do is pick a track that well represents a LP release and let you know about that as a pointer to the full album itself. Here goes:

'Bang For The Cause' is taken from Manny Moscow's 'Blood On Ice' mixtape which is mixed by Tricksta for UK Runnings. The track features man of the moment Iron Braydz, a heavily militant beat which drips with soul and some from-the-heart lyricism from the two MCs.

The whole release is available for free by clicking here or here (if you're a Datpiff head). It's been around for a few months now but you may not have known that.

'It's On' - Roots Manuva (video)

Filmed at the weirdest place in Britain - Dungeness. I advise you to go there if you haven't ever been so you can marvel at its strangeness.

Grit Grammar on 1Xtra's Homegrown Podcast

27th September is the release date on Grit Grammar's first album proper. It features full production from Baron Samedi and extra raps from Verb-T, Genesis Elijah, Kyza, Iron Braydz and Baron Samedi. It all comes on a proper CD with really dope artwork (as you can see) - hooray for physical product.

Anyway, I've previously featured the video for 'Hard Times' featuring Genesis Elijah, but the track is worth mentioning again because it made it onto 1Xtra's homegrown podcast this week. You can download or listen to that by clicking here.

For more Grit Grammar goodness, check out my interview with him from early last year, the first track from this new album on 2009's Rising Styles compilation, his appearance on my 'On The Radar series and other things.

Coming Soon: 'Superegular' - Instance

Check out some new material from Instance. Look out for his next album 'The Superegular' which features SonnyJim, Jack Flash and Defenders of Style and production from Mike D, Wizard and Kelakovski.

'Hire Me' - Dr. Syntax (video)

Awesome track here from one Britain's best and most witty rappers - looking forward to more material from the one and only Dr. Syntax!

Vinyl Exchange September

How fun does this look? Really. If you're a digger from the south get yerself there for some record finding, friendship building times! 18th September 2010 at The Silver Bullet.