The Juan Maclean – Everybody Get Close (2011) [DFA] // Grade: B

Back in the early 2000’s, when DFA Records started, it was an interesting little beast.  A dance label founded by two members of the indie rock/post hardcore scene, the first few singles were almost charming in their ignorance. These were dance tracks made purely out of love, with absolutely no idea how to build rhythms that will keep people on a dancefloor. Out of all the early singles, the first two Juan Maclean singles were perhaps the strangest. “By the Time I Get to Venus” was an odd little vocoder number, not unlike a Daniel Wang track, but also entire not like one at the same time. “Give Me Every Little Thing” could have been released on Ze in 1979, with its fuzzy track and loose New York vocals.  Only “Give Me Every Little Thing,” a brash electroclash anthem caned by DJ Hell, gave any hint as to how good John Maclean was getting at making rhythms that make the body move.

Now that he’s been at it for a decade, most of that naive charm is long gone.  Instead, former Six Finger Satellite guitarist John Maclean makes it evident where his influences lie.  As a retrospective,  Everybody Get Close is like a journey in the genesis of a Chicago styled house musician. It is obvious in every drumclap and 303 squelch. Consisting of material that dates as early as when Maclean was working on The Future is Now, this new compilation of b-sides and remixes doesn’t hold together well as an album, but that never detracts from the fact that these are some heavy heavy dance tracks. “X-2” is actually so dank and moody that it could pass for an Eddie “Flashin” Fowlkes track from his Tresor years. These tracks also show that Maclean works better when he is being an acid purist.  As the pop dance of a track like the Cut Copy remix of “Happy House” doesn’t really contribute anything to the overall appeal of this album. This reviewers advice?; save that shit for a car commercial and make enough money to buy some vintage equipment – so your next LP will be house as fuck!

Regardless, it is amazing to think of how far DFA has gone in a mere decade, and this album is a decent enough portrait of the maturation of a label and its sound.

Last week, I mentioned that the second episode of HBO’s 24/7 Road to the Winter Classic was lacking in game footage and it’s almost as if the producers heard my cry as episode three delivered and then some. From the beginning we are thrown into the Flyers locker room where head coach Peter Laviolette shows the most emotion he has all series long as his team finds themselves down a goal heading into the third period against the Colorado Avalanche. His mini tirade sparks his team to find the equalizer before falling in a shootout resulting in the team’s second consecutive loss as the team leaves for Dallas hoping to turn their fortune.

The Rangers first appear during their family skate at Bryant Park before attending a ugly Christmas sweater party where Michael Del Zotto debuted a sweater featuring some rather risqué reindeers. Luckily, no children were in attendance. Later, the team is shown pummeling my beloved Devils which fortunately lasted only a minute or so.

Like most teams in the NHL, it is customary among the Rangers to pass out a special item for the MVP of the game. The Rangers being from New York and all chose to pass out a fedora which was most likely donated by Sean Avery. For this win, Henrik Lundqvist earned the honors and I couldn’t’ help but wonder whether he too keeps a spare in case he doesn’t get the MVP after each game.

Claude Giroux returned to the Flyers line-up against Dallas after battling a concussion he received in the first episode and has himself quite the return notching a goal and three assists. During the game he chats with Stars center Steve Ott who encouraged the younger Giroux to check his stats on NHL.com because he’s really good at face-offs. Ott would go onto lose the ensuing draw and later tell Laviolette to show some “fucking class” as the coach refused to wait for the Stars to leave the ice resulting in a shove captured by the cameras.

Laviolette later has a case of amnesia when confronted about the incident and choses to focus on the win instead. Prior to the game against the Rangers, Laviolette and his staff find themselves watching the Ott incident on TV at a bar which summarized how big a deal it was to the hockey world despite the coach’s attempt to play it down.

When the Flyers finally meet the Rangers at MSG it’s pretty much gold as far as the chirping between players goes. From Brad Richards telling Tom Sestito that his one day in the NHL is like fantasy camp to Mike Rupp telling former Ranger Jody Shelly he’s “fucking irrelevant out here” to my favorite chirp simple “fuck you Lundqvist”

It’s really what a rivalry is all about, nonstop shit talk. While it didn’t capture the pre ‘Classic’ showdown like last year with the Caps and Pens, it was easily the highlight of the show.

Afterwards we are finally given our moment of Byrz, as the goalie is shown celebrating Christmas with his family and hot blonde girl husky, Milya. Bryzgalov also divulges the many faces he has starting with his home face, his public face, his game face, his off-day face, and his HBO face. No matter how many times you read that over it won’t make any sense. Guy is simply out there.

Next week the two teams finally meet in the Winter Classic as the show comes to its conclusion. Hopefully HBO will have its best for last.

As you’re perusing my list you’ll probably notice the general absence of any mainstream Hip Hop releases. I’m sorry but Watch the Throne just didn’t do it for me outside of a few tracks. But that’s generally how I’ve felt about mainstream Hip Hop for the past decade as it spiraled into “Ringtone Rap.” I’ll make no bones about the fact that I spent much of my teens and early 20s as a so-called “backpack rap” fan. But I’m not all anti mainstream Hip Hop (nor was I ever) because if last year’s Top 100 was solely up to me My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy would have been the #1 album of 2010. But I digress…

So no one was happier than me when, in 2011, many of the artists who maybe would have been boxed in by a designation like that are now thriving in the freedom of the scene. 2011 was really the year that indie rap (and I use that term loosely) came back in a big way, where actual mixtape culture (not just myriad Lil’ Wayne releases) hit the country at large. How pleasant that the weirdo MC is rising, hopefully to make up for the numerous lyrical crimes of the aughts.

Action Bronson

This was also a great year for the rap community writ large, as fire young producers teamed up with all kinds of MCs, and new posses (A$AP Crew, Bruiser Brigade) popped up and flourished overnight. Rappers were encourage to work outside of the box, and seemed more than happy to work without worrying whether a track would fit in at the club. New York indie rap in particular experienced quite a renaissance. All in all, it was a great year for Hip Hop.

You’ll probably notice the Hip Hop albums here vary some from the Bloglin’s general Top 50 abums of 2011 in inclusion, exclusion and placement. That is because (much like Prolly’s metal best of) this is entirely my list of my favorite Hip Hop releases for the year, unlike the Top 50, which was a group effort. So without further ado, here’s the top 20 Hip Hop albums of 2011.

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20. Schoolboy Q – Setbacks [Top Dawg]

Schoolboy Q seems primed to be whoever you want him to be, with equal lyrical precision on all fronts. The dude hops into all sorts of guises on Setbacks.

Whether it be street proselytizer, hardened thug, or goofy convertible-riding weed smoker, Schoolboy sounds surprisingly good. The dude is ready to blow up, it’s just not clear exactly as what but I’m enjoying the ride so far.

Not Originally Reviewed On the Bloglin

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19. Nacho Picasso - For the Glory [Self-Released]

Only a dude who really knows what he’s talking about could make a song about the deep cuts of the Marvel roster and have it turn out not only not embarrassing but also compulsively listenable.

Coming out of the rainy city of Seattle, Nacho Picasso dropped one of the best debuts of the year with For the Glory. Goofy nerdiness really was quite a trend in rap this year, but Picasso’s never seemed put-on, instead a glimpse into the mind of a kid who grew up “writin’ hooks… smokin’, readin’ comic books.”

Original Bloglin Writeup

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18. Death Grips – Exmilitary [Self-Released]

Death Grips went in on the rap game with a different kind of ferocity than most, forgoing lavish grandeur for brutal intensity, made all the more percussive by the presence of Zach Hill’s drumming.

Exmilitary might not be the easiest listen of the year, but when you’re in the right mood it’s certainly one of the most thrilling. Also proof that hooks can be found in the strangest, most dissonant of places.

Original Bloglin Review

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17. L.W.H. – Tape Hiss Hooligan [Self-Released]

While the cover art may make L.W.H. look like either an Ariel Pink affiliate or a witch house Malcolm McLaren, he’s actually a cloud rap (that’s happening now, right?) impresario who’s production has peppered a lot of great releases this year.

Tape Hiss Hooligan is a broadstroke mission statement for the genre, especially considering his recruitment of a bevy of great collaborators to rap over his woozy, hypnotic, experimental beats.

Original Bloglin Review

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16. Dark Sister – Swag Hag EP [Owlhead Collective]

Just two young white girls from Tennessee who love the occult and make really dope trap muzik. Pretty standard, amirite?

After listening to Swag Hag, prepare to explain to people that the song you keep humming is about making a demonic love potion out of period blood.

Not Originally Reviewed On the Bloglin

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15. C.H.I.P.$. – Couch Potato [Self-Released]

Coming out of Danny Brown’s Bruiser Brigade crew, C.H.I.P.$. is here to have some laffz, probably fuck your bitch, and do it all with a impressively lackadaisical flow.

He’s the kind of rapper who you just really want to hear say words in interesting patterns, and I’m not trying to be glib. There’s not exactly an ocean below the surface, but C.H.I.P.$. is floating on a decked out yacht with a shitload of weed and a grin. Just don’t bring your girlfriend.

Original Bloglin Review

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14. Das Racist  – Relax [Greedhead]

Our boys done made it to the big leagues! For their first official album (that, by the way, is crazy) Das Racist continued to prove why they’re one of the most interesting acts in rap. Excuse me, “slacker rock rap.”

Though it may not contain the endless and twisting flows of the mixtapes, Relax still finds the boys in fine form, holding onto their trademark humor and gonzo raps that you’ll find yourself quoting even if you don’t really understand what they’re talking about.

Original Bloglin Review

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13. Lil B – The Silent President [Self-Released]

2011 was sort of a vindication year for Lil B, where people’s appreciation for him moved beyond the novelty of songs about Ellen Degeneres and mixtapes with tracklists in the triple digits.

Once mad other rappers tried (and failed) to imitate him, everyone realized B was actually just ahead of the curve. He released a lot of new stuff, but The Silent President was my favorite and what I felt was his most cohesive effort. And if you’re still one of those people scratching your head about Lil B’s appeal and cultist following, listen to “Beat the Cancer,” it’s quintessential Basedgod for me.

Not Originally Reviewed On the Bloglin

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12. Dopehead – Plaid Palm Trees [Self-Released]

Another Bruiser Brigade crewbie (sensing a pattern?) Plaid Palm Trees was another totally solid salvo from a rapidly emerging and shockingly well formed scene.

Though his cadence is similar to ringleader Danny Brown’s Dopehead didn’t put Cali’s favorite softwood in his mixtape title for no reason, adopting a laid back style that fits his blunt fueled storytelling.

Original Bloglin Review

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11. Cities Aviv – Digital Lows [Fat Sandwich]

Featuring really great production, from the doo-wop pop of “Meet Me on Montrose” to the Steely-Dan powered bounce of “Fuckeverybodyhere” Digital Lows is first off just fun to listen too.

With beats this good, you could almost forgive an MC for just doing his best not to get in the way, but Cities Aviv instead goes in, working his tuchus off to stand out and never blend in.

Not Originally Reviewed On the Bloglin

Hit the Jump for the Top 10!

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Of course that’s the cover art to Diplo’s new EP Express Yourself. Of course it it. This is the type of shit you can casually do in between tweets about the Food Network, when you’re gettin’ dat Blackberry money (though it’s plain to see that, without the magic of iPhone, he was unable to apply any sweet filterz to this image he felt so compelled to share with us).

What was I talking about? Oh yeah, new solo Diplo music! Been a while there Wes. The EP should be out imminently, but he’s already posted up a megamix of the tracks which is predictably dope. Though it’s inflected with the moombahton flavor he’s explored so well with Major Lazer, it definitely falls more in line with his even more party-centric past. Me gusta.

Happy holidays, Internet. I’m hoping whatever amount of eggnog from this week has already been pillaged, and by now you’re gearing up for some 2012 carnage.

It goes without saying that 2011 was a huge year for eXquire. When Lost In Translation first dropped, I immediately gravitated to the eerie, bass heavy bounce of the jam “Galactus Redux.” As soon as I heard this song I said to myself (out loud and loudly) “oh I’m on this!”

So here it is! My menacing remix of “Galactus Redux” for free download. Throw some bows and spill some leftover eggnog on fools to this. Let 2012 be the year of doomsday bass!

Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire – Galactus Redux (Rx Remix) by rxbass

T-Pain – RevolveR (2011) [Nappy Boy] // Grade: C-

Confession time: Whole Milk is a T-Pain fan. In a completely honest way I really wanted to like this album. I can’t, as a vaguely discerning human, but my allegiance (allegiance, I know! What’s going on here?) to the top hatted weirdo won’t let me entirely poo-poo it. Let’s rewind here for a second, actually, to me being a 16 year old loser who downloaded “Bartender” as my ringtone maybe because I was trying to be ironic or I was just an idiot and ended up legitimately falling in love with the song as it soundtracked my next two years of phone calls.

The fact that I legitimately enjoyed 2009′s Thr33 Ringz, which I will still stand by as a banger, left me in (what to me) was a desirable position of liking an artist that a lot of people hated and having what I thought to be some pretty compelling arguments as to why they were wrong. RevolveR makes that job much, much harder. Whereas before T-Pain was, I thought, an exercise in calculated weirdness masquerading as assembly-line club rap, here the weirdness is confined to the wildly misguided A. cover art (a menagerie of Steampunk’d Pains) B. aping of a Beatles album title C. song entitled “Mix’d Girl” which is just… no. It’s a bad thing that I find myself wondering whether he was self-aware when doing those things. That would all be forgivable if the man’s considerable production skills (don’t deny you’ve had at least one of his songs stuck in your head) or humor (see: Freaknik) shined through.

A sad majority of these passable (ugh, what an adjective) songs could have come from any old artist, which should never be something you say about T-Pain because… well just look at the guy! What else does he have other than originality??? Then, just as I’m ready to turn the damn thing off, I hit “Default Picture”, a Twitter love song that is totally great (don’t fuck with me) and reminds me why I’ve actually gone to bat for this dude in the past. It is far and away the best track on the album, and secretly (well, not anymore) one of my favorite of the year, cuz sometimes I’m goofy like that. Which reminds me how much the rest of RevolveR sucks. *T-Pain voice* Bummer *T-Pain voice*

Fresh off the heels of Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire‘s new Merry eXmas & Suck My Dick mixtape, heres another new track AND video. It’s a, uhh, layered take on “Motivate to be Rich” which features Dallas Tha Kid. My favorite thing about eXquire videos is just getting to see more of the unexpected objects that lay around eX and his friends’ cribs.

Though I suppose the fact that they play Monopoly on a custom board using a TMNT figurine as a game piece should not be surprising at this point. I wonder if he heard about the Kevin Eastman auction? Love to see a tour of that set to a Necro beat…

Uh-oh, Whole Milk’s putting his nerd hat on. What’s that? I never took it off? Oh right. Here’s some highly engaging nerdery for you in the form of a trailer for a as-yet-nonexistent (but please make this because it looks fucking awesome) game (or perhaps mod) that combines Skyrim and Minecraft into – you guessed it (also in the title of the post…) – Minerim!

The thing is, modders are so fucking talented these days, not to mention seemingly devoid of any sort of social life (sorry modders, I <3 u!) that they could probably turn this into a real thing faster than you could say “when was the last time you drank a liquid that wasn’t Mountain Dew?” You hear me internet? Make this happen!

That cover art makes me feel all weird in my nostalgia zone. Here’s another track from BBU’s upcoming Bell Hooks mixtape, which we’ll be putting out soon enough. “Kurt De La Rocha” takes the best parts of “Polly” and “Killing In The Name” and combines them into one rap song. So obvious, right?

This is like dipping your fries in your milkshake: it looks and feels sorta wrong but it feels so right. You guys all do that right? Anyhoo, BBU end up putting their Chicago juke spin on both the artists, getting me even more excited for Bell Hooks. You should be too.

Get it here.

Friend, coworker, and street artist Royce Bannon is curating a group show at the Woodward Gallery consisting of work by artists he’s handpicked as some of the best to come out of the graffiti and street art scene. People like Nose Go, Cope2, Kosbe, Matt Siren and more.

Rather Unique captures the most eye-catching and memorable street art around, Royce’s work included. No doubt you’re very familiar with his work even if you don’t know it. If you feel like putting names to tags, or just wanna see some dope art, then come check out the show starting January 7th.

Jan. 7th – Feb. 19th, 2012
Woodward Gallery
133 Eldridge St.
New York, NY