This 3 For 10 roundup comes from a non existant magical mixtape boutique. A New Age store where the clerks provide you with mixtapes based purely on emotion. It would be some wild conceptual shit, like holistic healing with crystals, but the crystals are mixtapes about cocaine distribution.

If you’re looking to feel cold and emotionless in your core we have a nice joint from Fred The Godson to numb you to the chaos of life. If you want to escape the problems of the world and relax into a world of absurd possibility we’ve got Riff Raff chopped up. Maybe you desire to elevate your spirit to a plane of lush warmth relaxation, for that we’ve got a new instrumental joint from Dirtybird B. All of that spiritual therapy for the price of free ninety nine and some karmic retribution. Who wants to go half on a pop-up shop? The New York Times will definitely cover this shit.

—–

Fred The Godson – City of God (2011) [Gangsta Grillz] // Grade: C+

If you’re the type of cat that’s wild concerned with bringing New York rap back in its 1995 incarnation you’re probably more than familiar with Fred The Godson. You also probably don’t read this blog and have spent most of this global warming induced mild summer lamenting how you haven’t had a chance to wear your new Timbs. For the rest of the world, Fred may be a kind of a hard sell. Dude kinda sounds like Jim Jones, raps like Fabolous and looks like a giant infant with braids.

However, his recent City Of God tape with DJ Drama gives us a couple of reasons to check this dude, who might be a lost member of the Bebe’s Kids tribe. Dude comes through as a above average NY coke rapper once you cull out all the generic NY club tracks and shitty ballads. City of God gives us about 10 songs that feature Fred going in over some quality production that ranges from Lex Luger sound alikes to classic boom bap. On this tape dude sounds best over moody minimalist cocaine synth pieces. “Doves” with Pusha T features dudes rapping surprisingly about cocaine, but the combination of the cold track and Fred’s detached delivery sounds entirely on point for the remorseless dealer character he cultivates.

“How You Don’t Know Me” brings back Giorgio Moroder circa Scarface synths while Fred talks a bunch of shit. The best parts of this tape sound like a concept album about Nino Brown thinking about his life right before that old dude shot him in New Jack City. If Fred made that album he could easily carve out a lane for himself in the sea of Nautica and Northface rappers.

Download Fred The Godson’s City of God (Click Here)

—–

Riff Raff – Rap Game Larry Bird (2012) [SODMG] // Grade: B-

Sometimes screwing music works because you get a chance to really hear the intricacies of the song or pickup lyrics that you might’ve normally missed. In those instances the screw allows you to dissect the soundscape and let it wash over you. This is not one of those times. Rap Game Larry Bird is not an album that’s exceptionally deep in any way, the music is generally pretty sparse and the lyrics are absurdist rants from a dude who calls himself  “the white Gucci Mane.”

While Riff Raff has a way to go before he reaches Gucci’s level of insanity, his brand of simple rhyming and bizarre boasts “I done shook dice with Larry Bird in Barcelona” are exactly the type of rap that sounds amazing chopped up into a hypnotic mix. While Riff Raff may never get a XXL rating on anything he ever releases this album is leading the race in “best album to get high to and play Mario Kart for 5 hours” award.

Download Riff Raff’s Rap Game Larry Bird (Click Here)

—–

Dirtybird B – Hard Work In Paradise (2012) [Moon Is Half Records] // Grade: B-

Instrumental hip hop feels like it should come entirely from California. Dudes out there have giant beach,es beautiful weather, great tacos and women with tans all year long, so it makes sense when they make albums that sounds like low level psychedelic dreams. That’s the reality of California living if I’m to believe the various documentaries of the state I’ve seen (Friday, Saved By The Bell, Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and The OC).

It comes as no surprise then, that the new album from producer Dirtybird B is the sort of chilled out head nodding experience that you could imagine yourself listening to on your first night at a beach bonfire after moving to LA from Brooklyn. Headphones turned up, relaxing in a light jacket in March, thinking about the possibilities of a new city while thinking “fuck winter.”  Hard Work In Paradise is very reminiscent of the more chilled out Prefuse 73 productions or even a more rare joint like the first Dosh album. Really chill compositions that allow your mind to wander and go to beautiful places.

Download Dirtybird B’s Hard Word In Paradise (Click Here)

- raythedestroyer