Video Feature: "The Gods Don't Favor You"

Nacho Picasso's newest video, and first video of his latest album Exalted. With a recent article in XXL, and an album review by Spin magazine, Nacho's hype is clearly at an all time high, and it will no doubt continue to increase. The Seattle rapper's upcoming set at the Capitol Hill Block Party will likely serve as his coming out party.  As a recent ticket purchaser, I can't wait.

Finally Here: Summer 2012

The Physics- Coronas on Madrona -Live at KEXP from Sophia Gutierrez Perez on Vimeo.

Throwback Thursday: "Something New (Remix)"

On this lovely Thursday evening, as I sometimes do I found myself reliving concerts of years past via Youtube. Something that I have discovered is that almost nothing can evoke such a strong feeling of nostalgia as some of these concert videos do.
One of my greatest concert going memories has to be Bumbershoot 2010. Attending the middle day of that year's festival, I saw Fresh Espresso, The Physics, Rise Against, and most impressively, a pre-party rock anthem LMFAO perform. It was an awesome day, maybe my best of 2010.
Anyways, tonight I decided to bring back some memories from that sunny early September day. After watching a couple uploaded videos recorded at the Fresh Espresso concert, I was led to this track and music video that I was happy to re-discover. Featuring Grynch, a still generally undiscovered Macklemore, and the beat from Fresh Espresso's "Something New", this remix gave me some powerful flashbacks to some pre-junior year memories. While this track is only two years old, given the dramatic progression of local hip-hop, the video seems to hearken back to a simpler time in the Seattle music scene. 
My favorite part of the video? Gatsby is sporting a Colton Harris Moore (A.K.A the barefoot bandit) fan club t-shirt. #FreeColton

The Nu tang Clan (Nu Era)

My newest discovery, Seattle's Nu Era stays truer to the Seattle "true school" hip hop style genre than almost any other group I've listened to. In the video above for "Nu tang", the beat is simple yet dynamic. The track is ascetically pleasing. The video is also one of the best I have seen in a while. The fast pace of the song and filming gives the video a feeling similar to an action movie...with an even better soundtrack.
On their latest album Sink or Swim, the group brings in guest singers Camillo Recchio and Ray Dalton to accompany tracks that are lyrically conscious and brutally honest. The 10th song of the album, "Missed It", epitomizes the group's musical capability. The song discusses each MC's regrets and worries. "And I wish, that my uncle never got deported, and I wish, that this life was more rewarding, and I wish, less stress at an early age..". Camillo Recchio lends her vocal talents to the background of each verse and the feature on each hook. The song is haunting, and one of the most moving tracks I have heard out of Seattle.

After discovering the emerging talent that is Nu Era, I will be sure to keep up to date on their upcoming releases!

The Mysterious Wilson Luxurious

For all the die-hard view city fans out there (still working on building that demographic of the fan base) that read my post on Sam Lachow, you know that I named Wilson Luxurious as one of the rapper/producer's sidekick's of interest.
With Sam Lachow releasing the first official work of WL via a music video on his Youtube channel ShankboneLachow yesterday, I was able to take a step in uncovering the mystery of "Who is Wilson Luxurious and how did he get so awesome?". The song, "Holographic", is another entertaining look into the crazy and strange lives of Lachow's buddies. Like most Lachow productions, the track and video feels more like a party than a single song. The video features Wilson Luxurious, Sam Lachow, Sky "Blaow" Swenson dressed up in a gorilla suit, a guy dressed up as a rabbi,  and a bunch of other odd characters smoking out of bongs, drinking whiskey out of wine glasses? putting blue face paint on and showing off Pokemon cards. Lachow and Luxurious go back and forth splitting verses, rapping about a bunch of random stuff. To list some their talking points...
they rapped about themselves: "I'm seasoned like a bag of wasabi chips-WL", "I'm chill as ever, real as ever-SL". They rap about each other: "I kinda like your rapping too-SL", "I didn't even want you on this track I wasn't tryna be rude"-WL". And their favorite things: "My favorite Pokemon is Machamp, my favorite donuts glazed, my favorite weed's blue dream, maybe silver haze"-SL, "My favorite liqours whiskey my favorite mixer is ginger, one of my favorite hobbies is never losing my temper"-WL. 
The lyrics keep the listener intrigued and entertained while the varying styles of each rapper compliment each other perfectly.
With the rise of Seattle hip-hop, the culture of local songs and videos and has become more serious and professional. This is a good thing. However, it is refreshing to see a guy like Wilson Luxurious or Sam Lachow get together with a group of friends, goof around, do a bunch of stupid stuff, but still make an awesome video.  The main feeling that is conveyed though this newest addition to the "Shankbonelachow" collection is that Lachow and company are thoroughly enjoying themselves.
It sounds like a new album is coming soon from Wilson Luxurious, so hopefully we can learn more about this guy and rock out to some new tunes from the Sam Lachow crew.

My favorite line from the song? Lachow  listing off my three favorite childhood book series-"I'm a 90's baby, Randy Johnson and Dave Neihaus, Goosebumps, Captain Underpants and Magic Treehouse"

-Sam Lachow

Jarv Dee- "I Just Wanna"

This dreary June Monday marked my first day of work for this summer. Hands are still covered in paint and I'm already feeling worn out. It's days like this that I'm thankful for our city's abundance of musical talent.
The Seattle artist that earns my song of the day selection is Jarv Dee. Featured in Nacho Picasso's Moor Gang, Jarv Dee caught my attention with his video for "I Just Wanna", off his latest album Dopamine.
For anyone that's ever had a bad day and just wants to say fuck it (As Jarv Dee does in the opening line), "I Just Wanna" is a perfect song to sooth the soul. The track features a hook that is completely perfect in it's own right. With the lyrics, "I just wanna smoke my weed and drink some of my fifth, they ask me why I am a dawg I say well life's a bitch" Jarv bluntly lays out his priorities (no pun intended), leading the listener to lean back and say "Word Jarv Dee, word".  Jarv Dee's Effortless flow goes hand in hand with the laid back beat, and advertises punchlines such as "I'm in love with Mary Jane, call me Peter Parker ", and "Call me Mr. DUI  yes I'm higher than the sky".
Regularly collaborating with Nacho Picasso, I hope to see Jarv Dee make an appearance at Nacho's block party set! 
Download Dopamine for free here.

Spotlight on the Alabama Shakes

With the emergence of the Black Keys and the lasting footprint left by the White Stripes, a significant interest in blues driven indie rock has been instilled in today's youth. As a result, the Alabama Shakes of Athens Alabama have picked an ideal time to debut their talents. Released in April, their most recent album Boys and Girls features their hit song "Hold On" which is getting some nationwide radio play. Like most casual fans of the Alabama Shakes, "Hold On" was the track that drew me into the group's music, but dig deeper into the record and you will find upbeat tracks, moving lyrics, and an unmatched amount of soul. 

"Hang Loose" starts out with a fast paced country feel, but as the song reaches the chorus the band changes key and adds some splashy drumming and drawn out guitar strums to give the track a moody jazz tone. An organ kicks in late and brings the song back home to the band's blues roots.  

On "Heartbraker", singer Brittany Howard takes the listener on soulful journey through the emotional intent of the song. With such variation in lyrical theme and musical style,  Boys and Girls is an album that deserves to be listened straight through.
Next to not picking Kentucky to win the NCAA tournament while filling out my bracket, one of my greatest regrets so far in 2012 was not seeing the Alabama Shakes at Sasquatch this year. However, I will be sure to catch a show next time their in town.