This is some record-for-record Screwball battle shit (a contest I realize going into I have little to no chance of winning). No rules. You got a record with Screwball on it, post it, and let the duns judge which shit kills it (but obviously album cuts get less points).
I'mma spark it with Cookies-N-Cream 12". "The milky white crys-tals protected by the pis-tals." This was produced by Ghetto Pros and put out by Screwball Records in conjunction with Hydra Ent. in conjunction with Sneak Tip Records. Sneak Tip was the distro right? Is that shit still around? Eons what you got son!!???! Bump Queens.
Closed session kid. Here's a mix of some (not all) recordings and artists I'm into these days, mostly cutty Bay Area locals, and if not I'm sure they're cutty local somewhere. Here's somewhat of a track list (I don't know all the song titles so I left em off):
Jazzy Jay, Afrika Bambatta
Foul Mouth Jerk, TopR, Conceit, Merkulson
Grand Invincible
Beird by Son Tiff
Fist Fam, Ville Boyz
Brainsick Mob
Richie Cunning
Six Feet Deep
Fuck MCs
Dave Dub and the Sutter Cain Gang
MF Doom
Fog
Rec League
Eddie K, Brandon B, Thug E Fresh, Fay Dog, MC Oroville
I discovered this 12" through my buddy Ken Prank (locals may know Ken as a record swap regualr as well as the mastermind behind the killer punk/hc label Prank Records). I snagged a few cheap lp's off one of Ken's recent set sale lists and he warned me that they were not in the best shape. To make up for that and the fact I was paying for him to ship them 20 miles, he said he'd throw in a rap 12" he'd found a bunch of sealed copies of at Goodwill. It "isn't a heavy," he told me, but I still curious to see what it was as Ken digs for records in the Bay harder than most dj's and producers I know (if you put an ad on craigslist with the word "records" in it, you can almost guarantee a response from Ken). I wasn't sure what to expect, but when the package arrived and I saw the DFTC 12", the cover hit me like a ton of black bricks: a dope line drawing of a b-boy with a gun to the head of a fat pig cop. Damn! What a sick cover! I flipped it over to see who drew it and low and behold it was Dug One TMF. I glanced over the credits and none of the names rang any bells except for Ken Lee being the mastering engineer. I threw it on and the first thing that popped in my head was PARIS. MC Mike P., "The Mex In Effect", was obviously feeling P-Dogs black empowerment vibe and flipped it Mexican style for DFTC (Down For The Cause). From the Black Panther samples to the tempos to Mike P.'s cadence -- Paris. "Bring It On" is an uptempo call for revolution: "This is war / and I'm in it to win it / I'll drop the mic and grab a gun in a minute". The 808 on this is relentless and I can't help but imagine that co-producer J-Spina was using a Nissan minitruck as his monitor speaker when laying this down. And the drums hit hard, really hard. The kick rhythmically knocks a wheezing robot in the chest, apparently hanging on just to bust a fresh rhythm scratch and let everyone know that, while the revolution will not be televised, it will indeed test the engineering of various imported chassis rolling Vogues up and down Mission St. The flipside, "Laws Are For The Rich" is a bit slower and has more of a Public Enemy with it's Bomb Squad style production. That fucking 808 is still there, booming like a mother fucker, upsetting uppity neighbors all over the 415. "Go ahead and call the cops on me and my boys for beatin' out my Maxell copy of this 12. I got my 9 stashed in my Kangol under the seat." At least, that's what it sounds like the song is telling me. And check that breakdown out, this track megamixes itself! So after wiping the drool from my chin, I set out to google this lil guy. I was already bugging because there is no date printed anywhere on the sleeve or label (I'm guessing 1991), but when I discovered there wasn't even a discogs entry for this I was further intrigued. In fact, the only mention on the web I could find was an old Hip Hop Slam post by Billy Jam which mentions "writer/emcee Michael Perry (formerly of DFTC)" as author of the childrens book Turntable Timmy. Suddenly I flash back to the last bookstore job I held (working for one of the biggest assholes I've ever had the displeasure of working for) where I was consistently trying to stretch three hours of work into an eight hour day, the only male working in the store, trying to down out the menopausal crying and ex-husband phone calls of my worker who sat behind me. One day I was doing some mindless data entry at my desk when I overheard "...and the artwork was done by Doug Cunningham, a local graffiti artist." My ears pricked up and I started eavesdropping on the conversation. Turns out it was Michael Perry (aka Mike P.) trying to hustle his book to our childrens book buying mess of a human. I waited till he was done with his pitch, she agreed to buy a few books and got up and introduced myself. I told him I overheard him talking about Dug One and Q-Bert to which he responded, "You write?" We chopped it up for a bit before and Mike was mad cool. I wished him luck with his book and went back to my desk, realizing that I just let my annoying ass coworker in on some shit we typically keep secret. I wish I would have been hip to this DFTC 12" then. That would have added a bit of extra irony since the owner of the store was a filthy rich former attorney who probably grimaced the minute he saw the Turntable Timmy books The Mex In Effect had just snuck in through the back door!
Pilot Rase writing rhymes in the motorhome studio circa 1997.
Warrior Paint is a previously unreleased demo by FTA.
FTA - Full-Time Artists-Four-Track Anthems. In order on this jam: Unbreakable Combz, Triangulum, and Pilot Rase. They all rap; they all do production. I think they made this in early Two-Triple-Omega. A perfect example of Milpitas' contunued legacy of demented skillz, fly tags, and intricate pieces.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: GURP FEST 2010, FRI. DEC. 17th @ CLUB 6 SF
In the last couple of years, the “crud coalition” (as the late great Killa Sha would say) known as GURP CITY has become the most talked-about wild bunch in San Francisco Hip-Hop. Bringing music fans from all over the country to Club 6 in the Tenderloin District, GURP FEST 2010 focuses on reunions, big names in the scene and fan favorites from around the Bay Area and beyond.
This year’s fest promises to incite total ruckusness: Headliner TOPR has curated what is undoubtedly the strongest lineup to date, and has also expanded the event to include more scratch and megamix DJs than ever before. Beginning 9:30 PM FRIDAY DECEMBER 17TH @ CLUB 6, GURP FEST will blister San Francisco with the wide range of local and distant styles that rap and DJ fans have come to expect from “The City In A Bottle,” a.k.a. GURP CITY, check the logo, relly.
The fest culminates on Saturday night at Gestalt on 16th Street in the Mission District for DJ Toph One’s 40th Birthday Bash, where GURP CITY MCs and DJs will “cut heads” in an off the cuff crew session, dive bar style.
The festivities actually jump off TOMORROW NIGHT: Dec. 15th Wednesday at this party featuring other local legends and up and comers- Bored Stiff, Gas Mask Colony and Spank Pops:
Here's Gurp City's latest under TopR&FMJ's Gurp City South logo - Foulmouth Jerk featuring Artifacts - "Back Up On The Scene." TopR on the beer spit up cameo!! Beat produced by Cutty Bang.
The story as I know it (and I assure you I'm wrong) goes something like: Marz made this mixtape while still in high school in Millbrae to capitalize off the local noteriety he received after crushing some soft duck at a lunchtime DJ battle in the school's courtyard judged by DJ Disk. Marz has this battle on VHS tape and I hope this encourages him to digitize this footage and upload it to the inna-webba-nets. BUMP SPACE TRAV!!
Rob Rush from Rec League sent me these, and nobody knows who they are by let alone the titles... DO YOU? The birth of Bay Area backpacker style was dope when all the songs revolved around pretty much the same 3 themes: being broke, selling/smoking weed, and girl trouble.
Rob said these two were found on a tape of early Hiero and Sole Sides demos. Is it Sha-men? Snupe? Good guesses, but we're not convinced. One of the songs mentions Lake Merritt, so we're definitely thinking East Bay (possibly North Oakland), but that's our only lead. We have no proof, no suspects, no motive... I know the answer's going to be an obvious one and I'm gonna slap my forehead like a doomkoff!! If you have any clues or the answer (with proof optional) itself, please help us unravel this mystery... dum dah dum dum...
Megamix live on the radio Fall of Twenty-One-Omega courtesy of DJ CIKEE & KPFA's (Berkeley) annual fundraiser.
Mission Cartel (DJs Quest (BPSH) & 2 Fresh) is joined by SF's DJ B-Cause for an hour & 15 minutes of the future funk, great hip-hop, enjoy it burnouts! And find more of the like at DJ2fresh.com
This tape was recorded by DJ, MC, cratediggin' beatmaker, graff writer, and all-around hip-hopper SYZE ONE in 1996 and stylishly labeled using white-out and black Sharpie. Syze hails from Hawaii, but he lived in SF in 1997 and that's when he gave me this jewel filled with blends, beats he made, and his crew's own demo songs, back when your mix tape actually had to be mixed and not just hosted by DJ Annoying-voice. Syze did it all. His group was the Hoomanakaz and he repped the Hi-State Crew. He had a homie named Mr. E who was equally adept with the beats and rhymes. I also remember him mentioning an affiliation with House of Repz that were signed to Duck Down for a while (they may still be, I haven't been keeping tabs). Enjoy the snippets in all their 4-track glory.
This promo came out in 1991 to launch Prince Paul's Rush Assciated Labels imprint, Dew Doo Man Records. Definitely top-notch Paul admist the De La Is Dead era, and I think the "I've been expecting you" was re-used by KMD on Mr. Hood. Or is it the other way around? The Dew Doo Man logo is the classic smiling cartoon blob of shit with a cape on. The MC (or MCs??) is Resident Alien, and I don't know too much about him/them, but apparently this isn't his/their only record. Who could forget Mr. Boops? I love this beat. Used to open our radio show, "The Monday Night Hype" on KSCU in Santa Clara circa 1992 with the instrumental every week. Discogs got this for sale for like $34 or something. It's a bueatiful 2 minutes and 10 seconds of dew doo. I spun this at a cannabis club parking lot party where I got paid with a chemdog Medi-cone, and Brian Rich the rap-buyer from Streetlight Records in SJ, came up and checked the label and gave me the thumbs up. Straight dap.
Santa Cruz in the HOUSE! In 1994, producer, emcee, b-boy and DJ, Coolie Bee (one half of Asphalt Poetry) took it upon himself to document the little known hip-hop scene in Santa Cruz, California. With the ambition of releasing a compilation featuring various crews who were representing Santa Cruz down to Monterey Bay, he produced and released the album on tape in 1995. There were only 300 copies of the tape made, and these were only sold locally. To support the full-length release, a 12” single was also pressed to promote the album and the artists. There were 100 copies of the 12” pressed, given out on a promotional basis (See what Kutmasta Kurt, also a Santa Cruz native, had to say about that). Recorded and engineered at the Glue Factory by Dan “The Automator” Nakamura, the compilation and 12” have sat largely unknown to people outside (and inside!) Santa Cruz and the Bay Area.
Nearly 16 years since the original Asphalt Legion tape was released in late 1994/early 1995, New Medina Music is proud to annouce the re-release in association with Imperial and Asphalt Records. Taken from the original DATs, the sound, style and rawness of the sessions have not lost their spirit in the 15 years since. A full-interview (over 10.00 words in entirety) was conducted with Imperial (formerly DJ Coolie B) documenting the Santa Cruz scene from the early 80s thru the mid 90s [YO OH!!! When can we get our hands on that???]. The EP's (Volumes One and Two) are 200-copy, limited pressings, not to be repressed. Test pressing have been approved, and shit's been shipping since June 1st, I think (shit, it might already be sold out, there were only 2 hunski).
Special thanks to DJ Oh from New Medina for the content above and the promo below.
Here's my burn of both whole sides of the original tape that I got from the Mt. View Tower Records in like '96, and it's best described like the "baby's blanket" hash oil that's dripped on the bud before assembling this post: an intelligent lifeform in and of itself, rolling freely like mercury, losing and regaining form at will, exploring the dank terrain, until sparked to sparkle and sizzle, then inhaled as a conduit to uncharted levels. Master-eschelon hip hop skills presented by true connoisseurs of the dusted era. THIS is the art-form currently on the brink of extinction we so dearly cherish. "Punked Like The Rest" and "Stamina" are my go-to joints. Don't mind the hiss.
asphalt legion side a: straight from the asphalt, punked like the rest, buddah funk, put it to a stop, fact of the matter, stamina, south bay clout part one
asphalt legion side b: concrete rhymes, brain blast, check my temper, deliberate, big bhang theory, south bay clout part two
Cappadonna's the flyest stylist of the weird shit, breaking it down with other weirdos: Wizone and Lork LaRock over a J.Mob dirt beat. This is a weird 12", but the beat is just so dirtball! It came out in '96 and the only person thanked in the liner notes is Jesus Christ. Word Billy.
Bonus: Here's also the original demo of "Sandwiches" by the Beatnuts where JuJu says, "I smoke roaches with basketball coaches..." Props to Vrse Murphy of Sacred Hoop for digging this out for me:
1995- Most heads first become aware of Queens' rapper B-1 on Kool G Rap's "Take 'Em To War," also featuring MF Grimm and produced by T-Ray for G Rap's "4,5,6" album. "Shit ain't never gonna change, fuck it!" B-1 and Grimm also appear on the song "Money On My Brain" from the same album, produced by Dr. Butcher.
1996- MF Grimm drops his Dr. Butcher produced debut 12", "Get Down" on Dolo Records. The b-side, "Emotions" features raps by a QU soldier from Farmers Blvd. named B-1.
1997- Rawkus gives one of the streetest of street MCs his provebial break by releasing ONE a.k.a. B-1's debut 12", "Verbal Affairs" b/w "Empire Staters." The big orange sticker on the all black center-hole sleeve boasts a Large Professor (as Extra P) guest appearance that thirteen years later I've finally realized amounts to simply "Eh yo, One! We got 'em right where we want 'em, baby! Yo! It's official" right before the last chorus that itself gets cut off, abruptly interrupted, an audio fuck it. Track was produced by Yusef Lewis for Large Productions. I would love to hear more from this guy for sure, but I think this is one of only two beats he's ever released to the public. Respect the triumphant non-prolific. The J.D. Salinger award. B-1 lets us know he's the "rap Arafat with coke inside a travel bag." The b-side, "Empire Staters," produced by grimemaster Chuckie Madness, also found its way on to the Soundbombing comp released later that same year on Rawkus as well.
1998- ONE goes back to being B-1, and Rawkus releases the sophmore 12": "Cardinal Sins featuring Kool G Rap & B.O.M.B." [even though the cover only lists G Rap... note: that might be the cutty-est underground rapper move ever: the liner notes only rapper! talk about bottom billin'! Some mixtapes list this track as "Against the Grain"] b/w "The Life We Lead" produced by Chuckie Madness (murderous bird chirps!) and DJ Kool G, respectively; and recorded and mixed by that ill engineer Large Professor in the Queens Lounge. B.O.M.B's Shan accents and influence hammers home that these artists rise from one of the strongest legacies of rhyme technique on the planet (and can anybody find another recorded rhyme by B.O.M.B.? That's a challenge). And to even further thicken the obscurity: As far as I know, DJ Kool G produced the b-side, "The Life We Lead," track to this 12", "Ms. Fat Booty" for Mos Def in 1999, another 12" for B-1 that same year, and then disappeared. Somebody tell me, is that really Kool G Rap?
1999- UK label Stonegroove Recordings releases the hard to find B-1 and Large Professor single, "Put Yo' Self In My Place" b/w "Hustle" both produced by DJ Kool G. (or is this Red Alert's son?).
I can't really speak on the first Grimm or these last two 12"s, because I don't own them... yet. Best believe I got my lazy eye out, though! Didn't ANY real 90s hip-hop heads that didn't fall off become millionaires?? Not even just one? Why can't someone find it in them to financially back the reunion of B-1, Yusef Lewis, Chuckie Madness, DJ Kool G, with Large Professor on the boards to finally create the album that all these 12"s wholeheartedly anticipated but never came to fruition. I really wish I could hear that... and throw in some demos by B.O.M.B., thanks spanks!
Here’s two mixes I made when preparing for RPM at Mardi Gras (the monthly EONS ONE has held down in Redwood City since the start of this year). I can’t mix records, but he invited me play my records at his b-day party in Feb. and at the Black Stamp vs. Spareorgan show in June and this is what I pulled out.You’ll notice that BOOZEKILLER is quite a bit shorter and ends in a very predictable, almost to the verge of mind-crippling disappointment, fashion, much like many a recent night of drinking for this old bingemeister.The difference is I was already drunk when I started BOOZEKILLER, and I kicked off GRIMEBUILDER by sparking an L of Casey Jones grinded with Candy Purple, so it turned into the type of songs that I like to flip a razorblade from beneath my tongue, catch it between my teeth and smile at high school girls on Caltrain to and then it gets surprisingly nostalgic, then slightly rare, then commonly nostalgic, and then… Wayne Wonder starts singing… and yer like, “Prop 215 is turnin’ Californians fucking retarded, yo…”What can I say?“My mind be seein’ crazy visions and goin’ on mad journeys when I’m keefy, ock.”Personally, if I was piffy and came across it, I’d download it for the Mr. Supreme beats alone, if I didn’t already have the record.
I know me and EONS been in deep isolation this spring and summer, but hopefully the reasons for that will make the high-ate-us seem worth it very soon.But anyway, I’mma try an’ keep shit movin’ on ROBME again.A rare 90’s tape from the NorCalifornian Coast up soon and other gems, so stay tuned.I hope you enjoy listening to the records, ‘cause it’s all I ever wanna do anymore.
I mentioned this briefly in last week's post and I finally got the master last night, uploaded it and now G.I. is off to SXSW! Enjoy and feel free to respost:
THE LOW BUDGET / NO BUDGET SAGA:
Some point and time around Summer 2009: Earlier in the year I had just been mowed down by a lady driving a brand new Infinity while I was riding my bicycle to work. I sustained a broken elbow, which meant I could not work and the next few months would be consumed with physical therapy, surgery and more physical therapy. I was unable to DJ, unable to play shows and was essentially going insane having been deprived of ability to create noise, an obsession that is typically insatiable even with two good elbows. I had a lot of time on my hands and not much to do. I got my cannabis prescription. I reunited with my homie MC Stinkweed who I had previously worked with in the Shadow People and Shed Dwellaz and introduced him to Luke Sick. Stinkweed was out of work and Luke was working part time so my house became the weekday hangout spot. One day we entered the studio and emerged with “Brain Exploder” which served as the catalyst for this comp. I hit up some of my beat making homies (T.C. Bonelocs and G-Pek) to see if they were down to contribute a couple beats with the plan being to record and release a compilation as cheaply as possible and give it away for free. I invited a bunch of MC’s to come through and rip the tracks and the result is what you are now listening to. Of course, nothing is easy. During the course of the project the motherboard in my Mac needed to be replaced, the hard drive with all the sessions on it crashed and the data needed to be retrieved and two of the MC’s featured were locked up (Tizoe DaVinci is still locked down as I type. Keep your head up homie!). So enjoy and feel free to share this with all your friends. I ended up putting a lot more time and money into this than I planned but the original intent was to give it away for free and that’s just what we fin to do!
Aight chill,
DJ Eons One
625/ UM/ AS/ Gurp City
3/16/10
It's no secret the blog has been mad slow with the updates recently. For a minute we were able to hold down a weekly post, but that seems like ages ago. I feel like we straight up fell off on posting. Truth be told, Smooth Triumph and I have been pretty busy putting together the latest Grand Invincible album, "Cold Hand In The Dice Game" which is available now from ZeroFriends. We also put together a limited collector pack for the ultra nerds which you can get here. The video above is one of the songs off the new album. We've also been working hard on the forthcoming "Low Budget / No Budget" compilation which will be available for free download very soon. Stay tuned!
I also wanted to drop links to stuff a few of our rellies have been working on. 2010 we fin to give y'all a dose of the mega-flex:
Eddie K just dropped a new album called "Future Spit" which is available through Gurp City Digital. Grab it here.
The Machete Vox crew just released a new Z-Man ep for FREE called "Show up, Shut Up and Rap". It should also be noted that Eddie Def scratches on 3 of the tracks! Errry!
Gus Cutty of the mighty Fist Fam has also unleashed a new blog aimed at collecting all press releases, show announcements, etc. from our growing crew of Bay Area DIY hip hop groups. Simple and straightforward, I suggest bookmarking it for future reference. Gus also promises to get a podcast up and running ASAP. Check it out: fogbreaks.com
Bay Area refugee TopR Holiday now resides in North Carolina where he has found a new podium for his drunken philosophizing. Once again teaming up with partner Foul Mouth Jerk, the two MCs and a myriad of guests talk about whatever the fuck pops into their head on their weekly Worst Case Scenario radio show on Ashville FM. Check em out here.
And lastly, long time college radio DJ and ROBME supporter Japanic now has a page set up to archive past radio shows. He's got a killer Spiderman tribute mix he put together up right now. http://soundcloud.com/japanic
The Easy Rider Boys are back! Now under the moniker Contraband, Joe Dub, Alex75 and DJ Marz have just released their second 7", this time on Asita. This time they are joined by none other than Devin the Dude!! Marz produced the Devin track and it's a grimey, futuristic slap where Devin masterfully riffs about how we don't have to do anything any more in the modern world 'cause it's all electronic and done for us and Joe Dub comes rippin in there seamlessly as well like he was just adding his G knowledge to the convo for a laidback result that makes me wanna mix vodka and peach schnapps with Arizona Arnold Palmer. But on the Alex75 produced flipside Joe Dub really shines as an accomplished San Francisco MC (now residing in the middle of the Pacific) dedicated to the craft with rhymes that show that when dues have been paid... it really pays off. The man is a certified pro. For any serious Devin the Dude fanatic and anybody serious about indy Northern California/Bay Area rap vinyl releases this is a must have. A great record on the best format.
First, Eddie K and then Devin ?!?!!?! Who will be next? Blowfly? Actually I heard next up Joe will be releasing the legendary Ellay Khule/Rifleman (produced by CVE) 7" on his own Cali Classics label. I wholeheartedly salute these noble endeavors.
Recorded much earlier this decade, but never released, here's a Maxi-12" packed with raw underground hip hop power that hit the cutting room floor, but can now be released digitally like it was aged whiskey. Raw B of KUSF Beat Sauce (R.I.P.) cred is a minimalist beast on the MPC. He was raised by the old school and brought it to radio every week for the true heads to absorb. That's Bambatta sitting down in black peeping the vet's skills in the top pic. Respect.
Any Bay Area rap radio show tapes - 1980's thru 90's Brainsick Mob 12" Marzette Watts - Marzette Watts & Co. LP Phil Blunts - They Don't Really Love Us 12" Pitch Black - Analyze the Progam 12" Reggie Reg - Da Junkys Son 12" Slum Brothers - The Sure Shot 12" Troubleneck Brothers - Back to the Hip Hop 12" V/A Lost 'N Yonkers 2xLP
This is some record-for-record Screwball battle shit (a contest I realize going into I have little to no chance of winning). No rules. You got a record with Screwball on it, post it, and let the duns judge which shit kills it (but obviously album cuts get less points). 
