LABOR DAY WEIRDO POINTS

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.

TAKING DRASTIC MEASURES (Cyphamix)

TAKING DRASTIC MEASURES (Cypha Instrumental)

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:

BEATNUTS-Sandwiches (Original Demo)

GRIMEBUILDER VS. BOOZEKILLER: DON’T CALL IT A SLUMPBACK

Dear Grimies, Crimies and Burnouts:

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.

TRY TO KEEP A PMA Y’ALL,

LUKE SICK (SMOOTH TRIUMPH)

GRIMEBUILDER PIFFCAST (FEB 2010 RPM): >>>>

So Wassup – Gangstarr

Gab Gotcha featuring JuJu of Beatnuts – Angels

Gravediggaz – Freak the Sorceress

DJ Quest featuring Eddie K – Let The Bass Go (Slow N Sick)

Godfather Don – Properties of the Steel [Cut up by DJ Premier]

Brainsick Mob – Mixmaster [Cut up by DJ Premier]

Gravediggaz – The Reincarnation of Freud

Nat The Cat – While You’ve Been Waiting

Dark Sun Riders – Time To Build

Crimson League – One Time

2 Live Crew – Ghetto Bass

Public Enemy - Get the Fuck Outta Dodge

Chrome Kidz – Livin’ My Life

Mr. Supreme – Bonus Beat #3

Krumbsnatcha – Strike Back (Closer to God Pt. II)

Cella Dwellas – Good Dwellas

Rakim – Uplift

Anything Goes – CNN, Wayne Wonder, Lexxus

Cash Money and Marvelous – Ugly People Be Quiet

QB Finest – Da Bridge 2001 (instrumental)

Screwball – Cookies-N-Cream

2 Live Crew – Trow The D

BOOZEKILLER PIFFCAST (JUNE 2010 RPM): >>>>

Booker T & The MGs – Summertime

20^th Century Steel Band – Revival

Bad Brains – I Luv I Jah

3rd Bass – Jim Backus Flippin Off the Wall Like Lucy Ball

Volume 10 – Where’s The Sniper?

Lord Sear – Alcoholic Vibes

Alkaholiks – AA Meeting Intro & Likwidation

Schoolly D – Saturday Night

Lord Digga – Crazy Drunken Style

Alkaholiks - Only When I’m Drunk

COLD HAND IN THE BAY GAME

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

ON THAT JUNK PART 2

Once again our man in the field, Hardcore Jerry a.k.a. Heathkilla, breaks you off something proper, and Eons and I put in our two cents. This post is true to the lifestyle. In this junkin' life we must cherish the adventures as well as the treasures they bring, because a digger spends 99% of his time looking and about 1% finding, and how depressed would we be if we viewed that 99% as wasted, unnecessary-to-mention, time. Sometimes the true treasure is found in simply looking; seckle, it's just fuckin' junk. And sorry about the formatting issues here; it was a lot of cut and paste from emails & message boards as well as that fucked up Mac-to-PC cross-mojo shit. Take it away, Jerry:

this weekend was pretty bad. i was on call at work and since i don't have any type of cell phone or morse code or cb radio device, i figured i shouldn't venture too far in case there was a emergency i had to tend to. chico junking sucks. sometimes yard sales are good, but the thrifts are pretty dismal. also all the decent "tweeker warehouses" seem to have gone under or turned into antique malls. i hit most of the spots by my house on friday (because everything was closed saturday) and went of a couple of yard sales. i found a pretty cool looking surfer record with a stock cover and some good liner notes and i got a really cheap tape deck which enabled me to bump public enemy and licensed to ill on the 4th. how come cassettes sound better then my ipod? i must be nuts.

also i picked up this promising looking tape which didn't end up doing much for me.
here is the songs from this tape. Another rare demo from a forgotten Bay Area hip hop pioneer! The first song on side B wins for Smooth Triumph here, because it has traces of a Paris, the Black Panther of Hip Hop, influence, and I can never be mad at that. But be warned, Jerry has this to say about it:

Jerry: the lines "like a salad menu you'll get tossed" and "it's time to bring back the track and act like a bozack" in the first song [on side 1]... it's really not a good look.

Eons: damn is jayswift rocking pajama pants ala mc stinkweed? shout out to wee wee.

Hardcore Jerry responds: damn, you've got good eyes. i'd like to think he picked the pj pants for the photo cause they are good for crouching and would blend nice with the brick backdrop. this tape is signed (again!) by jayswift and money mike on the other side of the j-card. there is no contact info whatsoever. i can't figure out if that is a sign of lack of hustle or some sort of superhustle where dudes could just be "found."

smooth triumph's two cents:
I have a Jayswift 12" from '93 put out by Nu Deal Records. It's the second of the two that Jay and Nu Deal put out. Jay probably got signed to Nu Deal on the strength of that demo tape that Jerry found. Oh shit! I guess the label pressured him into dropping DJ Pep from the moniker, 'cause it didn't fit in with their LL Cool J marketing scheme. Ha! But that's pure conjecture. This 12" is called "What'cha Gonna Do" but the b-side, "Street Life," wins every time, so that's the only one I had Eons rip for y'all. Jayswift's from San Mateo right here on the West Bay Peninsula! And this is actually some pretty rare shit. The guy definitely gets props for getting two 12"s released out of San Mateo way back in the early nines; I'm sure shit was a bitch to pull off. I think this is the first rap 12" to come out of San Mateo ever, KegsOne at San Mateo Zoo could probably clear that up for me. Also makes me wonder if Jayswift and DJ Pep were at that contest at San Mateo City College I first saw Troop 187 (aka Cult of Isis) at. To reiterate Jerry's point though, one has to wonder about "Matty-Oh!'s" understanding of the slang term "bozack" back then. At the start of "Street Life" Jayswift says, "Pay attention while Jayswift drops the bozack," and then at the end of the track he says again, "pay attention when the niggas drop the bozack and I'm out, uh!" Which wouldn't be that necessarily off if it was a sex rhyme, but this rap is about "drug money and ridin' on gold ones." He shouts out DJ Pep at the end too to show that he's still down, and he also shouts out: "MJ behind the set, gettin' busy on the motherfuckin' tracks." MJ is none other than Mark Jarvis, the producer of these beats. If you are a serious Bay Area demo freak you know of Mark Jarvis' sound from when he co-produced the song "Triple Orgasm" with Ajent Orange and Kiilani for the Nitrous Ox demo recorded at the B-Street Recordings studio in San Mateo, I think. I am currently looking for that demo, if anybody has that shit, please upload it right here. That would be dope! Soon as I find that shit in the shed, y'all gotta hear it! Those dudes were from Pacifica, I think; I used to rock that tape a lot; "Tekillya Sunrize" was my gettin' fucked up soundtrack for many months during one of those years I can't remember. There was an emcee on there named Messy Flesh who Z-Man mentions as being "nice as hell" to this day. Ajent Orange, a dope emcee in his own right, is also an old friend of Z and me. His real name is Matt Chang, but he later morphed into the moniker Matth and did some of Anticon's iller shit, beatwise. I'mma call Z and find out what Matt's up to these days, haven't talked to him (Matt) in ages, but I bet he's still concocting dusted shit. And Jerry you're right, being able to just be "found" does = superhustle.

Jayswift "Street Life" (Street Mix) Nu Deal Records, 1993

So see: going junking and buying what you think is bullshit, reminds your friend of some similar bullshit which he re-examines and re-labels "rare" bullshit, and then he connects that rare bullshit to some nostalgia that inspires him to track down a long lost acquaintance to reveal yet another lost-in-obscurity dope as fuck Bay Area demo tape whose local roots trace back to the rare bullshit and original bullshit aforementioned. Kinda makes you rethink what you originally thought was bullshit, huh? And you're not the only one that thinks so...

Look what Jayswift's debut 12" from '92 is going for in euros at the record inspector. (Is that euros? What monetary symbol is that? What's that in dollars? I'm unworldly, help.)

And look at the this weird fucking place that'll sell you the record and a burned cdr of it for quite a pretty penny.

I think Matt Chang would agree with me on this one: Respect out to Jayswift a Bay Area trailblazer for the in the independent rap 12" frontier. We have to respect our predecessors no matter their EPMD-vernacular shortcomings, because we don't exist without guys like this. And big up to San Mateo for producing an intrepid soul such as his. The risk was his to take and he faced it like a G. Part of the forgotten impetus, our forefather.

But kids don't be fooled by those added expenses for easy access. Go junking and see what 50 cents gets you. It's hardly a risk; 50 cents isn't exactly putting your neck on the line. You can do it!

Eons says: Getting home and playing a record and finding out it's dope is the shit I live for, but sometimes you can find an almost equal exhilaration in staring stoned at the sleeves and labels of your finds on the car ride home, trying to find some hint of their dopeness or wackness, because the mystery is still there at that point and that's when my hopes are at their highest.

And our story today proves that even if you are disappointed at first: Disappointments can easily become gems, simply by what they lead you to. Well, sheeeeee-it! If junking isn't the only religion that continually pays off directly and increases your appreciation for the stuff you already have at the same time, I don't know what is. Like my sister always says, "What you appreciate appreciates." She's right y'all. You gotta believe.

NO LONGER BUILT FOR ZSHARE LINKS

Looks like all the links on here are dead after Zshare's crash a week or so ago. My original plan was to reup all the dead links when we reached 10K hits, but at this point I have neither the time or the patience to re-up the entire blog. If there's a post you missed out on and you want to request a re-up, post a comment and I'll get to those first.

KRS One - Ah Yeah (Diamond D Remix)

MY DIRTY UNDIES, MY FUCKING WHITES

It's been a minute, time to do some laundry. Smooth Triumph hooked up this dope ass Gurp City instore at Rasputin's in Mountain View on August 22nd. If you are in the area be sure to juice up your ultras and strike through. Big ups Matt Loomis who killed it with the flier.
We've also been busy putting together the Grand Invincible - Purse Thieves b/w Elephant Tranq 12" which will be the first music release from the Zero Friends collective. Props to Lord Quake for making it happen. Stay tuned.
My boy Imhotep started a new blog geared towards the loud and ugly side of punk rock, hardcore, metal and lo-fi weirdness. Peep Mummified Transmissions.

Smooth Triumph and I have some good eats stewing in the olde dusty crockpot but you know how long those things take to cook shit. That's right, we're moving at the speed of a crockpot. Our gravy moves 1/4" a day. Sure you have to wait, but this shit is gonna stick to your ribs when it's done.

Ripped Open Mixtape #2

EXCUSES & MIXTAPES

Count me among the worst bloggers ever. I'll get pumped up on working on new posts and then spazz out and drop a bunch one month only to not post for an entire month. I haven't really had much time to work on this thing since I've been dwellin' in the lab whenever I'm not at work. Making music is more fun than writing about it, right? Got some new Grand Invincible joints on the way and some new posts that are already in the oven. Up next: Ed209 interview. Stay tuned. In the meantime, check out this dope virtual mixtape site. Here's mine:

Ripped Open Mixtape #1

TALES FROM THE OUTHOUSE

The bathroom at my house was being remodeled for the past six weeks. I had no shower and had to shit in a port-o-potty in my drive way. The side of my house that the port-o-potty sat on gets direct sunlight for a majority of the day. Shit was definitely not pleasant! My studio was sealed off with plastic and almost everything else in the house was stashed away or covered up in one form or another. Having my house in such disarray pretty much killed any creative urges I got during the last month and I really slacked off on pretty much everything and just tried to maintain sanity. They finally finished work on it last week. The same day they put my toilet back I retreated to the lab and put a real nice beat together like it was nothing.

In the meantime, Luke Sick and I have been putting the finishing touches on the first Grand Invincible album, "Ask the Dust", Jake Won and I are working on putting together a new podcast-style mix show, and Funeral Shock is working on a new self released 4 song 7" that will come out early next year.

Since I haven't posted in a bit I'll drop this megamix 12" I picked on a weekend dig a few weeks back. Juanito and DJ EFX worship at the altar of "Planet Rock" circa 1989. Props to Uncle Enrique!
Juanito (FX) - Don't Stop The Mix b/w Cold In Effect, Sound EFX Recordings, 1989

Don't Stop The Mix

Cold In Effect

UP NEXT: A look back at Cue's Hip Hop Shop with DJ Cue