First off, my apologies for WYDU turning into a inbox of solicited emails the past few weeks. Life has been crazy lately with moves, weddings, family events and some other personal stuff going on (example: I've only played one game of Madden since it dropped Friday). I got my computer over to my new crib and the broadband installed, but for some reason, my computer is not seeing the connection. Go figure. I don't like posting up the same stuff that every other blogger is, no disrespect to anyone else, but this was always supposed to be fairly original material. Just haven't had the time as of late. We'll get it back in control here soon though.
Next, my number four album of 2008 (and my #49 best album of the 2000's) is available for free download. Grip Grand dropped an excellent album last year and rumor has it that it's up for free this year. No excuses for NOT checking out Brokelore now.....-Trav
Grip Grand -- Broklelore (Look Records) feat. appearances and production from Percee P, A.G. (DITC), DJ Design (Foreign Legion), MF Shalem (Prod. of Sage Francis' Makeshift Patriot), and more.
http://www.zshare.net/download/64093839d7fae8f4/
As I said, I've had this album on the iPod since finding it over a year ago (thanks Eric and Scholar). I have nothing but good things to say about it so I highly suggest getting off your ass, check out some good music (if you normally agree with my tastes, then I know you will like this) even if you have never heard of Grip Grand. It's a must....
facebook.com/gripgrand
myspace.com/gripgrand
gripgrand.com
8/18/2009
Grip Grand - Brokelore free download
11/21/2008
Grip Grand Interview
One Sunday afternoon this spring I was talking to my man Eric over at When They Reminisce on the telly. The topic, as usual, was hip hop. Eric knows my tastes and listening habits fairly well and suggested that I listen to this artist called Grip Grand. I didn't know who this Grip Grand cat was, but E suggested it was something I'd probably really like. No less than two hours later, another fellow blogger, Scholar over at Souled On had sent me an email, like he tends to do every couple weeks. Scholar and I swap names of artists we are listening to and suggest stuff the other might like. Again, the name Grip Grand was brought up. Two people that know and understand my quirky tastes pretty well had mentioned the same artist in a very short time. Sooooo I did what any self respecting blogger would do. I found his latest album and downloaded it. That night, I put Grip Grand's Brokelore on my iPod and went through my nightly ritual of listening to music to unwind right before I got to bed. I think the iPod was on random and the track "But Anyway" came on. Immediately, the horns, a sample from the "Jump Around" intro, caught my attention. Then came on a rolling (as in steady drums) break and Grip started spitting. He wasn't a awe inspiring MC, but there was something about his voice and style that just hooked me.
Since that night, I've bought both of Grips solo albums, Welcome To Brokeland and Broklore, with Brokelore easily being one of my favorite albums of the year. Coupled with a easy going demeanor and an easy to listen to rhyme style, Grip just grabbed my attention from the first track and didn't let go until the final track, the ever so dope "Remember The Time" ended. As I have in the past, if I get hooked onto an album, I ended up contacting Grip via myspace. After some banter back and forth and three or four months of waiting on my part, then a few weeks while Grip was out on the road and working on a slew of upcoming projects, we finally got the interview done. As I said, if you have been into stuff I have endorsed in the past, I HIGHLY endorse Grip Grand, so be sure to check his music and pick up his projects.
I got people asking me about Grip and the album after declaring it my fourth favorite album of the first half of '08. Of course, I don't offer up retail albums, those can be found in other places (like stores), but Grip himself posted up this mixtape that has quite the humorous story behind it. It's definitely worth the read and the music is from earlier in his career, but I think it gives a good starting point on what to expect from the album if you unfamiliar with his music. This won't be the last you hear of Grip Grand on WYDU (I think you know what that means), but give this mixtape a listen and read one of the funnier stories I've heard in hip hop in awhile.....
WYDU: What's good, Grip? Can we get a proper introduction for those few unlucky souls who are not hipped to as of yet?
Grip Grand: Grip Grand, That’s me. Nice to meet you all. Now we’re best friends! Do you like hip-hop? Me too! We have so much in common! This is great…
W: Wow, what a coincidence, we'll get along just fine. So....what's the story behind your name.....haha, nah, just kidding. I only bring that up because it seems I've seen that question on everything I've read from your past interviews.
GG: My name? Yeah, lots of speculation. I’d understand if I had a more colorful moniker, like, say, Diamond Shell or Frukwan or, uh, Shorty Shit Stain. But mine’s is pretty plain. Let’s just say a friend gave it to me, and we’ll both know that’s not the whole story. But it’s the most interesting part…which is pretty pathetic.
W: Names aside, you've lived from LA to Portland, Oregon, to the Bay Area in between. Which location would be your favorite? Which contains the bests scene productive to the fabled "underground hip hop" label?
GG: I’ve been all over the West Coast, but my heart is in Frisco because it’s my birthplace (and also in Oakland…because I hella love Oakland). Plus, I like the weather best in the Bay.
As far as which city has the best “scene” for underground hip-hop…if we had a good scene, maybe we wouldn’t be underground anymore. Sometimes I think underground just means no one shows up. No, actually, every town I’ve lived in has a pretty vibrant scene, but I wasn’t really part of any local movements (I wish I had been, maybe I’d be famous now). To quote Andre 3K, “I grew up to myself, not round no park bench”….
W: Some people might not be aware that you've been doing music since the late 90's. How did you get your start in the game and what were some of early influences?
GG: I’ve been rapping for a long time….My first inspiration—as far as making my own rap music—was my friend P-Way (then known as P-Champ…also, incidentally, the man who named me “Grip”). He and his crew started 3 Shades of Rhythm, which later became Bored Stiff. All their demo tapes were dope, it really made me wanna try harder. But I never recorded anything, I just kept writing and practicing, and also I started collecting records around that time. Then, many years later, I hooked up with my man Sep, a rapper/ producer I went to college with in Portland, and he had a sampler and a cassette four-track…. Sep taught me how to work the boards, then I bought my own sampler and four-track and started recording myself. And the songs that I made on those machines became my first album (Welcome to Broakland). I put out the single (Pro-Gress/Santa Ana Winds 12”) on my own in ’99, before the LP was complete. Once I finished the album, I basically sent out demos in the mail, and I got a deal with Bomb for a full release in 2002.
W: As you said, you hooked up with Bomb Hip Hop Records, which is somewhat made a name for itself through the DJ comps it used to do. Can you expand more on the Bomb deal?
GG: I sent out ten unsolicited demos to various labels, all wrapped in homemade envelopes that looked like they probably held a ransom note or something. Of the ten recipients, only two replied. One wrote a nice note saying "Thanks, but no thanks." The other was Dave Paul at Bomb. My demo was maybe five songs, something like that. He asked if I had anything else, so I sent him the whole album. I think he had me take off like one song and a couple of instrumental interludes, but other than that…he mastered it and released it pretty much as is. So remember, even though people say you don’t get a deal sending out random demos…anything is possible.
W: That first album, Welcome to Broakland, came out in 2002, how would you describe yourself as an artist then and now? How is different to your latest album, Brokelore?
GG: Man, in some ways it seems like night and day, in other ways ain’t sh*t changed but the name. I’m more confident in my skill and ability now, I think my new songs are more polished, the production and lyrics are more wide-ranging stylistically. Welcome to Broakland has a more stripped-down production and vocal style than Brokelore, so it sounds more intimate, maybe, but rougher around the edges. Whereas Brokelore has some of the songs I’m most proud of to date as a musician and a songwriter. Also, it has Percee P and A.G., so…you can’t knock that. In terms of subject matter, though, whichever album you hear, it’s mostly punchlines and life, man, that’s what I do. Normalcore. Nothing really changed there. The challenge of rap is to say something dope and to say it in a dope way. Some people specialize in just thoughtful content, or just flow, or just punchlines. I seek the balance.W: There was quite a bit of time between Welcome to Brokeland and Brokelore, to some of us (myself included) you came off as a "new" artist. What were you doing in the time between the two albums, and how do you view being seen as "new" by unassuming dumb asses, such as myself?
GG: Oh, I’m fine with being seen as a new artist, as long as I’m being seen. I definitely don’t take offense. I’m just happy if people hear my music. I work hard on it. And the time delay between albums is partly due to that, to taking my time, not rushing songs. I changed labels along the way, started working with new people, learning new equipment, new methods of production…I went back to school to get certified in audio engineering and recording. So I was delayed by life, but also I wanted to deliver quality work. I really like the album format. Nowadays we digest music much more quickly, one new song at a time, minute to minute…but with Brokelore, I wanted to deliver a total experience, a world you can get lost in for an hour or go back to later and find something new. Hopefully I achieved that, but it’s not for me to say.
W: Not only do you rhyme on your projects, but you also produce a lot of your tracks. How is the mind state different going from production to writing rhymes? Which do you prefer to do more?
GG: I’m mostly self-produced, and I feel it’s an advantage as an artist. Understanding how music production works definitely informs my writing and vice versa. Basically, I’m a songwriter—the piano and the pen are tools of the same trade. But in a funny way, they occupy different parts of my brain. If I’m making a beat, I stay in beat mode. If I’m writing, I do that. I don’t hop back and forth, work on a beat and write to it all at the same time. There’s also a qualitative difference, in that with the writing, often you’re telling someone something, but with the music you’re making them feel it. I enjoy both, I like the interplay of the two. It’s another balancing act.
W: You mention in the liner notes for Brokelore about a hard drive crash that nearly wiped out all the work you had done up to that point on the album, how did that change the final project?
GG: Yeah, there was a catastrophic hard-drive event at the Look Records studios. Basically, all of the original files that made up my album were destroyed in the process. Luckily, every time we had completed recording a cut, we burned a disc of that song to listen to. In the end, those discs saved us, because we had working copies of each track. But they were the only survivors. So the main effect this meltdown had on the final project was a limiting one: we had no instrumentals, no acappellas, no clean versions…none of the extras that you would put on a single, or offer for remixing, or whatever. Nor could we go back and “fix” anything, change the mixes, the levels, etc. We just took what we had and rolled with it. I guess you could say God decided on the final mix for us. Or Steve Jobs. One of the two.
W: You have some quality guest appearances, and well placed I might add, on the album. How did you hook up with Percee P and AG, two of the more well known ones?
GG: A.G. was a label mate, recording his album for Look at the same time that I was starting work on mine. I guess he liked "Poppin’ Pockets", so Design hit me up about doing a remix with A.G. on it. That’s an artist I really respect, and I was honored to do a second version with him. He put it down on that song.
Percee P was the same kind of thing, except he wasn’t on Look. But Design hooked up with him for something, and I had already done this track (Paper Cup) that was like a fast-rap beat and it was only one verse…so Design figured Perce was the perfect cat to be on it. And he murdered the beat, as always. Look up “pay dues” in the dictionary and you will see Percee P’s face, the man is a legend, on the mic and on the grind (check out an interview with the Rhyme Inspector himself on my crew’s website: http://www.routinefly.com/2008/10/percee-p-interview-in-santa-cruz-10308/). Again, working with him was an honor.
W: Possibly my favorite joint on the album is "Remember The Time". A friend of mine explained who Darondo was and I thought it was a most interesting story. Is that just a straight up sample, or did you actually do work with him? If so, how did you hook up with him?
GG: Darondo does have an interesting story, and anyone who likes classic, gritty soul music should cop his records. Sadly (for me), I didn’t get to work with him on this one. It is, in fact, a sample…and by “a sample” I mean “me rapping over his whole song just as it appears on his album.” Now, I know some people are against this kind of thing (but don’t call it stealing…we paid him for it). However, those people are clearly not familiar with classics like Ghostface Killah’s Holla, where he raps over the Delfonic’s "La La Means I Love You" in its entirety.Really, what happened is that I wrote this song—which was meaningful to me because of the subject matter (the dearly departed and so on)—and I recorded the original demo over that Darondo song…it was just the perfect tempo and vibe and all. I figured that later on I would make a beat with the same type of feeling, and then I would redo the song. But the more we listened to it, to the sound and the emotion of the demo, the more we said “Can we just clear the sample and use it as is?” And it turns out that Yes, we can. So we did. And now the demo version, which was a one-take thing I did at home, is what you hear on the album.
W: I got to ask about the one song that kinda seems out of place. I know I'm not the only one who thinks this, since I've seen you explain the existence of "Handle That". My initial take on the song was it was more of a parody, can you deluge into it a little more?
GG: Yeah, "Handle That" is a parody of the “dumbed down” synth-hop style that has come to dominate the popular airwaves in years past. There’s so many grimy keyboard beats out there with cats spitting oversimplified couplets about cocaine and cars, I mean, you can’t escape that sh*t. And, I have to admit, some of it is really tight. But it’s ubiquitous, and I felt like commenting on it. So I made a song in that style. But I couldn’t just do some goofy Weird Al sh*t, and I couldn’t really allow myself to do a “bad” rap that was actually bad either. So "Handle That" has way more punchlines than your average trap-song. I basically just decided I’d do one of those songs, but a version for my taste—punchlines, humor, light social commentary—while making it sound as if I was rapping about the same sh*t that the coke-and-cars set spits. That’s why I have lines like: “It’s dangerous, to think you could hang with us/We sit on 50-inch rims ‘cuz we take the bus”….personally, I relate to that, more than I can relate to some rapper talking about his collection of Lamborghinis and handguns. I just tried to flip it. So it’s a parody, but I don’t feel it’s out of place on my album—after all, I wrote it and produced it, the subject matter and lyrics are similar to all my other songs…I feel like Brokelore, conceptually, is like a set of stories from this Broakland universe I’ve created over the years, and "Handle That" is one of those stories. I think it definitely fits in that context.
W: "Love/Drama" is another dope track. I've read that was based on a true story with a web/magazine critic, what was the story behind that track?
GG: "Love/Drama" is a response to a review of my first album, a review that was on a website which is now defunct (so you can’t go read it). It was one of the first reviews I ever got, which is why it was notable to me. So I wrote a song, wherein (to paraphrase) I basically agreed with all of the critiques that the reviewer made, admitting that I had sent him sub-par material; but I concluded that, given the astuteness with which he had dissected my album’s many flaws, I would look forward to hearing his own album—which, due to his penetrating insight into what constitutes good hip-hop, would surely be a classic of the genre. I have yet to hear back.
W: Which is worse, a magazine critic or a web site critic? Or are they equal scum?
GG: Man, I have no problem with critics, although what constitutes a critic nowadays? I mean, sharing your opinion in a public forum doesn’t make you a critic. Blogging about movies you hated doesn’t mean that your wisdom on the subject is weighted equally with Roger Ebert’s. For example, I write a blog about comics on my website. That doesn’t make me a critic, it makes me a fan. No one pays me for my insight, and no one is asking for my credentials. Basically, if you didn’t have to show someone your resume to get the job, you are probably not a critic. You are probably a hater.
Like me.
W: You roll with a crew these days, correct? Who is the members of your crew, the Rec League All-Stars?
GG: Yessir, the mighty mighty Rec-League All-Stars, Cali’s finest. It’s a deep set, but the main musical members are (in alphabetical order) myself, Haji P., MF Shalem, Proe, Q’m, Richie Cunning, and Rob Rush. But we got a lot of batters, man…Bob Clean, Matty Eye, Vince the Bard, P-Soup, the roster goes on and on. If we ever did a full posse cut, we’d run out of tape. Believe it. Check for new albums from the crew (Rec-League Season 2), Richie Cunning (Night Train), and Q’m aka Cumulus (Happy Hour, which I did hella beats on) coming soon! Everyone else has albums in the stores and on iTunes, so check ‘em out. And go to www.routinefly.com for more info!
W: Let's discuss the "mysterious" collection of Grip Grand material, Boner Jams. For those of us on the "slow bus", can you tell us the story behind the collection?
GG: Boner Jams ‘03 is an unauthorized, high-quality collection of Grip Grand material, both released and unreleased, that surfaced in Japan earlier this year. I don’t know who put it together or how they did it, but I couldn’t have done it better myself, so I’m thankful in that regard. Plus, the cover is just un-f***ing-believable. Seriously. If you want 50-some Grip-filled minutes of lyrical fury, plus a picture of a grown man in a squirrel suit (it’s not me, sorry), this is the only place to get it. Read the whole story here:
http://www.routinefly.com/new-grip-grand-mixtape/
Click on the “Boner Jams” links to get the mixtape.
W: Still no idea on who put the collection out? I hear they got Grip Grand posters hangin' in the Japanese teenagers bedrooms these days...haha
GG: You know what’s weird? I just finished working on two new projects for a record label in Japan. I wonder how they got my name? Boner Jams? Probably not. I have a couple songs coming out soon over there on a compilation called The Light, both previously unreleased. Keep your eyes peeled for those (and more)!
W: You appear on DJ Design's newest project, Jet Lag. You have quite the history with DJ Design, how did you hook up with him?
GG: I remember the day I met Design, because it was the same day I signed my contract with Bomb for Welcome to Broakland. I had gone to Frisco to meet with [Bomb founder] Dave Paul at his office. While I was there, Dave’s old friend DJ Design dropped by. So I met him then, but I didn’t know that he was starting his own label. After Bomb put out my first CD, Design hit me up in 2003 about getting together and making some music, just for fun. So we did that, it was a good vibe, and then he and his new label, Look Records, approached me about doing an album. We started work on Brokelore, and during that time I also did a few songs over Design’s beats (he’s a dope producer, and I learned a lot just watching him work)…some of those songs appear on Jet Lag—namely, "B-Side Too", "Wave of the Future", and "Wild Ones" featuring Phat Kat (shout out to Kat, he’s the man).
W: What does Grip Grand have planned for the future? Money, fame, a harem of women? What about projects?
Yes, with all the money my newfound fame brings me, I will take my harem of women and move into the projects. Oh, not that kind of projects…I see. Upcoming projects: mixtape (a collection of the weekly Billboard Number One remixes I’ve been doing); Chart Toppers. Scoviet Union mixtape and album (Scoviet Union = Me and Richie Cunning); new songs on The Light (Japanese compilation, see above); another release with my man DJ Flip out in Ireland called Crossroads (featuring me, One Be Lo, and Zumbi from Zion I). And, if anyone’s looking for verses or beats, they can hit me on MySpace. I got it for cheap.
W: Any last words the naysayers need to hear?
GG: Yeah. “Duck.”
W: Thanks again, much love
GG: My pleasure. And now a word from my sponsor.
Go buy Brokelore! Go buy Welcome to Broakland! Watch my videos on YouTube! Tell a friend how much you love/loathe/are totally indifferent to me! And if you haven’t had your fill yet, go to:
www.gripgrand.com and
www.myspace.com/gripgrand
and check out my regular blog/waste of time at
http://www.routinefly.com/category/grip-grandstand/
Peace!
Chart Toppers!!!
Week 8
Rec-League All-Stars presents Chart Toppers Week 8!!!
Womanizer Remix: Britney Spears vs. Grip Grand
On YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfxkUObl9bA
For Download:
http://www.zshare.net/audio/50606554b61950e8/
Rec-League All-Stars presents Chart Toppers Week 7!!!
Live Your Life Remix: T.I. & Rihanna feat. Grip Grand
On YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4nMhtLBerg
For Download:
http://www.zshare.net/audio/20552840898327e3/
(Or, because the zshare site was having technical difficulties today…)
The Day That Never Comes Remix: Metallica & Grip Grand (Prod. by Grip Grand)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/1944585481fa4efa/
The Day That Never Comes Remix Cover Photo
http://www.zshare.net/audio/178517712b1a09a8/ (T.I. Whatever You Like Remix)
Whatever You Like Remix Cover Photo
http://www.zshare.net/audio/1854370469481670/ (Chris Brown Forever Remix)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/1753698334be0457/ (Rihanna Disturbia Remix)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/17206282db1211c3/ (Katy Perry I Kissed A Girl Remix)
I Kissed A Girl Remix Cover Photo
Charmed I'm Sure--Grip Grand, produced by Madlib
Charmed I'm Sure is an unreleased demo (produced by Madlib) recorded for the Grip Grand album Brokelore (Look Records 2008). Besides having a beat laced by one of the game's best and brightest, this song is also notable because it was sampled by Madlib for the chorus of the song 2 Brothers From The Gutter Remix featuring Diamond D off the Percee P Perseverance Remix album (Stones Throw 2008). Don't believe me? You can hear both songs back to back (and catch the whole story) at:
http://www.routinefly.com/2008/02/madlib-sampled-me-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bong/
Discography:
“Boner Jams ‘03 Mixtape” CD (Unknown Manufacturer 2008) Japanese Import
Featuring Richie Cunning, Aditional vocals by Rob Rush & Q’m
“Brokelore” CD & LP (Look Records, 2008)
Featuring A.G., Percee P, Darondo, and Richie Cunning.
Produced by Grip Grand. Additional Production by DJ Design, DJ Flip & Freezemaster Slick, Richie Cunning, and MF Shalem
“A Penny” (DJ Flip’s Mix) 12” Single (All City Records, 2007)
*Released as O’Liffey Family feat. Grip Grand & Richie Cunning
B/W Rock the Spot—O’Liffey Cousins feat. Craig G., Mondo, Punch, & Words
Produced by DJ Flip & Freezemaster Slick
“Poppin’ Pockets” 12” Single (Look Records, 2005)
Featuring A.G., Produced by Grip Grand & DJ Design
“Welcome to Broakland” CD (Bomb Hip-Hop Records, 2002)
Produced by Grip Grand
“Pro-Gress” Vinyl EP (Self-Pressed, 1999)
Produced by Grip Grand, Additional Production by DJ Abstract
Appearances:
DJ Flip & Freezemaster Slick—“Crossroads” 12” Single (Upcoming)
- Zion, Grip Grand, & One Be Lo—Crossroads/Produced by DJ Flip & Freezemaster Slick
DJ Design—“Jetlag“CD & LP (Look Records 2008)
- Grip Grand & Phat Kat—Wild Ones
- Grip Grand—Wave of the Future
- Grip Grand—B-Side Too/All Produced by DJ Design
Various Artists—“Look Records Sampler” 2008 CD (Look Records 2008) Promo Only
- Grip Grand—Hip-Hop Classic/Produced by Grip Grand
- Grip Grand—96 Tears (MF Shalem’s Talk About It Mix)/Produced by MF Shalem
- DJ Design—Wild Ones feat. Grip Grand & Phat Kat/Produced by DJ Design
Rob Rush—”Childhood Hero” CD (Rec-League Records, 2006)
- This N’ That feat. Grip Grand, Cumulus, & Proe/Produced by Proe
Various Artists/DJ Ransom—“Behind the Beat” Mix CD (Gingko Press, 2006) Promo Only
*with the book Behind the Beat: Hip Hop Home Studios
- Grip Grand—Poppin’ Pockets Remix feat. A.G./Produced by Grip Grand & DJ Design
Richie Cunning—“Grizzly Man Mixtape” CD (Grad School Music, 2006)
- Richie Cunning & Grip Grand—The Recwilder
- Grip Grand—A Penny feat. Richie Cunning/Produced by DJ Flip & Freezemaster Slick
Cumulus—“Dreamswork Mixtape” CD (Rec-League Records, 2006)
- Get Retarded feat. Grip Grand
Various Artists—“Look Records Sampler” 2005 CD (Look Records, 2005) Promo Only
- Grip Grand—Paper Cups (edit)/Produced by Grip Grand
- Grip Grand—But Anyway/Produced by Grip Grand
Various Artists—“Preemptive Hype 5.5″ CD (Hiphopsite.com Records, 2005) Promo Only
- Grip Grand—Poppin’ Pockets Remix feat. A.G./Produced by Grip Grand & DJ Design
Rec-League All-Stars—“Rec-League Mixtape Vol. 2″ CD (Rec-League Records, 2005)
- Rob Rush, Proe, Richie Cunning, & Grip Grand—You’re Gonna Rec Me
- Grip Grand—Don’t Say Shit To Grip
- Grip Grand & Richie Cunning—The Recwilder
- Grip Grand—You Don’t Know My Grip
- Grip Grand & Richie Cunning—Rec It Like It’s Hot
- Rec-League All-Stars—The Symphony
Various Artists—“Rec-League Records Season One” CD (Rec-League Records, 2005)
- Division 3 (Cumulus, Matty Eye, Grip Grand)—Maybe I’m Too Young/Produced by Grip Grand
Various Artists—“Season’s Cretins” 2004 CD (Scotty the K Records, 2004) Promo Only
- Grip Grand—St. Nick’s Conversion/Produced by Grip Grand
Rec-League All-Stars—“Rec-League Records Mix Tape Vol. 1″ CD (Rec-League Records, 2003)
- Rob Rush & Grip Grand—The Makeover/Like Whoa
- Grip Grand—50 Grand
- Grip Grand—Horror, Baby
- Division 3 (Cumulus, Matty Eye, Grip Grand)—D3 Arena
Cumulus & Rob Rush—“Please Go Back: Operation Free Flow” CD & Vinyl EP (Rec-League Records, 2003)
- Diggin’ In Your Head feat. Grip Grand/Produced by P-Soup
10/02/2008
Grip Grand - Unreleased Madlib Track and Chart Toppers
Grip Grand, (URB's Next 100 2005, East Bay Express Best Rapper 2007, etc). I got a treat for you--an unreleased joint produced by Madlib! Yeah...
Charmed I'm Sure--Grip Grand, produced by Madlib
http://www.zshare.net/audio/19644276e135be61/
http://www.routinefly.com/2008/02/madlib-sampled-me-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-bong/
Rec-League All-Stars presents Chart Toppers Week 6!!!
The Day That Never Comes Remix: Metallica & Grip Grand (Prod. by Grip Grand)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/1944585481fa4efa/
The Day That Never Comes Remix Cover Photo
To download previous installments in this series and cop their covers, go to:
http://www.zshare.net/audio/19018292eee3b74f/(Jazmine Sullivan Need U Bad Remix)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/178517712b1a09a8/(T.I. Whatever You Like Remix)
Whatever You Like Remix Cover Photo
http://www.zshare.net/audio/1854370469481670/(Chris Brown Forever Remix)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/1753698334be0457/(Rihanna Disturbia Remix)
http://www.zshare.net/audio/17206282db1211c3/(Katy Perry I Kissed A Girl Remix)
I Kissed A Girl Remix Cover Photo
For additional information go to: http://www.routinefly.com/category/chart-toppers/
To find out more about GRIP GRAND go to:
What is ChartToppers?
Today's kids love the popular music. Maybe you do, too. I think you're all insane. However, we here at the Rec-League All-Stars training facility have decided to reach out to the youth of America and their fresh new sound by offering you, the listener, an olive branch of peace and compromise in the form of Chart Toppers!!!
This newly-instated training regimen will see your very own Rec-League All-Stars sweating it out to the newest top hits, expressly for your audio pleasure. Billboard says it's Number One? We are there, pirating the instrumental and eliminating most of what you liked about the song. In its place, you get us instead, with brand new verses written in literally minutes! Plus,we create a hilarious cover photo by hijacking the original artist’s promotional materials and then inserting photos of ourselves looking like total idiots! All to keep your infinitesimally small window of interest in us open for just a few seconds more.
New Chart Toppers weekly! Collect them all!! Post them on your site and share them with your friends!!! Be part of the movement.
Thanks for your time,
Grip Grand and the Rec-League All-Stars
7/24/2008
Grip Grand - Boner Jams '03
By now, we all probably know that one my newly "discovered" artists for the year '08, that I'm busy pushing on all of you, is Brokeland's Grip Grand. Actually, I can't claim this "discovery", as that honor goes to my potna Eric @ When They Reminisce and the homie Scholar @ Souled On. Despite that, I've played Grip's "Brokelore" LP a few times every week since picking it up in April.
I got people asking me about Grip and the album after declaring it my fourth favorite album of the first half of '08. Of course, I don't offer up retail albums, those can be found in other places (like stores), but Grip himself posted up this mixtape that has quite the humorous story behind it. It's definitely worth the read and the music is from earlier in his career, but I think it gives a good starting point on what to expect from the album if you unfamiliar with his music. This won't be the last you hear of Grip Grand on WYDU (I think you know what that means), but give this mixtape a listen and read one of the funnier stories I've heard in hip hop in awhile.....
Trav
By Grip Grand
Every once in a while, life plays a hilarious joke on you, and the only decision for you to make is whether or not to laugh along. This is one of those times. And so I say to life: “Good one, buddy. You got me.”
I have long intended to compile various verses from my vaults into some sort of “mixtape”…a selection of guest appearances, older non-album material, and unreleased or unavailable loosies. A little something special for the Grip Grand connoisseur or (rarer still) completist. Sounded like an OK idea to me. Well, I guess it sounded OK to someone else, too, because they beat me to the punch. On my own mixtape.
I know what you’re thinking; “What the f*ck is he talking about?” What I’m talking about, ladies and gentlemen, is the newest addition to the Grip Grand discography—the recently discovered, Japan-only, pressed-by-a-stranger, I-totally-have-no-idea-how-they-got-all-this-shit mixtape entitled Grip Grand—Boner Jams ’03. A friend of mine in old Nippon found this improbable dustcatcher lining the shelves of his local indie record shop, and he was totally dumbstruck by its existence. Unable to locate any information about its origins on the package, stonewalled by the shopkeeper, my friend had no recourse but to buy every copy he could find and immediately forward them to me stateside (thanks, Donnie). Having received his uncanny package, all I can say is “Wow”.
The cover depicts, I believe, some sort of eroticized squirrel-man gallivanting with a scantily clad young lady on top of a flying VHS tape (labeled, appropriately, Boner Jams ’03). The tape appears to have been expelled with great force from the mouth a flaming Mount Fuji and carried through the sky with its capering cargo on a lava flume composed of what seem to be Skittles. All of which takes place over a field of roseate cherry blossoms and graceful pagodas. And despite all the words I just typed, it defies description.
Inside this insane package, you will find (as I did) a tasteful array of Grip Grand verses (including a number of previously unreleased original songs in their entirety), interspersed with quotes taken from an American film popular a few years back…something about an old virgin. At any rate, the chosen quotations often have a relationship to the surrounding musical material that might be described as tenuous, at best. Combined with the cover-art, it all adds up to a non sequitur of stupendous proportions, one which follows a remark I was evidently not privy to. Nonetheless, I gotta say…it’s kind of really, really dope. Really dope.
First off, the material is first-rate, if I do say so myself. Pretty much what I would have selected if I had been doing this project (and I would have been, if not for you meddling kids). Second, the movie-quotes are hella funny, and sometimes they even sort of relate to the music. It creates a mood, a world if you will, that you can slip into and spend a comfortable 52 minutes with. Third, it’s f*cking 52 minutes long, and it only features like one guest verse. I think that’s longer than my real albums! Sure, it has some excerpts from Rec-League Mixtape 2 (it even has the Rec logo on it), and you might already have those. But it’s fun to listen to old music in a new context, and if the context you want is “all Grip Grand, all the time” then this is the mixtape for you. Fourth, and maybe most importantly, the cover is jaw-dropping and represents what I’m sure is some kind of next-level alien intelligence. Clearly, its origins are extraterrestrial, and I have a theory that this mixtape was created by beings from another world and subsequently exported to urban Japan—the only culture futuristic enough to deal with it.
And lastly, if all that wasn’t enough, let me quote a few lines from a one-page leaflet I found tucked into the third copy we opened (I think this was translated at some point, but from what language I’ll never know):
“Hey! Are you for the rap? You are courageous. Test yourself—while Grip Grand unleashes! Catalogue tape of high-excited songs includes featuring the following: Your favorite group singers—Gabriel and Richard! Do I hear more voices? Yes, it is the Recreational Men’s Team Champions!! And who has beat? We have the beat, and big names like Keith, David, Otis, and Dwight! There is no more terrific than Boner Jams ’03!! Are you the ear-virgin? Fear not—this tape will eradicate you! Top one!!”
Like I said before…f*cking, wow. I mean, what the jumping Jesus is that sh*t about? I don’t even want to know, because I think God is speaking to me through this mixtape. He’s speaking to you, too, Hip-Hop. And he’s saying, “Don’t take yourself so seriously, D-bag.” Or at least that’s how I interpret it. He also seems to be saying “Grip Grand is fresh to death”…because, seriously, DJ Japanese-Martian-Jesus killed it on this mixtape. Everyone else needs to step their game up.
So it is with great confusion and humbled awe that I (and DJ Japanese-Martian-Jesus) present Grip Grand—Boner Jams ’03, and may you be as deluded and delighted as I was when I first set ears upon it.
Peace and love,
Grip Grand
PS—Did I mention that it ends with the theme song from Everybody Loves Raymond? I’m not even joking…
7/17/2008
Half Way Done: The Midway Report - Top 20 Albums Part 2 (1-10)
It took me awhile to get the second part of this. It was originally scheduled to go up over the weekend, but no dice. Then the last two weeks I planned on getting up, but MLB All-Star festivities on TV put a damper on that, including the five plus hour All-Star game last night. Oh well, you should be out enjoying the summer weather instead of reading this damn blog anyway. Speaking of which, I'm off to my old stomping grounds of Denver, Colorado this weekend (Fri-Mon), so I doubt you'll see much of me this weekend and if you do, it'll probably be in a drunken state. I love summer.
Back to the list, in case you missed 11-20, this is what you missed
11 Raashan Ahmad – The Push
12 Kids In The Hall – The In Crowd
13 Ill Poetic – Joe Budden Meets Portishead Mood Musik
14 Jean Grae – The Jeanius
15 One Be Lo – The R.E.B.I.R.T.H
16 Akrobatik – Absolute Value
17 All Natural – Elements
18 Substantial – Sacrifice
19 Weapon X – Portrait Of a Starvin Artist
20 The Camp – The Campaign
As I've said before, this were MY personal favorites of the first half of the year, so while you are more than welcome to drop your input, arguing with me much is probably going to be futile, since it's my opinion we are talking about here. No, there is no Immortal Technique, which wasn't horrible, but I didn't listen to it until after July 1st, no Nas, which again, I don't think I listened to until after July 1st, but I doubt that it would make the list if I had. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Nas has no concept of what a good beat is even if it bit him on the ass. All these albums are albums I can listen to from front to back and the top seven especially are complete albums that are solid in all areas. You may agree with me on these, you may not. You may find something you haven't heard yet, and truly, that is the reason I'm doing this, hopefully to turn you all on to something you might have missed. Here we go, the top 10.....
Top 20 Albums for the First Half of 2008: 1-10
10. Archetype - Unfolding 
Sounds Like: It's kind of difficult to put a "sound" on this duo, coming out of Kansas, they sound like Atmosphere crossed with some Living Legends. Or not....
Summary: This might be cheating in some sense. For those of you that haven't been around WYDU for any length of time, Archetype's U.S. label submitted their Bleed For Them, album for review purposes last year and I simply fell in love with that album. Not a knock on anyone who sent me music, but Bleed For Them is my favorite music I've ever recieved for review purposes. It was a great album with melodic beats provided by Nezbeat and strong lyrics from iD. Unfolding is basically Bleed For Them, packaged for overseas, most notably Japan. It is armed with seven new songs (so half the album is new), four of which are as equally dope or more so than anything found on Bleed For Them. Only reason this probably isn't higher is that half of the album has been getting play since September of last year, not bad for a couple kids from Kansas.
Favorite Tracks: (Of the new tracks) "Blocked Up", "Unfolding", "Live It Up"
9. Guilty Simpson - Ode To The Ghetto 
Sounds Like: That slowly defining Detroit sound, commonly attributed to J-Dilla and passed on to Black Milk. Lyrically and vocally, Guilty reminds me of Beanie Seigel.
Summary: At first I was rather disappointed with this album. Not in the way I'm disappointed with the new Nas album, but in a way I expected a near classic from Guilty Simpson after the Stray Bullets mixtape and the success of Detroit artists of late. While I didn't dislike it, I guess I expected more. Over the past few months though, this album has steadily grown on me, including a drunken birthday weekend, in which we cruised around in my man's Mustang from place to place, blasting my newly purchased Ode To The Ghetto CD. I love the sound of this album, sparse, hard as fuck beats and ruff-n-rugged rhymes from Guilty. Shit, I even dig the Madlib tracks, and I'm not a big Madlib fan. I think I have to say Detroit is my favorite locale for music as of late.
Favorite Tracks: "Pigs", "I Must Love You", "My Moment"
8. Little Brother - And Justus For All
Sounds Like: If you don't know who Little Brother is, you probably shouldn't be reading this blog. Add traditional North sounds (Native Tongue) crossed with the swagger of the South.
Summary: Yes, this dropped last year as well, but this version of And Justus For All is the trimmed down version with a handful of new songs. I was pretty vocal with my dislike of The Get Back, last year, mainly because I consider LB one of my favorite groups. It's true that they seem to make better mixtapes than albums (the two Chitlin' Circuits shit on anything in their catalog not named The Listening) and this is an example of that. I enjoy this album more than anything found on The Get Back, LB is that shit, fuck what anyone else might think. Plus, I've used Phonte's opening line on "Life Of The Party", so much I should be giving him royalties (of course I change it to blogger, which makes it even worse....haha "Girl, whatcha mean you don't recognize me? I'm only the biggest blogger star in your apartment complex...")
Favorite Tracks: "Life Of The Party (Remix)", "Cross That Line (Remix)", "Stylin"
7. Shawn Jackson - First Of All....
Sounds Like: Reminds me of a Murs of sorts...strong lyrical MC
Summary: One of the surprising "out of nowhere" albums, Shawn Jackson's First Of All did catch some fire among the bloggers, such as my cohorts Eric of When They Reminisce and the one who first start pushing his music, Dart Adams of Poisonous Paragraphs. This album is a pure, solid and cohesive project that comes with thirteen quality tracks. Everything on this album is up to par, the lyrics, the hooks, the beats, they are all combine to make a great album that will undoubtedly gain more momentum and could very well be this year's Below The Heavens. If you haven't heard this album yet, you need it in your life...
Favorite Tracks: "Fix Ya Face", "Feelin' Jack", "Gold Medal Kids"
6. Pacewon & Mr. Green - The Only Color That Matters is Green 
Sounds Like: Back in the day hardcore east coast hip hop....
Summary: I'll probably always be biased toward the artists that I grew up on when they drop a quality album. That's the case with Pacewon and his new producer, Mr. Green. I was a hardcore Outsidaz fan from back in the day and have always picked up anything with Pacewon's name on it. "The Only Color That Matters...", is one of those albums that I probably favor more due to Pace's "back in the day" ties, but don't let that fool you. Mr. Green brings a sound that....it's hard to put my finger on, but it's a sound that I've always liked. That's saying, it's nothing ground breaking, nothing that hasn't been heard before, he just takes a sound and does it to the best of his ability. A rugged sound with lots of strings and dusty drums combine to offer the PERFECT backdrop for Pace to drop his raw, yet smooth, rhymes. Trying to find this album on CD is kind of a bitch, but you can order one from Mr. Green's myspace page
Favorite Tracks: "Hip Hop", "Four Quarters", "Children Sing"
5. Dagha - The Divorce 
Sounds Like: A lot like his label mate, Dooley O....
Summary: In what could very well go down as the most creative album of the year, Dagha dropped The Divorce, in which is about what it sounds like, a shitty divorce. Now, I've never been through a divorce, but any man who has been through a break-up after a long term relationship can relate as well. Dagha raps for a whole album about, what I'm assuming, his divorce. Without sounding whiny or turning it into a long bitch session, Dagha brings a cohesive album that flows together quite nicely. The beats are on point and the story telling style of Dagha makes this album a fav of mine this year (obviously).
Favorite Tracks: "Scat", "My Luck", "Devil's Work"
4. Grip Grand - Brokelore
Sounds Like: quality underground/backpacker (I hate that term), maybe Grouch? I'm not sure I have a good comparison.
Summary: I absolutely LOVE Grip Grand's Brokelore album. I could listen to this album every day for the rest of the year and be okay with that. I wasn't familiar Grip Grand until about April, when in the same day, two people who's opinions I value and also know my tastes said I had to check out the album. Eric from WTR and my homie Scholar from Souled On both told me I needed to check this album out. I've been bumping it since then. There is only one track that I don't care for ("Handle That"), the rest are all great tracks. The beauty of the album is there is a lot of variety in the terms of subject matter and sounds, yet it still comes in as a cohesive album. Grip has everything from straight up braggadocio hip hop, to dissing himself, he talks on the social ills, to braggin' about "Poppin' Pockets". He has two classic guest apperances in the form of Percee P and A.G., but he is more than capable of handling the rest of the album on his own. I can't brag about this album enough. If you are someone that has similar tastes as me in the past, then this album is a must.
Favorite Tracks: It's hard to pick three, but right now, I'd say "But Anyway", "Love/Drama", "Remember The Time".
3. Atmosphere - When Live Gives You Lemons, Paint That Shit Gold
Sounds Like: Lil Wayne meets Master P
Summary: After putting on one of the most interesting promotional pre-album release events ever seen, Slug and Ant delivered on the goods, with When Life Gives You Lemons, Paint That Shit Gold, which might be the best since Lucy Ford, if not of all their catalog. It's a different sound for them, in some ways, Ant has returned back to his earlier sound. At first, I wasn't sure I was going to like or not, but after hearing the project as a whole, I've grown to really get down with this album. It's a more mature Atmosphere, as Sean delivers a loosely themed album, talking about the common man's struggle. I can see this dropping a few slots as the replay value isn't as strong as some of the albums behind it, but still, this is a great album for established Atmosphere fans and I've already heard of heads who weren't fans of them before this get on board.
Favorite Tracks: "Puppets", "You", "Me"
2. Nicolay & Kay - Time Line
Sounds Like: Nicolay has his own sound for sure....as a whole, this album is similar in feel to the Phonte and Nicolay Connected project.
Summary: Nic & Kay hooked up to drop an early gem on us back in February. I've been playing Time Line since then. I know Kay got some knocks on not being the best MC, but truthfully, I've never had a problem with his MC skills. The beats on this album or amazing, as Nic comes with an interesting sound that matches the albums theme perfectly. The album starts with "birth", goes through a life cycle, with the music fitting each theme, and goes to the death. It's one of those albums that should be listened to as a whole, but nothing wrong with spending a solid 45 minutes with quality hip hop.
Favorite Tracks: "Tight Eyes", "Blizzard", "I've Seen Rivers"
1. eMC - The Show
Sounds Like: Good Hip Hop Music
Summary: Did you really think I'd have anything but The Show? Yes, I'm a border line Ace stan, but that doesn't mean that this doesn't deserve the number one slot. Words, Punch, Strick also show up with Ace to deliver an album that is a well constructed concept album (what did you expect from Ace?. The came with some great beats and work their magic lyrically, as they take you through a day of eMC starting with getting picked up in the airport to the after party. Yes, it could have been cut down by about 15 minutes, yes, a couple beats were lacking and yes, a couple hooks could have been better, but they still bring the heat, that you can ignore that.
Favorite Tracks: "Winds Of Change", "Leak It Out", "We Alright"
Honorable Mentions: Albums that were on my radar, and are worth checking out, but didn't quite make the list...
Presto - State of the Art
Astonish – From Now Until Forever
The Roots – Rising Down
Prolyphic & Reanimator – The Ugly Truth
Yameen – Never Knows Best
J-Live – Then What Happened
Foul Mouth Jerk – Street Light music
Lazerus Jackson – Filthy
Prodigy – HNIC 2
Praverb – Center Of Attention
Tha 4rce – Mind The Gap Anthems
Silent Knight - Restoration
Braile – The IV
Craig G – Operation Take Hip Hop Back Trav Williams – The Trickle Down
