A year after The Magic Number, RTD presents to you The Four Horsemen. This is a compilation of tracks I've received over the last year, thrown together to celebrate rockthedub.com's four-year anniversary. With my enthusiasm for professional wrestling, "The Enforcer" Arn Anderson was an easy choice for the cover. Just made sense, the fact that he's holding a prestigious title, showcasing his allegiance. I won't go into all of it, but it's deeper than "oh he referenced this old school wrestler dude", nahmean? Exclusives from StreetMedia and DaVinci, with tracks from Rob Jay, Deal - The Villain, Hans Beck, Internal Quest, Mayhem, MAGr, Ryen David and many more are featured. Hit the jump for the the skinny.
DOWNLOAD RTD Presents The Four Horsemen
Tracklist:
01. Rev. X vs. Profane "The Four Horsemen Intro" (with my pro wrestling watching over the last year, my viewing has gone from staring at the TV to viewing streams on justin.tv. This one channel plays a lot of the classic WCW Nitro shows, but when it's off, it has a loop of Rev. X videos, and you can find me on twitter in a tipsy mood, reciting from the survival scrolls. You'll hear this beat again later on...)
02. StreetMedia "RTD Drop"
03. StreetMedia "No. 2 Pencil" (prod. by Ammbush) (I've been a fan of StreetMedia since I first heard "$ Orientated" in the hook , and while the one project I had planned for them (shouts to TROUBL), I've kept in contact with their SWTBRDS fam, who hooked this exclusive up. That Andre3000 is dope, and the way they strung it together, it really solidifies the unit, reminded me of a West Coast Gangstarr. Heavyweight music.)
04. Streets Buchanon "The Band" (prod. by Numonics) (Here's a cut Numonics sent me a long time ago, and has since dropped on Frequent Flyer Miles. Love the vibe of the beat, and Streets coasts over it like a pro. Really fun track to rock to.)
05. Chanes "Stereotype" (Chanes has been building with this group I've been working with for a bit. Dude's hungry, and puts work in. I still have a project I want to do with him at some point - hopefully that bears fruit before the end of 2010.)
06. Vainglorious Basterds "Play Dirty" (prod. by M Slago) (The Rapture and make up Vainglorious, and this track is just nasty. The title fits what Ric Flair's M.O. was, especially in the Horsemen's heyday, and this one is just tough. No flash or shine - real grimey, subway robbery shit.)
07. Internal Quest "Hear This (Anti-Coon)" (Quest is a Jersey spitter who I need to hear more of. This is one of those tracks that I like to call 'real talk', as he speaks that shit that we're all feeling when it comes to what's wrong with Hip-Hop these days. No additives, just honesty. Jersey is active.)
08. Deal - The Villain "Abstract Metaphor 2009" (what can I say about DTV? Dude's a beast, and allowed me to release his debut project, EPic, on RTD Records. He's amazing on the boards, a monster with the pen, and hasn't stopped at all. I can't help you in understanding WTF this track's saying, just revel in its intricacies.)
09. Muja Messiah ft. Samahra Daly "Critically Acclaimed" (MPLS representer Muja hooks up with one of the beautiful voices of Black Blondie for this one. Dude's always helped with content since the site got some solid legs, so I am always welcoming his latest material. He's been kind of quiet, so I imagine there's a full project or 3 sitting on deck lol.)
10. Mayhem "Dedicated" (prod. by The Naysayers) (EMS has been a great affiliate to RTD, and I'm pretty sure Mayhem was one of the first cats from that unit that I posted. Love the beat on this one, and May shows why he's one of the iller ones out there. Quality Hip-Hop, yadig?)
11. S. Maharba "Ram Nam Satya Hai (Remix)" (this is a track that the homey Dr. Quandary sent me sometime last year; just one of those moody tracks that I throw on during a cold, rainy day. This dropped on an Algorhythms project last year, if I'm not mistaken. Interesting mix.)
12. "Basquiat (interlude)"
13. Radius "Get Me Outta This Place..." (Radius is a Chicago producer who I've dug; this is taken from his π project that dropped last year. Love the way he works, and this was the track that instantly had me vibing and sobbing. So much emotion in instrumental music, which I think people can take for granted. If you wanna know where I'm at, blast this one loud when no one's home.)
14. DJ Ambush & Curly Castro "Summer of '77" (One of my favorite tracks from Phatman & Likkly Bwoy, a tale of birth in the time of blackout is woven over some Jungle-esque riddims. Proper next-level flavor that I think a ton of people slept on.)
15. MAGr "M.A.G-who!!!" (prod. by Hudson Mohawke) (Last October, I got to see the Beat Garden family take over The Khyber, and finally matching the intensity of MAGr's work on record was matched by the awesomeness of them live. I put out No News Is Good News in 2009, and plan on dropping Al Mighty's album on RTD Records this year. Dude's one of the illest out of NJ right now. Needs to be heard.)
16. DaVinci "Gettin' Money In My Sleep" (prod. by Big D) (The 2nd SWTBRDS track reminds me of what I do when I lay my head to my pillow. Sorting out the next day's strategy, whether it's something at my job, something for the label, something for the blog, something in life. Just constantly thinking. I'm not getting tons of loot in my sleep, but plans are being devised. Shouts to Al Jieh for this one, and make sure you grab The Day The Turf Stood Still!)
17. Loose Screwz ft. SAV "L.A. Times (S.T.L.A.)" (Silent bonus cut from Screwz' Satellites mixtape that just dropped Monday. Still reminds me of my miniscule trip to LA last year. Might have to go back there this summer, we'll see. Big up to SNS for being themselves throughout all of the nonsense today.)
18. Rob Jay "Director's Chair" (prod. by Smitty Soul) (Jay reps Houston like no other, doing work both on the mic and behind the video camera, showing that its more than just screw and candy paint coming from there. With cats like hasHBrown and Hollywood Floss making noise as well, Texas' underground is knockin' on your doors! Expect a project between RTD and Jay at some point, too.)
19. Random "Spread The Love" (prod. by DN3) (Love the fuzzy bassline on this one. Random fired this one off a minute ago, and it grew on me. He kicks his shit honestly, and that DN3 beat is a slice of digital soul.)
20. Spiderfang "So NPR (Hans Beck WNYC Edit)" (The homey Sam Han is more than just a producer for the TAKE IT PERSONAL podcast which has disappeared, he is one half of Hans Beck. Another thing he does, while not being a smart motherfucker, is make dope music that always seems to surprise me. I figured Hans Beck had a more IDM/leftfield take on things, but this is a crispy bit of Hip-Hop flavor. Love the way they weaved these beats together, it feels like a proper cut-up masterpiece, but you don't hear me, though.)
21. Ryen David "Out" (Ryen sent this cut from his IO album over. And I love it. This is the stuff I used to listen to years ago, when Aphex Twin and others were rocked just as loudly as Smif-N-Wessun. Great vibe, awesome melodies. Nice calm before the final storm...)
22. "Danny Duberstein (interlude)"
23. The KhemLab (ft. Cyrano, Articulate, Sky 7th, Junclassic, Joulz Il & Pugs Atomz) "KhemLab Theme" (prod. by Profane) (One of the big scores from 2009 for RTD was Offshore Drilling, which got a lot of press and downloads, and birthed The KhemLab. This unit is made up of artists featured on Offshore Drilling, as well as some added MCs, including Articulate, Main Course and more, as well as some outside beats, although Kid Hum is definitely involved. This is a rough version of the first full track from the unit, with a beat provided by the homey Profane. Nice statement from those involved. Not sure when the first project will be done, but there's a lot of heat on it so far. KHEMLAB!)
So there you have it. I wanna shout out all of the blogs and other websites who have ever posted a link of mine. I wanna shout all the MCs, producers and individuals who have sent me music that I've posted and/or enjoyed. I wanna shout out my wife and family for giving me positive vibes about all of this. And I want to shout out all of the heads who continue to read the blog and support. I can't and wouldn't do any of this without your help. Cheers!
2 comments:
Dope, I'm looking forward to checking this joint out and getting put up on some hot new artists
word up...glook
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