This is one of my fave political tracks. It’s called Politics. That’s direct enough, innit? From Oakland’s collectiv underground hip-hop site. Brilliant.

Theory – “Politics” mp3 (play/download)

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Del The Funky Homosapien has been one of my favorite recording artists (notice I didn’t qualify that with a genre) since “Virus” on that Deltron 3030 album. If you sleepted on that, you must proceed here for processing. So freakin’ brilliant. But I digress. Here’s Del again in top form, continuing further edification in “Heavy 101.”

Del The Funky Homosapien – “Heavy 101″ (play)

DL from delthefunkyhomosapien.bandcamp.com in any format known to man.

Buy the whole digital album from delthefunkyhomosapien.bandcamp.com/album for $3 or more. Yep, pick your price, is the deal, which is as forward thinking as the material. Sleep not lest ye be slept.

Nuther one from the old mp34u vaults. Restiform Bodies are a trip and a half running rampant in an old school game show set. You know the one, where a studio tanned blonde with ten miles of white teeth snakes her arms toward one of three stages as the announcer bellows, “a new car!” and the APPLAUSE light elicits cheers and oohs and aahs. Them were good innocent days, where cars and napalm was made in America and “tea party” meant a gathering of nice ladies with poodles. “Bobby Trendy Addendum,” ladies and gents. This are some fuktup sh!t.

Restiform Bodies
“Bobby Trendy Addendum” (download mp3)
from “TV Loves You Back”
“Bobby Trendy Addendum” (play)
(anticon)
More On This Album

Belligerent brain butter. Vagabond Skills indeed. An observation from the grime between the slabs of civilization. Echoes of Tricky. Seething tribal tribulation with troubling tree smoking terrible terrificness. Drink some water.

Vagabond Skills
“Too Much Interference” (download mp3)
from “The Evasive Pages Vol.1″
(Alternative Blueprint)
“Too Much Interference” (play)
More On This Album

The funk. The east bay grease. The funky fresh 1990′s ultra-East Bay greasebizzle from those captains of nightclub industry, Los Angelitos. “Mad About You” is the opening cut from their “See you at the nightclub!” album, finally available as mp3. Get it at CD Baby. Great stuff.

Los Angelitos – “Mad About You”
(right click, “save as” to download the mp3, or left click to play)

Here’s an early-ish track from Del which has survived numerous iPod purges here. “In the terminal burnin’ all MC’s brains,” he explains.

Del tha Funkee Homosapien – Help Me Out
(right click, “save as” to download the mp3, or left click to play)

Here’s a perfect underground hip-hop gem from about ten years ago. Every single line is right in 2010. I originally found this one at Epitonic. A brilliant, inspired track from the SOUNDiNK compilation, “Colapsus.”
Heat Sensor – “Human Error“ (play/download)

Buy the comp at iTunes

A few years back a young Oakland rapper dropped this track in which he discusses his fate with the Devil hisself. It’s hella funny.

A lot of his other tracks with collectiv peeps are also excellent.

Bumbalo – “Sins of the Flesh“ (play/download mp3)

You can hear more and buy Bumbalo’s music here.

K’Naan – “What’s Hardcore” mp3

Was reminded of K’Naan (who, if ya don’t know already, is the new next) while watching World Cup – since his brilliant “Waving Flag” is the official song of the 2010 FIFA tournament. Last year when I first discovered K’Naan’s music I was properly stunned. He writes beautiful, brave, inspiring songs, which bring together elements of hip-hop, reggae, rock and the kitchen sink in novel ways, creating work that is original yet instantly accessible. This live recording is more on the hip-hop / poetry side, and it tells you more about the man’s background than a bio can, really. If a guy who took the last commercial flight out of Somalia with his mom as a young kid as his country descended into chaos asks “What’s Hardcore?” how do you answer?

K’Naan
“Whats Hardcore?” (mp3)
from “The Dusty Foot on the Road”
(Interdependent Media)

Need more!

“STD” has made a lot of brilliant tracks as a solo artist since fleeing from band life in disgust. I first discovered him when a friend (also in a band, naturally) sent me a link to “Your Band” and commented that she had heard every line in the song uttered in earnest at some point, by band guys at the bar at Bottom Of The Hill (the SF club mentioned in the song, no less). Band shmoozing is a frightful business, and I guess it just ate away at our hero Schaffer until he plopped out this hilarious anti-shmooze screed. Not safe for work, this one. No. Not safe in general. But excellent. I added an “Other” category to my blog categories, just for the great otherness of this. Enjoy.

Schaffer The Darklord – “Your Band” mp3

Buy @ CD Baby