Free Music Friday

To start, many happy returns of the day to The Missus. Doesn't have a damn thing to do with today's Free Music Friday, but, hey, it's half my blog, so i'm going write about what i'm going to write about. Plus, you dig the Missus, too, so you should wish her one, too.

Anyway, we received some nice tunes the past couple of weeks while i've been traveling all over the place, so you get to enjoy the fruits of those looms, as it were.

Surprising no one, Stones Throw continues to give out more freebies than whore with poor pimp management. i don't know about you, but i've always been a huge fan of voice boxes. Fuck that auto-tune shit, i'm talking about the original real deal. Whereas Roger Troutman popularized the sound (using his own variation on the instrument), the ST crate diggers have uncovered a treasure trove from Bruce Haack, the inventor of “Farad," one of the first truly musical vocoders, and first to be used on a pop album. Also from the gang, Aloe Blacc's Good Things finally hit the stands, and to celebrate, they dropped this ultra-groovy, soulful number to get your juices fellow in a most mellow manner.

mp3: Electric to Me Turn (Bruce Haak from Farad: The Electric Voice)

mp3: You Make Me Smile (Aloe Blacc from Good Things)

Daytrotter did a session with the folks in Admiral Radley, and it's a good one. Go check it out. We keep telling you how good Jason and his crew are, so maybe this will make true believers out of you.

mp3: I Heart California (Admiral Radley from Daytrotter Sessions, 9-22-10)

Sadly, i've been a little less impressed with each new Thermals offering, but i am kind of digging the new single from Personal Life. Call me crazy, but the lo-fi noise of their self-titled EP remains their high water mark for my money. Sure, they've grown musically and lyrically, no doubt, but where's the fun in that? i first saw the band open for Sleater-Kinney years ago, fell in love with Kathy Foster while she was bouncing around on stage tearing up the bass, and have been hooked on and off ever since. This one goes a decent ways towards making me need to call my sponsor again.

mp3: Never Listen to Me (The Thermals from Personal Life)

i know what you're thinking, a live DOOM album? There's been a lot of talk about if this is even a real live set, how old it actually is, blah, blah, blah. All you need to worry about is the fact that DOOM spits fire, this is loads better than Live From Planet X, and the first track is free. The Villain is back, y'all, so don't sleep on this one.

mp3: Beef Rap (DOOM from Expektoration)

Another new Alex B track just hit the interwebs, so you know i'm going to post it here. It's about smoking weed and it's more bottom heavy than your fat-assed prom date, so you know it's worth listening to.

mp3: Dro on the D-Lo (Alex B from 1320 Records Volume II)

And to close things out, the latest from 0OoOO's eponymous EP. Personally, i dig the track, but i'm not sure about this "witch core" nomenclature. Really? Sure, it's spooky and has ethereal, seemingly disembodied female vocals, but is that honestly the new sub-genre name we want? Eh, fuck it, it's glitch, and it's good, and that's enough.

mp3: Burnout Eyess (oOoOO from oOoOO)

Singles Club: Gazzillion Ear

i don't know what it is, but i have been downright addicted to some space age sounding shit lately. i've been listening to a bunch of DJs to an almost unnatural degree, assuming such a thing is possible. Of particular interest of late have been Flying Lotus, The Gaslamp Killer, Madlib and the incomparable J Dilla. As luck would have it, a couple of those cats are on the latest DOOM joint, the Gazzillion Ear EP.

Unfortunately, it hasn't actually dropped yet and i still need to get my hands on the full thing, but thanks to the wonderful Interwebs, i've been able to track down a couple of the tracks, for free, no less. And what kind of mp3 blogger would i be if i didn't share the spoils with you lazy bastards? Seriously, you can start giving back at any time now. If anyone wants to start giving me free Pro Tools lessons, i'm more than willing to call us even.

Back to the remixes, though. Of course, there's the original, complete with beats provided by the late, great J. Dilla. Originally, there was only that and the Thom Yorke's spooky version that's been floating around for months. Now, though, for the price of your email address, you can get a version that isn't even on the EP, by none other than Madlib himself with an intro by Kayne West.

There are a couple more versions on the actual EP, plus a bonus beat, but, as previously mentioned, i'm afraid i can't tell you anything about those. i have little doubt, however, that they are quite villainous, and what more do we need than that?

mp3: Gazzillion Ear (DOOM original with beat by J. Dilla from Born Like This)

mp3: Gazzillion Ear (Thom Yorke Remix) (DOOM from Gazzillion Ear Remixes EP)

mp3: Gazzillion Ear (MADVILLAINZ remix ft. Kanye West as KHAN) (DOOM from the Interwebs)

The Obligatory Thanksgiving Mix Post

By this time, i have come to learn that the great unwashed masses now realize that when it comes to the Greatest Mixes You Will Ever Hear, they're not going to find any place else that stuff 1/100th as good as the junk they'll find here at LET. Arguably not the clearest of wording aside, i get it, folks. A holiday comes around, and all y'all need a mix to help you with decorating/eating/drinking/avoiding suicide/etc. And you want some really good shit. i can dig it. No worries, even. Truth be told, though, Thanksgiving isn't exactly the easiest holiday for which to make a mix to blow your mind AND stuff your turkey. Aside from that Adam Sandler track, what's a Mix Master Supreme to do? Well, whip out your three ring binders and start taking notes, kids, because this is how its done.

mp3: Thank God I'm A Country Boy (John Denver from Back Home Again)

Don't ask me why, but this was one of my absolute favorite tracks when i was about five. Probably had something to do with that infectious fiddlin'. Or maybe because i associated JD with the Muppets, and that's reason enough for any kid to love a tune.

mp3: Thank Heaven for Little Girls (Maurice Chevalier from Gigi Soundtrack)

Who doesn't love songs that verge on blatant pedophilia by old French dudes? You know NAMBLA wishes they had a theme song this catchy.

mp3: THANK YA (DOOM from BORN LIKE THIS)

If i have to explain the inclusion of DOOM into any of my mixes, you need to either move along to a different site or do some more research on where you've ended up, suckafish.

mp3: Thank You (Pearl Jam with Robert Plant from 10-5-05 Concert)

You would have felt cheated if this Zep track wasn't on your Thanksgiving mix, then i would have felt either bad and/or annoyed with your whining, and then nobody wins. So here it is, and everyone can go about their merry way, no muss, no fuss.

mp3: Thank You, Boob Lady (Hanz Zimmer from The Simpsons Movie OST)

This one is for The Missus and her plentiful, er, cornucopias. That's huge tracts of land to you and me, kids.

mp3: Thank You Boys (Jane's Addiction from Nothing Shocking)

It's short, sweet, jazzy and somehow catchy as hell. What's not to be thankful about all that?

mp3: Thank You Jack White (For The Fiber-Optic Jesus That You Gave Me) (The Flaming Lips from Fight Test EP)

This track is both bizarre and entertaining. It's about a chance backstage encounter between Jack White and the Flaming Lips wherein the White Striped Raconteur gives a gift of love to his heroes--a light-up Christ figurine. i wish i could get some rockstar drugs.

mp3: Thank You, Lord, For Sending Me the F Train (Mike Doughty from Smofe + Smang)

One of my favorite MD tunes from his best solo work to date. The fact that i've waited for that train and thought those same things certainly endears it further to me, but don't let the fact that you've somehow managed to fortunately avoid Brooklyn up until this point in your life deter you from loving it just a little bit yourself.

mp3: Thankful 'N Thoughtful (Sly and the Family Stone from Fresh)

Sure, it's about overcoming addiction, but goddamn, that bass line could be the funkiest drug i've ever heard. And those horns? Somebody call Betty Ford's for me now because i have a problem turning this one off repeat on ye olde iPod.

mp3: Thanksgiving Theme (Vince Guaraldi from Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits)

i had to get one absolutely legit Thanksgiving track in here, so i used this chestnut. Bust out the jelly beans and popcorn, folks, it's party time!

And with that, you're welcome.

For the Record (Label): Stones Throw Records

Well, after giving props to Arts & Crafts recently, it dawned on me that maybe there were a few other labels out there that deserved similar affection. Hence, today's love fest for Stones Throw Records.

As I've mentioned lately, probably too much, I have re-fallen in love with hip hop. This is due in large part to the emergence of a new wave of MCs spitting lyrics on fresh and new topics, but possibly more importantly, some DJs that have crate digging capabilities I previously thought impossible. DOOM, Madlib, J. Dilla and cats in that vein, I'm looking in your direction. Imagine my surprise when I discovered damn near all of my favorites of today all happen to have output on the same, glorious Stones Throw Records label.

I first heard of the label when they put out Chrome Children Vol. 1, an Adult Swim mixtape that came out just after the DangerDoom collaboration. Well, that taste led me to dig deeper still, and I've been pretty addicted ever since.

Headed up by quite possibly the best named hip hopper of all-time, Peanut Butter Wolf (aka Chris Manak), the label excels at bringing tree blazing, freakalicious hip hop to the masses. Named after an inside joke, the label is based on the principle that they release music they like, the public-at-large's tastes be damned. The result typically is cosmic slop goodness, plain and simple.

I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that they're not just hip hop, either, as signed artists Mayer Hawthorne and Omar Rodriguez Lopez, among others, clearly attest.

What's more, Stones Throw has to be one of the most fan friendly labels out there today. I cannot recommend enough that you sign up for the mailing list, Twitter feed and anything else they're pushing. I can't think of another label that gives away so many free goodies, from a regular podcast (sometimes samplers from upcoming albums, sometimes DJ sets that will blow your freaking mind) to mp3s to instructions on how to make your own Quasimoto Cubeecraft paper toy with brick & cigarette. Seriously, they're the label that just keeps giving (though I am devastated I didn't win these kicks).

Here's just a sampling of some of those aforementioned innumerable free mp3s I know you like so bad.

mp3: Beep 03 (Koushik from Beep Tape)

mp3: Chinatown Wars (Ghostface Killah & DOOM, produced by Oh No)

mp3: Concentrate/The Funk (Oh No from Dr. No's Ehtiopium)