Beat Meet: The Small Cookie, 24-hour, Baby Noises Edition

Another good week for all things free in the world of beats, as spelunked by yours truly.

i'm thinking it's about time for the cats at Project: Mooncircle to start their own hedge fund, as they're clearly incapable of making a bad choice when it comes to picking the next hot thing. If it pleases the jury, i'd like to point to evidence item #437, the upcoming EP from fLako, Mini Tollbooth. Whereas his label mates like Robot Koch tend to focus more on the percussive end of the beat spectrum, fLako makes greater use of bass lines, affected vocals and dissonant synths to create his soundscapes. The overall effect proves that P:M is no one trick pony, but continues to have one of the hottest stables in the world of beat music. Wow, i can't believe i took that metaphor to those lengths. My apologies to readers, but, trust me, the album is worth your time and your ducats. Here's a mini-mix to prove i'm right yet again (as if LET hadn't proven my supremacy as mixmaster and trend setter a million times over, but in the name of humility, i do what i must. It ain't EZ being TC.).

mp3: Mini Tollbooth Snippet (fLako from Mini Tollbooth)

Mash-up Maestro Girl Talk is back at it yet again with his latest freebie pastiche, All Day. Yes, this came out yesterday, but if you had the same luck as i did, you couldn't get your hands on it any earlier, either. Hell, you may not have had as much luck as i did. Whatever the case, the "best" part of a Girl Talk CD is playing "name that sample." A list is said to be forthcoming at GT's website in the days to follow. In the interim, who do you hear here?

mp3: Jump on Stage (Girl Talk from All Day)

mp3: Triple Double (Girl Talk from All Day)

mp3: Every Day (Girl Talk from All Day)

The folks over at Wah Wah 45s are throwing some shindig this Saturday, November 27th in London at Scala. To encourage people to give a shit, they've put together a rather stellar mini-mix comprised of some of the night's performers. For reasons we cannot begin to fathom here at LET, even though we claim to be a DC-centric blog, our readers really tend to be of a far more international bent. It probably has to do with us being the blogoverse's number one source of Nigerian speed rap AND questionably legal beats sampling arguably inappropriate children's music, but who can say for sure? Anyway, if you're one of our London readers, swing by the show, as it's only 12 quid (assuming a quid is a pound; you kids and your crazy across the pond lingo, i tell you what). If you're one of our Estonian readers, well, you're shit out of luck, chum, but it's still a damn fine mix. As you can hear for yourself, Hackney Colliery Band put together a funk-jazz romp worthy of The Cinematic Orchestra, and the Resonators put together a blissful romp with reggae overtones. Trust me, you'll likey.

mp3: What's the Time, Mr. Wasp? (Hackney Colliery Band from The Great Wah Wah Giveaway EP Vol. 1)

mp3: Sweet Dub Affair (Resonators from The Great Wah Wah Giveaway EP Vol. 1)

The Top Albums of 2008 According to Chris: #8 - Girl Talk

I'll be the first to admit, I'm not into current hip hop these days. The only cats in the game making music worth listening to these days are the fringe underground players, such as MF Doom and the like.

Sadder still, when did the DJ officially die off as a necessary component to the "He's the DJ, I'm the Rapper" super combo? Sure, we all love Rakim, but, Lord Almighty, you are sorely missed, Eric B.

Lest I digress too far from whatever original point I was attempting to make, this year, along came the latest from Girl Talk, aka Pittsburgh's own Gregg Gillis. Now, I'll leave it up to you, gentle reader, as to whether or not Gillis more adequately belongs in the category of hip hop DJ or mash-up master, but I think it's pretty much inarguable that he's put out one damn fine mix this year.

Naming every group/artist he samples in the magnificent Feed the Animals would take more time and space than I'm willing to commit here, but some of the highlights include the J. Geils Band, Roy Orbison, Outkast, Toni Basil, Kayne, Radiohead and dozens upon dozens of others. For me, at least, it's the combination of old and acts side-by-side that really makes this thing pop.

The fact that Girl Talk offered the CD on a "pay-whatcha-like" basis certainly didn't hurt the equation one bit, either.



mp3: Set It Off (link expired)

mp3: Don't Stop (link expired)

Album Review: Girl Talk - Feed the Animals

And here I was worried that the art of sampling was dead. Girl Talk, aka DJ Gregg Gillis, is out with his latest CD, the thoroughly enjoyable Feed the Animals. What's more, you can pay what you please to get your grubby, little hands on your very own copy*. For those of you unfamiliar with his work, Gillis specializes in throwing damn near a gagillion different samples into each track, essentially creating a new song in the process. And he's got a little something for everyone here, from Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy to Sinead O'Connor and Kenny Loggins. I can't confirm it, but I'm pretty sure I heard a kitchen sink in there at one point. For me, this is what makes Girl Talk such a fun band--trying to catch all the different samples on your own. Once you realize that's nearly impossible, you can do like I did and cheat here.

To snag your copy, hit up this site.

For different price levels, you get special "bonuses." Five bones will land you the entire CD in one continuous mp3, ten will get you a hard copy as well as digital. For the record (no pun intended), I dropped half a saw buck myself. Do the right thing and show Gillis a little love yourself.

* Editorial Note: Can people please stop referring to this as the "Radiohead model?" Numerous other artists were using this same tactic of "pay what you please" long before those English chaps. Hell, Juliana Hatfield was offering non-album tracks on her site years before those guys. Sorry, I'm not sure why this bothers me like it does, I just hate to see those cats get more credit than they deserve.