New Shows

New shows are being posted!!! I don't have time these days to continue with the write-ups, but the music should make up for that...

You can listen to shows on iTunes:

Voltron Clan Hip Hop IDM Podcast on iTunes

Or just do a search for IDM on the iTunes store.

You can also listen to shows on Odeo:

Voltron Clan Hip Hop IDM Podcast on Odeo

Show #2

SHOW 2:

Producer and beat maker DNAE hails from San Francisco and has created one of the strongest emcee compilations I have heard in a while. His Album "Eternal Autum" features some of California's heavy hitters, and the music proves to be an equal match to the furious styles of guests: Z-MAN, ELLAY KHULE, LIFE REXALL, GRUNGE TOEFU & KAOE D, N8 THE GR8, EXISTEREO, DISFLEX.6, AKUMA , WRITERS BLOCK, OTHERWIZE, and the man of the hour- SUBTITLE

Along with Dj Nobody and Thavius Beck, Subtitle has been leading the way in the world of avant-tard hip hop and is one of the key figures who has been re-bridging the gap between the pyschedelic/progressive rock and hip hop worlds. A renaissance rapper if there ever was one, Subtitle finds his flows over every type of music and is an experimental emcee to the fullest extent of the word.

It's not every day that 8-bit producers catch my ear. I love the lo-fi gameboy samples and beats, but it's always the lo-fi aspect that leaves me wishing for better production vaule. Lets face it, most 8-bit music sounds like a third generation Living Legends tape from 1996. That having been said, I was amazed to find a classic, hard as hell bass heavy track produced by Two Playa Game- and with perfect production value to match. Sacramento Producers Gamebwoy and Xtraman have hit the mark with this track, and I think it's pretty hard to ruin a track that opens with a "War Games" sample cause we all know that WOPR running the program "Joshua" slayed HAL on so many different levels. I'm not aware of any albums coming out in the near future from this duo, but if they keep making isht like this I'm sure your gonna here a lot more from these guys.

Angelo Dei Morte, a.k.a Algernon, is a Voltron Clan OG who has been stepping up his game for the last eight years. From San Francisco to Texas and beyond you will find this guy killing laptops and raping hard drives as he pushes the glitch hop jungle core thing to the edge of meltdown. I can honestly say Angelo Dei Morte is the first producer I have ever seen who can rock a party with a lap top that has a screen which isn't attached to the computer anymore and is barely hanging on by a wire- Oh, and the screen only worked in intervals. I think a lot of people will be playing catch up to this guy...

Megabusive is an enigma of sorts. The only thing I know of this SF emcee comes from the numerous tracks I have heard over the last few years. I think his wesite puts it best, "i started rhyming a long time ago. i have no real interest in trying to get signed, or anything that requires me to compromize." What else can you say. "Booze and Shoes" will give you a good idea of what you can expect from other Megabusive tracks- just some straight up hip hop with no bullshit.

Uglie is from a town called Beaumont. If you are ever driving to Palm Springs and your car breaks down, it will probably be in Beaumont. When this happens to you, email Uglie because he seems to be the only thing happening out there at all; well, besides date milk shakes and those dinosaurs from Pee Wee's Big Adventure. (A little side note here is that some born-again christians recently bought those colorful dinosaurs, and have now set up a "museum" of sorts where they tell the story of how Noah also loaded dinosaurs onto his boat during the flood. He did this cause there is no other way to explain dinosaurs through creationism, so they must have existed around the time of Noah and his ark. Right.) Uglies track GDM was just another random internet find which I thought others should take a listen to. But seriously, the next time you are in Beaumont invite Uglie to go to the dinosaur "museum" with you to learn some logically fascinating details about how dinosaurs and humans co-existed...

Bizzart is an emcee who has been haunting Los Angeles for a few minutes. I don't know much about Bizzart so I will let his web page do the explaining, "An unrelenting desire to make personal, dynamic music has led Bizzart down many paths. His first release for Sounds Are Active, Everybody’s Mouth was recorded in less than a week although it hibernated for years prior. On Everybody’s Mouth Bizzart used various underground hip-hop producers for backgrounds to his psychosis: cinema, death, God and racism all shared cross examination. Alternating spoken word and more conventional hip-hop formulas, a major force behind the album’s ruminations is the meditation on his father’s murder. Bizzart puts his muse where his mouth is. Although the musical backing didn’t always propel the oftentimes incendiary lyrics his new album Ear Drung more than makes up for this." All I know is that “Nivek (Outputmessage Remix)” is a hot track and I had to share it with you guys.

Show #1

SHOW 1:

If you haven't heard of NEILA yet you have some 'splaining to do. She has got to be one of the most prolific writers in the underground world, and with over 25 appearances on compilations and solo albums in the last few years it's clear that her focus on the art of lyricism is ready to blossom. In the midst of a culture clearly dominated by patriarchal poetry stands a female who is confident with her intensely personal lyrical content and straight up storytelling abilities. NEILA'S latest album, "For Whom the Bells Crow" is a rockin' album which showcases her mix of raw hip hop rhymes with vocal melodies to match- The track that you have to check out on this album is "Felt". Those middle eastern intonations on the refrain fucking slay

What can be said about Ruski that can match the vigor and natural ability that this emcee brings to the microphone and mixing board everytime he decides to bless the studio? Having been the main emcee behind the turntable group Morse Code, Ruski has switched rolls towards his solo career and things are off to a great start. DJ Jimi the Mantisclaw (Morse Code) has joined forces with Ruski, and the pair have produced a limited press EP that leaves me asking for more everytime I listen to it. After you hear Toneburst why don't you hit Ruski up and tell him to send you a CD or six ASAP. This emcee is def making some big moves, so jump on his isht before everyone else does...

edIT is leading the way in Los Angeles' hip hop/glitch scene. This guy can seriously chop up a beat and serve it to you on a platinum platter. edIT runs the gamut of styles from straight up glitch to the heaviest of hip hop beats. I'm a fan of his production, but I can't wait until he uses his remix chopping abilities on some underground hip hop classics. If you text the word gltichfunk to 7676 you will get a sick beat sent to your phone care of edIT- or maybe you won't...

Tha Blue Herb is my favorite group from Japan. Damned if I understand anything they say, but O.N.O (producer), Ill-Bosstino, Jun Gold, and Wachall (MC's) have been making some of the freshest albums since joining forces in 1997. When DJ Krush puts his seal of approval on a group that he likes you know it's something you've gotta check out . To tell you the truth, the track is from the compilation album, Rap Wars, and the name of their song is in Kanji. The only thing I like more than Japanese food is this group.

Thavius Beck, a.k.a. Adlib, has been putting it down in the Los Angeles area for many years. I first ran into this producer/emcee years back when he was in Global Phlowtations- If you find any of the Global Phlow isht sitting in a used bin at your local record store, make sure you grab it. "Hecklers and Salves" is from my second favorite Adlib produced album- "Manipulator" which pushes the boundaries of hip hop avant-tard. My first is "Save Us" an album with limited pressing, but a first listen will clue you in to the next level isht Mr Beck is creating in his lab- mind you, this album was released in 2000. You will def be hearing a ton of Thavius Beck produced music on the Voltron Clan Podcast... This is the shit your kids kids will be listening to.

There might be a reason you haven’t heard of BRAD B before; it’s the same reason Arizona hasn’t been recognized as the next page in the cultivation of a culture whose fertile ground has sparked numerous lighting strikes within the storm of this hip-hop world. Drifter is Brad B’s follow up to his seminal work: CEREBRAL SUBTERRANEAN which was lauded as a flourishing oasis amidst the otherwise dry climates of the South West’s Hip Hop scene, and here he is on what appears to be the eve of another memorable album drop with: Drifter. This is a concept album billed as “the original soundtrack” which has been written as the music for a movie that is currently just beginning to be written- and this movie is Brad B’s life as a hip hop emcee who is making his living as an ever-touring artist. (Drifter is shadowed by old interviews of railroad riders and hobos from the past who jumped the rails as nomads with no address looking for meaning and adventure…) Drifter is the alpha and omega of this ever-moving lifestyle and was recorded during heavy touring with indie hip hop originals Awol and Existereo of The Shape Shifters, and Drunken Immortals- This tour is moving to Europe for two months this spring. Drifter can certifiably be considered an album in which every song is a bangin’ single.

The albums cover art and inside contents are illustrated by hip hop comic artist Jim Mahfood (Clerks/GenX/40 oz Comics)- who is currently working on Z-Trips new album, and the comic series “felt 2” with Murs and Slug. Drifter also features songs with 2mex, AWOL and Die Young of the Shapshifters, and members of Oldominion. 2mex is featured on Word of Mouth where these two emcees break new ground with this CA/AZ collaboration. This song is sure to draw the interest of the throngs of 2Mex fans who are itching to hear some new and original tracks from Brad B, A name they are sure to hear much more from in the near future.