Real talk, I don’t think I gave Nocando’s stuff a good listen before Prometheus. The times I’ve been to Low End Theory I didn’t really get the full Nocando sound. Now if you’re like me or getting an introduction to Nocando, Zero Hour is perfect. From the production, guests, and Nocando’s flow, I got this in heavy rotation. Time for me to go back and pick up what I’ve been missing. Thavius Beck, Nosajthing, Busdriver, Mexicans With Guns, and a handful of other cats.  You would think they’re shooting for the rap album of the year award or something. I wouldn’t be surprised if the instrumental version of this album dropped shortly. Zero Hour has turned me into a Nocando fan for sure. Download Nocando – Zero Hour from Hellfyre Club on tumblr. BIG thanks Nocando for killing this one.

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Nocando – Bernie prod. by Busdriver

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Nocando - Westside Rentals

I’ll tell you, my man Greg the Dude knows just about everyone. I was at Greg’s spot for a party and was talking to this one cat Dobrega about some music. He told me a little about a project he was working on and would keep me posted. I didn’t hear from him for a while and ran into him at the Hit+Run show. We had another great convo about art and some music. Later that week Dobrega shot me a link of his finished project, The Rebuild EP. Now I’m always trying to multitask, but when this crazy 8-bit sound hit the headphones I was like what’s going on. Sounded like Zelda, but then a nice  rhythm creeps in. It was so hypnotizing I totally forgot that the 8-bit sound was in there. Freedom Dance damn near made me forget I had other work to do. That first go-round of The Build EP got my full attention… so I played it again. I really dig the layering of sounds on this EP. If you are looking to be trippin off some music Dobrega will have you in a trance with The Rebuild EP. Check out  Dobrega – The Rebuild at Dobrega.com. BIG thanks Dobrega for the good tunes. Now I’m waiting to see some visuals man.

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Dobrega - Rainbows Abound

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Dobrega - Sunrise

1st Things First has got head nodding bass,  jazzy melodies to hold your lady’s to, and hypnotic rhythms to get your feet moving. If making beats this smooth was criminal, they would have had to lock Garfield Adams up a long time ago. From having Tomorrow, Yesterday rapping on a track to J. Maka El dropping lovely vocals, 1st Things First had me relaxed and carefree in minutes. Airspace sounds just like the title when you play it. The bass hits hard and the keys with a little delay make you feel like you’re floating. I’d classify this as zen music. The whole album is worth the buy. Buy Garfield Adams – 1st Things First on Band Camp. BIG thanks to Garfield Adams for making music that takes stress away.

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Garfield Adams – For The Love featuring E Reece, Basicali, Yep!

My friend, Trackstar the DJ, shot me an email about a youth program called Sessions LA  that he was involved with before he recently moved. Sessions LA is an opportunity for professionals like Trackstar to help and encourage kids through music. Sessions LA has been running on donations from the community and funds they have been able to drum up.  Now they need your help to stay in operation. Check out the video, read more about it, and give what you can. It’s a win-win for everyone, so lets keep building.

Here’s the story: when I moved out West, I left behind the non-profit organization I started in St. Louis to teach youth through Hip-Hop, hoping I’d find a similar organization in California where I could connect with a new group of like-minded individuals who wanted to use the genre as an educational tool. Our St. Louis program was great and provided a handful of kids with skills to help them harness their passion for Hip-Hop while applying real life lessons. However, due to a lack of funding, it was hard to expand past a certain point even though I always saw potential for it to grow. When I met DJ Phatrick in Los Angeles (through friend of TSS, Bambu), I discovered an organization called SESSIONS LA that executed the vision I had for my program and did much more. — Trackstar the DJ

Donate what you can to Indiegogo.com/SaveSessions. For more information check out Sessions LA and The Smoking Section. Check out the album the kids from the program have put together.  BIG Thanks Trackstar.

I don’t want to hold you back from listening to this great album, so this write-up is going to be short and sweet. Trek hit me up about Duke Westlake and, I admit I was totally sleeping. Duke chimed in on our twitter convo and showed me the video he did. (Kids shut your eye or skip the next two words.) F*CK’N CRAZY, so I had to post that too. Duke Westlake’s Memory Palace put me in this dream like, high energy, creative state of mind. I was instantly inspired to create something… anything. After the 4th round of Memory Palace I went back to work with round 5 playing. Very dope album that you need to hear.

“I stumbled onto a record store and acquired some interesting vinyl from their surprisingly abundant dollar bin. The music I discovered inspired me to make a collection of raw beats / instrumentals. Memory Palace is the first of a three part series of this music I’ve decided to release.” – Duke

Check out Duke Westlake on Knock Steady, SoundCloud, and Twitter. Download Duke Westlake – Memory Palace here. I honestly hope you charge for this soon. BIG Thanks to the homie Trek Life for the heads up. Duke, I’ll totally check my email more often brother. BIG Thanks for making dope music.

Going to Bananas is like going to a Draft. You got some top rookies and legends that pop up from time to time, and you’ll get a good show. This coming Tuesday, Bless Escro is going to be in the house with a gang of other guests and DJs. Always there to give folks a warm welcome is Mr. Belvi and the homie VerBS who are LA Hip Hop staples. Don’t be shy and come on down. It’ll be good times.

Super Foodcrew Presents

Bananas

4343 Leimert Blvd. Los Angeles

Doors open at 9pm

Cover $5

Start the Riot and look out because Thurzday is bringing the fire. When you have a popular group that doesn’t work out, usually it takes a while for a solo artist to produce a level of work you’d expect from them. F#ck that Thurzday came out blazing on L.A. Riot. And I’m not just talking about exceeding what I was expecting, but from the featured artist to the well planned promotional strategy, I really dig that Thurz brought the topic of the L.A. Riot and the social issues we all face today and don’t express or share our thoughts about to this project. Don’t just bump L.A. Riot, but listen to it. Download Thurz – L.A. Riot from The Riot Starts Here. Better yet, go buy it on iTunes. It’s worth it. BIG shout to Executive Producer, Ro Blvd. BIG thanks to Thurz for making music with substance.

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Thurz – Fuck The Police

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Thurz – Killers ft. Jazzy

Dope video, dope track! What else is there to say about this one other than watch it again.  If this doesn’t take Dumbfoundead to the next level, I don’t know what you folks are waiting for. BRB has a great concept of them high/day dreaming about being on an island looking for there way back. Half way through, I started singing the hook. “And I will be right baaack.” No joke. Great cinematography (produced by Duke Westlake and directed by Casey Chan), felt like the Hip Hop version of Lost… but with a way better ending. Can’t wait to check out Dumbfoundead’s new album DFD 11.1.11. BIG shout to Knock Steady and Andrew Garcia.

VerBS is an all around good dude and a good friend. Not only is he a dope emcee, but also a connector in the L.A. Hip Hop scene. Not sure how it all went down, but Bless Escro shot me an email about his latest project, The Blessed. Really nice album, I listened to it straight through. The Blessed has a familiar/comfortable feel to it, like this is the way Hip Hop should be. Bless Escro is blessed with skills to spit with substance. The production on the tracks have hard hitting beats that will make your speakers rattle. Let Bless Escro bless your ear drums with The Blessed. Pay what you want and download Bless Escro – The Blessed on Band Camp. BIG thanks to the homie VerBS for the connect.

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Bless Escro – Metropolitan Dominance

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Bless Escro – Da Butterfli

Count it down like 4,3,2,1! Seven Day put together a dope video to this banging track. 1,2,3,4 also features Makeshift, Versis and everyone’s homie VerBS. Seven Day’s album CNCPT II has so many hits that I didn’t know which ones were going to become videos. 1,2,3,4 is wild with these cats in P.E./work-out gear jogging around the track, doing pushups, and a guest appearance by a chicken.  YES, a chicken! Peep the video and check out Seven Day CNCPT II here. BIG thanks Seven Day for the heads up.