Boogiemonsters
"Riders of the Storm: The Underwater Album"
(Pendulum)
Along with the Pharcyde, Souls of Mischief, Questionmark Asylum, Digable Planets and a host of others, the Boogiemonsters were a hip-hop quartet who were able bypass the grittier aesthetic of mid-to-late 90's rap. From the Cal Tjader-styled cover of their first album, "Riders of the Storm," it's clear that they were set apart from the Mobb Deeps of the time. Their record is heavy on New World Order conspiracies, but not as heavy as their follow up sophomore, "God Sound," in which half the group quit and didn't quite have the appeal of their earlier offering.
Labels: Boogiemonsters, hip-hop
Jimmy Eat World
"Self-Titled/Wooden Blue"
(Wooden Blue)
Like Weezer and The Bronx, Jimmy Eat World has about fifteen different "self-titled" recordings. This is their first album which came out on Arizona's defunct Wooden Blue Records. Unlike the popular J.E.W. albums, Tom Linton sings all the songs on this recording, and it's ridiculously fast and is very much in the vein of bands like J. Church and random Fat Wreck bands.
Labels: Indie Rock, Jimmy Eat World
Lords of the Underground
"Here Come the Lords"
(Pendulum)
One of Marley Marl's post-Juice Crew proteges, Lords of the Underground (Doitall, Mr. Funky and DJ Lord Jazz) had a pretty explosive debut album with "Here Come the Lords." Despite a public thumbs down from the legendary Lord Finesse, there's no denying that this album has some serious hits on it, like "Chief Rocka" and "Funky Child."
Labels: hip-hop, Juice Crew, Lords of the Underground, Marley Marl
INI
"Center of Attention"
(Unreleased)
In 1995, following his split with CL Smooth, Pete Rock helmed the production for INI, a group that was made up of Grap Luva, Rob-O and Rass. Rock appears on a few tracks, but Grap Luva and Rob-O are pretty strong rappers in their own right. This album was originally supposed to come out on Elektra and was shelved. It's come out on vinyl as a bootleg and the UK-based BBE Records released it 2003. BBE has since taken it out of production, but it doesn't mean that people shouldn't be able to hear it.
Labels: 1995, hip-hop, INI, Pete Rock
Endor
“S/T”
(Self-Released)
Hailing from Temecula, CA, Endor featured Matt Barcalow, who happens to be the brother of Nate Barcalow of Finch, so comparisons were to be anticipated. Endor wasn’t an incredibly groundbreaking band, but they still managed to put out a solid debut EP during a time when you couldn’t throw a rock without hitting a screamo act of some sort.
Download HereLabels: Endor, Finch, pop-punk, screamo
DJ Q-Bert
"Demolition Pumpkin Squeeze Muzik: a Preskool Break Mix”
(ISP)
Q-Bert’s “Preskool Break Mix” is something of a classic in the world of mixtapes. Q-Bert packed in some of the most important b-boy breaks, scratch routines and samples within a 60 minute timeframe. Nearly every notable song from the “Ultimate Beats and Breaks” series is stuffed on this tape
Download Here
Labels: Disco, DJ Q-Bert, hip-hop, Invisibl Skratch Piklz, Soul
DJ Babu
"Comprehension"
(Self-Released)
This is probably one of the best mixtapes of all time. Released in the mid-90's, Fat Beats reissued it again on cassette (and CD, I believe) in 1999 when Babu's profile was hightened further with his work in Dilated Peoples, as well as the Beat Junkies and the billion DJ videos he was featured in.
Filled with cuts, jazzy breaks and homemade beats by Kan Kick, Babu (before the Mixtape or Duck Season), D-Styles, Shortkut and Melo-D, I would say that this mixtape is one of the most traded and dubbed cassettes of all time.
Labels: Beat Junkies, DJ Babu, hip-hop, mixtape
Jimmy Eat World
"Live at Sonic Boom Records"
(Unreleased)
Whether you're a 30 year old Jade Tree Records devotee or an 18 year old college freshman, you've surely crossed paths with Arizona's finest band, Jimmy Eat World, at one point or another. Maybe it was the first time you heard "The Middle" while shopping at Macy's, or it could be getting drunk on New Year's Eve and pontificating the meaning of life while listening to "A Sunday."
This recording was made using a Mini-Disc recorder and edited by yours truly. It was during a stop on their 2002 fall tour with Weezer and Tenacious D. The band was really just Jim and Tom, along with Rachel Hayden of That Dog and The Rentals playing an acoustic set at Sonic Boom Records (Ballard) in Seattle.
1. The Middle
2. Lucky Denver Mint
3. If You Don't, Don't
Labels: Acoustic, Jimmy Eat World, Live
