It must have been a sign when I recently found a tape recording of an interview I did with Dr. Octagon (aka Kool Keith) circa Dr. Octagonecologyst. This is the same tape that provided such reliable mix drops as “ain’t nothing smellin’ in jazz” and the Doctor’s bizarre verbal recreation of “greasy” beats. I don’t have downloads of the interview outtakes, but I do have a track from The Return of Dr. Octagon due out later this month. My man’s still at it. Some ‘notherworld production and lyrics to match. He can, to quote Rakim, “take a phrase that’s rarely heard, flip it…now it’s a daily word.” Oh and say kids, who likes remixes? Cause we got ’em, from Her Space Holiday and Cassettes Won’t Listen among others.
P.S. Wonder if we’ll ever hear The Mountain Goats remix Dr. Octagon. Turns out he’s a big fan. Just when I thought I knew everything…
After a dozen years of being a team player for LA hip-hop legends Jurassic 5 and Ozomatli, turntable maestro Cut Chemist is about to follow in the footsteps of his cratedigging buddy, DJ Shadow, and drop his major label solo opus. If these two tastes are any indication, this joint’s gonna have both range and flavor. “The Garden” features deft cuts, lush instrumentation, and lilting Brazilian vocals. “Storm” is classic Chemist: a wicked b-boy playground wherein top-shelf underground MCs Edan and Mr. Lif run amok like schoolkids. In fact, Mr. Lif drops the line our eight-digit 3hiver Sean has been waiting his whole life to hear: “opposable thumbs don’t mean you can get dumb” — WORD! The Audience’s Listening hits June 13 . Meanwhile, fiends like me will have to wear these tracks out and seek the occasional comfort of my 
Drop this one in your bunny basket—the first taste of Mike Skinner’s biting, British, bubblegum bounce.
While Enso and I have a couple things in common (a penchant for slip-on shoes and Russian philosopher Mikhail Bakhtin) the present disconnect between my life and life reflected in “High Spirits” is comical. While plenty of you are likely “up in the club / hold[ing] your drinks high” this evening (it’s currently Saturday night), I’m sitting at home in a pair of slippers sipping chocolate soy milk. That doesn’t keep me from knowing a hot party track when I hear one. Slip “High Spirits” into your party playlist and you’ll have ’em eating out of your hand at the next mixer.
Maybe I always felt a kinship to DJ Wally because his ferret is (was?) named Sam, too. More importantly, Keef DeStefano, as his parents named him, holds a place in my heart because of the role he’s played in the soundtrack of my life. See, in the mid- to late-’90s, Keef was a double threat — as DJ Wally, he’d record abstract beatscapes with a hip-hop undertow; as Pish Posh, he’d fire off rounds of infectious Big Apple drum ‘n’ bass. So I could turn to him to bring me up or chill me out. And I did. Often. These days, DJ Wally’s writing a new chapter in his discography, making music for TV shows and producing/DJing for NY rappers 
I was raised on Coldcut, or at least raised after my rebirth as a 
Chicago-born, Oakland-based beatmaker extraordinaire, Jeffrey Logan, aka Jel, is “a man whose heart is equally divided between the clouds and the streets.” Jel made his way out West with his trusty drum machine, the SP1200, and forged an entire sound and label — Anticon — with his driving passion and skills. And just so you know, he’s a master at the SP1200. He was one of the very first to play the drum machine live as an instrument, with little or no sequencing. Judging by these two tracks, Jel’s forthcoming album, Soft Money, promises to be a monster. Not since the city of Bristol unleashed a little band called Massive Attack has any collective threatened to take hip hop to yet another level. Another FYI: Jel’s also a member of 
While trying to track down info on a record that I’m hooked on, 
This seemed like an appropriate track for the day after Christmas. While Hanukkah is still keeping some of the world honest, the rest of us will be drawn in by the lure of Boxing Day Sales and New Year’s debauchery. That other Man in Red sure moves in quick, don’t he? Enough preachin’, let’s get on with the music… You may not know hip-hop producer Ayatollah by name, but if I told you he’s the mastermind behind Mos Def’s “Ms. Fat Booty” (mmm, fat booty…see what I’m talkin’ about??) you’d probably start to nod your head instinctively. He’s got his own thing coming out toward the end of January. This ought to get your mouth watering.
Today is my birthday. And, as Birthday Boy, I command anybody with a funky and/or funny bone in his or her body — nay, anybody with ANY kinda bone in his or her body — to listen to the UK’s finest, DJ Format, and his Canadian pals Abdominal and D-Sisive. At least once. Then you must watch