Monthly Archives: May 2012

House Shoes – From Detroit to LA

Having just about recovered from finally getting to see Dabrye live with all-star support from Ras G, Kutmah and Flying Lotus, I am back to fiending over new music (and occasionally writing about it). House Shoes debut LP, Let It Go, is due out June 19th and anyone else who made it down to London for Dabrye enjoyed one of the best sets I’ve ever seen, with three cuts off the album played very loud. Finally Shoes’ serious talent is getting pressed up, so go listen to him speak on his musical motivations below, courtesy of ABO181 and LouisDen.

Shoes talks about the impossibly confusing (for an outsider, at least) phenomenon of Detroit’s disregard for the enormously talented local hip hop scene. When I saw Phat Kat, eLZhi and DJ Dez play back in 2010, they mentioned the same thing. Well, should anyone need convincing of the genius of Detroit native J Dilla, House Shoes reconstructs the main riff to Nothing Like This. I have to admit, I had a bit of a moment when I first heard it.

In anticipation of his upcoming release, House Shoes put out two mixes of his own work. Entitled The Makings, you can find Part 1 and Part 2 on High-Rise.

Knxwledge – Kameo EP

At the risk of turning High-Rise into a single artist venture, Knxwledge just dropped another EP, his fourth release this month. The tracks are short but the quality is consistently high, especially his flip of Lords of the Underground on WhatimAftr. Stream and purchase below.

Kutmah – All Dabrye Mix

Talented and not-always-voluntarily-globe-trotting DJ and beatsmith Kutmah has put together an all Dabrye mix ahead of his UK show later this week. The line up features the Detroit legend headlining, with Kutmah, Darkhouse Fam, Widows and now Ras G (!) in support. Unbelievably there are still some tickets left, so grab one here quick smart. You have Earnest Endeavours, Sketchbook and Hit+Run to thank for a very special gig. Listen to the mix below.

Oddisee – Odd Renditions

Late last week, High-Rise posted Oddisee’s unique refix of Ain’t That Peculiar by Marvin Gaye. Today, as promised, High-Rise returns with the full Odd Renditions EP, featuring imaginative reworkings of tracks from Bon Iver, Metronomy and K-Os. Listen and download below.

Lots More Knxwledge

May is scarcely two weeks old and it has already played host to three new releases from the most prolific of slop-funk merchants, Knxwledge. I’ve had a good few stabs at describing the appeal of his music, but there truly is no replacement for listening to it yourself. So to kick things off we have the Klarity EP, released a couple of days ago.

Scant days prior to Klarity came the Kuntent EP, nestled below:

And just two days before that, Knx dropped the bootleg sequel to last year’s Wrap Tapes Port 1, featuring distorted guest appearances from… some rappers. Answers on a postcard please.

TightFace Interview

New music and an interview from High-Rise favourite TightFace. The good folks over at The Hungry Ear caught up with him before his Belfast show to talk influences, crate digging, and talented siblings. Click here to read the interview and journey south to check out Know How Now, an exclusive new track.

Regulars to High-Rise will know the name TightFace by now but if you need to catch up, make sure you grab copies Demonstration, Treasures of the Five Boroughs, and Remixes & Root Veg – all utterly essential.

Marvin Gaye – Ain’t That Peculiar (Oddisee Remix)

Emails from Mello Music Group have an unfortunate habit of getting promptly buried by a load of other stuff on arrival, meaning I end up sleeping on modern classics from Apollo Brown, 14KT and other talented folks from their impressive roster. Today, however, the High-Rise inbox was treated to a much-needed Spring clean, and just in time for this to arrive…

For those in need of an introduction, Oddisee is a Washington DC born rapper and producer who spends his time between his hometown, Brooklyn and London, collaborating with the likes of Diamond District, Tranqil and Damu the Fudgemunk. Ain’t That Peculiar will be released next week as part of Odd Renditions, a collection of remixes featuring K-Os, Bon Iver and Metronomy. Keep an eye on High-Rise for that one. Oddisee also has a brand new album due out June 12th, which you can pre-order here. If you need to catch up on Oddisee’s considerable discography, make sure you do it via his Bandcamp.

Sweatson Klank – Slept On, But Not Forgotten Vol. 1

High-Rise is a big fan of BTS Radio. Launched back in 2003 by Andrew Meza, BTS has played host to a slew of artists I hold dear, including Jneiro Jarel, Kankick (a few times), Eric Lau, Exile, and a once unsigned Flying Lotus. It comes as no surprise, then, that their latest mix is something rather special. Sweatson Klank, the Californian beatsmith formerly known as Take, has put together Slept On, But Not Forgotten; a properly mixed and juggled selection of classic hip hop records from the mid to late 90s era. And he’s done a really good job. Waste no time and click on the link below to visit BTS, download the mix and pore over the track list:

Sweatson Klank – Slept On, But Not Forgotten Vol. 1

Excitingly, this is “the first in what’s said to be many volumes to come”, so keep an eye on BTS and High-Rise for the next instalment. Late 90s hip hop has a distinct style that can easily go overlooked in a golden age fervour, something the likes of Action Bronson and Meyhem Lauren are trying to address. If you are out for more late 90s joints for your ears, pick up DJ Spinna’s spectacular Underground Forever mixtape and TOM YUM’s Underground Hip Hop Mix 2010. To check out Sweatson Klank’s own highly enjoyable sonic experiments, pay a visit to his SoundCloud.

House Shoes – The Makings Pt 2

As promised, here lies The Makings Part 2, the second half of House Shoes’ latest mix in anticipation of his upcoming album, Let It Go. On this side, we have guest appearances from more Detroit talent, including MarvWon, Quelle and Elzhi. Stream the mix below or click here to download.