Black Happy

Vaz, “The 2nd”

Every now and again I encounter a record that I can’t seem to be able to buy on digital, but is available on physical media. Usually it’s some older release that nobody has bothered putting onto digital marketplaces, but sometimes there will be some new vinyl-only release by somebody. Or worse, cassette-only. Chartreuse Bull was one of those when I first bought it, although it subsequently showed up on Bandcamp. But included in the LP when I bought it was a code to download a digital copy, and I appreciate that so much, thank you to their label.

Let’s Go Bowling, “Identity Crisis”

The final Let’s Go Bowling album, Stay Tuned, feels a little like they were finally letting the commercial winds blow them along towards rock. While their previous records had been pretty traditional, this one definitely feels more of a piece with the other ska bands who were hitting it big. But, of course, by 2000 the commercial appetite for ska was collapsing, so if it was a bid for fame, it didn’t really work out. My least favorite of the four records I have from them (there’s apparently a debut out there that I’ve never heard).

The Coup, “Get Up”

The Coup got together with one of their peers on this one, Dead Prez, combining two of the most political acts in hip hop at the time for one great track. I don’t know what else there is to say, they’re both bringing their A-game. Also, I love it when rappers imitate sirens, always a good move.

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, “Where’d You Go?”

This is the first Bosstones song I ever heard, when I saw it on 120 Mintes back in probably summer of 1992. I really enjoyed it as a total change of pace from what I was listening to at the time, but didn’t go back and visit the band under later, after I’d found the Specials, and started teaching myself about ska. It’s still a charming little tune, it’s hard to resist the big horns.

Sheesh, this one is all over the map.

Here Lies Man, “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere”

Like some kind of fuzzed out combination of stoner rock and Afro beat, Here Lies Man is another one of those Bandcamp discoveries that come from checking out their daily blog. It’s pretty fun stuff!

De La Soul, “Pain”

From one end of De La Soul’s career to the other, this comes from their most recent album, And the Anonymous Nobody. As I mentioned in the first entry on them, this album was produced using Kickstarter, and all the samples came from their own recording sessions. I’m curious to see what their followup will be like. Will they use the same methods to make their next record?

In other music news, one of my very favorite blogs of all time is now a book. Go look at the outstanding Ruth & Martin’s Album Club! Also, here’s today’s music.

Ghostface Killah and Adrian Younge, “Blood on the Cobblestones”

Another track from the cinematic Twelve Reasons to Die, which is just a fantastic album. The various Wu-Tang projects were always at their best when drawing inspiration from movies and other visual media, and this album is no exception.