MIXTAPE 136 – SOULTRONICA 7

But the soultronica series is officially back on. Brothertron handles the intro, since dex digital is incapacitated (if you caught the last episode, you’ll remember why) – but wait, dude somehow survived half an hour of no oxygen – what’s the deal?

Find out next time, maybe.

Toonami Soundtrack – Depthcharge. You all remember Toonami? They actually had some dope music on the show intros.

The Jet Age of Tomorrow – Welcome Home, Son (feat Casey Veggies and Tyler, the Creator). The whole Voyager album is dope. Get it. @thesuper3

The Jet Age of Tomorrow – But She’s Not My Lover. This was my first introduction to these two.

Theophilus London – Cold Pillow. I know nothing about this artist, but I like this cut. @theophilusl

Droop-E - [I AM]. Sure, dubstep if you want to call it that. Either way this song goes really hard. @droope707

Gucci Mane – Photo Shoot (Flying Lotus remix). Seriously, what is Gucci doing in the intro?
introlude: The Big Payback – The Return, and
Louis Bordeaux – Say The Word Again Bitch (@louisbordeaux)

Hir-O – Welcome Back Hir-O. He’s got an instrumental album out, which you should absolutely go get. He’s apparently going to be at SXSW in some capacity, so if you’re going, go there, find him, and thank him. @hirobeats

Suhburb – This is 96. Five points if you can guess what inspired this cut. Hint: he gave me this song like three years ago.

Suhburb + Donwill – Take it from me (remix). More Suhburb. I hear he’s making beats again. He still doesn’t have a facebook or twitter though.

That’s it for this installment. holler.

MIXTAPE 91 – SOULTRONICA 5 – BOUNTY HUNTERS

In Volume 5 of Soultronica, capsule we find our bounty-hunting heroes, Dex Digital and Brothertron, cruising through the Beta Quadrant looking to get paid. Just as Dex gets word about a mysteriously high bounty posted on the perpetrators of a mysterious crime (who gets all bent out of shape over an old WWIII artifact being stolen?), Brothertron notices the same bandits zooming by their ship. Incredulous at their luck, the two give chase.

All is not as it seems, though – it appears that these space pirates have some pretty advanced (and illegal) technology in their little 12-Series beater. What will happen when our brave duo finally encounters the space pirates? Will they get their bounty? Where did the space pirates get that cloaking device? What the hell is a “Guh-Unitay”, and why do the pirates – and the Intergalactic Corporation – want it so bad? Find out in this installment of the Soultronica Series.

PS – Yes, this is a continuation of the soultronica storyline. If you’re new, you might want to start from the beginning.

intro 2: DJ Mehdi – I Am Somebody (DJ Paris Version). The joint goes hard, what can I say? djmedhi.

Special thanks to S. Kim for extra voice talent (S-Kim the bounty TV news reporter)!

Justice - D.A.N.C.E. (Justice Remix vs MSTRKRFT Remix). I know that TK already dropped the original of this one back in The New Soul Vol 3 (which you really need to check, by the way), but this first version just goes too hard not to put you all up on. Then we’ve got the re-edit soundclash with the MSTRKRFT version, which doesn’t bang as hard, but the reinterpretation on the synth lines is bad. myspace.com/etjusticepourtous, myspace.com/mstrkrft.

Neptunes + Daft Punk – Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger. I guess you could call this a remix, but it’s a bit too different to my ears. This circulated a long time ago (yes, Kanye was late to the game), and I just now rediscovered it. Whether you dig their stuff or not (and there’s no reason why you wouldn’t), people like P and Timbo really drive a fair bit of this new sound – as do Daft Punk. myspace.com/pharrell

digilude (searching for the space pirates): JR Don – Yobma. myspace.com/ghosteo.

Styles P – The Hardest ft AZ. Don’t forget that Soultronica has a lot of its roots in straightforward hip-hop as well. This cut could have worked easily as some standard boom-bap NY steez, but the futuristic synths just put this one on some galactic shit. myspace.com/stylesp.

Ty - Mpho’s Lament. 8 seconds. Yep. Important, though.myspace.com/tyandupwards.

Scienz of Life – Ginsu (Bronx River mix). Got this from John Robinson not too long, and immediately asked to put this one on the show. Took me a second to get to it, but I think it was worth the wait. The original mix is cool, but this futuristic one is just next level for me. myspace.com/scienzoflife.

digilude (battle): Biomass - Auxiumantia. Brilliant ambient producer from my own neck of the woods. If you ever see a flyer with the name “Biomass” on it, go, go, go. Dude brings his own television monitors. myspace.com/biomass.

Ladybug Mecca – Sweet and Polite. I have to admit, it took me a couple listens to really appreciate this one. As you might be able to tell, this one was produced by Sa-Ra. Sometimes I forget how good Ladybug Mecca really is – and the combo of her with the bizarre production of Sa-Ra is just too much. Somebody should tell them to do more collabos. The helium synth at the end is just bananas, by the way. myspace.com/ladybugmecca.

That’s what it is for this week. And yes, there is a whole storyline and universe behind this saga. You do not want to miss what happens next.

say something…

MIXTAPE 76 – NEW SOUL 3

Black TK comes back once again to bring the finest in Soultronica. That’s right – it’s Volume 3 of the New Soul.

702 – I Still Love You (prod. Pharrell).
Teedra Moses – You’ll Never Find (A Better Woman) feat Jadakiss.
J Dilla Interlude
Sa-Ra – We Gonna Do It Again.
JUSTICE – D.A.N.C.E.
Niri – Who Knows.

So hit the comments, help join us on facebook, etc.

Oh, by the way, new site design. Hope you dig.

MIXTAPE 73 – SOULTRONICA 4 – THE ESCAPE

After landing on the surface of Andromeda-13 in search of his cyborg partner Brothertron, approved Dex Digital contacts the ship’s computer (Cosbotron) in order to get coordinates on Brothertron’s last known location. Shortly after receiving those coordinates, valeologist Dex Digital is ambushed by a group of invisible space aliens native to Andromeda-13 – possibly the same beings that captured Brothertron.

Soon, Dex Digital awakens in deep within the aliens’ compound. He discovers that he is trapped in a cage suspended from the ceiling by a rather weak chain, and is accompanied in capture by Brothertron and an alien that appears well-versed in 21st Century Ebonics. Will our heroes make it back to their ship alive? What will happen to their new alien companion? And where did this alien dude learn to talk like that? Find out in this episode of Soultronica…

Be warned – none of this will likely make sense unless you’ve heard the rest of the soultronica series.

Tracklist:

intro – a ghosteo beat.

Ammon Contact – A Satellite’s Return. Special shouts to J.R. and Carlos Nino for linking me up with this jam. This one’s off of New Birth, which (from what I know) is the debut Ammon Contact record. There’s another one out, though, so check it.. AC on Ninjatune.

4Hero – Take My Time feat Jack Davey. Yes, vocals contributed by the singer of J*Davey. 4Hero has been around forever in this whole Nu Jazz / drum n bass thang, and this new soultronicaesque sound that they’ve got going on is hot. I might be sneaking another cut in off of their latest album – Play With the Changes. Shouts to JC of Milan Records for making the connection on this one. myspace.com/4hero.

interlude – Nicholas Cicero – Muerto 6.

The Big Payback – It’s You. The meandering opening cut on the second release from the Japan-based Circulations label. This song is not even the half of it, ladies and gentlemen. I think the artists on here are NY/France based – what they’re doing on a Tokyo label I don’t know, but I’m not complaining. Shoutouts to Dai again for getting this to me. myspace.com/circulations

Sa-Ra – Hey Love. Yeah, it would have been nice had I put this one out before the album come out, but hey, things happen. Doesn’t change the fact that the cut is nice. I still have some more on deck, so stay in tune.. sa-ra.net.

Ammon Contact – Omniverses 2. Probably my second favorite track off of the New Birth record. Check these cats out.

Glass Candy – Rolling Down the Hills [no vocals edit]. No offense to Ida, but I just couldn’t fuck with her vocals (at first – they actually grew on me after a while). Johnny Jewel, on the other hand, is a recent discovery (to me – he’s been doing his thing for a minute) and I dig his weird retro coked-out production. You can find the original on the Glass Candy myspace. myspace.com/glasscandy

pre-fight interlude – Josh Ivey

outro music – ripped from the Nintendo game Xexyz.

that’s this week’s jumpoff. And again – if you’re new to the series, you might want to step back and listen to Soultronica Vol 1, Soultronica Vol 2, and the recent Soultronica Vol 3.

MIXTAPE 70 – THE NEW SOUL 2 – ORIGINS

And breaking once again from the standard format, prosthetic we’re back with another installment of Black T.K.‘s The New Soul, viagra here one of two Soultronica series here on everybody’s favorite hip-hop podcast.

This one is the Origins show – taking you back into time to experience the foundation upon which this new movement was built. All you future fanatics don’t freak though – the kid is coming very soon with Soultronica Vol. 4. The saga continues…

Intro – Black T.K. Der Kommisar loop
Grace Jones – Pull Up 2 The Bumper (produced by Sly and Robbie)
Drop 1 – Black T.K. Radioactive loop
Cameo – Back & Forth (produced by Larry Blackmon)
Drop 3 – Black T.K. Ain’t Nobody loop
S.O.S. Band – Tell Me If You Still Care (produced by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis)
drop 3 Black T.K. Safety Dance loop
Evelyn Champagne King – Betcha She Don’t Love You (produced by T. Life)
drop 4 Black T.K. Hang On loop
Klymaxx – Men All Pause (produced by Joyce Fenderella Irby and Bernadette Cooper)

Hit up the comments section, let us know how you felt this one!

MIXTAPE 61 – BLACK TK PRESENTS THE NEW SOUL VOL 1

This round, this we’ve got the inaugural volume of yet another soultronica series – a spinoff of a spinoff, buy if you will – here on the Mixtape Show hip-hop podcast – The New Soul, bronchi starring comrade Black TK. We’re both coming from our own different respective angles on this soultronica movement, but I think you’re going to feel what dude has to say artistically.

Here’s the playlist and commentary courtesy of TK -

Kelis – Trilogy
Platinum Pied Pipers – Shotgun feat Jay Dee (I’m mad at you for getting to this before I did! -dex)
Niri – Fool in Love
Sa Ra Creative Partners – Unreleased
Jay Dee aka J Dilla – Think Twice

all bumps looped and chopped by black t.k. And if you don’t know who they artists are shame on you!!! You listen to commercial radio too much!!

Use your tools!!!

–

And there it is. As always, feel free to drop comments and let us know how you felt the show as a whole, individual tracks, and so on!

MIXTAPE 57 – SOULTRONICA VOL 2

And as promised, pilule Soultronica Volume Two. If you haven’t caught the first installment in this ongoing sideseries, you need to go back and get a bar – once you’ve caught Soultronica Volume 1 in its entirety, come back and check this one out.

This volume finds our heroes back in space, and your boy back in Cali with the official studio – don’t get me wrong, the Macbook mic is fine for what it is, but nothing beats recording into a mic that’s worth more than you are.

D’Angelo – Devil’s Pie (Kenny Keys remix). I was so impatient to share this joint with the listeners when I first got it that I damn near made a one-song episode of your favorite hip-hop podcast. Keys shows us where his name came from on this joint, and the production is hot as well. Brilliant remix. myspace.com/kennykeys

J*Davey - Let It Bleed. There’s so very little I can say about this duo without simply reiterating what everyone in the know has been saying for what, going on a couple years, at least, now? Production is funky, soulful, and futuristic, the vocals ooze intelligence and well, sex. jdaveybaby.com

J*Davey – Gangsta. Damn. Do not let the lyrics slip by you on this one, trust me.

Dwight Trible and the Life Force Trio – Equipoise (feat Sa-Ra). And somehow I managed to sneak Sa-Ra back into Volume 2. I remember back a couple summers ago when JR was talking about Dwight Tribble, and when I finally got my hands on Love is The Answer, I got what he was talking about. Real spacy, groovy, soulful joints – special thanks to JR for approving this joint for mixtape show play. Make it a point to cop the full album.

DJ Spinna - Where’s Your Love (feat N’Dea Davenport). Another joint off of Intergalactic Soul. This record is kind of weird because it starts off hip-hop – and does a pretty damn good job of it, as listeners that caught volume 1 will remember – and then around track 5 decides it’s had enough of this rap shit and runs for safety in the form of house. I’m not complaining, because I like house anyway – shit, I might do a house episode sometime soon (what do you all think – want to hear that? comment away), and this is a nice example of what the rest of the album sounds like. djspinna.com

J*Davey – Mr Mister. Some of you might know this one.

Wale Oyejide – Falling. And we finally got some more Wale on here. This joint is off of Africahot!, and was actually recommended to me by LG over at Shaman Work – I’d forgotten how much I felt this joint when I first heard it. There’s been a lot of buzz around this record, and for good reason. Wale’s got style all over the place – wait until I break some more of this Black Gold material out for y’all… shamanwork.com

(opening beat – Kenny Keys).

And that’s it for this week’s installment of the most important hip-hop podcast on the entire intarwebbe. Next week, we’ll be…actually, I have no idea what I’m doing next week.

Any feedback, questions, comments, light up the comments section.

MIXTAPE EPISODE 49 – SOULTRONICA

This week – no hip-hop. Yeah, glaucoma you heard me.

I’d like to officially present to the internets – each and every one of them – a nascent genre of new Black music. I don’t know what to call it – I’ve heard Space Funk (or maybe I made that up? I can’t remember), dosage Neo Funk, and TK seems to have settled on Soultronica, which I think is fairly accurate. You’ll see what I mean when you listen to the episode. So, for now, soultronica it is. Check the playlist.

DJ Spinna – Intergalactic Soul feat Phonte of Little Brother. This is sort of a weird record. Spinna starts off with two or three solid space-hop joints – this being the hottest – and then just when he’s got a good momentum going, he turns around and runs straight for motherfucking Chicago. House all the way through. Weird, but good. djspinna.com

J Davey – No More (Donwill Piracy Remix). At long last, after nearly 8 months of talking about it, I’ve finally gotten some J Davey material. I actually have enough for a whole episode, or two – peace to them for getting all that to me. I’d already heard the original joint, but this unofficial remix puts it over the fucking top. If you’re not already on the J*Davey bandwagon, you need to be. jdaveybaby.com.

Steve Spacek – Dollar. A J Dilla production [1]. Jon of SIC passed this to me damn near a year ago, or maybe it was a year ago, shit. Still, the beat is ridiculous. If you’ve already heard it, listen again.

Jneiro Jarel – Breathin’ feat Rocque Wun. In true space-age fashion, both of these artists have names that I can’t pronounce. For some reason I slept on Jarel’s last album for the longest – something about the cover art, I don’t know. Finally someone told me to listen to the goddamn thing, and it’s nice. Nice. jneirojarel.com

Sa-Ra – Second Time Around. Black pretenison personified. This is material done before the G.O.O.D. music thing – I think – some more material from the batch of exclusives Jon for SIC gave me a while back. If it hasn’t hit you quite yet that this whole Soultronica thing is a throwback to Parliament, maybe you’ll get it here – or find their sampler and listen to that.sa-ra.net

Opening beat – Kenny Keys – Starr Step (unreleased) – myspace.com/kennykeys
Outro – Sa-Ra – We Gonna Do It Again sa-ra.net

[1] Be on the lookout for the big Episode 51 – trust me, it’s going to be hot. Shaman Work has a lot to do with it, if that is any clue. Check back with your favorite hip-hop podcast next week for the full joint.