Crystal Castles – Amnesty (I)
If you thought the absence of former vocalist Alice Glass would have a profound effect on Crystal Castles, think again. While positioned as the face of the band (if you’ve seen her live you’ll understand why), producer Ethan Kath has always been the mastermind behind Crystal Castles. With Glass now gone and replaced by Edith Frances, this new version of the electronic outfit continues to push the boundaries of hard-hitting electronic soundscapes on fourth album Amnesty (I).
Across the 12 tracks on Amnesty, Kath continues to incorporate creepy industrial themed electronica with dark, experimental synth-pop, crafting an interesting and at times harsh take on electronic music. Enth is a blistering bass pounding fantasy, Teach Her How To Hunt a torrent of static and washed out vocals, and Concrete a nightmarish rave of screeching vocals and in-your-face electronica. Of course it’s not always an assault on your senses. Kath has always been great at balancing his fevered dark productions with pop influenced singles on previous albums, and Amnesty is no different.
First single Frail has all the hall marks of an underground club hit, with house production intertwined with brooding synths and new vocalist Frances’ hypnotic delivery. Sounding similar to Glass, albeit with a more innocent tone, Frances gives tracks like Kept and the trippy Ornament a familiar feel while injecting her own personality into the music.
Amnesty builds on the legacy of what Kath and Glass started, and if Frances’ is just as animated when on stage as Glass was, then there’s no reason why Crystal Castles can’t keep on being a great act.
Verdict: Quality release.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfB4BQQcoKM]
Master P – The G Mixtape
For the young ones out there, Master P might not be a familiar name, but throughout the late 90s and into the early 00s, the rapping entrepreneur and his No Limit Records label ruled the American hip-hop airwaves. While he’s been off rap’s radar for a number of years, that’s all about to change. The Southern rap legend has been working on a No Limit Records biopic (a la Straight Outta Compton) and looking to recapture his glory years with the release of The G Mixtape.
If you’re a P fan then this mixtape will satisfy all your needs. The always engaging performer enlists an eclectic lineup of producers and guest rappers for 25 tracks of Southern hip-hop beats infused with P’s signature storytelling and catchy hooks. Of the big names present, Rick Ross keeps things gangster on Like I’m 23, Lil Wayne gives a decent account of himself on Money & Power, E-40 continues his recent run of great guest features on No Stoppin’ and The Game makes an appearance on the funky 70s Heaven For A G and street tale Real. P’s No Limit Boys – comprising Moe Roy, Ace B, J. Slugg and Blaq n Mild – a collection of young up-and-coming rappers P is hoping will help rebuild his No Limit empire with, feature on numerous tracks, the best being Made It Out. Of all the features, it’s hard to go past the remix of Usher‘s No Limit. While Young Thug’s verse is unfortunately dropped, to make up for that we get new rhymes from Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz, A$AP Ferg, Travi$ Scott and P, making it a contender for the most unusual collection of rappers on a remix you’ll hear all year.
P only contributes five solo tracks to the tape, although they’re all classic P, with the Ice Cream Man dropping rhymes about things such as his career (Too Legit), fake friends and haters (Business) and his status in the game (Can’t Count Us Out) over typical tap beats. Listening to The G Mixtape you’d think P was still one of the most popular rappers around particular the chemistry he has with many of today’s new stars. If anything, this tape proves his credentials and is a great way to introduce himself to a new legion of rap fans.
Verdict: Uhh… Master P is back!
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWlEpbRYH5s]
Kur & Dave East – Born Broke, Die Rich
Philly rapper Kur and Harlem’s very own Dave East have teamed up for surprise EP Born Broke, Die Rich. The five track project finds both young MCs on point as they rap about the streets and life on the grind over a variety of beats provided by Buda And Grandz, Dougie, Infamous Rell and Maaly Raw.
Opener Got It finds the two exchanging bars about how real both MCs are over a catchy beat and is followed by the sparse production of Raw’s No Trust, with the hook, “I don’t trust not one of ya’ll,” rapped like mantra the two abide by. Themes of struggling and making it out of poverty and the ghetto are present throughout Born Broke, Die Rich, with Kur and East rapping about escaping the streets on soulful Fallen and brooding Came Up. The final track of the EP is the aggressive Flexing, another track about the hood, with Kur claiming, “Love my hood and I still be in the hood.”
Not having heard much of Kur before listening to this tape, I have to say I’m impressed with his lyricism, and it’s nice to hear someone come out of Philly who isn’t named Meek Mill. As for East, he continues to prove why he’s part of the future of New York hip-hop.
Verdict: Great introduction too two awesome talents.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSmluu4PTT0]
Image: Hypebae
Master P sat down for an interview with The Breakfast Club, where he talked about his upcoming biopic and his take on what’s wrong with this generation of rappers.
In the recent interview, the No Limit Records founder discussed the problems facing the new generation of hip-hop stars. “What kill us as African American entertainers is drugs,” lamented the rapper. “If you really want to go and research. Everybody that you know that went at a young age, it’s all drugs. Drugs killing a lot of our hip-hop artists.”
Master P continued to elaborate on the subject, while also criticising those that weren’t ready to put in the effort in order to succeed. He went on to bemoan a lack of hustle and dedication in today’s generation of rap stars, who in his opinion, spend all day getting high and posting on social media. Master P specifically references “syrup” or “lean”, which is a prescription level cough syrup, that has been popularised by rappers like Future, while taking the lives of others such as A$AP Mob leader, A$AP Yams.
“Nobody really wanna work no more…Everybody getting high now,” Master P said. “The syrup is killing the whole-this generation. Sometimes you don’t have to work for the money. If you do what you gotta do and you good at it, the money gon’ come. You gotta love what you’re doing. And you gotta educate yourself.”
Master P also touched on his upcoming biopic, Ice Cream Man: King of the South. He mentions that in the wake of Straight Outta Compton, he is planning on working together with everyone who will be portrayed in the film, in order to ensure that each story is told correctly and without embellishments, in a bid to save himself from both lawsuits and a damaged reputation. The rapper went on to say that the story in the biopic won’t be told through rose-coloured glasses, with the New Orleans rappers stating, “My movie gon’ be real because it’s gon’ be everything. And I’mma let everybody speak their part, but I’m not faking it. I’m not gonna sugarcoat it or make you look good. If you was fake back then, I’m gonna expose that. It’s gonna show how fake you was.”
The film is set to hit American theatres in Spring this year.
Master P is a name that many hip-hop fans of the current generation would not recognise, and that in itself is a great disservice to the man who brought a flair to the game that is still difficult to match. The man was a mainstay of the late 90’s, and was just about as lavish as they come, and with good reason. In 2013, Forbes named Master P, real name Percy Robert Miller, as the third richest figure in hip-hop, carrying a net worth of $350 million.
It would appear that Master P still has plenty of stories left to tell, releasing the trailer this week for his self-directed biographical documentary entitled Ice Cream Man: King of the South. The film looks to be a gritty retelling of the historic rise of Master P and his No Limit Records label, from platinum records to plenty of controversy. Hip-hop biopics are currently the trend in the film making world, with the astounding success of Straight Outta Compton,and Master P looks set to take advantage.
One of Master P’s most popular tracks, Make ’em Say Uhh went double platinum, and even upon first listen you will be able to see the differences that hip-hop has taken in such a short space of time.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5ZvzIOO6aU]
The documentary is slated for a September 2016 release, and will be distributed worldwide, so make sure you show the Ice Cream Man some love and catch a screening.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZ_4KNmFX1c]