Press Pause Play

We exist in an ever changing media landscape, with the onset of the digital era some would say we are in the midst of one of the most exciting technical revolutions known to man. However there are those who would argue that this particular revolution has been detrimental to the quality of output especially within the creative industries. Personally I feel that we should embrace change and adapt accordingly, I mean without the digital revolution amongst other things this blog wouldn’t exist (some might say that would be a good thing) and I wouldn’t be able to share my ramblings with the world. Press Pause Play, a documentary released last year, offers opinions and educated arguments from prominent figures for both sides. If you haven’t seen it yet I’d suggest you give it a watch. Whatever your viewpoints on the subject are this film will at best make you question your stance or at worst offer up food for thought and provide material to lengthen the debate. You can stream it for free on Vimeo by following the link below or download it from their website http://www.presspauseplay.com/ Enjoy!

DJ Q Fact Mix 342

Fact Magazine has for while now been putting out some of the most innovative mixes around. However, with this addition to the series, released almost a month ago now, they have more than outdone themselves. DJ Q’s tune selection and seamless mixing abilities ranks him as one of the most exciting DJ’s of the moment. He continually pushes bass music to new realms while still managing to give a nod to the beats that helped mould the sound into what it is today. Regardless of what music you prefer make sure you at least give this mix a listen, hopefully you’ll be as taken by it as I was.

Vibes Music

There’s a new artist on the scene produced by South African producer MPI Project who goes under the name of Vibes. He’s just dropped two tracks for free download on Soundcloud with the promise of more to come over the coming weeks. His sound is hard to pin down, somewhere between hip hop and dubstep though I’m sure that’ll change track to track. Either way it’s a refreshing style that we feel can only develop into bigger things. Don’t just take the word of a Wise Homeless Guy have a listen and download for yourself.

Akala ‘Find no Enemy’

Having stepped on the scene back in 2004 with his first mixtape entitled ‘The War Mixtape’ Akala has since carved quite a name for himself in the music industry, boasting an extensive back catalogue of mixtapes and albums alike. While he hasn’t achieved the chart success many believe he deserves his music transcends genre boundaries touching the hearts and minds of anyone who takes the time to listen.

Last year he released his third album ‘Double Think’ (excluding mixtapes) to critical acclaim which featured a number of notable tunes such as the electric guitar laden ‘Faithless People’ the socially conscious ‘Your’s and my Children’ and finally the subject of this post the reflective truths relayed within the beautiful ‘Find no Enemy.’ Do yourself a favour and spare five minutes of your day to listen to this masterpiece.

If you like this track and want to find out more about Akala take the jump to his website www.akalamusic.com

Diggy Simmons

It seems that there is no shortage of talent in the Simmons household and while it doesn’t hurt to have a wealthy and widely connected father such as Rev Run he can only provide a stepping stone, following that each child has to prove their own worth.

Diggy Simmons is not merely proving his worth but excelling in his various career choices. At only 15 he has two mixtapes under his belt, a recording contract with Atlantic records, and a trainer line to boot. Not only is the work rate there he is actually an incredibly talented rapper who is breathing hope into a genre that has faced worrying times in recent years through lack of originality, skill and depth. With rappers such as Diggy on the horizon it could be that we are in for a renaissance of the early years of Hip Hop. If you haven’t heard anything from him then take a listen to the freestyle below.

Music to Make you Move: Hilltop Hoods ‘Still Standing’

These guys make up one of Australia’s longest standing Hip Hop acts, having been active for almost two decades now.

Their beats make you want to shake a leg for sure and their flow is infectious. If you haven’t heard anything from them then now is the time to change that and get educated on what I believe is one of the most inspirational acts to step out of the shadows down under.

Without further ado here’s introducing the infallible ‘Hilltop Hoods.’

Been a while

It seems like forever since I’ve posted anything on the blog and I have to say I’ve missed it. While I could roll off a dozen usual excuses it merely boils down to the fact I’ve been too tired with all the other writing/music/work projects to bring to the table anything remotely interesting. Now that is rather a lame excuse but it’s the one I’m standing by. However, my time management has improved over these last few months and I will be bringing you info on all that interests me once again. Hope you enjoy what’s in store for the future.

Wiley Gives Away 200 Tracks For Free

Wiley, the godfather of grime, must be feeling in a particularly generous mood of late as he has done the unthinkable and released a back catalogue of 200 tunes for free through his twitter page http://twitter.com/officialwiley.

This sort of generosity may anger the major labels who have been desperately trying to avoid such give-away’s as they unsuccessfully attempt to cling on to their golden years. However, the move will delight Wiley’s fans escalating the stars stature even further.

Some narrow minded critics may not see the logic in the give-away merely seeing it as another nail in the music industry’s coffin, but those with the ability to think out of the box will realise the marketing genius having already seen the success achieved by similar ‘pay what you want’ campaigns orchestrated by artists such as Radiohead.

Whatever your views on the subject the response from Wiley’s gesture has been immense and as a result you can be assured his upcoming album sales will reflect this popularity.

To get your hands on the 11 zip files containing the 200 tracks just follow the various links below.

Zip Files 01

http://www.mediafire.com/?ztyxjtdkjzm
http://rapidshare.com/files/40616410…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 02

http://www.mediafire.com/?mm0nnvmuyy4
http://rapidshare.com/files/40617030…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 03

http://www.mediafire.com/?mzdodzk51bi
http://rapidshare.com/files/40617812…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 04

http://www.mediafire.com/?wzyhmymhomg
http://rapidshare.com/files/40618552…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 05

http://www.mediafire.com/?zitjz1jhozi
http://rapidshare.com/files/40618829…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 06

http://www.mediafire.com/?hdokjmmtdta
http://rapidshare.com/files/40619819…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 07

http://www.mediafire.com/?yzwnzulnwjn
http://rapidshare.com/files/40620383…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 08

http://www.mediafire.com/?medozzdzf0k
http://rapidshare.com/files/40620731…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 09

http://www.mediafire.com/?unmt4ymmdtl
http://rapidshare.com/files/40621363…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 10

http://www.mediafire.com/?itzmz1cmdmo
http://rapidshare.com/files/40621781…_2010.zip.html

Zip Files 11

http://www.mediafire.com/?jmmg2nzi5td
http://rapidshare.com/files/40622328…_2010.zip.html

Best of the Web: Darth Vader Dances to ‘U Can’t Touch This’

It’s been a while since I’ve posted something as I’ve been committed elsewhere but this video made me chuckle so much I had to share it. Darth Vader and his storm troopers take crowds by surprise when they bust a move to MC Hammer’s ‘U Can’t Touch This’, absolute genius.

B.O.B Camera

The latest video to come out of the B.O.B or Bobby Ray camp is for the track ‘Camera’ which is song and subsequently a video based on the life and times of a model.

The video is directed by Isaac Klotz and features a fashion shoot whereby a group of girls prance about in their underwear striking poses for the camera, while it’s not the deepest premise for a video it certainly makes for good viewing.

The track is taken off B.O.B’s mixtape ‘B.O.B vs Bobby Ray’, the flow is smooth and the lyrics are catchy all adding up to what should be another hit from the Atlanta born rapper.