Category Archives: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Album reviews.

Ambient Waves :: Epop Nivek’s ‘Second Hand Processing’ Is Experimental Bliss

Posted on March 16, 2018 | Leave a comment

While doing my year-end round up, I stumbled across Epop Nivek on Bandcamp. Being a fan of experimental composers and songs, I put it on the backburner to check out, and as per usual, 2018 got busy to the point that I overlooked it. Recently, I rediscovered this project, and now it is imperative that I share Second Hand Processing with followers of this blog. In a world full of same-y sounding synthesizers and drum sounds, it’s interesting to hear someone take field recordings, ambient noise, instrumental and sonic snippets, and turn this vast array into a statement in the form of an album, let alone a song. If you’re an open-minded fan of music, this one is definitely worth looking in to.

-chief

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Posted in General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, Underground Me Now

Tagged ambient, austin, bandcamp, chief, epop nivek, experimental, second hand processing, the doomsday device

Disco Daze :: Wild Child’s ‘Think It Over’ Video Is Incredibly Entertaining

Posted on March 14, 2018 | Leave a comment

The Austin-based mellow powerhouse group Wild Child are hitting the ground running in 2018. Their new album, Expectations, is available on all digital shops and streaming formats, they are gearing up to hit the road, and their new music video for Think It Over is an absolute delight to watch. As much as I’d like to give you the rundown, this one is best left to hitting play and diving in. Check it out, share it, like it, and make sure to check out Wild Child if they pop up anywhere in your area.

-chief

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Posted in Audio-Visuals, General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, Underground Me Now

Tagged austin, chief, expectations, the doomsday device, think it over, wild child

Known Rights :: Moodie Black Drops ‘Sway’ Single

Posted on March 9, 2018 | Leave a comment

Morgan from OVRLD will tell you… on one of Moodie Black‘s last trips into town, they were playing new tunes. When they dropped Sway, us fans and the new listeners got H Y P E. With the specter of the Lucas Acid album release on the horizon, I am happy that Sway is the pre-release single, and even more happy that K is getting to voice the experience of efforts to bring trans-awareness to the table. This song could shape up to be both the jam and a possible benchmark moment all in one.

-chief

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Posted in General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, Underground Me Now

Tagged chief, k, lucas acid, moodie black, morgan, ovrld, sway, the doomsday device

Body Moving :: Henry + The Invisibles Release ‘Let’s Bounce’ Single

Posted on March 6, 2018 | Leave a comment

Henry + The Invisibles is no stranger to dropping an inspirational track. Whether he’s encouraging you to move your body or to explore your world, he’s always on point. Sometimes, as in the case of Let’s Bounce, he does both at the same time. Henry + The Invisibles rides the dual metaphor wonderfully in his lyrics before lacing the track with a moving solo and one of the funkier bridges he’s committed to tape in a hot minute. I’m looking forward to sharing some festival time with him at the upcoming Martian Arts Festival, and definitely I’m looking forward to more new music.

-chief

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Posted in General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Tagged chief, henry + the invisibles, let's bounce, martian arts festival, the doomsday device

Rebel Music :: Secret Levels Goes Off With ‘The Game is Never Over’

Posted on March 5, 2018 | Leave a comment

I’m all about innovation in hip-hop. I don’t think we should be chained to production and performance tropes, and I find the divide in tastes emerging between the last few generations disturbing. That being said, I love hip-hop that is rooted in the elements that brought it to the status that it has achieved today, and it’s apparent that Secret Levels feels the same way. The Game is Never Over is drenched in the boom-bap aesthetic, and while dropping tons of homage to days past, the album never sounds dated. Think Ugly Duckling with a bit more bite to it, or a linear evolution of what Pharcyde was doing. Period point blank, this is an album that should be in your rotation if you care at all about supporting the Austin hip-hop scene, because this is high quality work.

-chief

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Posted in General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, Underground Me Now

Tagged austin, chief, hip hop, secret levels, the doomsday device, the game is never over

Dirty Work :: Kinder Hits The Internet With A New Tape Mix

Posted on February 27, 2018 | Leave a comment

When it comes to production and electronic music in the central Texas realm, not many are doing it to the skill level of Exploded Drawing OG member Kinder. Even his demos are an event, as the recent Soundcloud upload of 2.24 (tapemix) demonstrated. 6 minutes of Kinder exploring the ideas and pathways of a new song is more entertaining than some so-called producer’s finished products. For a genre of music that can be formulaic and pattern based, Kinder manages to capture an incredibly hands on feel. As always, be on the lookout for releases from Kinder, because the man is always working on something dope.

-chief

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Posted in General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Tagged 2.24 (tapemix), chief, exploded drawing, kinder, soundcloud, the doomsday device

Warning Signs :: L.Dot And Menace Talk ‘Savage’ On New Music Video

Posted on February 13, 2018 | Leave a comment

Emcee L.Dot, representing Killeen by way of D.C., is here to make it plain and simple what he’s all about. On the video for the latest single, Savage, L.Dot and collaborator Menace trade bars about what qualifies them as savage, as well as what sets them apart from others making similar claims. All of this is done over a banger of a beat from TroubleOnTheTrack and Dubb-Z. CoolyFilms stepped in with the visual assist, and the final product is definitely something that stands up against the competition. Definitely give this one a like, share and comment if you’re missing hip-hop with substance and heart from the local level.

-chief

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Posted in Audio-Visuals, General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, Underground Me Now

Tagged chief, collyfilms, dubb-z, l.dot, menace, savage, the doomsday device, troubleonthetrak

Multiple Connections :: Evolve Drops ‘Stash #19’

Posted on February 10, 2018 | Leave a comment

Evolve has never been shy about putting in collaborative work. From working with a plethora of producers to having a wide range of guest vocals on his projects, you can always count on Evolve to bring in the energy of others to his work. stash #19 is the chance to drop some of his unreleased and favorite collaborative efforts in one collection. You can always count on quality work from Evolve and company, so definitely be sure to check this one out, share it, and support your indie visionaries.

-chief

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Posted in General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Tagged chief, evolve, stash #19, the doomsday device

Deep Concentration :: Lady Valore Drops Knowledge On ‘IRL’

Posted on February 8, 2018 | Leave a comment

In my quest to become the Superman of indie blogs, I think that Virgil Wolfe has become my Jimmy Olsen. One trip through his timeline, and I manage to keep finding dopeness. This go-round, it’s Savannah, Georgia-based Lady Valore that caught my attention. Her latest release, IRL, did all the right things to catch my attention… dope cover, interesting song titles, and a guest appearance by another recent Virgil Wolfe discovery, cunabear. Naturally, I decided to dive in, and I was certainly not disappointed.

Lady Valore has a very conversational style and delivery, making her come off as the underground hip-hop version of The Ancient One from Doctor Strange. Her lines of rationale and observation are interesting and thought-provoking, and the production (the lion’s share of which is done by 5AM, with contributions by DRMA, Matty Meatloaf, Sunglow and (‘i’s’)) is abstract enough to stand out, but strong enough to support the unique flow. For a name your price purchase, you really can’t go wrong with this one.

-chief

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Posted in General Information, ShuffleCast, Spotlight, The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, Underground Me Now

Tagged 5am, chief, cunabear, drma, irl, is, lady valore, matty meatloaf, sunglow, the doomsday device, virgil wolfe

Beyond Measure :: Cha’Keeta B Releases ‘2Incomparable’ EP

Posted on February 5, 2018 | Leave a comment

After a successful video release last year for 2 Can Play That Game, Austin-based emcee Cha’Keeta B steps into the release realm with a new EP, 2Incomparable. Cha’Keeta B does a wonderful job of laying down empowering thoughts and observations with supreme confidence and delivery. The production is on-point throughout the project, and guest appearances from Cat Carter, Lakrea, Nubia Emmon and Alesia Lani help round out the empowerment stance found on the album. Cha’keeta B reminds me of newer female emcees such as Rhapsody, no doubt, but her voice is also reminiscent of Neb Luv from The 5 Footaz, both in her rhyme schemes and timbre. This is definitely a strong way to start 2018… be sure to listen, share and support Cha’Keeta B in this venture, and always give props to your local artists.