Mark down April 20, 2010 on your calender…the long-awaited, most-anticipated official solo shot from Roc Marcy is finally dropping through Fat Beats on CD and vinyl EP. I’m gonna call this as having a 90% chance of being the album of the year even even half of it is as good as ‘Snow’.

Roc Marciano - ‘Whateva, Whateva’

Shouts to Legend.

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Queens-bred production duo Thorotracks (Sam & Jay) have been putting it down as a crew since 2002, and have delivered dope beats for everyone from Sean Price to NYG’z, Casual to Killah Priest, Krumbsnatcha to Skyzoo. With two compilations under their belt (The Saga Begins and The Saga Continues) and the dope new mixtape from their group The Closers (not to mention that exclusive joint for the Unkut Counter Strike tape) doing the rounds right now, you can count on these dudes to deliver the goods again and again. Here are some of the highlights from a conversation I had with Sam Thoro a couple of months back.

Robbie: How long have you and Jay been a crew?

Sam Thoro: We’ve been together as a group eight, nine years. He’s from Lefrak, and I’m from Woodside. When we started working together we just never stopped. I do a lot more of the sampling and he does a lot more of drums – now – ‘cos we kinda got it down to a science. Sometimes we do beats on our own, but most of the time we do everything together. Between the two of us we have like fifty crates of records. I might do the sample, he might do the drums, then I might play the bass line and we dump everything right into Pro Tools. He’s a DJ so if there’s scratches then he scratches – I’m an engineer so I’ll mix. Most of the stuff you hear from us that sounds good? I recorded it.

Did you do get any training to become an engineer?

Nah, not even, man. It’s the craziest story – my partner found a laptop – he was working at the airport and he found one. Someone had left it there, flew out somewhere, didn’t claim it. Grabbed it – it was a Mac – so we were like, ‘Fuck it, let’s buy an M-Box’. Bought Pro Tools and then we just started recording. That’s when I was working with Royal Flush all the time, so he’d come to the crib and we were like, ‘Fuck studio time, we gonna record ourselves’. We had that shit set-up in the basement, recording in the bathroom. I didn’t even really know what I was doin’ at first, man. I just called a couple of my peoples to bother ‘em, like, ‘Yo, how you do this?’ Fronted like I knew what was doin’, and eventually just learned. ‘Deep Thoughts’ was cut down there from Killa Sha, a lot of the Royal Flush stuff was cut down there. People used to ask me, ‘Where you record that shit at?’ ‘My fuckin’ bathroom!’

What was the first project you ever worked on?

The first person we ever worked with in the industry was Blaq Poet. That’s like family to me – we know each other from hood shit before that. After that we got up with Royal Flush and we was runnin’ around with him a lot. I was managing Royal Flush for a couple of years and we were doin’ a lot of production for him. He had dropped a CD called Street Boss, and that’s probably the first real CD that we featured on and first vinyl that came out with us on it. We did ‘Q.U’ on there and ‘Man Up’ with Troy Slugs. After that we connected with Shabaam Sahdeeq – and to this day we still grindin’ heavy with him – workin’ with the NYG’z, we did two joints on their first album. I met them through Poet, too. We did ‘Connect 4’ from Sean P’s Master P CD and two joints on Killa Sha’s album. He shoulda sold a lotta units on that, it was a fuckin’ good CD. ‘Deep Thoughts’ is one of my favorite tracks that we’ve done.

What are you working on next?

We got a new group we just started called The Closers. The Closer is the pitcher in baseball that comes in at the last inning to make sure that no more runs get scored and you win the game. Shabaam Sahdeeq, Red Eye – he’s from Queens but he’s in Orlando now – and Thorotracks Productions. We also dropped The Saga Continues mixtape on iTunes while we’re working on the Thorotracks album.

It seems like no one wants to admit to being a fan anymore.

I still buy records. If you don’t like what’s on the radio – go buy the shit you like, and change things! I have some of my own peoples, ‘Oh, dude! This wack shit on the radio!’ They ain’t buy their own man’s shit! They won’t even buy certain people we fuck’s with album. Somebody we work with might be doing an in-store at the record store, and I’mma walk in there and while people are standing around I might be the first one to buy their record and give to them, ‘Alright, sign this for me’. They might laugh at me, but you know what? Every single thing we ever worked on – we bought. You ask people what the last CD they bought was – they never know what to say, man. That shit be funny.

I miss cutting out of school to buy the new CD that came out. That’s what we used to do in New York – people would play hooky to go grab the new Nas CD or whatever came out. It wasn’t enough that you could get a copy from your friend – you had to go buy that yourself! I remember when Strapped came out on HBO – everybody grabbed their 40’s and went to the crib and watched that movie and then came back out, like, ‘Oh, you see that saw that shit?’ Nothin’ moves people anymore like that no more – everything’s fast and forgotten and over with real quick. When Big L’s first album came out? We sat there like, ‘Ohhh!’ and digested that whole shit! ‘You hear what he said, yo?’ I love lookin’ at the covers and all that. They tryin’ to completely destroy that. I remember I got pulled over and got a noise-pollution ticket for blastin’ the first Wu-Tang tape – crazy shit – on a Sunday morning! [laughs] It’s hard, ‘cos the classics are taken away because people drop so much shit and it’s so fast paced that you don’t have time to sit there and marinate to let it even become a classic – even though some people drop dope records.

I don’t suppose you know what happened to Kyron’s project?

I don’t know. I ran into him recently – it was Poet’s album release so we ran into him in the hood. It was Queensbridge, we went there at like 11 o’clock in the morning but we were drunk by 1:30 in the afternoon. We went to Poet’s in-store twisted – that was bad, bro. Then it was 6 o’clock and we were like, ‘Fuck, we still got a show tonight?’ We just kept drinking. We probably shouldn’t have bought a bottle of Henny and six-pack on the way to Queensbridge. That’s me and Poet’s problem – when we get together, we get drunk. I don’t know what the hell’s with that…we always get twisted. I never see him drunk unless he’s with me. The funny thing is when I’m with Po we’ll end-up drinking Olde English or some crazy shit. He came here with St. Ides the other day, matter-of-fact! [laughs]

Thorotracks Site

The Closers – Bullpen Sessionz

Counter Strike – The Unkut Dot Com Mixtape

Blaq Poet feat. Shabaam Sahdeeq, Phantasm & Killa Sha - ‘Grimey Niggas’

Thorotracks feat. Sean Price, Shabaam Sahdeeq, U.G. & Casual - ‘Connect 4′

Killa Sha - ‘Deep Thoughts’

Thorotracks feat. Smiley The Ghetto Child - ‘Gangsta On Da Track’

The Closers - ‘Unkut’

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Free Tragedy Khadafi!

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The artist formerly known as Tony Bones from The Home Office put together this ad for the Villain In Black’s new range of Swap Meet Snacks, which got me thinking – what are some rap endorsements that need to happen? Tim Dog’s Extra Beef Burgers? Lords of the Underground’s Squidgy Set? Neek The Exotic’s Exotic Spices of The Orient? OJ Da Juiceman’s Fruit and Vegetable Juicemaker?

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You know that Shabaam Sahdeeq, Red Eye and Thorotracks came through with one of the hardest songs on the Counter Strike tape, right? Here’s more of the raw from these Queens representatives, with assists from Blaq Poet, Planet Asia, Krumb Snatcha, Reks and Gab Gacha. Look out for my interview with Sam from Thorotracks next week…

The Closers – Bullpen Sessionz

Back cover:

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An amusing clip of Keith E.E. in happier days, breaking down some hip-hop basics. As we’re constantly reminded, he’s having ‘fun’. Maybe it was the Stella’s?

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Here’s a track that didn’t make the Counter Strike tape. Un Pacino and H-Brando from Hard White rep over a Grimy Kid track. I ended-up using ‘Murder, She Wrote’ on the Counter Strike tape instead, but this works too. Courtesy of Ammo from G.I.T. Records.

Hard White - ‘21 Grams’

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As you would have heard by now, Keith E.E. ‘The Guru’ is seriously ill following a heart-attack. While there has been a flood of support from his friends and fans, this sad news has also given fuel to trolling douche bags to take some cheap shots at the man. Don’t get it twisted, bent-up or confused – at the height of their career, nobody was touching Gang Starr when it came to the classic MC / DJ combination. Not even Pete Rock & CL Smooth can match their legacy when you consider that The GURU and DJ Premier gave us three of the greatest rap albums ever made. Once Keith E.E. broke out from the Gangstarr Posse in Boston and hopped a Greyhound to the Rotten Apple – where he was soon to be paired-up with Texan DJ Premier – it was on like Donkey Kong. Following some early 12″s with The 45 King, No More Mr. Nice Guy introduced the world to the group known as Gang Starr in all their rough-around-the-edges glory.

Despite a horrible cover and some low-budget recording (“first album took us two weeks”), the record contained enough sparks of originality to catch the attention of everyone who wasn’t born legally deaf. Once the ‘Manifest’ and ‘Positivity’ remixes hit, we were offered a glimpse into the true potential that these two outta state characters were about to display. When Step In The Arena hit the following year, it showcased the phenomenal development of the crew. Premier had since cut his teeth on Lord Finesse’s debut album, and the time spent rubbing shoulders in the studio with Showbiz and Diamond D clearly paid off, as his sampling and programming techniques were now cutting-edge, while GURU had evolved from his self-conscious ‘posititive’ content of his earlier lyrics into a self-assured intelligent hoodlum persona. There was nothing else really like it when it dropped – eighteen tracks, some clocking in at under two minutes? …Arena was fresh, original and raw without pandering to the trends of the day. Resistance was futile once ‘Just To Get A Rep’ hit…

Daily Operation managed to up the ante another notch, as the crew responded to the misguided ‘Jazz Rap’ tag by unleashing a stripped-down, unapologetic declaration of hardcore beats and rhymes. While the ‘in-crowd’ was busy shouting corny chants and multiple beat change-ups, Gangstarr unleashed unyielding loops, sparse tracks and scratched hooks. Gifted Unlimited proved time and time again that it wasn’t ‘Mostly Tha Voice’ after all, as his in-the-cut delivery and brutally honest worldview provided the ideal compliment to the stark tracks. And who could forget the timeless b-side insanity that is ‘DWYCK’…

For anybody that was yet to be convinced for some inexplicable reason, Hard To Earn delivered the knock-out blow in 1994, as the Gangstarr Foundation were given even more exposure (following ‘Speak Ya Clout’ from the previous project), as Melachi The Nutcracker, Big Shug, Lil’ Dap and Jeru The Damaja got a little shine. Moment of Truth proved that only were they still relevant in a rapidly-changing commercial landscape, but still had a few tricks up their sleeve as well (such as getting Scarface on a track), while even the troubled The Ownerz had some gems on it.

The legendary status of Gang Starr is rarely questioned, so that’s not the issue here. The problem is that many Johnny-come-lately’s want to try and diminish the contributions of GURU to the Gang Starr sound. They insist that Premier’s tracks carried him, his rhyme styleis too basic or that the crew would have been better with someone else handling vocal duties. These people are morons. Not only did GURU co-produce every record that the crew ever released, but he’s been responsible for more classic quotes and vocal hooks than you might initially realize. ‘Shorty said nah,pulled the trigger and stepped….’ ring any bells? Despite any misgivings you might have about the Jazzmattaz projects, if nothing else I’m sure GURU bagged some bad-ass jazz broads over in France on the strength of that shit. Please take moment to stop jocking Preme and acknowledge the vet that is Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal, and wish him a speedy recovery while you’re at it.

Gangstarr - ‘Credit Is Due’

Gangstarr - ‘The ? Remains’

Gangstarr - ‘The Place Where We Dwell’

Gangstarr - ‘Gotta Get Over’ [Large Professor Remix]

GURU - ‘Doo Wop Freestyle’

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If you’d told me that I’d be dropping a tape with DJ Doo Wop that featured exclusive tracks from some of New York’s finest back when I started Unkut Dot Com six years ago, I would have told you to stop smoking that shit. I’ve been through some ups and downs over that time, but Unkut has always held me down regardless. This is a small token of my appreciation to everyone who has supported and stuck by the site and kept things moving.

Shouts to everyone who came through and contributed to this project on the strength. Thanks to Ironlak for the support, eskay and Legend for helping to spread the word and of course the one and only Doo Wop who really knocked it out the park.

Still cold gettin’ dumb on you crumbs after six years…let’s go!

UPDATE: Counter Strike – The Unkut Dot Com Mixtape [256kps]

Counter Strike – The Unkut Dot Com Mixtape [128kps]

Counter Strike – The Unkut Dot Com Mixtape [Streaming]

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The topic of the seemingly endless stream of remakes of ‘The Bridge’ has already been well covered here and here. But there are also a lot of songs about the borough of Queens. Here are six of the best:

Run-DMC feat. Nas & Prodigy - ‘Queens Day’

Not only is this the only song from Crown Royal that I can actually listen to without vomiting in my mouth a little bit, it’s also the second-last time the little homey spat on a track with P.

Meyhem Lauren - ‘Queenz’

Meyhem delivers a quality homage to his hometown over a majestic J-Love track.

Mobb Deep feat. Infamous Mobb- ‘Rep The QBC’

Pretty much every Mobb song from ‘96 is about the Bridge. Here’s an unreleased joint.

Large Professor - ‘Queens Lounge’

This song is pure win. Taken from the only-just-released 1996 solo project from the Flushing legend.

J-Love & Meyhem feat. Large Professor - ‘Queens Representatives’

J-Love is under-appreciated on the boards, as demonstrated here. Xtra-P sews it up perfectly as usual.

Mathematics feat. Eyeslow -’Queens Day ‘88′ [Remix]
Pharoahe Monch - ‘Queens’

Before the Elvis outfits, Monch was delivering gems like this.

Six Songs That Didn’t Make The Cut:

Nas - ‘Queens Get The Money’

Doesn’t really stay on topic, does it?

LL Cool J feat. 50 Cent, Mobb Deep, Tony Yayo & Kool G. Rap – ‘Queens’

The fact that Yayo is on this robs it of any credibility whatsoever.

Royal Flush - ‘Queens 4 Life’

Brag rap with a Queens hook.

Tragedy Khadafi - ‘Welcome To QB City’

Trag makes his own version of Killa’s Jay-Z collab. Too many weed carriers dilute this though.

Tragedy, Nature & Blaq Poet - ‘Kings of QB’

A song for some French dudes called Get Large. Nature’s verse about Paris ruins the concept though.

Large Pro - ‘Flushing Queens Day’

It’s only an instrumental…plus Large is already on the list twice!

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With a total of 324 votes (28% of the 1,143 cast) in the final round, J to the Mwah has taken the crown from Flavor Flav by only 23 votes. $hort Dog took the bronze medal with a respectable 25% of those polled. When asked for comment, Jada shouted ‘D-Block!’ and hung-up without delivering his (now award winning) laugh.

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Featuring new and exclusive tracks from Smiley The Ghetto Child, Willie The Kid, Prospect, Kamakazee, F.T. aka Fuc That, Capone, Lord Nez, Killa Sha, Mayhem Lauren, Roc Marciano, Hard White, Milano, The Closers, Kool G Rap, Godchild, Copywrite, Nut-Rageous, Craig G, Tribeca, $amhill and The Doppelgangaz….

Hosted by the one and only DJ Doo Wop!

Dropping this Friday…

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To celebrate the 6th year of the Unkut Dot Com, I put together a mixtape called Counter Strike to give a little something back to everyone that has stuck with the site. Featuring exclusive tracks and a few slept-on cuts from some of the best street-level MC’s out there right now, the tape is dropping as a free download this Friday (26 February), thanks to the good people over at Ironlak. But this isn’t just some old compilation bullshit – this is an official tape, hosted and mixed by one of the best in the game. More details to follow…

Here’s a sample of the kind of material we’ve got in store for you:

Capone & Lord Nez - ‘Gangsta/Gangsta’ [Produced by Sid Roams]

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How the fuck have I not seen this until now?

*orders custom-made Dapper Dan Gucci suit*

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Anyone get to the first ego trip film night? The next screening is this Thursday, February 25th @ 7:30pm:

Swedish filmmaker Tana Ross’ rarely seen Electric Boogie (1983), closely chronicles a crew of African-American and Latino youths coming up in the early 80s South Bronx, and their devotion to the art b-boy-ing and breaking. It’s a superb snapshot of the era, if only for the incredible footage from legendary SBX roller rink Skate Key, where the climactic scenes take place.

Distinguished UK documentarian Dick Fontaine’s Beat This!: A Hip Hop History (1984) is a classic, highly stylized BBC production features dynamic appearances by a veritable who’s who of original school luminaries: Kool Herc (in his most revealing and personal interviews), Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force, the Cold Crush Brothers, Lisa Lee, Sha-Rock, graffiti writer Brim of Tats Cru, and Officer Kevin Hickey of the NYPD’s infamous Vandal Squad. Rhymed narration provided by NYC broadcasting legend Gary Byrd.

Scheduled to appear for the post-screening discussion and Q&A are hip-hop legends the Soulsonic Force, and Easy AD of the Cold Crush Brothers, as well as Electric Boogie director Tana Ross.

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