Immortal Technique - The Martyr

Download here

"If you are listening to this, it is your responsibility to burn this for every single motherfucker you know" is the first thing we hear from Immortal Technique at the start of this album, and who am I to argue.

Immortal Technique (Felipe Andres Coronel) is a Peruvian-born American rapper straight out of Harlem, New York. Listening to this, or any of of his other work, you could be mistaken for thinking that he's not a great fan of the country he has lived in since he was two years old – he is an angry man – but, in my opinion, he's got a lot of love for the USA, he just has a lot to say about some of the people in it and running it.

If anything, this release is a bit more mellow than his previous two, Revolutionary Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, but still, it is refreshing to find some good quality hip hop which is actually saying something for once. The production on the album is good, there are some conscious samples and even some Beatles and Abba behind the spittin', but you gotta listen to the lyrics, Immortal Technique is always about the lyrics.

He tackles heavy issues facing society today head on with a eloquence, intelligence and guile not oft heard and yes he is angry, but he is also a bloody good rapper. Don't bother putting this album on in the background, wait till you can listen to it properly and listen good... 

Dub Kweli

Link to the download

Mash ups. When they are good, they are very very good, and when they are bad they are Franz Ferdinand vocals laid over an Public Enemy beat so peeps in Camden can actually dance to it. However, there are some true classics out there; personal favs include The Grey Album by Danger Mouse (The Beatles' White Album cut with Jay Z's Black Album) and The Kleptones' A Night at the Hip Hopera (Queen tracks mashed up with Hip Hop (Yes it really does work!)), both 2004 releases.

This one is a bit younger (2010), but in the spirit of trying to bring you free downloads both past and present, it is a goodun. Our Mashupist is a man like Max Tannone, and if you ain't guessed yet, he very ably lays Talib Kweli tracks over some crucial roots music. Most mash ups works cos they blend elements of two quite difference genres, but good hip hop in the form of Kweli's ever-tight vocals and some nice heavy Jamaican riddims seem like they always belonged together. I always wondered why more straight up hip hop isn't backed by reggae music, some UK hip hop does dabble in it, for example. Maybe it's just that ragga, with that fierce snappy toasting just kinda queue jumped it, but with a quality mix like this, you wonder why it doesn't happen more often.

Max Tannone has cut up other artists in the same vein, includes Jaydiohead (Jay Z and Radiohead), Ghostfunk (Ghostface Killah vs African funk and highlife) and Mos Dub (Mos Def and reggae). All of which are very listenable, but while they sound awesome on paper, the mixing is a little clinical with not much interaction between the two mashed up tracks, leaving them sounding not quite as fresh as Dub Kweli, which is why I brought that one, in particular, to your attention. Enjoying listening to Kweli banging on your eardrum.

Blitz The Ambassador - World People 02

The Mixtape

I got a follower! Thank you, who ever you are (I'm guessing you are a mate of mine, but they all count). To celebrate that fact, here is another blinding mixtape for you to check out.

I'm gonna try to post a mixture of both recent mixtapes (like this one) and ones that have been around a while (like the last one), so stick with me if you like it either brand spanking new or strictly vintage! This particular mixtape was posted a few weeks ago on the Paris DJs website, which is is well worth investing time to explore in itself; I'm sure there'll be more from them on here in the future.

Our man Blitz is a 'Ghanaian-American Afro Hip Hop' artist. He was invited to do the mix for Paris DJs after Seun Keti (son of Fela) gave them the heads up, so some good creds to be going with. There is whole long list of twitter/facebook/myspace/blahdee blah  links on this page, if you fancy checkin his own stuff out, including a mixtape of his own stuff, which I'm downloading as I type!

There's nothing too ground breaking on the mix, but don't let that discourage you! It's on a hip hop/afrobeat/soul-type vibe, and, if I'm being honest some of it is a tiny bit too R&B/urban/whateverthefuckyoucallit, but there are some killer tracks and it is nice and chilled without being toooo chilled, if you know what I mean???

T'Ambassador also flips around a bit, meaning we get some afrobeat, followed hip hop then some modern soully stuff then back to afrobeat...etc, rather than moving smoothly through the genres. That's a good thing though: it keeps you listening and guessing, and is a bit different to most mixes.

Back to those boss tunes I was talking about. Unless there is summat wrong with you, your ears will prick up when you hear Raphael Saadiq's 'Good Man', which sounds as good as any classic soul you're likely to hear. Also, 'Rose Garden' by Shad is a nice lickle bit of mellow hip hop cut up with some great female vocals, (vocals which sound just a tiny bit different from the original by Lynne Anderson). Also, the ever-strong Mos Def's tune 'Auditorium' rocks it, with some haunting strings and top production from Madlib; and the clutch of afrobeat on the mix is crowned by a serious good track straight out of Ghana called 'Kyenkyen Adi M'awu' ('Come back my love') by the gloriously named K. Frimpong and His Cubano Fiestas.

All in all, Blitz builds a great mix with a nice relaxed vibe. If it is a sunny day, and you got to go to work, this mix will definitely make you feel a bit better while on your way, it'll also sort you out when you clock off!