TAG: Beastie Boys

Feb20

Salvador Santana – Keyboard City (Review)

Salvador Santana

Keyboard City

Released by Various Music/Quannum


It goes without saying that a musical lineage like Salvador Santana’s doesn’t hurt in jumpstarting a career. The son of Grammy-winning (ten to be exact) Carlos Santana, the young musician also has a poet for a mother and a blues icon for a grandfather. Add his paternal grandfather (a legendary violinist and, apparently, a mariachi bandleader) to the mix, and it’s no surprise that Santana took to the family business. Staying true to the varied and diverse musical disciplines within his family, Santana opted to dedicate his talents to the keyboard, having studied piano from the age of five and attending music schools along the California coast. His San Francisco-based youth and college years spent in Valenica informs much of Keyboard City, which has a laid-back, beachy, hippie vibe that Santana himself best describes as the “Frisco mindset” in “Under the Sun.”
Jan20

Kid Koala’s The Slew

Kid Koala teams with an all-star rock 'n roll rhythm section to deliver a cut-up sludge-blues masterpiece 

Since emerging as a teenaged DJ-wunderkind in the mid ’90s, Eric San, AKA Kid Koala, has always pushed himself to be different. His debut was a dizzying multilayered, hand-cut affair, a technique he’s since parlayed into stints with funk group Bullfrog, spaced out hip-hop all-stars Deltron 3030, and a soundtrack to his own graphic novel. Now the Montreal-based turntablist has teamed up with friend and fellow DJ Dylan “Dynomite D” Frombach as The Slew, creating a dirty-blues rock record built out of hand-cut samples with a rock-star assisted live show. Four and a half years in the making, San describes the group’s debut, 100%, as “sludge-Blues a la The Bomb Squad.”

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Jan12

The Beatards Drop New Ode to Sneakers Single Today (MP3)

New York hip-hop trio The Beatards follow in the “footsteps” of U-N-I’s “K.R.E.A.M. ” with the release of “Don’t Step On My Sneakers,” a tribute to their favorite footwear. The track fuses an electro drum beat with electric guitars and yelling reminiscent of Beastie Boys’ “No Sleep Til Brooklyn.” Rappers UTK the INC, Chuck Wild and DJO–of Indian, Jewish and Korean descent respectively–spit about their treasured kicks while finding time for some Big Daddy Kane-esque braggadocio rhymes. As evidenced by the group name, the tongue is usually firmly planted in cheek, though clearly these guys love their shoes. As the group themselves say, “‘Sneakers’ is the ode to the Everyman’s obsession, FRESH KICKS! And keeping them fresh! Everyone has been in that situation where you …

Dec02

Grammy Nominations In…

It’s that time of year… KOL, Beyonce, Lady Gaga, MGMT, Silversun Pickups, Black Eyed Peas lead the pack of nominees. Phoenix, the YYYs, Depeche Mode, Death Cab and David Bryne & Brian Eno will battle it out for Best Alt. Album. Drake, Cudi, Jay-Z, Mos Def, Common and Q-Tip are also represented in the hip-hop and rap categories. Here’s the abbreviated list, go here for the full list. …MORE

Sep16

DJ Hero Unveils Daft Punk Trailer (Video)

Who’s excited for DJ Hero? The highly anticipated game released a trailer featuring Daft Punk, with the famed DJs mashing their “Robot Rock” with Queen’s “We Will Rock You.” Just a hint at the endless possibilities of cross-genre mash-ups? The trailer reveals that Queen, No Doubt, Gary Numan, N.A.S.A., Beastie Boys, and Young MC are all up for grabs. As for the rest of the avatars (DJ Shadow, Z-Trip, and DJ AM, to name a few), we’ll see on Oct 27th, when DJ Hero is released!