The Witzard

Directly following his own Son Raw Vs. The Psychotic Hippies and stints producing The Council of The Gods' Trilogy and The Council member Nomad Carlos' "At Will," Son Raw is back with Fantasy RapBall. Son Raw's latest has been described as a re-imagining of classic Rap verses from the 90's and beyond and the answer to a question that has confounded humanity for ages: "what if we made a beat tape... but with raps?" Initially conceived over the course of 2020, Fantasy RapBall was developed as a form of wish fulfillment during the thick of The Pandemic, when proper studio collaborations were impossible and "free time" mostly meant yet another episode of The Last Dance . Fantasy RapBall by Son Raw Amidst watching clips of Michael Jordan both literally and figuratively dunking on the competition, Son Raw decided that if sports fans could cosplay as NBA & NFL coaches, he could probably grab a few Rap acapellas and mold them into new ...

Super Basic by Walter Gross "I don't want to go into too much detail with this release, except for the idea that it was made in the spirit of a beat tape, even [though] it's not traditionally a "beat tape." Meaning, it's a hodge-podge of random stuff that is sequenced and edited to be able to enjoy as a little journey. And it is also an excuse to use these [CHILDREN'S TALKING BIBLE] cassettes I had and make some art. The term "SUPER BASIC" is a bit of commentary on the state of our world right now; this super-mechanical, very stagnant status of things," Berlin -based beat-maker and multi-media artist Walter Gross told The Witzard within a recent email. SUPER BASIC is a companion piece, of sorts to Gross' March 2017 Black Box Tapes -released cassette, VESTIGE and he'll be the first to tell you why it was released so soon after its predecessor: "Rent. I need rent money!" SUPER BASIC was made in true 1980's Golde...

While no one else seems to have really noticed it, I think Joey Bada$$ sounds a Hell of a lot like Wu-Tang Clan 's long-deceased Mad Hatter of an expert swordsmen, Ol' Dirty Bastard aka Dirt McGirt aka Big Baby Jesus aka Dirt Dog (ODB). Honestly, that's the first thing I thought after I heard Bada$$ enter the stage immediately after Action Bronson at the XXL Freshmen 2013 Tour 's Philly stop about 2 weeks ago. The 18-year-old rapper eventually ended by flanked by his Wu-Tang -sized Pro Era posse, which I'm sure includes it's own 90's Hip-Hop -obsessed, new age versions of RZA , GZA, Method Man , Redman, Ghostface Killah , Raekwon, Inspectah Deck , Cappadonna, and the remaining "Shaolin" by way of Staten Island emcees. Joey Bada$$ is currently prepping the release of his first widely-publicized mixtape since 1999 , Summer Knights EP for a July 1st unveiling; Bada$$ did however release 2 smaller projects since breakthrough 1999 (2...

The Sure Shot [parts 1 and 2] by Ghostface Killah and Adrian Younge Ghostface Killah is a sharp-tongued, seasoned emcee who came up with Wu-Tang Clan during the height of 1990's Gambino Rap . Even when I first heard Wu-Tang Clan @ 12 after my cousins introduced me to the group, Ol' Dirty Bastard , Ghostface, and Raekwon were instant favourites. The 8 surviving members generally re-form about ever 3-5 years and are supposedly recording an album's-worth of new material, as we speak. RZA has become an increasingly sought-after director/actor since Man with The Iron Fists , already signing onto projects like Gang Related , Happy!, Genghis Khan , and No Man's Land. RZA 's own Soul Temple Records imprint will unleash Ghostface Killah 's Crime/Horror concept album - Twelve Reasons to Die , which was created alongside Black Dynamite (2009) producer/composer, Adrian Younge this upcoming April 16th. Younge recently spearheaded a Delfonics reunion with foundi...

"Fuck 1 Time" is quite arguably the most gripping, utterly revealing music video of 2012. It was filmed in the post-apocalyptic-looking world that is Lower East Side [New York] after Hurricane Sandy ; Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire 's face is dimly lit by whatever lighting Shane Annas and crew could scrounge together... flashlights, police car "cherry tops," mag lights, cell phones, etc. It's an eerily realistic clip that chronicles one of the toughest, most unifying natural disasters our nation as a whole has been through since Katrina (2005). The track's pulled from Mr. MFN eXquire 's guerrilla mixtape, The Man In The High Castle , which Universal has essentially pulled from the vast cyber-waves of The Internet . Sonically, he kinda sounds like a comic book/ WWE -loving mix between Biggie & ODB . Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire rolls with a crew of up-and-coming New York area rappers: Action Bronson , El-P, Danny Brown , Das Racist , Go...

Right before rippin' it up with [the bulk of] his Wu-Tang clansmen, RZA & Ghostface Killah played a quick game of "Bubble Soccer" in Studio 8B 's elevator hallway alongside Gerard Butler and host, Jimmy Fallon . They were really there to promote RZA 's Man with The Iron Fists film soundtarck. but it was pretty great to see the typically "hard as nails" Wu-Gambinos let their guards down and have some good-spirited fun on live TV. Wu-Tang Clan then performed a BRUTAL version of "6 Directions of Boxing" with Fallon's house band, The Roots ; Ghostface, RZA, Cappadonna, GZA , Masta Killa, U-God , and Inspectah Deck were all present for the group's first televised performance together in roughly 10 years' time. The star-studded Iron Fists soundtrack is out today (October 23rd) and it's companion Kung-Fu flick hits theatres on November 2nd. Album stand-out "The Baddest Man Alive" now has an action-packed m...

Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire is hands down one of the most outlandish, characteristically "un-commercial" major label signees to co-align with the big dogs since... I don't know, Frank Zappa or Alice Cooper . Mr. MFN eXquire is basically like a more crazy/broke version of Biggie & Ol' Dirty Bastard , who frequently raps about comic books, pro wrestling, and bitches; Tom Breihan almost perfectly described his overall persona once as "the perma-drunk guy in your building, the one who's still PARTYING loudly @ 4a.m. but who never gets told to keep it down, since he makes everyone vaguely nervous." Power & Passion EP/mixtape is slated for an Oct. 30-31st release, making it his first project since initially signing a deal with Universal Records back in April-May. Mr. MFN eXquire manages to lace up some pretty slick rhymes, which are then over-laid on top of a beat hi-jacked from 50 Cent 's sophomore album The Massacre , "Position of Po...

Matt Tavares, Chester Hansen , and Alex Sowinski are 3 no-holds-barred rhythmic Jazzcats more commonly know as "BADBADNOTGOOD." Undoubtedly knowledgeable beyond their [lack of] years, studio footage of the young Canadian musicians covering a few Odd Future standards soon emerged (Summer 2011). Hot off the press, they were originally known as "The Odd Trio" and exclusively re-tooled Tyler, The Creator & Odd Future -related tracks; BADBADNOTGOOD 's simplistic blend of keys/guitar-bass-drums works surprisingly well when re-interpreting Tyler's often airy, Jazz -esque compositions. If Tyler, The Creator has any sense whatsoever, he'll employ the BBNG boys to lay down some sophisticated riffs for his upcoming "progressive" album, Wolf (2012). BADBADNOTGOOD 's latest release is the aptly-titled BBNGSINGLE - The first sampling from BBNG2 (mixtape) . To the best of my knowledge, "Rotten Decay" is the group's premier orig...

Amy Winehouse was not unlike the late-great Ol' Dirty Bastard : Wildly talented, mildly deranged - A genuinely tortured soul. Winehouse's last known batch of proper recordings was recently collected and released as Lioness: Hidden Treasures . The Jolly Boys consists of 3 laid-back 70-something gentlemen: Albert Minott, Derrick "Johnny" Henry , and Joseph "Powder" Bennett . Utilizing sparse instrumentation -- acoustic guitar, 'rumba box [bass sub.] and maracas -- The Jolly Boys create a distinct brand of "Mento" music... a centuries-old style of Jamaican Folk not generally known outside of the island region. Legend has it that The Jolly Boys' up-beat riddims were the soundtrack to many of [actor] Errol Flynn 's infamous "never-ending" yacht parties. "Powder" & "Johnny" were 2 of The Jolly Boys founding members, upon it's formation back in The Roaring 50's. Albert Minott seems to be the ...