WE PLUG 2 YOU: FREEDOM OR DEATH

Hi Guys, how have you been? It’s been a minute since I did one of these. Life has a way of overshadowing your good efforts but I promise to be a whole lot better. The boss wants a post every week and this is what he will get. We do have to apologize to those of you sending in your stuff, we will try to get to as many as we can that we LOVE, so please continue to do so. So let’s begin shall we.

I do not have a trained ear for music, sure I could tell you what instrument is being played but in this digital world I could also be wrong. I did not go to any sort of music school; I am neither a producer nor an artist. So why do I do this you might ask? Because I LOVE GOOD MUSIC and though we might have different opinions, I like to believe that I have the ears for good music. That is why I can introduce you to the music crew FREEDOM OR DEATH.

FREEDOM OR DEATH are a duo from Toronto, who released their first self-titled EP in June 2010.  Fernandez and Sway who make up this duo had both been in the Canadian music industry for over 10 years and decided to leave the corporate environment of the major labels to pursue as they say it “our” art over “their” business.  What resulted is a mix of genres from Electronica, Indie Rock to Folk that I absolutely love.

My favorite song on their self tiled 6 track E.P is called "This Crowded Room". There is something just great about this song. The instrumentals are so nice, they have voices to match the greatness and uniqueness of this beat and it all blends so smoothly. Plus you really have to see this video, its interesting to say the least. Oddly enough there is something romantic about this song so i really wasn't surprised when i saw it.

My next favorite track on here is their male version of Pink's "Sober". First off, I heart Pink and i think she is legendary. What is crazy for me is that for them to have chosen this song, i feel like they must have felt some kind of connection to what Pink was trying to say. The song speaks of insecurity, speaks of want or need for attention and affection and yet shows growth. What is that thing they say about realizations being the first steps to progress.Yes! that is what this song speaks of. But i might be wrong, maybe they just love Pink as much as i do. Lol. What more isn't it awesome to hear guys carry this tune that is so unique to Pink? like who would have thought any guy could hold this tune?

 

Because its only 6 songs on this EP and i want you to actually download it, ill end this with the last song on the EP "Meter Maid". I think its funny that i chose to review the last 3 songs, but i digress :-). I love this song. "I made myself a liar, threw out what you desire, left just enough for me, enough to make it hard to see, that everyday is just a phase of beating up myself again, walking further from your hands, waiting for my head to land" Those lyrics right there captivate me right from the beginning of this song as i carefully listen to the rest of the song. Its such a beautiful song and i'm all about instrumentals and that guitar piece somewhere in the middle killed it for me. "Its all in my mind." Isn't it always? :-)

I hope you enjoyed the songs guys. Follow them on Twitter and check out their Myspace page for more info on them especially if you live in Canada, maybe you could see them perform live. I bet their performance will be awesome. And don't forget to cop the EP on itunes, links are right below.

Purchase: Freedom or Death EP (UK) | iTunes USA | iTunes Canada | iTunes Japan

And i'm Out till next week.

Peace Love and Good Music

Neefemi

We Plug 2 Y.O.U... Moxie Black - How Did This Happen?

So a few days ago or to be more precise, on Wednesday August 18th, emerging Portland Rapper-Vocalist + Producer duo Moxie Black released their 11-track Free début album 'How Did This Happen?' but we'll get on to that in a minute. I suppose right now though, you're asking 'Well Who are/is Moxie Black?'.

Moxie Black consists of Super-Producer Brian Dekk Dekker, who you might remember from Luck-One & Dekk's 'Beautiful Music' EP which we raved about right HERE a little over a year ago & Vocalist/Rapper Adam IllaJ Lewis (not to be confused with the younger of the Yancey brothers), who is a next generation emcee, musician, producer and tireless businessman, according to his myspace page. Both from Portland, OR, Individually making significant strides in their separate musical journeys have come together to create this beast, this monster that is Moxie Black! I first heard the duo back in February & this is what I heard...

'Risky Bizness' is the lead single off of their brand new debut album 'How Did This Happen?' & you may have heard it in the past 2/3 weeks over on a number of music blogs (this record sent the internet crazy so much so that it made it unto Complex Magazine's 5 O'Clock Shuffle upon release!). When I first heard it though, I was a little surprised because I associated Dekk with the soulful hip-hop production he laced for Luck-One on tracks like 'Coulda Been Me' & 'When I Forget' from 'Beautiful Music' but I quickly got over it. 

I remember before he sent me this record, Dekk asked me "You a fan of electro-pop new wave type hip hop? or are you more a traditionalist?", to which I replied "I'm on everything G as long as it sounds good, would say though that my 1st instinct is still always traditional sounding hip-hop...", which is still so true but there was something about the record. I said at the time that the first stanza reminded me of Theophilus London which as Dekk pointed out is not even a bad thing. I liked the record so much & I even loved the singing parts that much more. IllaJ is a clever, witty & talented dude and these two work together, it's a great mash-up & their album 'How Did This Happen?' is an amazing testament of this...

This album is quite hard to describe or explain. Yes it's Electronica, its New Wave, it's Alternative, it's Experimental but it's also quite more than that. Each song on the LP is different, with a totally different vibe from the previous or next song. I press play on this album & it's an experience every time so I'll just share with you, some of my favorite records from the album & you can check out the rest of it at your own time (which should really & truly be right after you've read this piece!)

This here record titled 'Chosen' is my favourite record off of the album & in all honesty, one of my favourite records for 2010. I'm most definitely certain that the play-count of this record on my blackberry is on some astronomical level! Everybody I've played this song to has fallen in love with it & I'm sure you will too. IllaJ on vocals is amazing on this & Dekk unleashes a massively head-bopping musical backdrop that is just right. It's minimalist in parts, under-stated in others and never overbearing. This record just comes together perfectly! 

& there's more where that came from...

What about those drum patterns on this record? Simple yet it gives the song all the life in the world! I hear this record & I just wanna break-out into a mad dance. I love this record so much like! It's titled 'When I Think of You'

All in all, I must say that 'How Did This Happen?' is a beautifully put-together piece of work. It's a little short of 40 minutes which works perfectly because it leaves you wanting some more, well at least it left me wanting some more after I listened to it & I like that! It's not filled with unnecessary fillers or tiresome records and as a whole, it comes out pretty compact, congruent, very thought-out & most importantly it's GOOD Music from Track 1 to the end. Even the three bonus-tracks that conclude the album DO NOT disappoint. I implore you to download the album via the link right below... Even though you might be a 'traditionalist' when it comes to Hip-Hop Music or Music generally, I Still think Moxie Black are worth your time... At least 40 minutes of it!

Download: Moxie Black - How Did This Happen?

Until the Next Time...