The Wow "LGNDRY"

We Define The Culture
The Wow
"LGNDRY"
10/21/2014

Let's lay the ground work for a split second so y'all can taste the sundae ethics and recipe. When I was a Sophomore in high school I lived in Orcutt, Ca. Hip-Hop became the number one priority in my life and everything Hip-Hop absorbed every ounce of time/energy. Living in a smaller town I gravitated toward finding cats that inspired me and struck a competitive aspect birthed via athletics. While feverishly researching local artists and new emcees to dissect I encountered a video of a cat walking through a local campus recording a remix to "Hey There Delilah", I was floored; it was raw as fuck. I started digging for anything and everything K.O. The Legend; I mimicked mannerisms, structured writing styles, and followed his tiered varying deliveries, I was hooked.  A multifaceted emcee/producer/fashion icon/futuristic mind the Kid is definitely Official.

Jump what feels a life time forward, albums released, productions placed, tours run, credits volumes long and skill Goliath built; "Who Is The Wow?" The Wow is a collective combination of the mad scientist Balt Getty and the graphite Bruce Lee K.O. precisely resuscitating   Hip-Hop chess move by chess move. The golden era feels dueled with hard hitting drum kits and bass that will clap an ass on the sidewalk from the whip; Balt is the real "Getty Center". These yuck face inducing productions dueled with a reincarnated Big Daddy Cane mixed with Big L Super Saiyan cracking beats lay the ground work to a Dubai style empire. The anticipation for LGNDRY was well felt throughout the blog scene and California Hip-Hop scene with the release of "Masterpiece" Ft Method Man.  It left one question "Who's the hottest right now? K.O./B.G. and we got it like....WOW."

LGNDRY is a long awaited firm bodied release from the duo as well as K.O. himself. With multiple mixtapes and projects running the web there is no lack of material or reference points. What we have here is another elevating step physically stating what words rarely do, POWER. Opening the album the primary track "BDK" is Reaganomics dope to the streets. Honestly, it's a throwback instrumental with conscious bars which still translate a radio wave swagged sensation.

"I'm the new empire check out my temperature, I get a check when I right down my signature. I'm not a lyricist I'm an adventurer, life is a bitch I caress every inch of her...It's that BDK; Big Daddy Cane in your CD-j. All hail Hip-Hop to the beat we pray, it's The Wow bitch go and get the EPK."

-K.O. "BDK"

It's stupid, seriously. The first four tracks alone could be a solid imprint to any artists resume which would allow them movement toward multiple definitive routes in the industry alone; yet they shrug eighteen tracks back to back to back. The lyricism/vocal articulation is definitely my favorite aspect of the album teamed with the respect done via the placements featured. Brandishing features from Method man of the "Wu-Tang Clan", Fatlip of "The Pharcyde", Prodigy of "Mobb Deep", and well known actor/emcee Realm Reality; The Wow pays homage.

It's a crucial era in modern Hip-hop where the fans are beginning to demand a new level of artistry which takes us back to the core fundamentals that founded the culture. The wave of beat heavy lifting tracks paired with catchy repetitive hooks is fading out and listeners are craving the raw music which echoes what the masses are feeling/living again. Listening to this project it had me shaking my head at the pin pointing taken; it's a patient masterpiece meticulously crafted.

"The edible kind that make you want to bite mine. You like mine? Then you can look down the price line and cop mine for nine-teen decimal nine, nine... If an emcee wants to battle me I have to penalize em."

-K.O. "Get Up"

The project spans leagues of depth in so many ways from; "Talk my shit" to "Whatcha need" to "Who are we" it's fucking well rounded!

"Whatcha need? More doctors, more painters, more teachers, more lovers, less haters. Being blamed by the rules they can't make us, so it doesn't matter what they saying they can't break us."

-K.O. "Whatcha Need"

There was a point in our modern music history where albums had everything; they vocalized almost every aspect of what we were experiencing. Listening to this project three times through I'm still catching new aspects of it, it's a damn Christopher Nolan film in auditory form. If you smoke, bang, swag out, are conscious, bump production, want to vibe out, or get deep, it's all covered.  The conceptualization of this project must have been a bitch, honestly! To piece together so many different production based tracks in a way that they are cohesive yet still fresh enough to grasp the listener and relay a new feel/message, it's dumb.
I remember the first time I unwrapped "Man on the moon" by Kid Cudi; it was in my system for a year straight. Since I purchased LGNDRY I haven't taken it off repeat, real talk. It's a labor intensive compilation of work created by Hip-Hop heads for the masses, I fuck with it heavy. I get so damn excited when elevated projects are released for the sheer fact it will cause other emcees/producers to feel insecure and dig deep to create real art. LGNDRY is definitely a must have and in my opinion one of the top projects dropped this year.

"I ain't got no nine to five and if I did I'd never show up...and I can't run home to my mom, cause she tells me I'm a failure. Cause I've been to jail more than one time for paraphernalia."

- K.O. "Who We Are"

So who is "The Wow"? The Wow is now, The Wow is the fusion of golden era ideals and modern era Hip-Hop, The Wow is LGNDRY.

"Don't give me props give me payment!"

-K.O. "Talk My Shit"

@WhoIsTheWow

Album "LGNDRY" Now on ITunes

-JP

W.D.T.C

We Define The Culture
"Head in the clouds, heart on the ground."
JP The Diesel
10/20/2014

"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts."

-Winston Churchill

      Our mothers and fathers have raised us up with the mental capacity and knowledge that we can be whom ever we wish to be and that success is at our fingertips in such a beautiful world. We have seen the barrage of glamour, glitz, stardom, beauty, and fame daily since our memories flicker with the new age of technology. What hasn't been ingrained in our constant adaptive skins is that we ourselves have to create this mindset we feel so entitled to. We may fall short to the bare essential tools and needs to reach said ideal; yet still blame outside factors. Your upbringing, status, stature, appearance, and financial offset are real factors indeed, but you are the true factor of your own success and happiness. 

Let's think.

       As an active member of the ever growing hip-hop community striving to be a multifaceted pawn in a kings world I see, feel, and understand the frustration that comes with being an artist striving for his/her place in the never ending gambit. Talent is a subtle addition to the toolbox of any growing seeker, it's a factor but not key. Understanding that this world is more than music, more than a following, and more than numbers is a huge key. What we learn over years of walking is not about foot steps; we learn about scars, cuts, scrapes, and terrain. Start to see your surroundings, your place, and what you can do for others as well as yourself. We as a whole seem to want to hear exactly what we feel we deserve yet steer away from the reciprocal which may grant a greater outcome.

       Take a look at yourself and reevaluate what you're doing, plus view what you are doing with your time and energy. At times we may feel that we are doing so much and it may be wasted energy toward an act or route that isn't going to grant an end result/product. For instance; I use to write two to three hours a day at coffee shops to stay sharpened and conditioned yet what was it for? Instead of creating pieces for distribution, reviews for viewers, blogs for sites, etc. I was writing to cater to my own needs. We as individuals have to strive toward the aspect life is not a grand movie made to star us, find your moments to lead, your moments to watch, and your moments to direct. Create positive realistic goals, routes, connections, and outcomes. Please do strive for more and always imagine your end game, but don't set yourself up for something out of reach. Creating ranges of goals will keep you energetic, hungry, and motivated every goal you meet will be a catalyst from small to large.

        The greatest aspect of life is simply living it and seeing that fruits you can bare and harvest, the hardest part of life is imagining one that is not yours. Daily we struggle with expectations made, seen, and imagined... why? We are individual beings which seem to blueprint ourselves off of the lives of others. I wonder if a shark envies an eagle or if a sardine envies a pigeon. ( think of that one ) There will be a day where your life and your grasp of reality clash, a beautiful collision of acceptance and clarity. Once you have this moment you'll begin to view through transparent eyes and I hope you see exactly it is you are here for. The equation is quite simple:

A + B + C = ME

A. What makes you happy; what job/career brings you joy while granting you financial security.

B. Who makes you happy; which people are positive catalysts in your life that will bring out the best you.

C. Is it enough; This is the tricky part, this is purely up to you.

-JP

W.D.T.C.

We Define The Culture
Lock Smith
"A Thousand Cuts"
10/10/1014

It has been said you can not conquer your surroundings and become whoever an individual is meant to be until one can truly make eye contact with oneself and love thy own image. "A Thousand Cuts" is a masterful saga of one man professing life through vernacular. Being cut is a common ideal we can all fathom since life cuts in many ways; verbally, physically, and emotionally. Some cuts go beyond the physical and leave more than scar tissue, these cut you in a way which reopens every time you see, smell, taste, hear, or feel the trigger of said laceration. Locksmith delivers an unconcealed raw self portrait through twelve tracks of precise artistry blanketed on motherly laid instrumentals granting the listener a moment to reflect on more than music, but oneself.

I found myself halting my finger strokes as I ways struck line after line by home hitting rawness which resounded through me like the first time sirens came to play red rover in front of your child hood home. The volley of emotion bouncing from tempo changes, subject matter shifts, tiered schemes, firm wordplay and deliveries which kept laddering up and down across the foundation of each beat had me lure caught and tongue tied. It's humbling listening to particular artists projects imagining how elated they must feel owning such a Goliath. You can say volumes in a matter of seconds; "The truth is I need some purpose, lord knows I'm not perfect... so where do we go now, don't wait for me now." 

My Mother use to profess ideals in my ears in magnitude, such so grand even if I failed her expectations I'd surpass my own. My Father use to lead by example, such examples so real I never reenacted them and some so necessary I mimic them daily. Locksmith writes, records, and delivers in a way we all can understand how he is actually feeling; it's a rare gift to be able to relate to an individual on such an organic level.

( It's real in a manufactured world )

The primary introduction I had to this album was the track "Hardest Song Ever", I'll pause here. 

"How do I take the rage, bury it deep inside

Cover it with a smile, but eventually it will rise

Eventually it will tie a knot in your soul and boast

Then you just end up hurting the people you love the most

Fuck it! I let it fly, nothing to set aside

It's nothing for me to lose, I'm already dead inside

Already said my peace a piece of me fled in spite

Let's set it right! This the hardest shit I'mma ever write"

The feeling residing in my gut, heart, and mind is the same I had when I first heard; Sage Francis's "Run Aways", Immortal Technique's "Dance With The Devil", Jedi Mind Trick's "Razor Blade Salvation", etc... I can scribe countless pieces of pristine art that cause you to feel, truly feel. A feeling you may not be okay with, but a feeling that is purely wholesome in the emotion it triggers; it cuts you. 

In a culture gearing our youth to flash rented, stolen, and bartered chains this project is truly a reflecting diamond. I can speak volumes of how each track made me feel and grant my own opinion on the subject matter granted to each man or woman whom presses play but why? Why speak on something that speaks for itself so well. "Jaded" says so much in such a short amount of time, it's the type of song you listen to over and over again and find new aspects of it every single time. This is the type of album I play while driving for hours and reorganize my life for what it is, beautifully painful.

"I am to diluted and lucid to notice, that my dad is really sick but he's lying so I can focus."

The brilliant aspect of this project is the continuous emphasis on word play, schemes, and tongue twisting deliveries that at a slower pace would be difficult yet Locksmith still ups the ante with pace. It leads through a complex  labyrinth of vocalization that power bombs you into "House Of Cards" ft. R.A. The Rugged Man. It's a tug of war of linguistic gymnastics which bounds, twists, turns, flips and sticks the landing without even the slightest twitch.

I feel as though I was granted an opportunity after listening to this project, honestly, It's the type of work I'm thankful for. To see someone bare all and create art at such a pure form is fundamentally lost in the greater scheme of things. We have a select few individuals who I feel are in tuned with themselves enough to make music for the masses without regard of walls and or critique and Locksmith has entered that subgroup for me. He has granted a piece of work that will take any listener to multiple times in their life; the good, the bad, and the ugly. Finalizing this project I'm humbled and grateful to stand tall and know I am cut.

@DaLockSmith

www.facebook.com/IAmLocksmith

"A Thousand Cuts" Buy now on all major music platforms.

-JP

W.D.T.C.

Zip Lock Music "Extra Grams"

We Define The Culture

Zip Lock Music Review

"Extra Grams"

10/9/2014

Zip Lock Music "extra grams"

https://ziplockmusic.bandcamp.com/

The lineage of west coast artists residing up and down the golden coast has been directly influenced by the life the individuals live and the relationships they have with the world around them. You do not merely tune in, you become tuned in. Zip Lock has their pulse to the concrete and their heat to the substance in more ways then one. Their recently released project "Extra Grams" is an in your face directive of what they are, where they are from, and what they are bringing to the world around them.

Creating raw grain work, with creative engineering, and bars with the backing of blunt force trauma; the feels are felt exactly as play is struck. The fusion of multiple vocal deliveries, precise ideology, and a no bullshit mentality it's cut and rolled tightly. "Salute to tha camp" & "We comin'" give you a first hand insight to what each member is addressing to the listener, group, and track; you're granted a translucent imagine of what you'll be receiving on a standard level.

Off the top, don't get confused that they're giving you a quick pin pointed sound though, it's tiered. Mixing genres and styles you can see that there's more strains to what's rapped. The transitioning from "Usual Suspects" to "Be free" leave you verbally assaulted and slammed to the ground aggressively to being uplifted and guided right back up.

"Trying to have a positive outlook but sick as I am it won't be long before I'm kicking a can...We ain't the usual suspects." -Digi

"Stop trying to be fly motha' fucka be free... free... free"

It's Pit bull terrier shook lines with the adaption of transfer students first day enrolled. Going from aggression,to inception, to perception, to expression there's a cohesive subject matter which is diverse enough to keep multiple demographics engaged and captivated. It pulls a listener back to the 90's when hip-hop/rap had real grimy cats who actually lived what they portrayed and at the same time gave you the knowledge that they also wanted to show you the human aspect of who they were teamed with what they wanted for themselves/peers. It's music you can drive to, get high to, fight to, and live life to all at the same time.

"Welcome to California it's the Motha' Fucking W." -Headake

"See Nothin" Is heavy set sound resounding with every bass hit. A west coast track you could slap down the block eject from the deck and put right back on in the party and crack a forty open to. An aggressive statement track not needing to say more than what it is; "You ain't see nothin."

"I rolled up like I'm late, like fuck it let em wait." - Prolix

Track to track while listening to the project myself and peers each had our own personal favorites, "Breathe" is mine. An off route slow tracked targeting personal insights which relate to many yet are individual at the same time. Simplicity in a complex manner; "Must be tripping myself out got to many thoughts in my head must be tripping myself out." The conceptual ideal that most problems which arise are blown to higher proportion due to our own minds fueling the mental fire smoldering, "Breathe" is an organic track which vocalizes life to many whom are stuck running a mental gambit which is created even more complex by the individual alone.

"All stressing, questioning on what I care about.... pray to God as he prepares the route."

-Feo

Transitioning from "Breathe" to "Let em' know" had me smiling, as simple as that. I had a coy smile across my face listening to creatively crude lines next to a unknown female in a coffee shop. I turned and told her I was writing for a hip-hop website and asked her if I could address her with a question, she approved."So I'm writing on a group and the line that just played was, "First name Jonathon... klonopin and E pills got her titties hot...and her booties more crooked than a city cop." She smiled and laughed a bit under her breath so I cut her off and said that was the perfect answer.

Over all from start to finish "Extra Grams" was eight tracks I listened through without thought of hitting the next button. A rugged mixture of music spanning from sub block to sub block, raw rap to hip hop.

*Side note these cats Digi and Sol killed me with these;

"Skinny dude with the abalone." -Digi

"Hoes with me in the video dance like Ol' Diddy." -Sol

www.facebook.com/ziplockmusic

www.ziplockmusic.bandcamp.com (FREE DOWNLOAD HERE)

-JP 

W.D.T.C.