Artist: T Haddy
Album: Dream Big Pre-Mixtape
Release Date: 2009
Style: Rap & Hip Hop / R&B
Label: New Path Entertainment
Location:Decatur, Georgia
Track Listing:
1.Dream Big Intro
2.Big Dreams on Deck
3.Hustle Hard
4.Let Me In
5.This Is How We Praise
6.Desperate For You
7.Smoother Than Oil
Artist: Braille
Album: Weapon Aid
Release Date: 2010
Style: Rap & Hip Hop
Label: Syntax Records
Location: Portland, Oregon
Track Listing:
01. Get Well Soon
02. Give Myself
03. Complexicated
04. Up
05. Poison
06. Shoeless Joe
07. Resurrect Me
08. Revenge (The Right Way) (feat. Ruslan & Beleaf of The Breax)
09. Nothing Left To Say
10. Surgical
Artist: Dwayne Tryumf
Album: 777 (Mark of the Peace)
Release Date: March 12, 2010
Style: Rap & Hip Hop
Label: Tryumfant Records
About:
777 (Mark of the Peace) is a wonderfully unique album that draws on influences outside the sphere of the usual Christian rap album. The production is inspired, it drawing on a multitude of instruments and beats that would feel out of place with anyone else on the track. Dwayne Tryumf draws the unusual elements, from strange samples to flutes, with ease through his skilled lyricism and his style.
Dwayne Tryumf is a Jamaican by way of Britain and his accent is amazingly subtle, which should not be an issue for a rapper but it stands in the way of the vast majority of British rap artists. He raps in an American style for the most part ignoring the cockney rhyming slang that many American listeners struggle with.
777 (Mark of the Peace) is 16 tracks long and none of the tracks feel like fillers. It feels like a major label release in a very good way, all the featured artists are top notch and the production is on another level. Every beat feels like a radio quality beat but with a unique twist, be it an unusual instrument selection or an unusual sample leaving the whole thing feel a bit more diverse.
“I Don’t Pack a ‘Matic” has been making the rounds for a while and is still one of the best tracks on the album. It features an unusual hook that is simple but addictive. “I don’t pack a ‘matic, but I pack a Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.” Overall the track has the feel of “What if Tricky did a Christian rap song?” and that is not a bad feel for a track to have. The beat is simply ferocious, the hook is ridiculous and the lyrical content goes from boisterous to serious.
“Our God Is,” featuring Copeland Green and Liane, is a nice ode to gospel music, fusing pieces of Delirious’ “I Could Sing of Your Love Forever” and Matt Redman’s “Better Is One Day” into the mix. Normally, the use of “worship songs” by Christian rap artists ends up sounding cheesy and/or gimmicky. Tryumf manages to make it work.
The first half of the album seems to be dedicated to the requisite “slick bangers” before effortlessly slipping into the R&B and gospel-tinged second half of the album. Not sure why Tryumf chose this particular method of setting up his project, but it doesn’t feel disjointed at all or offensive to the ears.
The inclusion of comedian Chris Williams on the interlude tracks is pretty funny, reminiscent of the late Bernie Mac on Kanye West’s debut album or the comedic interlude found on Sho Baraka’s “Why So Serious?” mixtape.
777 (Mark of the Peace) is sure to be one of the best Christian rap albums of the year. Dwayne Tryumf offers listeners what few British rappers can, an exotic but easily digestible sound. He maintains a wonderful style and flow that is British but even at his fastest he is understandable. His style is an obvious fusion between Jamaican and British (he is from Jamaica), but his sound is something different and unique. This is a long album, at 16 tracks it is ambitious and is remarkably good, nearly perfect.
Track Listing:
1. 777 Intro (ft. Steve Allen)
2. Never Be The Same (ft. Copeland Green & Muyiwa)
3. He’s The King (ft. Crazy Ric)
4. I Don’t Pack A Matic
5. Roll Out (ft. Pilgrim & Gamma)
6. African Drum
7. 777 (ft. Reign of Fire)
8. Sons of God (ft. Reign of Fire)
9. MC Hate Alot Part 1 (ft. Comedian Chris Williams)
10. Proverbs 31 Woman
11. Our God Is (ft Copeland Green & Liane)
12. Jesus Is Alive (ft. Tony Momrelle)
13. Find My Way (ft. Ryan Carty & Frank Ademoye)
14. Trust In Me (ft. Sister Jones & Tyrone Henry)
15. This Is For You (ft. Jahaziel)
16. MC Hate Alot Part 2 (ft. Comedian Chris Williams)
Artist: As I Lay Dying
Album: The Powerless Rise
Release Date: May 11, 2010
Style: Metalcore
Label: Metal Blade
Location: USA
About:
Band:
Tim Lambesis — Vocals (2000-) (Austrian Death Machine, Society’s Finest, Point of Recognition)
Phil Sgrosso — Guitar (2003-) (also bass 2005, 2007) (Tomra, Double Whammy, Saber Tooth)
Nick Hipa — Guitar (2004-) (Evelynn, Double Whammy, Master Originator)
Josh Gilbert — Bass/Vocals (2007-) (Year One, All In, This Endearing, Woolytooth)
Jordan Mancino — Drums (2000-) (Edge of Morality, Session for Sworn Enemy, Destroy the Runner)
It’s hard to believe that a veteran metal band like San Diego’s As I Lay Dying could be just hitting their stride now, some 10 years and five full-lengths into an already stellar career. Still, even after just one listen to the quintet’s latest, The Powerless Rise, you can’t ignore the obvious: One of modern metal’s best just got better.
Similar to their approach on 2007′s Grammy-nominated An Ocean Between Us, the band chose to employ the production prowess of Adam D. and record a majority of the album at singer Tim Lambesis’ own private studio. The end result is The Powerless Rise; the first true collaborative effort between the current AILD lineup.
Although they didn’t know it at first, the band’s creative potential kicked into overdrive with the introduction of bassist/singer Josh Gilbert in 2007, who played on Ocean but was not involved with the writing. For the previous two albums, the brunt of the instrumental development was spearheaded by guitarist Phil Sgrosso, whose penchant for melody and riff-conjuring suited the notoriously powerful drum stylings of drummer Jordan Mancino, complimented the lead guitar work of Nick Hipa, and exacted Lambesis’s vision for the bands’ overall intensity. The aforementioned format remained the same on Powerless but with the addition of Gilbert’s musical contribution, added yet another facet to an already established creative dynamic. The result is an album built upon the strength of its parts and the remarkable ways in which those parts become a cohesive whole.
For this current round of lyrics, Lambesis gravitated toward a concept centrally represented in the song “Upside Down Kingdom,” which posits that the suffering of the world stems from the broken, upside-down nature of society. In addition to providing the line that became the album’s title, the song lays out the guiding premise behind many of The Powerless Rise’s ideological excursions—the notion that if we do the opposite of what the modern world tells us, many of the problems this current world causes will no longer exist. Lambesis stresses that rather than fill an album with bitter ranting, he’s attempting to offer a solution with Powerless.
So yes, it may come as a surprise to some that AILD would attain an entirely new level of artistry and urgency with their fifth release Powerless when many others might consider phoning it in, but once you appreciate all the various ingredients essential to the album, it’s no shock at all. By taking the trademark AILD sound then adding a band-wide effort and Lambesis’ novel approach to writing lyrics, the group has truly outdone themselves on The Powerless Rise, at least for now.
Track Listing:
01. Beyond Our Suffering 01:59
02. Anodyne Sea 04:34
03. Without Conclusion 03:15
04. Parallels 04:57
05. The Plague 03:42
06. Anger and Apathy 04:25
07. Condemned 02:49
08. Upside Down Kingdom 04:00
09. Vacancy 04:26
10. The Only Constant Is Change 04:07
11. The Blinding of False Light 05:10
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Artist: Twentyfour64
Album: Necessity To Know
Release Date: 2010
Style: Alternative / Indie
Label: Independent
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii / LA, California
About:
In an era of musicians trying to find how they can fit the mold of the current music scene, Hawaiian act TWENTYFOUR64 has embarked with a different strategy: Break it. Their fusion of R&B/Gospel vocals backed with energetic driving rock has propelled TWENTYFOUR64 to showcase across the U.S. receiving multiple awards including the grand prize of Warner Bros./Word Records East Division National Talent Search. Their music would not be what it is without their multi-element style as lead vocalist Junior T’s polished riffs and runs set this rock band apart.
“Instead of taking the easy route of big, poppy hooks, their songs burn slowly and unfold gradually” – OC Weekly
“They come up with their own style of rock infused R & B, while synchronizing driving guitars and melodic piano work that I haven’t heard in a long time.” – Indie Vision Music
The band recently worked in the studio with acclaimed Producer Jan Stolpe (Faith Hill, Alan Jackson) to release “We Are Taking Over” as their first radio single off of “Know Me”. Now, they are releasing a free EP March 16th, 2010 titled: “Necessity To Know” featuring remixes and B-Sides from “Know Me”. Their first single from the EP debuts as the title track “Necessity To Know” declaring their firm stand against human trafficking.
TWENTYFOUR64 will enter the studio in April 2010 to record their highly anticipated sophomore release. As they would describe their first record: “The album is an accumulation of the past few years we’ve spent together. It’s as diverse as our music is expected to be, but is definitely held together well by our fidelity to hope. We believe that you can get to know us by this record, and hopefully when we come through your town it will be as if we have already met.”
TWENTYFOUR64 could not be more excited to get on the road and meet their dedicated fan-base across the country. Expect to see big things from a band who’s bringing back a positive, unique, passion-filled style of music to the scene.
Track Listing:
1. We Are Taking Over
2. Forgot To Breathe
3. Necessity To Know
4. Free and Captured(Acoustic)
5. Embers
6. A Season(Remix)
7. Field on Fire(Remix)
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