Medium

Dj Diamond Tip – Energy Crisis!

Medium and Conspicuous Consumption are proud to bring you a new mix from Dj Diamond Tip, “Energy Crisis!“. This past February, I sent Tip a few tracks I was listening to–it just so happened that he was listening to a lot of similar stuff. We emailed some ideas and songs back and forth, and a few days later Tip put together this mix. It’s a nice mixture of newer tracks and remixes with some classics thrown in for good measure. Check out the tracklisting after the jump.

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Medium and Chopsteak 2010 Christmas Mix (Long MP3 File)
Medium and Chopsteak 2010 Christmas Mix (Separate Tracks)

Medium and Chopsteak continue our little holiday tradition and bring you the Chopsteak Christmas mix. These are some tracks from the year that the homie Chopsteak put together for y’all to enjoy during the whisky-induced-chillin’ this holiday season. Enjoy!

Track Listing

1. Andre3000: I Do
2. H.I.S.D.: Lando
3. Exile: Your Summer Song f. J. Mitchell
4. Big Boi: Shutterbugg f. Cutty
5. Willie The Kid: Bath Water Running
6. Aloe Blacc: I Need A Dollar
7. Kanye West: Monster f. Jay-Z & Nicki Minaj
8. Black Milk: Oh Girl
9. Leela James: So Cold
10. Little Brother: Tigallo For Dolo
11. Guilty Simpson: Hood Sentence
12. Rick Ross: Free Mason f. Jay-Z & John Legend
13. Foreign Exchange: Maybe She’ll Dream Of Me
14. Chopperlude
15. Jabee: Imagination f. Carlitta Durand
16. Wiz Khalifa: Black & Yellow
17. Janelle Monae: Tightrope f. Big Boi
18. YahZarah: Why Don’tcha Call Me No More
19. Dred Skott: Home f. Tuk Da Gat (Produced by Chop Steak)
20. Freddie Gibbs: Best Friend
21. Erykah Badu: Window Seat
22. Jay Electronica: Exhibit C
23. Nottz: I Still Love You f. Mayer Hawthorne
24. Big K.R.I.T.: Children Of The World
25. Cee-Lo: Bodies
26. Ron Isley: Close To You f. Lauryn Hill

Brown Bird – By The ReinsI was out for a bit on Friday and heard Brown Bird perform this song and almost immediately fell in love with their sound. Thanks to my studio mate Beth for introducing me to this band. Check out their Facebook page for more downloads and tour dates.

I love seeing music, technology and culture mashed up (shitty pun intended). With MashupBreakdown.com, Benjamin Rahn has created a living visualization of “All Day” the latest collection of mashups from mashup poster child Girl Talk.  Great project overall emphasizing the value of creative commons, as the site itself is a collaboration that even invites users to add to the mashup knowledge via Wikipedia.

Links
Mashupbreakdown.com

(Via Classixx.la)

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No Strings – Mayer Hawthorne (Produced by Classixx)

An original track from two of my favorite artists, LA dj/producer duo Classixx and Mayer Hawthorne. If they can keep making music like this or if Classixx can keep remixing tracks for Mayer Hawthorne, I’d be a happier person.

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Adrian Quesada & Brainchild – In Your Right Mind

In honor of the website launching for Level One Studio, Adrian Quesada, best known from his group’s Grupo Fantasma, Brownout and Ocote Soul Sounds recently dropped an old collection of instrumentals he completed over 8 years ago with Stones Throw’s James Pants (then known as Brainchild).

From Adrian’s Site

In Your Right Mind was an album of instrumental hip hop and beats I made over 8 years ago with my man Brainchild (now known as James Pants aka Jaime Pantalones). Coincidentally, it also features my first collaboration with my fellow Taurean Martin Perna as he contributed flute to one track, which was the precursor to Ocote Soul Sounds’ first record. We pressed up only 100! copies and either gave them away or sold them to whoever was interested and I have people tell me to this day they still rock this in their stereo. I put it on the Ipod on a flight the other day and I think it’s aged like fine wine. I would like you all to enjoy it as well….I present to you, a free download of Adrian Quesada and Brainchild’s In Your Right Mind.

Listening to these though, you can see that 8 years ago AQ was doing some things that people are still trying to get right. Download the 14 track instrumental album.

So, it appears that you don’t need tons o’ booty on southern mixtape covers to be recognized! (or maybe you do?) Recently the mixtape cover I designed for The League of Extraordinary Gz debut was nominated for a Southern Entertainment Award. Looking at the competition, I’m not sure how to feel, but I gotta say that the design for Concealed Weapons stands out and as the sole Texas based competitor in the category I’m pretty sure we can get the whole state behind us and win the award. What yall think?

Follow the Southern Entertainment Award Voting link and scroll down to “BEST ART/GRAPHICS ON A MIXTAPE” and vote for league of extraordinary gz – concealed weapons.

Truthfully, looking at some of the other nominees I can pretty much point out each and every thing I find wrong with design in hip hop music right now. (I would post pictures, but most are NSFW) No offense to other artists or designers, but I’m personally tired of the pen & pixel derived design for rap music. I understand influence and current trends, but when everything starts looking the same I personally think it’s time to switch it up a bit. Anyone agree with me?…maybe I’m the only one. I’ve worked with a few independent artists in hip hop in the past and anyone I work with in the future will have to agree with me. (That is unless you have a huge budget and want to give me a lot of $$$$$$)

Either way, I’m happy to be nominated because my competition consists of Usher, Trey Songz, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj and others so if I lose maybe I can have a dance off with Usher, challenge Ricky Rosé to a hot dog eating contest and take Nicki Minaj out for ice cream or something. Now that’s BAWSE!

San Antonio’s Ernest Gonzales is one prolific mofo. As Mexicans with Guns, he recently dropped a collection of Mexicans with Guns remixes past and present. The collection is 14 streaming or downloadable tracks and includes remixes of Freddie Gibbs, Bassnectar and Diego Bernal.

Sick video from SA’s Mexicans With Guns directed by Duey FM.

Corpus Christi’s Dj Dus recently put out this 3 track EP on Exponential Records and it’s bangin’!

From Exponential Records

DJ DUS has taken the principals of 1970’s era Jamaican soundsystems, a producer’s approach to developing new material and a DJ’s skill behind the turntables to develop a unique and inspired mix of cumbia, hip hop and reggae tracks that translates to a new and fresh sound- best described as NU Cumbia.

I‘ve posted a lot of stuff from San Antonio’s Exponential Record’s, and they never, ever disappoint. If you’re feeling it, go check out Dj Dus’s other releases on the Dj Dus Bandcamp page. Now go blast this through your speakers and shake that ass!