Good Music That Everyone Should Hear: Das Racist

If you hate rap, then you haven't been exposed to enough rap. That's where these guys come in - Das Racist are a pair of rappers from NYC and Alameda, and they are obscene and vulgar brown men. However, they are also the most literate and hilarious rappers I've heard in a long time - it's hard not to open a new tab while listening and voraciously googling every reference they make, from Rumi to Gitmo to Harold and Kumar.

Joke rap sucks though, right? Well, not really, and especially not when it's as self-reflexive and intelligent as Das Racist are. They succeed in the face of the backpack-rapper backlash - people are sick of hearing about the shortcomings of hip-hop, but Das Racist bring those topics up and mock them without being didactic and preachy - quite the opposite, in fact. Just listen to the opening banter on hahahaha jk, and we already have a discussion and implicit derision for the tough-guy persona that most rappers build up.

Their discography is pretty slim at the moment - they came up with the rise of "internet music" and have only released two mixtapes and one retail album, as well as a handful of solo mixtapes and some unreleased stuff in the invaluable URC collection: a .rar full of their rarities and features, definitely worth checking out. If you're still undecided, give the impressive Womyn a listen:

They released their best stuff for free online, which you can grab when you hit the jump:

Belated Review: Nas - Life Is Good

This is Nas' best album since I Am. That beat. Those raps. Holy crap.

This first track sounds like a John Woo movie. Holy crap. This is too much. Just listen to these words.

PS 111 had free lunch
Embarrassed but managed to get a plate

We was kids hungry
Mom's working, I was famished
She getting home late

How could I not succumb
How could I not partake
Fifteen I got a gun
Sixteen I robbed a train
Licked off a shot for fun
What's got inside my brain
A hustler's job ain't done, til he becomes a king

Good Music That Everyone Should Hear: Ethiopium

The story goes that Oh No (younger brother of legendary producer Madlib) found a crate of rare Ethiopian records, ranging from funk, jazz and obscure psych rock - and flipped them into hip-hop beats. The album samples widely and well, and the beats have just the right amount of menace and bite - something that Oh No does spectacularly, and that feels quite unique to him.

The theme of the album seems to be pretty skin deep, but there's a mild discussion of music as a primal, shamanistic medicine similar to the opiates used by Ethiopian villages. That's not really the focus, though - the most important thing is the beat, the way the music makes you feel "good," much like an opiate. Form, function, etc. Very good music and very impressive. I mean, listen to the drums on this last song, and you'll get it.