TOWN LOVE is an online art museum dedicated to celebrating the vibrant past and present of Northwest Hip-Hop. You can browse by artist or browse by year.

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Tag: Lace Cadence

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A film about Northwest hip-hop from

Born Rich

Born Rich by Mackned is ideal music to accompany your next solo, introspective, nighttime drive. When I bought this record I also picked up Drake’s Views, and have been listening to both together at random. In my mind they’re commingled, and it’s easy to see why: both artists are drawn toward auto-tuned singing raps, minimal drums, and luxury brooding. However, Born Rich is the one I spin more often, with standout tracks like “Dope Man” and ’80’s throwback “Fanta Blue.” At only nine short tracks, it’s the sort of record you listen to all the way through and then restart and listen to every track again.

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A film about Northwest hip-hop from

Friends, Funk & Liquor

There’s an easy, happy vibe that you find in most of the records of Sam Lachow that I just love. Sam’s latest one, Friends, Funk & Liquor, further demonstrates the evolution of his career from young wine to fine port: here are seven slick and stylish songs that slide by in the most satisfying way. Sam is a presence that vibes throughout this record, but he often steps back to give lead mic to one of his many talented contributors, including Ariana DeBoo, Gifted Gab, B. Skeez, and others. Dave B is featured on three tracks here. The third track, “Absolutely” will have you jumping around your living room. This is party music, the sound of hanging out with your friends, and Sam’s many friends and collaborators are featured on the cover. What a party.

Friends, Funk & Liquor was created in and features appearances from:

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This That & Th3rdz

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This That & Th3rdz was created in and features appearances from:

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Ready For Life

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Ready For Life was created in and features appearances from:

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SeattleCali Fragilistic ExtraHella Dopeness

Seattle hip-hop blog 206UP picked this record as one of the “Top 10 Albums of 2010,” saying that:

The album equivalent of a 2-0-6 hip-hop house party, by design SeattleCali wasn’t exactly an official debut LP for State of the Artist, but a showcase for much of the talent in the city. The three SOTA emcees were consistently outshone by their guests and a lot of times the lyrics didn’t seem to make any sense. As strictly a party album, however, there wasn’t one better.

SeattleCali Fragilistic ExtraHella Dopeness was created in and features appearances from:

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All In A Day's Work

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All In A Day's Work was created in and features appearances from:

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The Merchandice

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The Merchandice was created in and features appearances from:

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Progress...

Changing gears a little bit, this is a fine example of some turn-of-the-century Northwest hip-hop. I got this album from one of the band members outside the Paradox theater in the U-District, back in 2001. That was an incredible night; Slug, Idea, and Abilities were headlining, but what stole the show for me was the huge MC battle that preceded them. The winners: Bishop I from Oldominion tied with Surge (not Surge Spittable, just Surge – where are you now?). Amazing. Anyhow, This post isn’t about Surge, or Bishop I, or Oldominion – this is about that CD I picked up that night: Progress… by Elevated Elements. They were part of a huge crew in the Seattle area known as NAPS. Elevated consisted of Lace Cadence, Exakt, Patrick, FingerPrints, and Macklemore (yes, that Macklemore). The CD is surprisingly good, and well worth the money. I still play it now and again. It’s right here on my iPod. Give it a listen – tracklisting in the package, 21 dope tracks deep. All in all, I’d say it was a good night. (This review originally appeared on the Bring That Beat Back blog and was written by Jack Devo.)

Progress... was created in and features appearances from:

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