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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A film about Northwest hip-hop from

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Influence

Influence, released this summer, is a stellar side project from former Nu Era member Blaine Davis and guitarist Joseph Comin. They’ve sampled recognizable riffs from Seattle’s rock and grunge greatest hits, and then magically transformed well-loved songs into hip-hop bangers—each one sounds completely new and fresh. The opening track “Cobain” lifts the haunting strains of Nirvana’s “Heart-Shaped Box” into a loop before veering in unexpected directions. It’s a revelation, as is “Hendrix” and “Miller.” Blaine’s verses throughout are powerful and deep, questions of gentrification and the changing city. Let me simply say this: Go get this record on Bandcamp. The many references to local legends should land this album on every Seattle publication’s record-of-the-year shortlist.

Influence was created in and features appearances from:

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A film about Northwest hip-hop from

Northern Natives

I’ve been spending some time lately with the gorgeous and sensual Northern Natives self-titled five-track EP. This one unfurls like smoke curls in slow motion… It’s a showcase of five songs by five artists, and as a compilation is a surprisingly cohesive work, with R&B and pop influences, big synths and dance floor shaking tracks from Samurai Del, Soultanz, CiDi, DNZ and Sendai Era. If I’ve learned anything from these record write-ups, it’s how deeply talented and interconnected the Seattle scene is. City Arts declared this “Album of the month” in December and I’m not surprised. These amazing producers and contributors represent the future of our scene and hip-hop at large.

Northern Natives was created in and features appearances from:

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Remember Face

During winter in Seattle, days are short and dark, and it’s always raining. Joy Division and The XX. Names not usually associated with hip-hop, however, Remember Face’s self-titled debut brings to mind their bleak, goth moodiness, and that’s definitely how I’m feeling lately. “My Tigers Name Is Lion,” with its massive industrial synths could be mistaken for something new from Depeche Mode. That is until Chimaroke Abuachi starts spitting on top, sometimes singing, directing the mood bleaker still. Andrew Savoie of Home Slice fame is responsible for the production and the keys. The mood builds in intensity, over these 10 short, intense tracks, broken just before the end with “Take Shelter” and its humorous pirate ending. Also, breathtaking cover.

Remember Face was created in and features appearances from:

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