Beathearts top selections 2012 - TheStrom

2012 was a good year. A very good year. Going through our posts and playlists over the past year it was easy to identify great tunes. But it was equally hard to single out an all through solid album - a future classic. There were many good efforts from the likes of Frank Ocean, Actress, Robert Glasper and others but very few of them ended up on repeat for us. At least in their entireties. For that reason I decided to put forward the top selections of 2012 in three sections:

* Top 5 artists of year (instead of releases) that impressed me the most in 2012
* Best tunes of the year (Spotify link)
* Top 3 expectations for 2013

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ARTISTS OF THE YEAR

1.Prince (!?)
You say what?! I haven't quite been able to figure out why but it's been a crazy year for Prince. Prince Roger Nelson of the 80s that is. For an artist that hasn't released a single track (that we know of) Prince has been huge 2012. It might have started already last year with the return of Prince live in session at festivals around the world. Then Jam & Lewis and the Time reunited as the Original 7even and released the Condensate album. That sparked a "Nu-Prince-Movement" that's been pulsating all year:

*Wax Poetic put out a Prince special edition including no less than two mixtapes of peak performances from the man.
*All year we've been flooded with Prince edits and covers from the likes of Dâm-Funk, Frank Ocean et al.
*Alexis Taylor of Hot Chip has been tearin' the roof off with his DJ sessions when dropping the 1984 obscure Morris Day & Prince jam session Cloreen Bacon Skin.

If that doesn't convince you there's a new biography entitled Prince by Matt Thorne and the other week there was a TWO (!) day seminar at the London Institute of Contemporary Art analyzing the Prince's work.

All we can say is that his importance for most of the new music we listen to today cannot be overrated. One of the greatest tributes that's been on heavy rotation for us was the Wax Poetics mixtape vol.2:

Download: Wax Poetics - Prince mixtape part 2

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2.Tall Black Guy

Without a doubt one of the artist that we have spun the most this year. His edits, compilations and original tracks have been off the hook. His Tempo Dreams compilation for Bastard Jazz set a new standard for beatmakers to live up to.

Our stand out track of the year from TBG was his totally unexpected remake of James Brown's I feel good. You've gotta have guts to take on a classic tune and flip it into something completely different. We've said it before but it's like a part 2 of Waajeed's Tron track. Absolutely genius!

Download: Tall Black Guy - What's good

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3.Buscrates 16-bit Ensemble
What can we say. Orlando Buscrates Marshall has had an amazing year. As a producer for Kiara, as a group member in East Liberty Quartet, as a remixer as well as a solo artist he has blown us away all year. If Dâm-Funk is the king of boogie - Buscrates is most definitely next in line to take the reign.

*Best release: Buscrates - Funktropolis EP

*Best remake: Vesta Williams - Don't blow a good thing (Buscrates re-edit)

*Best production: Kiara Reves - Shine on

Buscrates was also the first artist in our Beat Generation Interview Series. 
Download: Buscrates - Phoenix rising (Beathearts Beat Generation exclusive)

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4.Miles Bonny
Ever since we got Miles Bonny's seminal track Still Miles with DJ Day back in 2009 he's been on our radar. Numerous EPs, collaborations and albums later his sense of quality is second to none.

Miles toured heavily this year with Brenk Sinatra (as S3) in Germany and Poland going back to his Polish roots.

Miles been putting out amazing releases all year and all you regulars might recall that S3's album Supa Soul Sh*t was our album of the month in November.



Download: S3 - Don't stop

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5.Frank Ocean
No matter what you think about the hype there's no denying Mr. Ocean's huge influence on the soundtrack to the world 2012.

From the first underground mixtapes and bootlegs to TV-commerials and inflight entertainment he's taken the world by storm. With incredible productions and solid harmonies in my ears his sound is the 2012 equivalent to Gamble & Huff in the 70ies. Channel Orange was one of very few solid albums of 2012 and we have high hopes of what's to come in 2013.

Download: Frank Ocean - Sweet

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TUNES OF THE YEAR
Like I said we've been absolutely overwhelmed with great tunes all year. Below I've compiled a few of my favourite tracks to brighten the daily subway ride. If you've got Spotify there's a playlist link below. If not we've compiled all available download links.

Spotify playlist: Beathearts top selections 2012

Download: Joey Badass - Waves 
Download: S3 - Don't stop
Listen: Mala - Cuba Electronica
Download: Vesta Williams - Don't blow a good thing (Buscrates edit)
Yuna ft Pharell & Dizzee Rascal - Live your life (Not officially released - hunt it down!)
Listen: Wiley - Scar
Listen: Actress - Rainy dub
Listen: Yasiin Bey - Niggas in poorest
Listen: Tall Black Guy - What's good (JB flip)
Listen: Nas - The don
Download: Donaeo - When angels sing (TEED remix)
Download: Alexis Davis - The lift
Listen: Buscrates & Kiara Ravae - Shine on
Listen: Martino - Reasons (Sigg Buggz remix)
Download: Jeremih - Keep it moving
Listen: Ikiz & Melo - Over and over
DJ Spin & DJ Rashad - Let me baby
Download: Souls of Mischeif - 93 til infinity (Hannes Fisher remix)
Robert Glasper ft Ledisi - Gonna be alright
Listen: Daphni - Jiaolong
Listen: Frank Ocean - Super Rich Kids
Listen: Electric Street Orchestra ft Mad Mike Banks - Scorpio
Listen: Naderi - Stormy weather

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EXPECTATIONS FOR 2013:

1.The return of Waajeed

Waajeed will be huge in 2013. On a recent BBC Radio 1 show Waajeed revealed four projects that will see the light of day next year: Jeedeci, Electric Street Orchestra, Tiny Hearts and new label Dirt Tech Reck. If you missed out get a preview of the tracks below.




2.Enter T-E-E-D

We've had T-E-E-D a.k.a. Orlando Higginbottom on our radar all year and he was responsible for one of best remixes of the year reconstructing Donaeo's When Angels sing. His mixtapes and remixes have popped up everywhere we turned and we have very high expectations for what's to come in 2013. Check his essential mix from BBC below:

>T-E-E-D - BBC essential mix


3.Maya Jane Coles

Starting off as a producer and only recently jumped on the 1's and 2's, Maya still put together one of the best mixtapes of the year for DJ-kicks. (Listen on Spotify). It's sublime blend of minimal, experimental but oh so funky deep house tracks. With the quality of her mixes and own releases expectations are through the roof for her upcoming album. Rumors say it will feature Miss Kittin among others and have vocals on all tracks. Watch this space!

Download: Maya Jane Coles - BBC essential mix

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Last but not least we want to thank you all for an amazing year. We can't thank you enough for all the amazing feedback and input we've got from you all since the start. Followers, artists, labels, journalists, DJs and partners.

If you want to get in touch with new music, ideas, feedback and questions don't hesistate to hit us up right here, on Twitter @beatheartsblog or e-mail: beatheartsblog(a)gmail.com.

One,

Thestrom & Antwan

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Mecca:83 - Sketchbook pieces

First day of the week and we already have two new releases from our man in Manchester, Evan Jones. This time he sums up his different releases over the last year under the Mecca:83 moniker. 12 tracks and if you're not convinced he even throws in a bonus remix of Nas One love.

If you missed out first time around here's a second chance. Don't sleep!

1.Aura feat. Bobby Blunt 02:40
2.Midnight Kids (feat Kan Sano x Buscrates 16bit Ensemble) 02:41
3.Golden 01:50
4.Booda French x Von Pea - Full Time (Mecca:83 Remix) 03:36
5.Jesse Futerman x Rise - One For Irvine 02:48
6.Alexis Davis - The Lift 03:15
7.Chapter 2 03:28
8.Love Story 02:35
9.Jay's Theme 02:05
10.Head West 01:29
11.Swilkqa Night (feat Somepling) 02:30
12.Nas - One Love (Mecca loves the 90s Remix) *BONUS* 01:42

Download: Mecca:83 - Sketchbook pieces

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Nas - Life is good (Track by track)

Nasir Jones just dropped his long awaited album Life is good. It's been a long time since we were this excited about a new Nas album and with the tunes that dropped before the album it sounded promising indeed. We normally don't do standard reviews of albums but since we've had our expectations up for such a long time we felt we wanted to release some of that tention through a track-by-track walk-through.

Tracklist:
1.No Introduction (Prod. J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League) 2
Unnecessary. Not the best opener.
2.Loco-Motive ft Large Professor (Prod. No I.D.) 4
Still a solid head nodder for the people who are "stuck in the 90s".
3.A Queens Story (Prod. SalaamRemi.Com) 4 
Always had a weakness for storytelling rap tunes. Nice tune with original production from Remi.
4.Accident Murderers ft Rick Ross (Prod. No I.D.) 3
Ok track but I fail to understand how the only featured rapper on the album ended up being Rick Ross?
5.Daughters (Prod No I.D.) 4
Nice positive tune that sticks out in both production and the theme of the importance of beging present.
6.Reach Out ft. Mary J. Blige (Rodney Jerkins & SalaamRemi.Com) 4
Best performance in a while for Mary. Great choice for a collab.
7.World's An Addiction ft Anthony Hamilton (Prod. Salaam Remi) 2
First sub-par production from Remi. French producers mastered no-beat-beats 10 years ago...
8.Summer On Smash ft Miguel (Prod. Swizz Beatz) 2
I had high expectations for another New York Shit type (Busta) classic from Swizz Beatz. Fail.
9.You Wouldn't Understand ft. Victoria Monet (Prod. Buckwild) 3
Nothing groundbreaking but you gotta love the Miles Jaye sample.
10.Back When (Prod. No I.D.) 4
Solid reminiscent tune and production. This will probably grow.
11.The Don (Prod. Heavy D, SalaamRemi) 5
Without a doubt the best track off the album.
12.Stay (Prod. No I.D.) 4
Great late-night-driving-through-downtown-tune. Another grower.
13.Cherry Wine ft Amy Winehouse (Prod. SalaamRemi.Com) 3
Never been a Winehouse fan but nice production from Remi.
14.Bye Baby (Prod. SalaamRemi.Com) 5
My personal favorite off the album. Dope way to end the standard edition of the album.

Total score for standard edition: 3,5/5

BONUSTRACKS:
15.Nasty (Prod. SalaamRemi) 5
Why exclude one of the best tracks of the year from the album?
16.The Black Bond (Prod. SalaamRemi) 4
Dope production and another story teller. Why only a bonus track?
17.Roses (Prod. Dan Wilson, Al Shux) 4
Original production and an unexpected experimental track from the man.
18.Where's The Love ft. Cocaine 80s (Prod. No I.D.) 4
Another great track that should've been included in the standard edition.
19.Trust (Prod. Boi 1-da) (iTunes Bonus Track) 4
Solid track in a different style than expected.
20.The Don (Don Dada Remix) (Japanese Bonus Track) 4
Ok, but unnecessary remix of the best track off the album.

Total score for deluxe edition with bonus tracks: 4/5

The verdict? 

Well, all in all Life is good is in my book Nas' best effort since Illmatic. However, that stands for the Deluxe edition with all bonus tracks. The fact to exclude four of the best new tracks from the standard edition is not done out of love for music. I've got no facts to back this up but it smells label politics and marketing tactics and won't do Nas any good in the long run. Let's keep our fingers crossed that future copies of the album will include all bonus tracks and this might have a chance to end up becoming a rap classic in a few years.

Our take-away tracks off the album are:

Nas - Bye Baby (Prod. Salaam Remi)
Man! I must admit that before these new Nas tunes I haven't really paid attention to Salaam Remi's production skills. But with bangers such as Nasty, The Don and now Bye Baby he's defintely on my radar.

Bye baby is the bastard child of that Teddy Riley 80's sound (Goodbye Love 1988) and an early south London dubstep acetate (e.g. Doc Scott/Nasty Habits - Shadow Boxing). Fantastic tune that gives me the same kind of sensation as when I first heard Biggie for the first time on a crackling boombox in the summer of 1994.



Nas ft Mary J. Blige - Reach out (Prod. Rodney Jerkins/Salaam Remi)
Like Nas put it on LocomotiveI I may be "stuck in the 90s" but I'm just a sucker for that Isaac Hayes sample from Ike's mood. One of the best uses to me was Rayvon's No guns no murder (1994) but here Nas and Mary put on a great performance over that funky bass/piano combo.

Nas - Nasty (Prod. Salaam Remi )
"I’m not in the winters of my life or the beginner stage, I am the dragon Maserati, pumpin’ Biggie, the great legend Blastin’, I’m after the actress who played Faith Evans My little Jackie Onassis, dig?"

Nasty was the first video off the album Life is good but for some reason not on the album. (It's a bonus track on the deluxe edition). The track is produced by long time collaborator Salaam Remi. For Nas he has produced tunes like I can, Get down, Made you look and many others. It's great to hear Nas rhyming over a dirty breakbeat again. The video kind of reminds us of the feeling when Biggie's Juicy dropped and it was just what we were hoping for after remaniscing to Elzhi's Elmatic project last summer. It's got that same boots-on-the-concrete-street-corner-vibe we came to know Nas for.

Nas - The Don (Prod. Heavy-D & Salaam Remi)
Produced by the late Heavy-D this hard, straight forward beat with a ragga twist got our heads nodding from the first bars. We took our eyes of Nas and he brings back this New York banger that floored us when we least expected it. One of the baddest tunes of the years. No doubt.



Nas - Daughters (Prod. No-ID)
The third single off the album. It's entitled Daughters and is a dedication to to all fathers that try to be good role models for their daughters. Produced by No-ID this is a conscious slow banger.




Bonus material:
As a bonus and to wrap things up, here are two great documentaries about the man.

The first documentary is called Nas - Behind the music and was recently aired on VH1. It's his personal reflection of his career's ups and downs so far with added comment from the likes of Q-Tip, Common and DJ Premier.

Last but not least here's Nas ode to the old cassette mixtapes recorded the latest joints from radio back in the day. Courtesy of TDK Chronicles. Ah man, I just to stack up on those even though BASF Chrome maxima II was my choice :)

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The Beat Generation Series #3: Terry Tester (DK)

In our quest to discover new soulful underground music we come across many up and coming producers from all around the world. We thought is was about time to put the spotlight on a few of them that we think are about to blow up. We call it The Beat Generation Series.

The Beat Generation Series #3: Terry Tester (Denmark)

The third producer featured in our Beat Generation series is Thomas Månsson a.k.a. Terry Tester. Hailing from Copenhagen, Denmark, he's a part of the country's vivid experimental beat scene. We recently got in touch with Thomas to learn more about his inspirations and music making.

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We discovered you through Buscrates (Beat Generation Series #1) who put us onto your music. How did you hook up with him?

We met in a record store while I was staying with family in Pittsburgh back in 2001. I wasn't producing at that time but I was heavily into crate diggin', however, I was mostly interested in the classic breaks, all those records that had already been sampled to death. Bus taught me how to listen for samples and get into the more untapped sources; to check for which instruments cats used, whether it was a private or major label pressing, the whole science of it. Also, I had no idea what an MPC2000 was before I met him. I would have probably never gotten into beatmaking had it not been for him.

You just dropped your debut album Horses & Diamonds (Mixed Ape Music) that absolutely floored us. Could you give us a track by track how the album came about?

For a few years I had been sending beats to Danish MC Per Vers, who's a major cat on the scene and one that I really wanted to work with. He had reserved some joints but never got around to using them. Instead he suggested that he release them as an instrumental project on his label Mixed Ape Music on which he had already released projects by producers Exampler and Kriswontwo. So Horses & Diamonds is kind of a fragmented affair. It's not like I went into the studio for three months and came out with a record. Some productions date as far back as 2004, like e.g. Sparkle, which Verb Ink then came through and laced with rhymes in the mixing process less than 3 months ago. The e.p.'s most recent productions are Subcrazy, For Her and Learn The Rules which I made last year.




What does the creative process behind an original Terry Tester track look like? Is it a jam session where you pull out the best parts or more straight forward song writing?

It's never straight forward. I never have a masterplan laid out in my head before I start working. Usually what gets me going is a sound or a chord or a drumbreak that I hear on a record. It's a rather unorganized process and sometimes I go for weeks without touching my equipment. I once saw a video clip of how DJ Premier had a stack of records sitting next to his turntable, and he'd go through them one by one, like an assembly line, churning out joint after joint. I could never be that organized. I wish I could, I'd get much more music done that way. I hear something, then I sample it and just act on impulses while I work. Sometimes nothing comes out of it. Sometimes it's the birth of a banger.

Who were your musical heroes when growing up?

I used to be exclusively into Michael Jackson. Public Enemy changed all that around 89 or so....

Public Enemy - Fight the power (Do the right thing OST 1989)

Reading up your discography we realize we already have a few of your productions in our crates without knowing. Jahi's album Souhop the Breakthru on DJ Typhoon's Sonny B music and Marc Mac's Dirty Old Hiphop remixes (BBE). How did you start working with DJ Typhoon?

There's a record store in Copenhagen called CAN. One day when I was shopping for records, I gave the owner a disc of beats. He passed it on to DJ Noize, who is also a Nobody Beats The Beats affiliate, and he passed it on to Typhoon, who was then in the process of collecting beats for the Jahi record. That was actually my first beat to ever be released. And it had Dwele on the hook! I couldn't get my hands down for a minute...




There are so many great Danish producers and acts; Tue Track, Booty Cologne, Abdullah S, Nick Nack, Ashtiani & Baltzer, GrafiskMusik. Any other collaboration in past/future?

I'm working on a few tracks right now with a producer called Kriswontwo, who is also a Mixed Ape Music recording artist. Back in 2009 I released a project together with producer Twelve Beats under the moniker The Works. I'm hoping we'll get back in the studio soon for another project. Also, I have an album in the making with crossover soul outfit Vincent Van Go Go, with whom I've already released two albums. On the new album I'm more deeper involved in the production than on the previous albums.




Your mix of styles unavoidably makes us reminisce over the legendary radio show on Danish National Radio P3 called Det D.U.R. (Danish Underground Radio). That show was so influential in the late 80s and opened our eyes to hiphop, techno, soul and house. It was hosted by Soulshock, DJ Delgado, EziCut and Kenneth Bager. Do you remember that show?

I sure do! I used to tape it. Det D.U.R. was such a huge influence on me. I was 9 years old when it was on the air, and although I tuned in mostly for the hip hop, every once in a while there'd be a house or techno joint that got under my skin. In that respect, I think it broadened my musical horizon in a major way, and it's certainly something I still carry with me. Today, I'm a regular listener to the Benji B show which I think is kinda similar in its range of styles. Hip hop is definitely my language but I'm also heavily inspired by cats like 4 Hero, Theo Parrish, Marcellus Pittman, Actress, Floating Points etc.

Download: Det D.U.R. - Top selections 1991 (The final show Dec 27th 1991)
A short comment on this download. Sorry non-scandinavians this show is in Danish but we're pretty sure you'll enjoy to reminisce over the epic selection of tunes. Just as for Thomas it definitely broadened our view of music and inspired us to push boundries. Tracklist is available here.

What are your inspirations today? Could you drop three albums or tunes that have recently blown your mind?

In heavy rotation right now is Nas Daughters, Marcellus Pitmann Untitled and Widows Widows EP.

   

The last couple of years crews like The Robert Glasper Experiment, BadBadNotGood, El Michels Affair and Will sessions have literally blown up with their live sessions. Is there a live Terry Tester experience? If so what's your live set-up like? DJ-set? Jam sessions? Invited guests?

There is a Terry Tester live experience but it's really basic. It's just me, a laptop and a midi controller, but it gets the job done. I recently performed Sparkle off the Horses & Diamonds EP with Verb Ink live on the mic. I wanna get into that kinda stuff more...

Finally, which other up and coming producer do you think deserves more attention?

The big homie Twelve Beats.

Download: Twelve & Reach - Feelin' it

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Is there an old/new track, mixtape or live session you would consider sharing exclusively with Beathearts' readers?

Sure! Back in the good old MySpace days I posted a couple of Little Brother remixes that Phonte would comment on and I'd be proud as hell. I made this remix of The Way You Do It in 2008 and it hasn't been shared since. Enjoy!

Download: Little Brother - The way you do it (Terry Tester remix)


Terry Tester's Horses & Diamonds is available now via Amazon, HHV, Spotify and other outlets.

As bonus here's a chance to win a vinyl copy + download of his album!

Thomas was gracious enough to hand us a vinyl edition and digital download of his Horses & Diamond album. All you have to do to win the package is to:

• Comment, like, + or tweet this post and give us your view on which other up and coming producer/beatmaker you think we should feature in the Beat Generation Series?

Mail your answer, name and physical address to: beatheartsblog@gmail.com. Best suggestion/hook-up wins the package.

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Nas - The don (Prod. Heavy-D)

Nas is turning up the heat for his upcoming album. It's been a long time since we were this excited about a Nas album but with the tunes dropped so far is promising indeed. The dirty rugged beats of Nasty (covered here earlier) lit our hopes and the new tune The Don continue that trail.

Produced by the late Heavy-D this hard, straight forward with a ragga twist it got our heads nodding from the first bars. We took our eyes of Nas and he brings back this New York banger that floored us when we least expected it.


Nas - The Don (Prod. Heavy-D & Salaam Remi)

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