Free Music: Diplo - Chasing The Dragon

Diplo is the production maestro best known for spinning the masterful Clash-sampling beat behind M.I.A.'s "Paperplanes" and more recently as half of the zombie-reggae-dancehall-electro project Major Lazer with fellow producer Switch.  Playing notoriously raucous shows and remixing everything from Peter, Bjorn, and John to Daft Punk and Black Lips, he has established himself as an essential element in the producer/DJ crowd, even starting his own label, Mad Decent.  This new mixtape spans lots of different types of psychedelic bluesy jams but definitely has a groovy Diplo feel to it.  And did I mention it's FREE?

Download it now at Some Kind of Awesome's Soundcloud.

Or

Stream it now at Mad Decent's site.

New Feature and New Review: Rusko - O.M.G.!

You would think that after doing legal writing for 48 hours straight I wouldn't want to do any more, yet here I am.  Gotta spread the gospel friends.  If you look to the right side of the blog you will see a new feature that I am going to do every Monday.  It's a ten song playlist courtesy of our friends at grooveshark.com that I will compile based on my favorites of the past week plus some artists who will be coming into San Diego.  Throw it on at work, home, or if you are a DJ up in tha club.  I'll try to mix it up and I hope you enjoy it.

This isn't the first time I've thrown some dubstep production on here and it certainly won't be the last if the music continues its sludgy evolution into deeper and wonkier bass that makes the booty go 'woah'.  Alongside other genre mainstays like Skream and Benga, the latest dubber most consistently spitting out my speakers is Rusko.  The one-time Englishman now lives stateside up in Lost Angeles playing the electronic festival circuit all over the U.S. this past summer.  Rumor has it he is even producing some tracks on the new Britney... Spears... record...  I'll just pretend I didn't hear that actually.  Regardless of his future plans, his current beats are bumpin', kinda glitchy, and combine the best elements of modern dubstep with the best elements of 90's breakbeat and early 90's electronica.

Releasing only two EPs previously, O.M.G.! is Rusko's debut LP and it really does push dubstep into a new level that it had not previously touched.  Rusko successfully shows the range that is possible within the confines of the 'womp-womp-womp' that is the spine-crushing beat present in every dubstep track.  Some songs definitely even have an air of those block rockin' hip-hop anthems that they used to make those music videos for with all the people in the hood dancing in the street waving their shirts in the air (when you listen to "Scareware" tell me you don't think of Petey Pablo's "Raise Up"). 

Key tracks on this one are: "Hold On", "Dial My Number", "You're On My Mind Baby", and "Raver's Special"

Get it son.