The ukhh.com 2012 (w)rap up part 2
Following on from yesterdays post here’s the second selection of ‘sober enough to send an email at christmas’ replies to my end of year roundup questions.
Thanks to King Underground, Mystro, Rapshack, Rarekind, Ryan Proctor, Tom Caruana, Wyt Fang and the guys from Hoochinoo/Rappertag for taking the time out to contribute and if you haven’t seen yesterdays selection from Aspects, Associated Minds, Caxton Press, Chemo, Disorda, Donnie Propa and Itch FM yet then check the link at the bottom of the page.
King Underground
for those alien visitors who won’t know give us a quick resume
how was 2012 for you and what were the release highlights that might have been missed
what are the planned releases for 2013?
what other music hit the spot in 2012?
how do you see the health of the uk scene at the moment?
any thoughts on the future of the industry? are physical formats dead? are you worried about piracy/filesharing?
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
any final blatant self-promotion, twitter, links etc.
Mystro
for those alien visitors who won’t know give us a quick resume up to now
how was 2012 for you and what were the release highlights that people might have been missed
what have you got planned for 2013?
what other music hit the spot in 2012?
how do you see the health of the uk scene at the moment?
any thoughts on the future of the industry? are physical formats dead? are you worried about piracy/filesharing?
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
any final blatent self-promotion, twitter, links etc.
Rapshack
plug your shop in a few short words and explain why people should use you
what have been the big sellers this year
what personally has hit the spot for you in 2012?
how do you see the health of the uk hiphop scene at the moment?
give us a tip for 2013
any thoughts on the future of the industry? are physical formats dead?
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
To our customers, our listeners and our fans. Thanks for sticking with us!
Peas on earth.
any final blatent self promotion, twitter, links etc.
www.urbanitedj.com
Rarekind
plug your shop in a few short words and explain why people should use you
what have been the big sellers this year
Caruana’s album, Rum Committee – Booze Town, Datkid and Split Prophets albums and we restocked all the MFTC’s / £10 bags and chester P releases recently too and they’ve been selling well.
what personally has hit the spot for you in 2012?
how do you see the health of the uk hiphop scene at the moment?
give us a tip for 2013
any thoughts on the future of the industry? are physical formats dead?
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
any final blatent self promotion, twitter, links etc.
the facebook page facebook.com/rarekindrecords
Ryan Proctor
introduce yourselves and what you do
what have been your albums/singles of the year
which artists/event impressed you most during the year?
what are your plans for 2013?
how do you see the health of the uk scene at the moment?
continue to fund their music and don’t have to give everything away for free either by choice or because people are getting those unofficial downloads.
give us a tip for 2013
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
any final blatent self promotion, twitter, links etc.
for music videos, interviews, reviews etc and can also reach me on Twitter – @RyanProctor75.
Tom Caruana
for those alien visitors who won’t know give us a quick resume up to now
how was 2012 for you and what were the release highlights that might have been missed
what are your planned releases for 2013?
what other music hit the spot in 2012?
how do you see the health of the uk scene at the moment?
any thoughts on the future of the industry? are physical formats dead? are you worried about piracy/filesharing?
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
any final blatent self-promotion, twitter, links etc.
Wyt Fang
for those alien visitors who won’t know give us a quick resume up to now
how was 2012 for you and what were the release highlights that might have been missed
You had that YNR, High Focus, Boot, Killamanjaro, Strange Universe, Flame Griller, Taskforce, Melanin 9, Cappo, Paul White, Defdfires, Skuff type shits… There was soooooo many releases, should be loads more to come too. Keep them peepers peeled.
Been allot of UK/US collab shits too. UK producers on American albums and American Rappers on UK releases. Good shit.
what are your planned releases for 2013?
what other music hit the spot in 2012?
how do you see the health of the uk scene at the moment?
any thoughts on the future of the industry? are physical formats dead? are you worried about piracy/filesharing?
There isnt an HMV/Record shop near you anymore. The days of loads of people (labels/press etc) earned off one artist/band/crew are dead, everything’s allot more streamlined and direct.
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
any final blatent self-promotion, twitter, links etc.
Hoochinoo/Rappertag/ukhh.com
introduce yourselves and what you do
what was your highlight event of the year?
what have been your albums/singles of the year
which artists impressed you most during the year?
what are your plans for 2013?
how do you see the health of the uk scene at the moment?
give us a tip for 2013
shoutouts/thanks/christmas wishes
any final blatent self promotion, twitter, links etc.
@ukhhcom, @hoochinoo @RappertagUK @Dfacer1
And that’s it for another year. Thanks to all of the artists, labels, shops and journo’s that took the time to complete my little questionnaire. If you’re reading this and thinking ‘why wasn’t I asked’ then check your DM, inbox or spambox as I hit up a lot of people but didn’t pursue you relentlessly, this scene thrives if people step their games up and take the opportunities that arise. If I genuinely missed you out then my bad, follow us on twitter and go hard into 2013 and we might look you up next year.
Please go back through the links in these articles, follow, join and most of all purchase something.
ukhh.com has gone through a lull the last few years but we’re hoping the new guard of Theo & Dfacer will give it a much needed kick into the 21st century and myself (@spoon_ukhh) and @smiff_ukhh will still be lurking around in the background sticking our oars in.
ukhh.com – Putting Knowledge Into Heads since 1999. At what age do we officially become old school?
Joker Starr ‘Blood-Ren’ Album review
Joker Starr
“Blood-Ren” (Flukebeat Music)
reviewed by Ryan Proctor http://oldtothenew.wordpress.com/
Hailing from Slough, England, inimitable emcee Joker Starr has flown
on and off the Hip-Hop radar over the last decade or so having worked
with the likes of Blak Twang-affiliate Seanie T, DJ Blufoot, Keith
Lawrence and homegrown heavyweight Ty. Finally, after getting a handful
of solo releases and guest appearances under his belt, the entertaining
lyricist finally drops his official debut album, a unique mix of sample-
heavy beats, memorable verses and engaging concept-driven tracks.
Unlike many of today’s artists, one of Joker Starr’s main strengths is
that he possesses personality in abundance and isn’t afraid to inject
his music with both humour and his own individual worldview, ensuring
that he immediately stands-out from the crowd and providing “Blood-Ren”
with an organic feel and unpredictable quality.
Whether rhyming over gritty boom-bap beats or smoother soundscapes,
spitting playful punchlines or dealing with day-to-day pressures, there’
s a constant energy and authenticity to Joker’s delivery that draws the
listener in, making him an easy artist to relate to. So by the time the
final track on this album fades away, you genuinely feel as though you’
ve been allowed to enter into Starr’s life and have gotten to know him
as a person as well as a rapper.
The Miss Tofelees-produced “Celebration” opens the project with Joker
Starr patting himself on the back for enduring the up-and-downs of his
music career and actually getting “Blood-Ren” out to the masses,
claiming “Back in the days too many devilish snakes around me, Turned
mongoose in the booth, now there’s no snakes to be found.”
The dope, disjointed production supplied by Diversion Tactics’ Zygote
and Jazz T on “Lost Tribe Of The Leng” provides a solid backdrop for
Joker’s dark, cautionary tale of street life, whilst “Mic Jack” is an
upbeat dedication to the King Of Pop himself, Michael Jackson, with
Starr cleverly incorporating numerous MJ song titles into his rhymes as
he describes the artist with “one glove sparkling with the socks to
match” over sporadic guitar stabs and restless drums rolls.
The previously-released “Hip Hop Transition” is also included here,
with the “Sierra Leone African” looking to claim his place on the rap
map with passionate rhymes over Jehst’s shimmering funk-fuelled loops,
whilst the Apatight-produced “Too Many Not Enough” is a sparse critique
of the present-day music game and UK Hip-Hop scene (“The music industry
is a mess, Uniqueness ain’t embraced just formulas for success”).
The bass-heavy “Caramel Fudge” finds Joker Starr joining forces with
Eat Good Records’ Sonny Jim to chase ladies of all flavours over
Apatight’s warm, soulful production, and the nimble “All I Need” shows
another side to the emcee’s character as he mixes social commentary
with his brand of ironic humour (“World ain’t been the same since the
search for Osama, We all broke pocket just trying to make change like
Obama”).
With guest appearances kept to a minimum (aside from the aforementioned
Sonny Jim only Micall Parknsun and Genesis Elijah share the mic here),
“Blood-Ren is very much Joker Starr’s album, making for a much stronger
project than the feature-heavy albums of some of his peers.
Succeeding in crafting a full-length debut that is as true to himself
as it is true to the art and culture of Hip-Hop, Joker Starr’s latest
effort provides a breath of fresh air amidst the smog of blandness and
conformity that pollutes so much music today.