The Witzard

"Me, Dan [Edinberg] (from The Stepkids ), and Chuck [Inglish] got together and made the instrumental. Me and Chuck were got connected 'cause we were already working... on the Kali Uchis album. Dan was visiting me in LA ; so, we got together and made the beat. We were really interested in combining elements... that haven't been combined before. It was the Summertime , so we were feeling a certain way. We hypothesized on what it would sound like to... combine South American [Bachata] music with Trap . Needles to say, when we started making the music, we all got super excited at this new sound... After that, Trinidad Jame$ came in and set the tone for lyrics and melody," producer, guitarist, and song-writer @JeffGitelman wrote within a Twitter -sent statement; "WunderLAnd," the aforementioned track, was released roughly 10 days ago, following Chuck Inglish 's instrumental project Texturizer and Blended Babies -produced Ev Zepplin . "The son...

"cats that wanna send beats, [my] email is homeboysandman@gmail.com . only send 2, as mp3 attachments. I'll only respond if I pick 1, but I'll listen," read a very recent open casting call from Stones Throw emcee @HomebpySandman dispatched to earnest beatsmiths world-wide. It seems as though the construction of Sandman 's latest release was conducted in a somewhat similar manner: "well, it [happened] just by itself. One day, I got an email from Homeboy Sandman , who asked if he could use this beat from my Chinoiseries album that I released in 2007. It's a really old beat I made over 10 years ago, so I wasn't too keen at first, but I decided to let him use it, since he's a real dope emcee and the result came out as a "Bus (A Rhyme)." He made a dope video that comes with it and that's that. Thanks," Arnaud Bernard (better known as Onra ) wrote within a Facebook message sent directly to The Witzard . I've been mulling ov...

"Hit the HASH [button] at retrohash.com to uncover secret raps over @black_milk madness..." @asherroth somewhat cryptically Tweeted late Wednesday afternoon, accented by a "#hashwednesday" hashtag; a trend which can be attributed to the bulk of Roth's recent post- RetroHash activity, consisting of fully fleshed out non-album tracks haphazardly uploaded to his Asher Paul Roth Soundcloud account. Hash Wednesdays roll call additionally includes Chuck Inglish -produced "That's Cute," "Oren's Not Sure," Fat Tony -assisted "Sushi," "Taking My Time," and Nottz -produced "Blow Yr Head" amongst other questionable non-album loosies. Although many of Asher Roth 's one-time fans and detractors might have quickly written him off as a mere "one-hit wonder" during the five years between "I Love College" -featuring Asleep In The Bread Aisle and his nearly flawless second album Retro...

"I asked your boss for your number. I never wondered which way it would go. You woke me up from my slumber. Now let me break your work flow. It's not a lot, but all I wanna do is skip town on a weekend with you. There's still so much to discover There's still a lot we don't know," read a recent suspiciously rhythmic-sounding Craigslist missed connections posting. It's actually a thinly veiled album release announcement for Chromeo 's new album, " White Women (title) 05-12-14 (date) - m4w," which also includes the Retro-80's album artwork. The FADER dually notes that the address listed with the posting, 701 1st Ave. N , was actually the location of First Avenue , Prince 's favourite hometown Minneapolis venue, where Purple Rain 's concert sequences were filmed. White Women , a self-described Larry David Funk album, is rumored to house a few choice cuts assisted by frequent collaborator Solange , Toro Y Moi, Vampire Weekend...

Not since Interpol frontman Paul Banks unleashed his semi-awkward Everybody On My D*ck Like They Supposed to Be have I heard a more un- Hip-Hop sounding mixtape; But with that said, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. uploaded their long-rumored PRODUCE (Vol. 1) mixtape mid-Wednesday afternoon. It's an oddly endearing juxtaposition of Weezer -indebted Indie Rock and Underground Hip-Hop with a little help from their friends, Asher Roth , Murs, Chuck Inglish , 112 crooner Slim, King Chip , Quelle Chris, and more. While it's actually a pretty legit-sounding Hip-Hop affair, there are still in fact flavors of Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. 's deeply-ingrained Pop tendencies subtly inter-woven through out PRODUCE : a light-hearted Beach Boys/Biggie mash-up, a cover of Nina Simone covering Randy Newman , and even decades-old interpolated P aul Simon lyrics. The 16-track mixtape is flanked by two album tracks remixed by Absofacto and Jon Zott (Goldenboyz), brother of co-frontman Daniel ...

"We were working on samples to make a beat and we ended up sampling the Nina Simone version of Randy Newman 's "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today" (1968), Josh Epstein recently told Paste Magazine in an exclusive premier-interview, which contrary to popular belief, dos not in fact sample Super Mario Brothers . Epstein along with fellow Detroit musician Daniel Zott are 2-man Indie-Pop band Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. who just released their second album, The Speed of Things back in October. Simply based off it's attached Souncloud cover artwork, "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today" will seemingly appear on Jr. Jr. 's forthcoming mixtape, PRODUCE, Vol. 1 ; set to feature a wide array of acclaimed rapper-producers including Murs , Slim of 112, Chuck Inglish , Quelle Chris, Asher Roth , Tunde Olaniran, King Chip , Self Says, Goldenboyz , and more. It'll definitely be pretty interesting to hear what Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. 's Weezer -indeb...

While The Cool Kids have barely scratched the surface of their recent Retro-Rap return to form, rapper-producer Chuck Inglish is still planning to soldier ahead with his long-rumored album, Convertibles ; now coincidentally complete with an April 8th release on Dave Sitek 's newly-formed Federal Prism imprint. Chance The Rapper , Mac Miller, Action Bronson , Ab-Soul, buddy Sir Michael Rocks , and more are set to appear deep within. Federal Prism and Inglish's own Sounds Like Fun label unleashed a double-hitter of singles Thursday afternoon: "Legs" and "Came Thru/Easily" assisted by Chromeo , Mac Miller, and Ab-Soul (respectively). Chuck Inglish, Dave 1 & P-Thugg have almost seamlessly melded together their separate styles to create the buttery smooth Disco-Funk/Hip-Hop hybrid, now also known as "Legs." Although I must admit, genre-blending collaborations like these don't always end up sounding as good as they might seem on p...

Well, I can't say I'm rally all THAT surprised, but it sounds like Chicago 's very own 1980-90's Boom-Bap revivalists The Cool Kids are finally back together... or as Chuck Inglish recently told fellow rapper-producer and apparent super-fan Tyler, The Creator , "Never stopped...It was just a time-out;" contrary to what Sir Michael Rocks (formerly Mikey Rocks ) told AllHipHop back in December 2012, "We'll probably do something else, but as The Cool Kids and as Shark Week , no. Those ideas are done, and we're on something different now." Ahead of their long-rumored second album Shark Week , the loose follow-up to Gone Fishing , Tacklebox, and When Fish Ride Bicycles (2009-11), The Cool Kids simultaneously unleashed 2 new tracks on the unsuspecting Internet Monday afternoon, "Computer School" and "Chop." Chuck Inglish & Mikey Rocks' own Cake Recordings imprint will seemingly self-release their new/shel...

Following the recent conclusion of his 3-part Cassette series, Jonwayne can now concentrate 100% of his focus on his long-awaited Stones Throw full-length; Formerly titled "Bohemian Rap CD," it's now called Rap Album 1 and cleverly sports a saltine cracker strewn across it's cover (likely a nod to how far "white boys" have come in Hip-Hop ha). While he was actually born Jon[athan] Wayne , the budding emcee kinda swagger-jacked the other, more infamous John Wayne 's birth-right for his latest mixtape, Marion Morrison (Cassette 3). "Reflection" is just one of 11 largely self-produced tracks culled from Rap Album 1 , which drops October 29th and is currently available for pre-order. Stones Throw liberated what Jonwayne later effectively dubbed a non-single mid-Wednesday afternoon; as Wayne perfectly put it, "If you don't like "Reflection," give yourself some time to adjust to new ideas in Hip-Hop and then listen a...

Noisey premiered Chuck Inglish 's new Federal Prism single, "Swervin'" late Tuesday afternoon, which features a semi-reunion with his former Cool Kids band mate Sir Michael Rocks (FKA Mikey Rocks ). Likely the first single from his upcoming Convertibles album, "Swervin'" marks The Cool Kids' first recorded appearance on wax since about 2011. Mikey Rocks randomly mentioned what sounds like a fairly amicable split win a Dec. 2012 AllHipHop interview: "You break us up, we're still going to turn out nice as f*ck separately, and when we come together, we transition that energy into making a dope record. Right now, man, I think we just need to be focusing on blowing up... We might come together as something else different. But as The Cool Kids , no, because we're not the same people, we've changed and evolved into two different artists." More or less, part 2 in Chuck Inglish 's auto-themed series that started with D...

Since we're being honest, I don't think I've ever actually heard anything from Kelis besides "Got Your Money" and "Milkshake;" "My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard and they're like, it's better than yours..." After a few rough years full of shelved albums, label drama, and the dissolution of her marriage to Nas , Kelis has signed to TV on The Radio multi-instrumentalist/producer Dave Sitek 's new label imprint. Federal Prism plans to unleash 2 Kelis albums and a single by year's end, along with new material from Scarlett Johansson , Maximum Balloon/Miguel, Freddie Gibbs , CSS, Chuck Inglish , and more. Kelis uploaded "Call On Me" to Soundcloud mid-Monday afternoon, which was later re-upped in substantially higher quality as "Jerk Ribs." Dave Sitek weaves a densely-layered soundbed that includes squalling horns, Funky basslines, and African drum rhythms; It almost has sonic accents re...

"The recurring theme in this group is we are all NASTY producers who can rap, NASTILY. [It's] a completely self-sufficient, well-oiled machine," Jonwayne lamented about Digital Diamonds , via Twitter late Friday afternoon. He released a Nirvana -sampling track online a few months ago along with Scoop DeVille under the group name, which has now expanded to include Chuck Inglish . It's Inglish's first major project since The Cool Kids went on indefinite hiatus [broke up?] While Jonwayne on the other hand, is currently busy mixing/mastering his proper Stones Throw debut and Scoop DeVille has produced tracks for everyone from Snoop Dogg to Das Racist (R.I.P.) and Kendrick Lamar 's recent hit singles "The Recipe" and "Poetic Justice." "Delirious" is a CLASSIC hard-hitting Hip-Hop beat that sounds like it might've been collectively co-produced by Jonwayne, Chuck Inglish & Scoop DeVille . It seems to sample some...

Almost effortlessly cruisin' down the same nautical, boatshoed lane as Yacht Rock pioneers like Christopher Cross , Steely Dan, Beach Boys , and Hall & Oates, The Alchemist quietly released one long 12-minute track [EP] appropriately dubbed "YACHT ROCK (Side A-B)" late Wednesday afternoon. It's pretty much the perfect soundtrack for throwing back a few boat-side brews, which might've been partially inspired by The Alchemist 's fruitful shades/readers partnership with 9FIVE Eyewear ; Hypebeast eloquently describes the glasses as " 9FIVE Watson frames [with] a custom black and grey pattern added to the outer portions with red leather wrapped around the temple tips. The sunglasses variant receives polarized black lenses, while the reader model features clear CR-39 lenses." Now, while that all sounds pretty TIGHT, $150's a little steep for 2 pairs of glasses, a fancy striped box, and a RARE 7-inch record... So, The Alchemist has libera...

Kids These Days are a bunch of super-talented, surprisingly Bluesy 18-20-somethings hailing from Chicago . The group which is fronted by MC Vic Mensa are headed out on a nation-wide tour this Fall with Asher Roth & Chuck Inglish ... includes young talent: Macie Stewart , Nico Segal, J.P. Floyd, Lane Beckstrom, Greg Landfair Jr , and Liam Cunningham . I think it's pretty safe to classify Kids These Days as a "Free Jazz" band, but they've also recorded music with Blended Babies , Chuck Inglish, The O'My's , and Asher Roth. It really boils down to being a Hip-Hop -infused style of Jazz that vaguely reminds me of The Roots or N*E*R*D 's instrumental chops. They're currently working with Wilco main man Jeff Tweedy , putting the final touches on Traphouse Rock LP, which'll finally see a [FREE] release on "Halloween Eve," Oct. 30th. Kids These Days premiered our latest taste of the album, "Who Do U-Luv?" online @ ...

The more I think about it, it's really just a coming-of-age type thing that almost all of us go through @ some point during our mid 20-early 30's: admitting that an old friend/fling is now just "somebody that [you] used to know." And that sheer, simplistic candor is exactly what makes Gotye 's similarly-titled 2011-12 break-out hit single so gosh darn relate-able! The quintessential track @ the heart of all this, "Somebody That I Used to Know" was only semi-recently knocked off Modern Rock radio charts by "Call Me Maybe;" Not surprisingly, there has to be close to 28,000+ fan covers and parodies uploaded to YouTube . A number of well-known Hip-Hop producers have taken a shot @ remixing "Somebody That I Used to Know" ... Chuck Inglish , Dice Raw, Sugar Tongue Slim , and DJ Tiesto . Making Mirrors , which is actually Gotye 's third album, is now available for purchase/enjoyment on both sides of "the pond." "Rel...

Ma Dukes is prepping to release her son J Dilla 's long-awaited third posthumous album, Rebirth of Detroit this coming June 12th. Following Dilla 's sudden 2006 passing, 2 other incomplete records were eventually finished and released: The Shining (2006) and Jay Stay Paid (2009) at the hands of producers, Karriem Riggins/Pete Rock . Throughout his short career, J Dilla supposedly recorded troves of music that only his inner circle had ever heard; But now that his estate has gained back the rights to most of these "lost recordings," I'm hoping to see a few more proper releases like this fairly soon! Danny Brown , Guilty Simpson, Amp Fiddler , Illa J, Frank Nitt , Chuck Inglish, and Phat Kat are set to appear over 25 unreleased J Dilla donuts on Rebirth of Detroit . In preparation for the album, "Jay-Dee's Revenge" & "Birthright" will be issued as a limited edition 10-12" single on May 25th. So, don't forget: Rebirth of...

I'm just gonna go a head and call this one early - Most Random/Awesome Collaboration of 201 2: Rick Ross & Chuck Inglish - "Party Heart" (BAWSE grunt). Nestled towards the tail-end of Rich Forever , the track almost feels like an appropriate "prize" for those successfully make it all the way to Ross' newest mixtape's end. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I'd hear Rick Ross properly lacing up a Boom-Bap , 808 -hitting [Throwback] Cool Kids -crafted beat. Stalley and 2 Chainz also contribute additional lyrical stylings to the heart-felt festivities. Man, I really hope Maybach Music Group decides to shoot an accompanying "Party Heart" music video! Rich Forever , intended to serve as an ample place-holder for God Forgives, I Don't , is now available for desktop download. Fresh on the heels of The Cool Kids' major label debut (When Fish Ride Bicycles), Chuck Inglish recently branched out on his own and releas...

I must admit, that in addition to becoming quite the talented rhymesmith... Asher Roth has also managed to become "The Master of Ambiguity," as of late. His latest effort, Pabst & Jazz (Sessions) was released earlier today to positive fan-fare, without a single premature leak; Aside from a couple planned "leaks" [promo singles], even the mixtape's tracklist was kept under lock and key up until today's wide-spread release. Pabst & Jazz marks a new direction for Roth... uncharted territory, which is laid back, Soulful , and Jazzy ! In fact, 14 of it's 16 tracks were produced by mysterious production duo, "Blended Babies." Chuck Inglish (The Cool Kids), 1500 or Nothin' , and Asher Roth himself also contribute slight production chops. Pabst & Jazz is a truly great mixtape; What a diverse batch of top-notch "Soul" baring recordings! After a few complete listens, I really can't pinpoint a skip-able track in the ...

Similar to the vast majority of Hip-Hopping up-and-comers anymore these days, Asher Roth really manages to flex his lyrical "nuts" across the length of his free-form mixtape releases... Maybe it's the chance to pull samples from just about any source (free of charge) and "GO HARD" without a single worry or fret that's all the more liberating. Whether it be The GreenHouse Effect (2008), Seared Foie Gras with Quince and Cranberry , or THE RAWTH EP (2010); Roth's intelligent Beats & Rhymes which are thinly spread across his mixtapes, regularly TRUMP his companion major label-spun album by-products. Fun Fact: Asher Roth and Justin Bieber actually share[d] the same talent manager, Scooter Braun . Asher Roth initially burst onto the music scene in 2009 - upon the release of his radio-friendly lead single, "I Love College." Paired along with Asleep In The Bread Aisle (premier LP), Roth managed to reach the #5 spot on Billboard's Hot...

"For the past couple years, Asher Roth and Chuck Inglish have been 2 artists that we've been eager to create music videos for. The first time we heard Ash rock over a Chuck beat was in 2008 when The GreenHouse Effect (mixtape) was released and the remix to "Black Mags" was recorded. Here we are now, both artists have released albums since then, and what a better time for the 2 to team up and create [some] new material. When Chuck Inglish first sent ["In The Kitchen"] over to us, we knew a video had to be shot immediately. From kitchen to kitchen, we ran around New York City creating the above visual which we find as the perfect representation to the bass heavy banger. Look out for Asher Roth's Pabst & Jazz to drop soon on ILLROOTS ... Get excited!" - Waxx, Carson & Williams