Qwazaar gives this sharp insight: “Drake’s flow is like the neighborhood bj queen… a bad idea but you can’t help but want to give her a try…”

peace to Baje One

Compiled and mixed by Dj Bizkid for Galapagos4 to assist you in traversing the label’s history. 80 minutes of standout tracks, exclusive and remixes recorded during the past 10 years. Peace to Jeff.

consume: Break The Mold: A Chicago Mixtape

01.- DJ Bizkid – Intro

02.- Qwel & Maker – Golden Era
prod. by maker, 2009

03.- Qwazaar – Chicago
prod. by lousy bastard, 2001

04.- Typical Cats – Thin Red Line
prod. by dj natural, 2001

05.- Robust – Maxwell Street (Exclusive)
prod. by pore, cuts by dj bizkid, 2010

06.- Royce feat. Qwel & Meaty Ogre – City Heat
prod. by meaty ogre & royce, 2006

07.- Offwhyte – Paramount
prod. by open i, 2002

08.- Pugslee Atomz – The Big One
prod. by epic, 2000

09.- Qwel & Maker – Welcome To Chicago
original prod. by maker, 2009
mash up beat: meaty ogre “18th & wood”

10.- Hellsent – Chicago (Exclusive)
prod. by max, cuts by dj bizkid, 2010

11.- Offwhyte – Kid Is Raw
prod. by mike gao, 2004

12.- Anacron – Be Where?
prod. by anacron, 1999

13.- Robust – Dark & Stormy (Exclusive)
prod. by robust, cuts by dj bizkid, 2010

14.- Offwhyte – The Metropolitan People
prod. by maker, 2007

15.- Qwel – The Manhattan Project
prod. by meaty ogre, 2001

16.- Nacrobats – Rush Hour
prod. by noble, 1999

17.- Offwhyte – North To Broadway
prd. by dj white lightning, 2000

18.- Qwel – Red C
prod. by jackson jones, 2009

19.- Mestizo & Offwhyte – Chicago Under A Full Moon
prod. by mike gao, 2004

20.- Himself – Howard To 95th
prod. by dj white lightning, 2001

21.- Qwel – Chicago Barbecue
prod. by dj white lightning, 2001

22.- Qwel – Wind Instrument
prod. by jackson jones, 2002

23.- Maker – Augusta 90b
prod. by maker, 2005

Congratulations to Galapagos4 for the anniversary. Wish I could be in Chicago for this. Us New Yorkers never get the good shows. link

One of the most basic barriers to so-called success in this industry was/is money. But obviously money, in and of itself, is not what players need(ed). Rawkus needed to get national distro so they got with Rupert Murdoch’s son. Wu-Tang needed to get manufacturing and promotion, so they got with Loud. But today these hurdles are becoming less awesome. Mass distribution for an independent artist is no longer an impossibility (although establishing control over the technology that makes it possible could be). A national and even international marketing effort is not necessarily a multi-million dollar effort, especially when you can reach your target market(s) through niche sites. And access to reasonable recording equipment is more practical than ever before, enabling artists to record in their living rooms or at the motel after the show.

I know it’s hard to quantify “happiness” and things of that nature, but let’s generalize for the argument’s sake. Much like economists try to measure quality of life by jobs, disposable income, life span etc., can we as a community expect to see more accessibility to 1000-copy-runs of music, more convenient and suitable show venues, more media outlets and more interest by the hordes of consumers out there? Or, is what we are witnessing some kind of trend towards market-saturation consisting of weak material being presented by a bunch of perpetrators?

Over the passed few days I’ve stumbled upon a good amount of music I’m enjoying and it has made me, at least temporarily, optimistic. The reason I’m rambling on about this is because, even as I get older and less idealistic, it’s nice to know I am still susceptible to the power of music. I still bop my head uncontrollably when I hear a dope beat drop for the very first time. I thought I’d share:

De La Soul – Rock Co. Kane Flow featuring Doom
Handsomeboy Modeling School – The World’s Gone Mad featuring Del
Typical Cats – Justice Coming
TOCA – Joyful Misery
Sage Francis – Slow Down Ghandi
Saul Williams – Black Stacey
Shyheim – New Producers

Even though I know a lot of people won’t feel these tracks the same way I did when I first heard them, at least the potential for something is there. This can’t be a bad thing. And since I’m well aware of the fact that my optimism will eventually fade and swing back towards the darkside, I and the other people at GrandGood have decided to force ourselves to make a post at least once a month featuring music that we like.

All these low-fi real audio samples can only be available for thirty days, so as not to a) Annoy any artists or audio-hound sites and b) Annoy our website’s host. Too bad we can’t post mp3s, maybe in the future.

Chill