The Music of Max Payne 3

Posted on June 8, 2013 by waxramble

TRACK – TRACK

Finally got around to finishing Max Payne 3 tonight. The game is really fantastic and I’d highly recommend playing it (especially on PC for the improved graphics). If I had played it last summer when it came out it would easily have been one of my GotY choices. One thing that stood out to me while playing the game was the score by HEALTH. The music really really helped to set the mood for so many parts of the game and in certain places even impacts the style of the gameplay.

The video above is a cool feature that talks to the band and the audio folks at Rockstar to discuss how they incorporated the music into the game. There is a small spoiler near the end of the video so be careful for that if you haven’t had a chance to play it yet (the music is an important part of this scene they are talking about). I’ve also included a few of my favorite songs from the soundtrack below the video. The game is definitely worth checking out, especially if you’re a fan of other Rockstar games.

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James Pants Soundcloud

Posted on June 8, 2013 by waxramble

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/62646617″ params=”color=848484&auto_play=false&show_artwork=true” width=”100%” height=’166′ iframe=”true” /]

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/69575809″ params=”color=848484&auto_play=false&show_artwork=false” width=”100%” height=’100′ iframe=”true” /]

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/64792578″ params=”color=848484&auto_play=false&show_artwork=false” width=”100%” height=’100′ iframe=”true” /]

Since we’re still waiting on some “new new new” from James Pants, I decided to check out his Soundcloud the other day. I haven’t done this in awhile and was happy to see many more recent tracks posted over there. Not a fan of Soulja Boy (at all), but I do have to say James Pant’s remix is amazing. Since hearing it a few days ago I’ve had to listen to it at least a few times everyday. Also posted a few more favorites, though you should really just head over to his page to see what he has been sharing lately. Really looking forward to a new album, hopefully it will show up this year.

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KXNG†UT

Posted on June 8, 2013 by waxramble

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/88311351″ params=”color=848484&auto_play=false&show_artwork=false” width=”100%” height=’100′ iframe=”true” /]

Noticed this dude over on STMB’s Hype section, good tunes. The video above is messing around with some Fantastic Planet (Quas) and another sample I’m not familiar with (the drums sound like they’re from Madlib’s Stormy on Shades of Blue). The Soundcloud song is sampling Opa’s Pieces that was used for Captain Murphy’s Between Friends. I hadn’t heard the Pieces track before looking into it for this post, really digging it. Follow KXNG†UT over on Twitter and Soundcloud if you like what you hear.

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Dawhud – The Return b​/​w Battle Anybody

Posted on June 8, 2013 by waxramble

[bandcamp width=100% height=120 album=397735224 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=333333 tracklist=false artwork=small]

 

Sweet digital 12″ from my dude Dawhud. I had posted about needing to pick up a Walkman for Jon Wayne’s Cassette 2 on STMB awhile back and Dawhud was nice enough to send one over to me for free. Found out he’s from the Seattle area too and makes some great music. He included a cassette copy of his Dub Styles: Walkman Redemption release in the package which I’d also recommend checking out.

Above is a digital 12″ he’s released recently. Really digging the production on both tracks and the emcees who are on this. I’ve said before that I’m not a huge fan of Seattle hip hop, but the stuff Dawhud is putting out is making me rethink that a bit. It’s also nice to hear that the Battle Anybody track has gotten some exposure from folks like DJ Premier and DJ Eclipse which is detailed by the Bandcamp page:

On 4/26 DJ Premier broke/leaked the upcoming digi single from Dawhud featuring A.C.E.-One titled “Battle Anybody.” About 23 minutes into the “Live at HeadQCouterz” show, DJ Premier cut up the into and let A.C.E.-One and Dawhud beast a track that mirrors the camaraderie and competition of “Meth vs. Chef” from Method Man’s classic debut… Two days later, DJ Eclipse debuted the track on his “Rap Is Outta Control” show on Hip Hop Nation Sirius XM.

I imagine getting exposure from DJs like this is very exciting. Looking forward to more music from these dudes. Be sure to follow everyone involved in the making of this release on Twiter: @dawhud, @ace_one_ , and @wizdom80. Also check out Dawhud’s blog Basement Addicts for more good stuff.

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Madlib Medicine Show Interview

Posted on June 2, 2013 by waxramble

Brand new interview with Madlib during a Medicine Show stop in London. Interviews with Madlib are quite rare so it’s always interesting to read or listen to them as they come about every so often. A lot of the things he’s talking about during the interview is pretty common knowledge, but there are some new things discussed as well.

He talks about a few new projects which include some early Kraftwerk inspired tunes, new stuff with Mos Def, and some more jazz and hip hop records on the way. He mentions holding on to records lately rather than releasing them right away which is disappointing to hear as a fan but also makes sense to ensure he’s happy with what’s being put out. It also sounds like the delay of the new Madvillain album is coming from DOOM’s side, hopefully he’ll be getting to it here soon as everyone is ready for the long awaited return of that project. Near the end of the interview he even talks about J Dilla’s jazz album which has never been released and may never get one due to all of the politics and red tape surrounding the release of his music since his death. Hopefully someday we’ll be able to hear it.

If you’re a fan of Madlib and crew it is definitely an interview you don’t want to miss. Check it out above!

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Black Milk on The Engadget Show

Posted on June 2, 2013 by waxramble

Good interview with Black Milk on the latest episode of The Engadget Show. It’s nice to see an artist like him featured on a gadget blog, lots of that stuff can be involved with the making of hip hop music. Black Milk’s collection of analog gear that is shown off is sweet. It is interesting to hear about his creative process and music setup, actually pretty surprised by how simple looking his space is given all of his fantastic production. I actually think it’s awesome that his music is made in just a pretty basic room studio.

His discussion of the transition from digging records to digging for music online describes one of the cooler aspects I think has come for music discovery in recent times. I’ve heard older folks that aren’t as accepting to the practice of digging on a site like Youtube for example, so it’s nice to hear a well respected producer like Black Milk talking about the positive aspect of this during the interview. I imagine that as more of the internet generation becomes more dominant in the hip hop production scene, digging online will be just as common of a practice as digging at the record store is. It seems like Black Milk has found a balance between the digital and analog side and I think that’s where I’d like to consider myself at as well.

You can check out the entire episode here!

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Rain

Posted on June 2, 2013 by waxramble
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Mini Van Highway & Mark Salud

Posted on May 29, 2013 by waxramble

Of all of the awesome skits that appeared on Tim and Eric I think I honestly have to say that this is up there as one of my all time favorites. I hadn’t seen this in quite some time until someone recently posted this amazing poster art on Reddit a few weeks ago (I wish this was a real poster, I would have purchased it immediately). I actually had posted this song before over on my personal blog about a year or two ago and included what a lot of people agree inspired them to make the skit.

Below is Mark Salud’s appearance on a San Diego public access show which shares a lot of the qualities that were used for the T&E skit. Some might just take it as a joke since being used as inspiration for Tim and Eric but I personally think the music sounds great. I have no idea how difficult it is to perform music with the software that’s being used, but it does look like quite a bit of work was involved in writing it from the shots of the screen. Mini Van Highway is a pretty sweet song but I think I’d have to say the first portion of this video is even better! I wish there was more of this online but I couldn’t find anything else after searching for a bit.

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Random Access Memories (8-Bit Version)

Posted on May 28, 2013 by waxramble

daft punk 8 bit

Was reading Kotaku the other day and saw this 8-Bit style performance of Random Access Memories by Joe Jeremiah which I thought was pretty neat. I figure it would be relatively easy to do one of these for Daft Punk’s previous records given how electronic they are and thought it was impressive that Joe was able to show that their more live instrumental music from RAM could still be broken down to this type of sound. I feel like it would be perfect for some awesome NES game.

While listening to the video at work I thought about making an album cover to fit the music and ripping a downloadable copy for those interested. You can see the cover I made above and the song is available for download here. If you’re digging this I’d recommend checking out Joe Jeremiah’s Youtube for more. A video of the Random Access Memories performance can be seen below:

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Wu-Tang Clan – Execution in Autumn

Posted on May 17, 2013 by waxramble

[bandcamp width=100% height=42 album=1471154595 size=small bgcol=ffffff linkcol=333333]

 

9/7/2013 Update: Soul Temple Music is run by a scammer. Most who have ordered items from the Bandcamp page for the label have not received their items. This includes the “free” Execution in Autumn 7-inch that was offered to the public which still had a $5 shipping fee. Please see the Boycott Soul Temple Music Facebook page for more details.

Original post 5/17/2013:
Received an e-mail from Soul Temple earlier tonight regarding the shipping issues they’ve been having lately which explains the delay on my instrumental copy of Twelve Reasons To Die that I ordered a few weeks ago. In response to this issue they have released an exclusive/unreleased track from RZA’s vault titled Execution in Autumn which features RZA, U-God, Raekwon, and Inspectah Deck and production from Frank Dukes which you can hear above. What’s really awesome though is that they are releasing the track and instrumental on a “pay what you feel basis” 7-inch record which can be purchased until May 31st. Nice track and awesome deal on the 7-inch, definitely makes up for the slow shipping in my opinion. You can download the song and purchase the 7-inch over here.

The e-mail from Soul Temple can be read in the spoiler:
As of this afternoon, all of the orders for Ghostface Killah and Adrian Younge’s “Twelve Reasons To Die” and The RZA’s “Shaolin Soul Selection” have been shipped out. To those of you who may not have yet received your purchase, your package was in today’s shipment. If you are in the USA, you should receive your order via first class mail with in 5 days. If you are an International customer, it may take up to 7 to 14 days for it to arrive via Air Mail. If for any reason you haven’t received your order within these time frames please email: soultemple.shipping@gmail.com

This is new email address we’ve set up to deal specifically with lost/problem shipments.

If you’ve already received an email from us in the past few weeks saying that your order had been shipped and you have not yet received it, please email us now at: soultemple.shipping@gmail.com

We here at Soul Temple sincerely regret the disastrous delay in shipping your orders, but finally everything is out the door. We apologize sincerely for dropping the ball with these shipment. We are working hard to improve our shipping systems and customer service so that this doesn’t happen with future releases.

As a token of our appreciation for your support of Soul Temple, the RZA has allowed us to share with you a Wu-Tang Clan exclusive from his personal vault. The track is called “Execution in Autumn” and it features INS Deck, Raekwon, RZA and U-God. From now until May 31st this track is being made available on a FREE Digital Download AND on a “pay what you feel basis” for the 7″ Vinyl Single. Click the cover image below to check out the track. Hope you enjoy it.

Looking forward to a better tomorrow…

Bob Perry
Soul Temple Records

execution in autumn

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