I’m writing this late night in Beijing, so no YouTubes this week – they blocked-ed it! But the Peoples Republic Of Catchdubs has more than enough regular ol uploads to go around. Hit the jump for new joints from Zip Flare, Killer Mike, Rich Boy, Nametag & Skyzoo, Slaughterhouse (again!), GLC featuring Cory Mo and Mistah FAB, and Problem.

Zip Flare “Countdown” [mp3]
People sleep on how melodic a lot of southern rap production really is. The reason Jeezy’s shit sounds like Der Ring des Trap-elungen is those transcendently triumphant chord progressions. Yeaahhhhhhh! Zip Flare (and whoever did this beat for him) totally get it. He also has an excellent name, shouts out Vanna White (“Wanna buy an O?”) and gives his dogs high fives to show em love. I support all of this.

Killer Mike “In My City” [mp3 via Nah Right]
Rich Boy “Country Club Freestyle” [mp3]
Which is not to say that dusty sample-based tracks from below the Mason Dixon aren’t the shit in their own right. You can always depend on these two, be sure to grab the rest of Rich Boy’s tape as well.

Nametag f Skyzoo “Back On My Shit” [mp3]
Black Milk’s last album on Fat Beats was a fun record to drive to. It also got more “what the hell are we listening to?”s in my car than any other CD (although Duster’s “you guys actually like this?” in regards to The Recession is worth a hundred regular disses). I understand it though – if you’re listening for anything other than pure production, it’s a tad underwhelming. Colin Munroe and Jim Jones came closest in turning BM tracks into songs (his dolo “Give The Drummer Some” was solid too) and while Nametag and Skyzoo are fine on this, they never bring that needed oomph for the collab to really take off.

Slaughterhouse “Cukoo” [mp3]
On the other hand, here are some dudes that BODY RECORDS. With the exception of the generic “official” cover art, everything about this Slaughterhouse LP has been excellent. 100% stan status. August 11th!

GLC f. Cory Mo and Mistah Fab “Let The Pimpin Commence” [mp3]
Tabernacle!

Problem f. Jim Jones & DJ Quik “Problem” [mp3]
Problem “Motorbike” [mp3]
Kurupt f. Problem “I’m Burnt” [mp3]
There’s a gang (no pun intended) of West Coast artists who are obviously talented and create accessible music, but will never make it past Power 106’s “New At 2!” afternoon rotation. No idea if Problem will break the cycle, but he’s making some cool stuff in the process, especially this most recent Kurupt collab.