Before I get into it, let me just say that my favorite shit this week is Killer Mike’s Underground Atlanta compilation. It’s a two-disc behemoth and all 30+ tracks can’t be winners, but the majority of them are, and the best ones (Pill, Travis Porter, Trillville, Da Backwudz, and of course Mike himself) make for one of my favorite records this year. You can get it on vinyl too!

Ok, onto the links. Switching it up from one-off tunes this week to talk projects from DJ Boogie Boy, Fashawn & Alchemist, Dubstep LA, J Futuristic, and Trick Daddy. Now lets burn some CDs!

DJ Boogie Boy Cornerstone Mixtape #119 [mixtape]
I don’t really check for the Cornerstone mixtapes too hard – with the exception of their annual year-end compilations (Green Lantern’s Best of 2000 mix is top 5 all time) and one-off specials (Mark Ronson’s excellent Jay-Z Fade To Black tape, which I’ll upload in another post) it’s usually just a bunch of recent major label singles, maybe an exclusive intro freestyle by a local artist from wherever the radio DJ who mixed it is from – nothing too special for the obsessive compulsive (hello) who’s been heard it all, which makes this month’s edition that much more notable. At least half of DJ Boogie Boy’s mix is solid-to-great unsigned Chicago shit like Dude N Nem, DJ Solo and Soundmaster T (with the dope, Percolator-sampling “Freaklalator”), definitely worth a listen.

Fashawn x Alchemist The Antidote [mixtape]
This micro-mix (11 tunes in just under 23 minutes) is like Al and Prodigy’s Return Of The Mac minus the guns, blood, paranoia, etc. – another time machine to a breakbeat Scorsese NYC that never really existed. As an MC, Fashawn is not particularly flashy or compelling on paper but over “I Believe In Miracles” loops and snippets of Grandmaster Flash and Taxi Driver soundbites he sounds kind of awesome. More please.

Mr Grustle & Tha Russian Dubstep LA (mixed by Plastician) [mixtape]
Is this what the next Blade soundtrack is gonna be like? “Dubstep rap” mixtape that attempts to recap everything touching on the sound at the moment, ranging from Joker’s g-funk inspired instrumentals to Eve and Snoop’s tentative wobble experiments (sprinkled with a lottttttt of rappers who are underground for a reason). Sure, the results are mixed, but like I was saying about Fashawn, context is everything – over the course of 28 tracks you have to admit these guys are on to something. The best bits (DZ, Matty G, 12th Planet & Ras Kass) take the strengths of both styles and turn it into music that’s greater than the sum of its parts.

J Futuristic Mr Miyagi [mixtape]
This is the latest from the artist formerly known as J Money aka Mr First Name Last Name (or phonetically, FURRRR NAME LAAAA NAME), solidly in the F.L.Y. / Rich Kids lane of “swag music,” strangely accented flows and beats that sound like the Muppet Babies theme with 808s. I check all this stuff hoping for inspired, Fabo-worthy moments, ATL-via-Mars production flourishes or undeniable club tunes – none of which are found here but I’m sure there are French people who will dig it.

Trick Daddy The Life That I Live Vol 1 [mixtape]
Now this Trick Daddy tape on the other hand is filled with surprise bits, from Trick rapping over Phil Collins (with Pitbull!), Prince’s “Diamond And Pearls” and previously-mentioned Third Eye Blind album cuts, as well as Miami bass, strip club R&B and the Microsoft Windows shut-down noise. With no bomb drops or irritating “DJ” shouts either, just Mr Daddy Dollars on the shout outs (“I hate you, hate it, haters!”) because sometimes that’s all you need.