Watch the scratch

Revisiting my first post here a few weeks ago, we have another track from Spacer - 1995's "Watch The Skies", an atmospheric mid-tempo, sci-fi infused head nodder.

Also today is something I meant to post a while ago... From 1996 we have Kitachi with "Scratch" , here for you remixed in a stomping dub hip-hop manner.

As a reminder, feel free to post a comment, all feedback is welcomed and is the best way of getting to hear more of what you want and less of what you don't.

Don't try to tell me you're a monk my friend....

Following on nicely from Monday's look at what J Saul Kane was up to in 1989, a brief skip forwards to 91 and the indisputable masterpiece that is "Depth Charge vs Silver Fox".

Vocal duties taken up by MC Alkaline from Gunshot, music from Mr Kane, I've included the full track with dub following on as cut on the original 12".

If none of the above means anything to you, you're in for a treat. As an aside, if hip hop tracks were video game characters, I reckon this would do the trick for Tekken's Yoshimitsu.

Laylow

Some of the best eighties and nineties UK hip hop came from London's Ladbroke Grove area. Here's a couple of slightly lesser known examples for your leisurely perusal...

Firstly, N.S.O Force Organisation with "Give It Up", released on 12" in 1989 and produced by J Saul Kane (better known as Depth Charge amongst other names...).

Secondly, The Mighty Ethnicz with 1990's "Murder", going some way to proving that any hip hop track that samples The Meter's "Just Kissed My Baby" is going to sound good enough or thereabouts without much more effort.

Keep a Low Profile...

Staying in America but going back just a little further to 1989 now. Low Profile were DJ Aladdin and WC, notable for being mates of Ice-T but more so for Aladdin being a 1989 DMC finalist.

The following is a selection from their album "We're In This Together", I've chosen what are probably my favourite 4 tracks, all with a large helping of Aladdin doing his thing for good measure....

How Ya Livin

Funky Song

Keep Flowin

Aladdin's on a Rampage (including an extended session of tearing the shit out of Rock The Bells, as previously used in his DMC final routine, featured below for reference and nostalgia).

Alphabet Soup vs Son of Bazerk

Over the spit and back to the USA now for two old favourites with a nice warm feel....

1991 for Alphabet Soup - "Sunny Day In Harlem".

1990 for Son Of Bazerk - "Change The Style".

I'm not even going to bother explaining further, both tunes are absolute gems (in my mind anyway, your mileage may well vary)....

If it ain't broke ..

Completing a trio of posts on classic hardcore UK Hip Hop with something that requires a closer look.

Assuming you like proper, classic UK stuff, you may well have both Hijack's "Hold No Hostage" and "Doomsday of Rap" as mp3's.

If you have good taste, you may well own the 12" single of "The Badman is Robbin" with both tracks featuring on the B-Side.

However, were you to own the original 1988 12" on Music of Life, you would already know that the original mixes of the tracks are infinitely superior to the later re-edits.... and you wouldn't need to bother downloading the tracks again...

Nothing to do with Coventry

II Tone Committee hailed from Glasgow and released the next 12" in 1991.

"Beings From A Word Struck Surface" and "Hangman" seem to be quite sought after, the only copy I have seen for sale going at £60 over at Discogs.

Debatable in my eyes as to whether it has aged as well as the Kobalt 60 tunes I posted the other day. That's just my opinion though, the tunes are still hard as hell....

I'm Fort A like a Sizewell B

As I've been searching through the crates I've listened to some tracks that I haven't heard in more than 10 years... In the case of UK Hip Hop, some tracks haven't aged too well whereas some, particularly the following selection still sound fresh today...

So, here we have Kobalt 60 with "Kaos From Order" and "Concrete Show" released almost 20 years ago..... both tracks absolute gems.

Ninjas

A couple of nice Ninja Tune things now, Funki Porcini's "Dubble (Organ swell mix)" and DJ Food with "Spiral".

The Food track was on a single sided promo along with a Herbaliser track, the B-side was actually an etched Ninja Tune logo which was lovely but seemingly impossible to photograph using my phone.

Mind you, I do have fingers like pig's tits.