Good music whispered echoes a hundred miles. Take for instance singer/songwriter Graham Knoxx. I’ve seen Graham out and about at a couple of events in Atlanta. Making her way through a sea of hipsters and posers she greets me with a smile as sweet and earnest as her voice. Her natural style, poise and statuesque beauty gave her a glow that was hard not to notice, even without the brief introduction from promoter Wil May.
Most of us are familiar with the Jay-Z & Kanye West “Throne” takeover, which in itself practically attained an all-inclusive zenith of hip-hop history. For Jay and ‘Ye purists like myself, there’s no question as to whether or not “N*ggas in Paris” was the main attraction of both the Watch the Throne album and tour. The entirety of the song – the concept, the hype, the in-your-face bombastic beat – epitomized the Throne in its grandiose of imperial hypnotism.
Sunshine state Los Angeles born Stephen Bruner loves the intergalactic cartoon felines Thundercats so much, he took their name as his own.
“Everything is born of the need to answer the call of the subconscious.
Open a channel where can emerge, these dream images that come to my mind.
I try to illustrate a confusing message, which will take effect over time.
My work reflects a personal universe that is embraced with Dada and Surrealism kisses.
Bright colors, nature, humanity and the spark that gives life, are the protagonists of this in my work, which is constantly evolving. Always with hands full of spray paint, crop images, draw, paint, on paper, canvas or digital, trying to not have any structure or steps. Try my work is an invitation to travel without movement and feel without touching.” – Ale Sinestro
Standin’ in line to see the show tonight, and there’s a light on… heavy glow; by the way, I tried to say I’d be there… waiting for…
There’s that “aha” moment after some time of listening to tracks, watching videos, going to shows, reading interviews, following an artist on Twitter, Facebook and whatever social network that suits your fancy where you start to “get” them. I caught glimpses of this feeling while watching the Los Angeles based emcee Def Sound breeze through his charismatic verse on the standout track “Quicksand” from J*DaVeY’s recent mixtape “Evil Christian Cop: The Great Mistapes.” Rapping lines like “paintbrush lust…yeah we paint pictures,” paired with allusions to Salvador Dali and Picasso turn the dance floor at The Masquerade in Atlanta to Art History 101. And I can’t be mad a bit.
The beauty of a great mashup is the marriage of the unexpected with no-brainer. The great mash0ups make you go I wish I thought of that all while being immersed totally in a new sound. For an example, take Phlo Finister’s cover of “Bang Bang.” The Los Angeles born songbird interlaces Nancy Sinatra’s iconic hit “Bang Bang” with Mobb Deep’s iconic hit “Shook Ones” in this gritty video and the result has us shook.
What’s pretty in 2011? In a time where there is just as much hate and backlash for every chime of ‘love yourself, you were born this way’, I’ve asked this question myself. So, what is pretty in 2011? It might look something like a walking billboard if you ask me. But Los Angeles based artist Erik Mark Sandberg has a brighter vision.
“In Shark City: just because you don’t see the danger, doesn’t mean it isn’t there.” #lifelines
“New York is where stars are born, LA is where they go to die.” – Swiper Bootz.
