While You Were Sleeping: Top 10 Underground Hip-Hop Albums From April 2013 (Part 2) - Page 3

Hello good readers, we’ve finally reached the end of April. It’s already sundress & cargo shorts season and Rap indie albums are beginning to drop more frequently than NBA players with season ending injuries. The drawback to having so many different digital avenues available and so many indie labels releasing quality music is it becomes hard for the everyday Hip-Hop head to keep track of everything that came out.

That is where our Hip-Hop Wired feature “While You Were Sleeping” comes in handy as we keep readers abreast of all the quality indie and underground Rap albums that tend to fly under the radar without a huge hype machine promoting them. Feel free to go back and review my previous picks for the first three months of Hip-Hop releases in 2013. We are a full third of the way through the year already. Where does the time go?

Over the past couple of weeks there were several more quality indie & underground Hip-Hop projects released and I will highlight another 10 of these albums that our valued Hip-Hop Wired readers should be aware of. Amongst them are new releases from the likes of Black Milk, Big K.R.I.T., RA The Rugged Man, Apollo Brown & Ghostface Killah, K-Def, The Procussions and more that recently hit the Internet, digital music marketplaces and store shelves that deserve recognition.

Here’s what you all may have missed, while you were sleeping…

Suff Daddy x Ta-Ku – Bricks & Mortar 4.5.2013 (Melting Pot Music)

German beatmaker extraordinaire Suff Daddy teamed up with Australian beat culture favorite Ta-Ku to formulate Bricks & Mortar, an excellent split beat CD excursion loaded with raw beats. Beatheads worldwide have been anticipating this project all year long but if this is your first time hearing of either cat then I’m glad to introduce you to them. You can cop it from iTunes or Amazon. You can also stream and cop Bricks & Mortar from Bandcamp. Get your neckbraces ready…

Big K.R.I.T. – King Remembered In Time 4.10.2013 (Internet)

Big K.R.I.T. doesn’t make mixtapes, he just happens to release free albums from time to time. King Remembered In Time counts as Big K.R.I.T.’s fourth such release and it ranks up there with his previous outstanding efforts. I went back and listened to it after hearing rave reviews and getting questions from people wondering why it wasn’t in my last update. The people have spoken. You can stream & download King Remembered In Time from DatPiff or DJBooth.net.

B.I.C – Influence 4.16.2013 (High Water Music/Bandcamp)

B.I.C. (B*tches Is Crazy) might be best known for their infectious single “Yo Soy Widdit” & it’s NSFW video but there is a lot more to them than that. Their full length album Influence contains 17 dope tracks featuring production from a diverse group that includes BK The Beats, VESA, MP The God, Chuk Le Garcon, SPVCE & Black Noi$e. I was very impressed with this effort, salute Sucio Smash over at High Water Music. You can stream and download Influence from High Water Music’s Bandcamp to hear it for yourself.

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Photo: Nature Sounds

Illogic x Blockhead – Capture The Sun 4.16.2013 (Man Bites Dog)

Talk about an incredible album that flew under the radar! Columbus, OH’s Illogic teamed up with NY veteran Hip-Hop producer Blockhead to drop one of the early contenders for Album Of The Year. Illogic perfectly complements Blockhead’s production and the project boasts guest appearances from Slug (Atmosphere), Blueprint, Abstract Rude and others. You can cop the eye opening LP Capture The Sun from iTunes, Amazon or UGHH after streaming it from the Man Bites Dog SoundCloud page.

Black Milk – Synth Or Soul 4.20.2013 (Computer Ugly/Fat Beats)

Black Milk’s highly anticipated instrumental release Synth Or Soul initially dropped on Record Store Day as a joint release on his new label Computer Ugly & distributor Fat Beats. This 12 track project blends the two current dominant source material genres and plays the aesthetic that Hip-Hop/Rap currently aspires to.  You can cop Synth Or Soul from iTunes, Amazon, Fat Beats & UGHH or stream & purchase it from Black Milk’s Bandcamp page.

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Ghostface Killah x Apollo Brown Twelve Reasons To Die: The Brown Tape 4.22.2013 (Soul Temple Music)

Originally, Apollo Brown’s remix version of the Adrian Younge x Ghostface Killah Twelve Reasons To Die project was to be included as part of a limited edition package and not released as a separate project. The demand for the remix album was so great from fans that Soul Temple Music made it possible to purchase on it’s own via their Bandcamp. Physical versions of The Brown Tape will be available for purchase on May 28th and you can pre-order them now from Soul Temple Music. Arise from your slumber.

The Procussions – The Procussions EP 4.24.2013 (Bandcamp)

Mr. J. Medeiros & Stro Elliot are back together recording as The Procussions. For those that are unaware, The Procussions released three extremely well received and critically acclaimed projects (As Iron Sharpens Iron, Up All Night & 5 Sparrows For 2 Cents) between 2003 and 2006 before they broke up and went solo. I’ve throughly enjoyed the albums and music released by them individually over the past 7 years but when they announced they were going to make more music as a unit again I had high expectations. If this is any indication of what to expect from them in the future then I can’t wait for the full length project to drop.  You can stream and cop The Procussions EP from The Procussions Bandcamp right now.

Koncept x Deejay Element – Malt Disney EP 4.30.2013 (SoulSpazm)

Koncept and Deejay Element of the Brown Bag All Stars made a collaborative EP called Malt Disney. Koncept’s sharp bars over Deejay Element’s bangers makes for concise 6 track project devoid of a weak moment or any skippable material. Koncept is aided by Tanya Morgan, REKS and Akie Berniss in bodying Deejay Element’s impressive sonics. You can procure Malt Disney from iTunes, Amazon, SoulSpazm or stream it from AudioMack. It’s not to be slept on…

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K-Def – The Exhibit 4.30.2013 (Redefinition Records)

Legendary production wizard K-Def already blessed us with impressive instrumental opus One Man Band earlier this year but he’s back again with The Exhibit. While his previous release was devoid of samples and consisted of nothing but replayed slaps or live instrumentation this 13 track collection goes back to sample based beats. While this is an instrumental release, it opens with a couple of tracks containing vocals from Blu, Quartermaine (Low Budget Crew) and Seven Shawn (World Renown). You can acquire The Exhibit via iTunes, Amazon, UGHH, Fat Beats or directly from Redefinition Records.

R.A. The Rugged Man – Legends Never Die 4.30.2013 (Nature Sounds)

Rhyme veteran R.A. The Rugged Man’s (Die! Rugged Man Die!) career goes back almost 20 years to when he was known as Crustified Dibbs. Since then he’s bodied numerous guest appearances and released a gang of classic singles but his debut solo album Die! Rugged Man Die! dropped almost a decade ago back in 2004. After several different stints as a writer, boxing analyst, film critic in addition to touring, R.A. is back with a new album. Legends Never Die features production from Buckwild, Ayatollah, Marco Polo, Will Tell, Mr. Green, Apathy, Shuko and more. Guest appearances come courtesy Talib Kweli, Masta Ace, Sadat X (Brand Nubian), Vinnie Paz (Jedi Mind Tricks), Brother Ali and Tech N9ne amongst others. R.A. The Rugged is every bit as lyrically sharp as he was 15 years ago, actually he’s probably gotten even better. Legends Never Die is available right now on iTunes, Amazon, Fat Beats, UGHH or cop a limited edition bundle direct from Nature Sounds. Do it now…

While You Were Sleeping will be back in a few weeks to enlighten you all about the best releases in underground & independent Hip-Hop/Rap. Until then, this is Dart Adams saying “Don’t sleep”.

One.