88 Days of Fortune: 3rd Anniversary Party featuring THEESatisfaction TONIGHT / Time Travelers Mixtape

If you read this blog regularly, you already know about Stasia Irons and Catherine Harris-White aka Stas and Cat of THEESatisfaction. If you live in the T.Dot/GTA region and you have at all dug what they do, then you need to be at their performance tonight at the Third Anniversary celebration for the local urban progressive artist collective, 88 Days of Fortune. Don’t sleep, NOW magazine knows what’s up and featured the event in this week’s issue that just hit newsstands this morning. Check it:

88DAYS OF FORTUNE 3 YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY & PERFORMANCE
FEATURING:
THEESATISFACTION {SUB POP RECORDS}

WITH PERFORMANCES BY:
LES FEMME FATALES
88 DAYS
PROGRESS {REDPILL MUSIC}

HOSTED BY: DAINTY BOX
DJ SUNSUN , DJ CAT & STAS ALL NIGHT LONG!

DATE: THURSDAY JUNE 28TH
TIME: DOORS @9PM SHOW @10PM
PLACE: CINECYCLE 129 SPADINA
PRICE: $12 IN ADVANCE – ticketzone.com [click link to buy tix]
$18 AT THE DOOR
*LIMITED CAPACITY
19+

CLICK HERE for more info at the Facebook event page.

Still not convinced? Then check the 88 Days’ latest Time Travelers mixtape (Side A and B):

[mixtape via Brendan]

[Music Video] Tre Mission – Hilroy

I posted a video of this kid killin’ it on Tim Westwood on my tumblr a little while back. He’s from Scarborough in Toronto’s East End (aka where I used to dwell until I made the jump downtown) but he spits like a UK MC and is in fact apparently the only non-UK (non-London??) MC accepted in the grime scene. He’s already been on tour with Wiley and just finished an opening slot for Rae & Ghost’s headlining NXNE show last Sunday. This is the first video from his forthcoming mixtape album, a track featuring him going in over Jamie XX‘s steel drum-powered, ethereal-sounding “Far Nearer” track. An ode to lyricists everywhere with their pens and notebooks (Canadians know)?

A Look at the Polaris Long List: 17. Drake – Take Care

I was still living in NY when Drake first began to break. In fact it was a former co-worker (shout to Nickel D.!) who first put me up on the music which I promptly posted on the earlier incarnation of this blog (no bandwagon jumping here, son!).

That being said, as he’s evolved into a legit global hip hop superstar, I have to concede I don’t actually love his music that much personally in full length-sized bites. I acknowledge that he’s extremely thoughtful about how he puts his projects together, they’re not just a couple radio singles packaged up with some filler tacks to make an album, but I’ve found all his albums tough to get through in a single sitting. The beats lack real hip-hop ‘knock’ and feel like aural wallpaper and not in a good way either. Drake has some clever lyrics (still think “the square root of 69 is ate-something…” from “What’s My Name” with Rihanna is actually f-cking genius!) and some interesting song ideas, but his flow gets monotonous and his singing is… passable at best to put it politely. I also don’t get the argument people often make that he changed the game or moved the needle as far as hip-hop music when I find his sound to be warmed over 808s and Heartbreak. I’m happy that Drake has become a hip-hop A-lister who still reps for Canada at all times without shame but on purely musical merits, I find myself deeply, deeply conflicted about Drake still.

I don’t think anyone who reads this site needs a stream of this album ‘cos they haven’t heard it yet (do they??) but here goes anyway:

A Look at the Polaris Long List: 14. Cold Specks – I Predict A Graceful Expulsion

Another one from Arts & Crafts that will definitely be making my short list as I voted for it on the long list. This is helluva debut album. The voice alone seals it. Al Spx‘s vocals are nothing short of absolutely phenomenal. Think Adele combined with Bonnie Tyler singing raw bluesy, turn-of-the-century field songs updated for the soundcloud era and you have some idea of what I’m talking about here. Some have said the songs are a tad undercooked and on a first listen, I’ll admit I was more open on the voice than I was the actual songs but play it again and again. You will be taken in and won over, trust! If this won the Polaris, I wouldn’t be mad, at all. This is the kind of musical excellence that the Polaris claims to be aiming to celebrate. I intend to do my part to make sure they keep their word.

[album stream via Exclaim!]

[Music Video] Saukrates – Tomorrow

I’m a little late on this but here’s the latest video from Saukrates‘ new Season One album. I love the album, which can be considered as much an urban pop album as a hip-hop one, others not so much. Whatchu think though? Hit the jump to stream the entire album if you didn’t hear it yet from the last time I posted it.

Follow Saukrates online – twitter | facebook | website

[via Del]

(more…)