Frontline From 16 September 2016

At the beginning of 2010, Medicine Show No. 1: Before the Verdict kicked off what was planned to be a monthly 12-volume series from the underground hip-hop producer. Volumes were themed, with reggae, Brazilian pop, jazz, marijuana dispensaries, and rapper Guilty Simpson all figuring into the mix. With only a few delays, the series wrapped up in 2012, with a "secret" No. 13 also seeing release that same year. The Brick collects it all with simple shrink-wrap and no bonuses to speak of, and while the revered Madlib draws the kinds of fans who would have pre-booked every release ahead of time, latecomers get an easy pickup and instant karma overflow when it comes to coolness. Dive in or keep out, but if you like edgy, dense hip-hop productions that billow out of the speakers like the best Indo smoke you've ever exhaled, best to dive in.

Yussef Kamaal - Black Focus (2016) {Brownswood Recordings BWOOD0157CD}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 260 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 104 Mb
Full Artwork @ 600 dpi (jpg) -> 73 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings | BWOOD0157CD
Jazz / Contemporary Jazz / Soul Jazz / Broken Beat / Jazz Funk / Electro Jazz

Yussef Kamaal is the South London duo of drummer/percussionist Yussef Dayes and Kamaal Williams (Henry Wu) on Rhodes piano and synth. The former is best known for his work as kit man for cosmic Afrobeat ensemble United Vibrations. The latter is also a producer whose dubplates have garnered wide-ranging critical notice. Gilles Peterson signed them to Brownswood based on witnessing a 20-minute live set.

German Thrash legends release new EP featuring three brand new tracks to whet the appetite of fans ahead of brand new album that is reportedly on the horizon…

Michael Musillami Trio + 3 - From Seeds (2009) {Playscape Recordings PSR#020109}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 355 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 131 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 32 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2009 Playscape Recordings | PSR#020109
Jazz / Post-Bop / Modern Creative / Guitar

Connecticut-based Michael Musillami is a guitarist firmly rooted in the modern post-Coltrane jazz tradition but not above applying a rock-ish tone and aggression at times to good effect, as heard on the title track to From Seeds. His early work with the late saxophonist Thomas Chapin is worth seeking out but he really came into his own around 2000 when he formed a trio with bassist Joe Fonda and drummer George Schuller.

Ministry of Sound’s Throwback series once again returns, this time with Throwback Ayia Napa, an album celebrating 20 years of enduring classics synonymous with the scene during the 90s and early 2000s. This 3CD collection takes you on a comprehensive journey through the sounds of UK Garage, Funky, Bassline and Grime; with back to back classics from Craig David, DJ Luck & MC Neat, Lonyo, Artful Dodger, M.J. Cole, Lonyo, So Solid Crew, Skepta, Crazy Cousinz, Donae’o, Wideboys and many, many more. This is 3CDs of strictly Napa classics. Ministry of Sound presents, Throwback Ayia Napa.

Boz Scaggs has had a long and varied career, playing blues, singing soul music, recording hits with smooth grooves, and taking his time with his temperamental muse. The Essential Boz Scaggs features 32 songs that tell the story of his solo career. It starts, after his stint in the Steve Miller Band, with his Atlantic Records self-titled debut album. Duane Allman fires up “Loan Me a Dime” with his trademark guitar work. Scaggs moved to Columbia Records, where he released a number of fine albums, culminating with the sleek, sophisticated grooves of Silk Degrees, provided by the band that would become Toto. Six tracks appear here, including the hits “Lowdown,” “Lido Shuffle,” and “Harbor Lights.”

When Udo Dirkschneider sang lead with the West German metal band Accept, it was clear that AC/DC's Bon Scott was his primary influence. And the headbanger took his love of Scott with him when he departed Accept and formed his own band, Udo, in 1987. Though not as strong as his work with Accept, Faceless World is a decent album that employs mildly gothic imagery at times. Not content to simply crank up the volume and hit us with power chords, Dirkschneider and friends make melody a priority on "System of Life," "Stranger," "Blitz of Lightning" and other songs on this exuberant CD. Faceless World may not be Balls to the Wall (one of Accept's best releases), but it isn't anything to be ashamed of either. Who could have predicted that only three year's after Faceless World came out, this type of rock would have lost so much ground to alternative rock?