apt name for one of houston’s most beloved hometown rappers. assuming the title is a theme, it’s a good assumption to guess what this tape will be about and how it’ll sound. let thugga take you to our city for a few.
download:
-grizzly
mixtape: slim thug – houston (2011)
28 12 2011Comments : Leave a Comment »
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show recap: watch the throne (december 5, 2011)
8 12 2011
photo credit: weworemasks
Fair warning: This review will hardly be objective. It’s hard not to bask in the glow of two of my favorite emcees of all time. And all of you know the pedestal Yeezy gets around these bear parts. But in all seriousness, this was a historic tour. A mentor and a mentee, both of whom collaborated on a huge record and have worked together plenty of times in the past, were touring together. Nevermind the fact that the tickets were costly and the tours grossed around $1 million a night – this was the Karate Kid of hip-hop tours. And you know how badass Karate Kid is.
Review after the jump.
-grizzly
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Tags: grizzly writes, houston, jay-z, kanye west, show recap, the throne, toyota center, watch the throne
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show recap: beirut/ramesh (october 31, 2011)
2 11 2011
When Zach Condon first oom-pah-pah‘ed his Balkan way into the indie consciousness, he found himself a warm home, snuggled in between the baroque pop of The Decemberists and the sonic parade of Neutral Milk Hotel, comfortably nested into a scene where the Rhineland reigned supreme. Hailed for his muli-instrument prowess, firm grasp on Balkan folk and Gypsy music, and especially his age (the wunderkind was a mere nineteen at the release of his highly praised Gulag Orkestar), Condon’s band Beirut were as cutting edge as they were ethnographically eclectic. Now three albums into their career, Beirut have expanded beyond their niche musical stylings and with an exercised sense of restraint on The Rip Tide, they’ve created an album that’s more focused on flexing Condon’s songwriting muscle and less on geo-tagging musical genres. In support of that album, Beirut brought horns a plenty to Houston’s Warehouse Live this past Halloween night, their first return visit since their momentous performance at the grand Free Press Summerfest music festival. Hit the jump for the full recap.
- sunbear
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Tags: beirut, gulag orkestar, houston, ramesh, show recap, the flying cup, the rip tide, warehouse live
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introducing: new york city queens (2011)
22 08 2011this past weekend, i had the pleasure of watching houston’s very own new york city queens play a show at the hipster-hideaway the backroom, and what a turnout it was. i counted the presence of four other established local acts cheering on as the five-piece performed songs off their debut album somewhere different, something new. the multifaceted band played everything from jangly surf riffs, to complex, modular rock all the while keeping dreamy harmonies between their three vocalists.
new york city queens are set to continue a streak of shows, dates of which can be viewed here.
catch the video for the album’s title track “somewhere different, something new” up above and the studio clip for “hello again” here.
- sunbear
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show recap: free press summerfest 2011 (june 4+5)
13 06 2011
The third annual Free Press Summerfest once again took over Houston’s Eleanor Tinsley Park, boasting one of its most diverse, if not unusual lineup to date. Soul-revival met with electric revival, heavy metal battled with Japanese garage rock, hippies and hipsters shared barbecue and beer, etc, all underneath the blistering Texas sun on a cloudless day. weworemasks was on hand, as always, to take part in the festivities, enjoy an act or two, and get down and dirty (and sweaty) with all of our lovely Houstonian brethren.
Hit the jump for a full recap with some awesome photos, more of which can be seen in our Summerfest Photo Gallery, here.
- sunbear + grizzly
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Tags: beirut, big boi, bun b, chromeo, cut copy, festival recap, free press summerfest, fucked up, houston, peelander z, sharon jones and the dap kings, ween, weezer, weworemasks, yeasayer
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event: creme de la creme: houston edition (2011)
8 06 2011
the creme de la creme series is back for the second week in a row at the bronze peacock room at the HOB. donnis was initially slated to headline, but for any number of reasons, decided to cancel. houston’s killa kyleon stepped up in his place and will be headlining the event with opening sets from my man hollywood floss and blackie. rsvp at the link below and hit up this totally free show tonight.
-grizzly
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event: creme de la creme [houston edition] (2011)
1 06 2011
friendly reminder from the bears. the fine folks at dubfrequency have been hosting some solid events at the house of blues/foundation room/bronze peacock as of late, and tomorrow night’s (thursday, june 2nd) treasure fingers set should be no doozy. as always, you can get in free if you’re 21 and rsvp to the event, and only $5 if you’re 18+. if you’re younger than that, go to sleep – it’s past your bedtime!
more details here.
-grizzly
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hash brown – crazy (2011)
17 05 2011
local emcee and member of rap clique t.h.e.m. hashbrown is getting ready to release a brand new EP this summer, which will soon be followed by an LP. in the mean time, here’s the first single off of the as of now untitled EP, “crazy,” which is produced by hash himself.
download:
-grizzly
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show recap: sleigh bells/css (april 24, 2011)
25 04 2011
photo credit: pooneh ghana
It’s been said time and time again so I’ll say it this one, and final time: SLEIGH BELLS ARE FUCKING LOUD. I wondered to myself if Warehouse Live’s speakers could actually explode, and if and when they do, would it be entirely impudent of me to dive behind a fat kid? As if the wall of towering marshall stacks barricaded upon the stage wasn’t intimidating enough, the sounds erupting from them would be one of the notoriously noisiest bands in recent memory. Thank god I grabbed some ear-plugs beforehand.
Hit the jump for the recap.
- sunbear
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Tags: alexis krauss, cansei de ser sexy, css, derek miller, donkey, houston, la liveracion, sleigh bells, treats, warehouse live
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video: big k.r.i.t. – live in houston, tx (2011)
2 04 2011now, i’m kinda sour about missing this show, but i couldn’t find a way in without having to pay, and i’m way too spoiled for that. either way, my dude from hdshootsphotos.com was in the building to take a few clips of video footage. props to him for sending it our way. “country shit” with the trill OG up top, and below the cut, you can find “returnof4eva” and “time machine” with chamilitary man.
-grizzly
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mixtape: uzoy – the [def]inition (2011)
11 03 2011
i’ll be frank. i like a very limited amount of female emcees. not because i’m such a misogynistic/sexist asshole or anything of that nature, but simply because it’s nearly impossible for me to relate to many songs by female rap artists. these last few years in hip-hop have brought us names like jean grae and more recetly, dessa, both of whom houston rapper uzoy (pronounced like ‘uzi’) can be compared to. that being said, her tape isn’t something the latter act could put out, as we saw with her recent flop of an LP (in my opinion.) and jean grae is in a league of her own, established for all the right reasons.
the [def]inition puts the houston emcee in the spotlight, as the LP/mixtape is a good 12 months in the making. having been caught up with school and the normal events of life, this project is now ready to shine amongst the best of the hip-hop blogosphere. speaking of which, i’m sure it didn’t hurt that the dudes at 2dopeboyz are giving her a huge co-sign and releasing the project.
so give it up for some real down-home hip-hop without any gimmicks, catch her music video for “til infinity”, and download the [def]inition.
download:
uzoy – the [def]inition [MIXTAPE]
-grizzly
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show recap: the walkmen (march 3, 2011)
5 03 2011
photo credit: sunbear/weworemasks
The Walkmen have had a curious following to say the least. The raucously bittersweet New York band have flirted with mainstream indie success but always come up short to their contemporaries like The Strokes or even Arcade Fire, yet have remained your favorite bands’ favorite band – The Walkmen, with their shimmering Velvet Underground meets organic urban grit sound have always been the music aficionado’s kind of band; So underappreciated in its time that they actually seem to enjoy the bit of esoteric value they’ve acquired.
Thursday’s show at Houston’s formerly ramshackle turned posh and plush revamp venue Fitzgerald’s saw absolutely no lack of devotion from this very fan base, who flocked in droves to support the band on a tour cycle for their much heralded sixth album Lisbon.
hit the jump for the review
- sunbear
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Tags: a hundred miles off, bows arrows, fitzgeralds, hamilton leithayser, houston, lisbon, live, review, the walkmen, you & me
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show recap: linkin park (march 3, 2011)
5 03 2011
photo credits: the 88 miles west.
For starters, this is the biggest show weworemasks has ever been asked to cover. A personal feat to say the least, it was even greater of a feat after arriving to the venue. We were given very close seats (Section 121, check the map!) which entailed us having our own bar and bathroom. So we definitely send our gratitude to our connect Renee at Machine Shop.
After having to cancel a slew of dates due to singer Chester Bennington’s vocal cords being compromised, Linkin Park had returned to their rescheduled date at the Toyota Center to end their world tour for their latest album, A Thousand Suns. It was a packed house to say the least, and the band brought on some of Houston’s best and worst Linkin Park fans to join the festivities for their tour closer.
Hit the jump for the review.
-grizzly
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Tags: a thousand suns, grizzly writes, houston, linkin park, show recap, toyota center, world tour
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show recap: robyn (february 19, 2011)
24 02 2011
photo credit: eric s. aka groovehouse for houston press
Robyn had a hell of a 2010. Culminating in the three-part Body Talk series, which was universally acclaimed by music critics worldwide, the Swedish dance-pop starlet poured real emotion into her unique brand of forward-thinking dance music, reinventing herself yet again from the fledgling pop star we first heard in the 1996 made for radio single “Show Me Love.” Though hardly having truly broken through on American soil due to lack of push by her labels, Robyn wrapped a successful Body Talk tour with a spectacular packed show at Houston’s Warehouse Live last Saturday, affirming that some of music’s best kept secrets are anything but.
Hit the jump for the review.
- sunbear
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Tags: body talk, dance, dancing on my own, houston, robyn, show recap, time machine, warehouse live
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show recap: glassjaw/tidal arms (february 20, 2011)
23 02 2011
photo credit: all photos by sunbear/weworemasks.com
Ah, Glassjaw. It’s not every day that you can say that you saw Glassjaw twice in the span of one year. And it’s not every day that Glassjaw plays your hometown on your best friend’s birthday, and your entire blog staff (all three, ya bastards) hangs out together, gets silly drunk and gets to watch one of your favorite bands of all time. A belated happy birthday goes out to Sunbear, who managed to get daps from Daryl Palumbo while stumbling around in the pit and saw a massive Glassjaw set, highlighting 11 new songs that the band has put out in the last two months. Along for the ride were New York homers Tidal Arms (who gave us a fantastic interview prior — coming soon!) and These People.
Hit the jump for the review.
-grizzly
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Tags: coloring book ep, glassjaw, grizzly writes, houston, our color green, show recap, the sun exploding, these people, tidal arms, warehouse live
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free ep: hash brown – relationshit (2011)
14 02 2011
how sentimentally appropriate. what better day to release a soulful, hip-hop journey into the conflicts and pains of relationships than valentines day? houston’s own hash brown takes on the topic with his brand new, 8-song ep, which takes a few features from my man thurogood wordsmith and is entirely produced by hashbrown’s “alter ego,” jett.i.matsyr.
download this and show some love.
tracklisting:
1. Introduction (words by 100)
2. Beginning of the End
3. Degree of Difficulty (ft. Thurogood & Dustin Prestige)
4. Good Days Bad Weeks
5. The Flash Point
6. Quail Hunting ft. (ft. Thurogood)
7. Forgive Me Not
8. If Loving You is Wrong
9. Be Sure It Works Out(ro) (words by 100)
download:
hash brown – relationshit [free ep]
-grizzly
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introducing: simple success (2011)
9 02 2011i’ve been keeping tabs on these guys and nearly forgot about em until this video went up. simple success is a drum’n'dj duo out of houston, texas. these guys have been hard at work at their debut EP, smash and dash, which is set to be released this thursday, when they open up for mac miller at his huge ass warehouse live show. in the past, they’ve played shows with everyone from clipse to wale to bun b. and although an EP, it has 12 songs, because the group feels that their album will stand alone when the time comes, and cared not for a traditional ’5 song’ ep. so typically, this is more of an appetizer of what’s to come.
be sure to follow these guys on facebook and twitter for the latest haps, as i’m sure you’ll be hearing more from the simple success camp. oh and watch the video, it’s fantastic.
-grizzly
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Tags: houston, introducing, production, simple success
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tour dates: wild moccasins euro tour kick off at fitzgerald’s (2011)
8 02 2011
photo credit: Molly Rodriguez
you’re in luck, europeans. houston’s very own kings (and queen) of twee are heading out across the pond in support of their exuberant album skin collision past, but not before us h-towners bid them a fond adieu at the illustrious fitzgeralds this coming saturday february 12th. supporting them are young mammals & wicked poseur.
check out the full details below and hit the jump for the official show flier and european tour dates.
concert info:
wild moccasins euro tour kick off at fitzgerald’s
- sunbear
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rob jay – do you believe in the rap phenomenon? (2011)
7 02 2011
after hearing this track, i’m officially excited for houston emcee rob jay’s upcoming mixtape. rap phenomenon is dropping soon, and this cut is the first single, which is produced by hash brown. everythang’s nasty.
download:
rob jay – do you believe in the rap phenomenon?
-grizzly
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Tags: do you believe in the rap phenomenon?, hash brown, houston, mixtape, rap phenomenon, rob jay
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mixtape: killa kyleon – candy paint and texas plates (2011)
31 01 2011
i guess you can say that seeing killa perform live with the niceguys finally put me on to him. granted, he’s still a texas rapper at heart and i’ve never been a huge fan of the shit that got big back in 2005, but i’m willing to give this mixtape a shot. tracklisting after the jump.
download:
-grizzly
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Tags: candy paint and texas plates, houston, killa kyleon, mixtape
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rob jay – stick to your dreams (2011)
21 01 2011
local emcee rob jay hit us up with this song and instead of trying to tell you about it, i’ll let him take the reigns:
This song is about my childhood friend Chris B. Young and his path to making it to the [Major] Leagues (Arizona Diamondbacks). I think his story is parallel to my story as an artist with him being drafted with the 493rd pick and me not having a major co-sign or being a top freshman. Basically, him staying in the minor leagues longer than he expected and me being an underground artist for longer than I expected.
download:
rob jay – stick to your dreams
-grizzly
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Tags: houston, rob jay, stick to your dreams, t.h.e.m.
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show recap: the niceguys (january 18, 2011)
20 01 2011
all photos courtesy of greggiant
The Niceguys had a hell of a 2010. Along with a few high profile shows with Big Sean, Clipse and others, they finally released their debut album, The Show. For a record that was three years in the making, everyone in their camp and fanbase were excited with what was to come. The culmination of all that hard work paid off at what seemed like was their homecoming Tuesday night at the House of Blues. Local emcees came out to support; Fat Tony, Hollywood Floss, Hash Brown and even Bun B were in attendance. Bloggers (ahem) came out as well. This was something to celebrate, after all.
Hit the jump for the rest of the recap.
-grizzly
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Tags: bun b, grizzly writes, houston, killa kyleon, mantis, show recap, the niceguys, the show, thurogood wordsmith, toast
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mixtape: 3kings clothing presents: the houston sneaker summit mixtape (2011)
20 01 2011
the houston sneaker summit is this sunday, january 23rd, and our franz in 3kings clothing have put together a dope mixtape for the event. they’re calling it unofficial, but i don’t give a shit – looks pretty official from here. the lineup is solid and a great overall look into the hip-hop landscape of our great city. download the tape for the goods from fat tony, hollywood floss, the niceguys, thurogood and many others.
download:
3kings clothing presents: the h-town sneaker summit mixtape
-grizzly
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Tags: 3 kings clothing, fat tony, hollywood floss, houston, mixtape, sneaker summit, the niceguys
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hash brown – grand re-opening [remix f. hollywood floss] (2011)
18 01 2011
so we’ve never posted about hash brown on weworemasks. he’s a part of a local emcee group called T.H.E.M., which is a hip-hop collective whose mindset is putting on great shows (like the upcoming one mic houston show – more info on that at this link) and having an organization like mentality to boast the good emcees that houston’s been hiding. you may remember thurogood and wwm-fav hollywood floss, who are both members of the group. in any case, they put together this remix for a song that can orignally be found on brown’s album, rap mayor, which is available for free download.
download:
hash brown – grand re-opening [remix f. hollywood floss; produced by hash brown and chris rockaway]
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Tags: grand re-opening, hash brown, hollywood floss, houston, remix, t.h.e.m.
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free ep: kyle hubbard – tomorrow in retrospect (2011)
7 01 2011
consider me late, but also hand over another +1 to the houston hip-hop scene. kyle hubbard, a local emcee, signed to space city records and dropped this sweet little EP late last year to rave reviews from peers and publications alike. i’m listening to the EP as we speak and i gotta say he approaches the mic in a completely different fashion than most of the houston acts we’ve featured. (see: niceguys, hollywood floss, fat tony, thurogood, etc.)
grab the ep, ‘name your price,’ and start keeping tabs on this emcee.
download:
kyle hubbard – tomorrow in retrospect [free ep]
-grizzly
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