The Street Religion crew continues to turn the heat up, this time with an album length project from Judge Da Beast, Raw Deff and Yung Breeze. This is wall-to-wall bars, right here -- three talented emcees trying to out-do each other on every cut. They also had the good taste to invite unsung legend XP to spit on two tracks here.
Dropped out for a minute there, sorry folks. Things have been hectic, in a good way. We'll get back to our normal schedule by Turkey Day. In the meantime, though, I owe you some quick updates, no?
First of all, the Food for Thought Tour is in full swing. Props for making The Addison Independent. Props for raising money to feed hungry families, one of those rare causes that absolutely nobody can really argue with because it is so Obviously Good For All Mankind. Coming up this week: Flask Lounge (ME) and then...
Anthill's 3rd Thursday at The Monkey House will be a doozy, with Jarv & Mister burns swinging through to headline alongside Boomslang, who just dropped their new album Attack the Vampire. Things kick off with Prism GBA and Modest, who celebrates the release of his new EP, Harder Times Bring Harder Rhymes. 9 pm. 18+ $8 / 21+ $3.
In other big news, Jibba "The Gent" is going to be throwing a birthday party show at The Rusty Nail in Stowe on December 9th. Headlining the evening will be Slaine and Termanology, fresh off their new collab album Anti-Hero. (Which bangs, by the way.) Also on the bill: Bar None The Best and Hitmen For Hire -- a new project featuring Raw Deff, Judge Da Beast and Yung Breeze. Expect all fire bars from some of the 802's best spitters.
On Friday, legendary hardcore venue Jim's Basement will be hosting some hip hop: Self Portrait and Face One will be delivering an evening of choice beats and rhymes. If you don't know about Jim's Basement, bud, ask around. Usual rules apply: $5 donation for the band. No Jerks Allowed. It's a policy that works.
Bad news first:Fear Fest is postponed, which is to say, not happening this weekend. Location problems at the last minute forced their hand and the team at Yours Truly Inc is trying to line up a new venue and date.
Much better news: BTV rapper NOtation is back with a fresh single and a slick new black and white video to match: "Get Up" features a slamming David Chief beat and some hella decent luxury sedans. Dig it.
In other news: I missed the opportunity to mark the one year anniversary of Judge Da Beast's LP, "Arraignment." It's a raw, solid debut. Links: CD Baby/Apple Music/Amazon
Judge Da Beast has a lot more on the way, including a project coming out next month with Raw Deff and Yung Breeze, Hitmen For Hire -- another opening salvo from the Street Religion movement.
In comeback news: there's another fresh video out this week, and it's Walshie Steeze teaming up with some of the Lynguistic fam for a feel-good summer single. Given how 2017 has been, that actually makes sense at the end of October...hell, I mowed the lawn in shorts two days ago. "It's All Good" features LC and Mike "Philly" Fulton, and it's a slice off his upcoming solo LP, The Walsh Street Journal.
Remember, this will be a packed weekend of shows: two hot tickets tomorrow night with Boomslang's Album Release Party in Montpelier and Manus + Friends popping in Winooski, and a very impressive lineup for Mics and Strikes on Saturday at Champlain Lanes. From here, it's Halloween parties and the Food For Thought Tour kickoff. Enjoy the moment.
Fresh visuals from the Bar None The Best extended fam. Shot in NYC, the video features some tasty wall pieces in addition to three tight, menacing verses from Judge Da Beast, J-Hess and M. Rich.
You can catch Bar None The Best on Saturday night at Gusto's in Barre, performing at The Fall Come Up, a celebration of hip hop in their hometown. They're bringing along an A-List lineup, too: Judge Da Beast, S.I.N.siZZle, Jibba "The Gent," NYT and the entire Street Religion crew. 21+ Show is free. Buy some albums.
Barre true school disciples Bar None The Best are continuing their 2017 warpath, as promised. After launching a single with Termanology, "Grind," they took a left turn, shooting & editing a music video for their affiliate, Judge Da Beast. Now they're back with another Myster DL directed piece for "Eye See," a funky & catchy Nastee production.
No word yet on the next EP or album, but Bar None The Best deserve credit for knowing what they want and how to get there. They're making very interesting moves. They're one of the few 802 crews that are aiming squarely at a nationwide audience, and they've got an expert mentor. Not only has Nastee been on the frontlines of NYC hip hop since the 90's, he's still on the cutting edge in 2017, working with the Pro Era camp. He knows what works.
Between the aftermath of the Seven Daysies awards and the advent of the "SpitDat.com" top 10 lists, there's been a lot of social media posturing about who "the best" in Vermont is. Like I say every two weeks here, that's thinking too small.
Bar None The Best have been proud outsiders from the beginning, devoted to hardcore street rap in a state that skews toward conscious vibes. They're concerned with cementing their place in hip hop, not Vermont. Their game plan in 2017 so far has reflected that, every step of the way.
Make sure your plan reflects your dreams, too. Don't let local politics or crab bucket reflexes make your decisions for you. Skills remain timeless.
Another fresh visual from the Bar None The Best collective, this time produced entirely in-house. This is another jawn off his last solo project, Arraignment, a heartfelt motivational banger.
Worth noting that Bar None The Best are headed down to New York City to play a show this evening opening for Termanology. Term dropped a feature verse on their recent single "Grind," which debuted on The Source's website late last month. They promise there is even more material on the way,
too. These boys are cooking, in other words.
A big moment for Vermont hip hop, right here. "U.N.I.T.Y." is the closing track off Judge Da Beast's 2016 album Arraignment, featuring two highly appropriate guest spots: Jibba "The Gent" and S.I.N.siZZle, both of them positive forces in their communities and our rap scene. The track itself, as older & wiser readers already know, is a flip of Queen Latifah's '93 hit.
Shot at Vermont's scenic state capital, the video has a big cast in the background. It's not quite XXL's legendary October '98 cover, but a decent percentage of the 802's entire scene showed up for this. You can catch Bar None The Best in the mix -- they just wrapped up a new song & video shoot with Boston legend Termanology.
Props to Miles Goad of DVP Cinematography for excellent work here. Props to everyone who came through and showed up. Props to Judge Da Beast: this not only changes the conversation after a month of diss tracks, it proves he's an artist with range. Depth, too. Check out Arraignment if you haven't already.
Summer of Love 2017 continues. Vermont has never been known for rap beef, but when it rains, well...it's monsoon season, bud. After shots from Judge Da Beast and M. Rich of Bar None The Best -- and a response track from Colby Stiltz -- now Eyedos is getting involved.
I'm not entirely clear on how Eyedos got drawn into this -- it's not like he's out here repping STILTZgang. But I'm betting it involves Facebook. This beef has been a classic study in conflict: war is all about unintended consequences, and those begin immediately.
"Buried IN Barre" is definitely the hardest shot so far. Unlike "Beef Stew," it's an actual diss track, and Eyedos has bars for days. This is also the best production, on all fronts. Wherever our Summer of Love goes from here, hopefully the quality control stays this good.
As they used to say in Europe: ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?
After a diss track from Judge Da Beast -- and a follow-up shot from M. Rich of Bar None The Best -- we've got a response from Colby Stiltz. Personal punchlines, beatbox intro, and full studio production: it's on, approximately. Atlanta trap is perhaps a weird direction to take it, but "weird" has been part of the STILTZgang aesthetic for years now.
"My one and only response for the fans of hip hop in this state," reports Mr. Stiltz. "Doing it for the culture and for fun and to show these guys I won't be dissed on my home turf. Peace and love is what runs Vermont and we will defend that!"
Not sure if I should make a DJ Vlad joke or a DJ Kayslay joke, but either way: enjoy. It's going to be an entertaining summer from here.
It's a beautiful thing to see diss tracks in the 802 again. As important as community is, listen: we've got enough to spare here in Vermont. Genuine beef is a rare thing. Even our actual emcee battle tournaments are friendly, family affairs. Judge Da Beast is having none of that shit.
A transplant from the Bronx, Judge Da Beast is part of the emerging Street Religion crew / label / collective from down south. (Other members include recent New England Hip Hop Awards winner Yung Breeze and standout spitter Raw Deff.)
On one hand, talking about "Southern Vermont" is absurd when it's two hours from Newport to Brattleboro. On the other, though, it is bizarre how everyone south of Montpelier gets ignored. If that's an exaggeration, it ain't by much. This humble blog is every bit as guilty as anyone else. The Burlington scene dominates the coverage -- it's the biggest city with the most venues and home to most of our media outlets.
It's also the part-time home of Colby Stiltz, purveyor of good vibes, weed raps and New Age spirituality. Like too many rap beefs in 2017, this conflict got started on social media. Journalistic obligations aside, I refuse to research who started what. Life is fleeting. All we need to know is that Judge Da Beast was motivated to aim two verses at Colby Stiltz, and thus was "Slenderman" created.
So far, Stiltz is sticking to his #PositiveVibesOnly brand and acting like this doesn't exist. Too early to call it, though, considering this track isn't even 24 hours old yet.
In the meantime, check out Judge Da Beast's album Arraignment. He's got a track in the works with Jarv, who dropped a brutal four minute diss track of his own earlier this year, "Stifle". Colby's most recent album is Down to Earth.
Proverbs 27:17 - As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
The 6th installment of the monthly Sound Affects event at ArtsRiot goes down this Thursday October 27th in Burlington, VT. This months lineup features a great night of regional artists including Movement Of The Minds, a Hip Hop collective out of Portland, Maine as well as Judge Da Beast in support of his album "Arraignment". There will also be a producer showcase and beat auction from So.802's Brad Vazy as well as a cypher to end the night with DJ Kanga holding it down. Doors 8PM / All Ages / $5 advance & $10 Day of show. You can check out more about the event ---> HERE
As always you can pick up a Sound Affects t-shirt courtesy of UnKnown Arts, live art by Anthill Collective and photography re-cap from DVP Cinematography.
