K*Ners ft Kardinal Official - MESSY

K*Ners ft Kardinal Official - MESSY

K*Ners has always been one of the most talented artists from Bristol. For years he has been dropping bombs and making moves in the UKHH scene. What makes K*Ners a little bit different than your average artist, he gets acknowledgement from various sources for his music, whether it’s labels, newspapers, magazines etc, the hard work and graft he puts in is unquestionable, and the fact that he holds down a 9-5 job as well, shows how much passion this man has for his music.

This track represents how good of an artist he actually is, it’s a ‘Coast 2 Coast’ track that feature one of the Heavyweights of the Hip Hop World. Kardinal Official is known as ‘The Hip Hop Ambassador’ in Canada, and is widely renowned as one of Canada’s best producers. For Kardinal Official to feature on a track with K*Ners to me, is a phenomenal achievement for K*Ners, and will only help establish Bristol more and more.

From the kick off, the beat has a real UK hip hop/grime feel to it, the hook whilst quite simplistic, is extremely catchy, and there’s an extra dynamic when K*Ners drops the hook on the second part. The first two verses is vintage K*Ners, flow is fluid, and content is well written, he brings the rap/reggae style to this track, no matter what beat K*Ners lays vox down on, his style instantly creates something that’s separate from the rest. Kardinal Official drops the third verse, he does try to put on a slight British accent, but I will let him off. Officials verse is very very polished, and compliments K*Ners first two verses nicely.

This is a big collaboration featuring immense talent from both sides of the Atlantic. 

Keep an eye out for this track featuring on K*Ners album due out Summer 2013.

These collaborative tracks from UK to US should be done more often, as it really is a win, win for the artists on the track, you get exposure from two different countries, and the track will have a lot of different content and depth to it…..anyway that’ something else to think about.

So in closing, get your asses onto YouTube, and give this track a listen….or several, you won’t be disappointed, and you will be supporting one of Bristol’s best.

Half of 2.

Nikkles

Ellis ft Kingston - 'These Problems'

Ellis ft Kingston - These Days

Ellis is actually an old school friend of mine, and this is the first time I have given him a spot on the Bris Rap Scene blog. 

The first time I heard and saw this video, I was at work, and the first thing that hits you, is the emotional piano on the intro, Van Dam did a really good job on the 1's and 2's for this beat - the break in the verses, where is sounds like a marching band of drums is nicely pulled off, and gives the beat a lot more depth.

Ellis' voice sounds really distinct and strong on this, the content is quite close to me to be honest, especially the second verse about selling out, he really goes in on how times have changed in the rap game. I couldn't agree more with the amount of talent that's in the darkness, and if you're not willing to pander to the masses, then you get held down and held back. Ellis did a great job lyrically on this track. The hook on the track gives a good extra dynamic, I haven't heard Kingston before, but there is a distinct Jamaican twang about his voice, and it compliments Ellis and the beat nicely.

The video it self is very well put together, some of the blue point shooting looks fucking smooth, you don't see that very often in rap videos. There's a point in the video where Ellis is stood on a bridge, and a Police car starts charging down the motorway, it added a very nice affect to the video, it gave it a bit more of a 'Real' edge if that makes sense.

This is a very good track, and video. I would recommend everyone takes a listen.

If you want to hear more of Ellis, his mixtape is out now.

You can download 'Worth The Wait' by clicking the pic below:

Half of 2

Nikkles

Crudely Cut Mixtape Volume 1

Crudely Cut Mixtape Volume 1

Taken from the Crudely Cut Website:

''Crudely Cut Records is an ensemble of rappers, producers, graffiti artists, graphic designers, photographers, film makers, deejays, website builders and multimedia specialists who have become jaded by pulling in separate directions and decided to create a collective who can now all travel the same course. Born in Bristol, but not solely Bristolian. It is the culmination of people working hard within their respective crafts and unifying for a common cause, but knowing that the world owes us nothing. It is about keeping each other sharp, being honest with each other for the benefit of all. It is about using the power that we have as a group of individuals in order to further the unit.''

Crudely Cut Records are definitely on the up and up, I referred to Bristol artists in my New Year's post, who are grafting hard, and releasing good, local music. Crudely Cut hold a lot of the releases I was making reference to.

Consisting of a lot of the South West's talented, and best artists, they released 'Crudely Cut Mixtape Volume 1'. It offers a lot of collaborative tracks from the Crudely Cut stable, and has an eclectic style from track to track. 

This mixtape is entirely free of charge, so there is no god damn reason you shouldn't be getting all over this one people. Click on the picture below to download the mixtape:

With 23 tracks on this mixtape, anyone who likes to support local music within the Bristol & South West area, I'm pretty certain there is something on here for everyone.

The mixtape includes the following artists:

The Bastard Sunz
Greenz
Krazy
Split Prophets (Datkid, Res, Upfront MC, Bil Next, Paro, and Krate Krusaders)
Tough Touch
Tom Long
Dee Green
 Chris Lucas
Kali Mist
Hozay
Drillz
Chattabox (Dialect)
Sirplus
Lowdose
Demorus
Ceaze
Jehst 
Ramson Badbones
Fliptrix
Macca Dan

I tried not to miss anyone off the list, if I have, be sure to let me know, and I will update accordingly.

Due to the nature of the album, I couldn't pick one outstanding track, and if you're a fan/follower of one of the artists on the album, you may have already heard the track that was picked for the album.

Although I can't single out one track, I can recommend a few:

Natural Born Killers - This track is straight up NASTY!!! Plus it has Sirplus on it....See what I did there....ZING!!!

White Spots - This is the closing track on the Bastard Sunz debut album. Just listen to the track for the beat, Rola Rock is a fucking G-E-N-I-U-S

Mary Jane Skit - Res from Split Prophets tearing shit up on this one.

No Bly - Demorus, Datkid, Dee Green, and Macca Dan displaying some skills on this track here.

Lions Den - Krazy & Dee Green dropping some heat on this sick beat!


Get involved people!!  

In closing, this is a very well put together mixtape, and for a labels first release, this will cater to everyone's tastes. As I said previously, with various styles displayed on the album, this does really portray a lot that the South West & Bristol has to offer the Hip-Hop/Rap scene in the UK. The rest of the country has been put on notice, that Crudely Cut are only going to build up more steam, and add to its roster of already polished/accomplished artists.

I will stand, take my hat off & applaud the efforts of the Crudely Cut familia for their efforts on this one.

You can visit the Crudely Cut website below

Now stop fucking reading this, and go and download the mixtape, and if you already have, spread the word on the review.

Half of 2.

Nikkles.

Happy New Year From Bris Rap Scene

Happy New Year From Bris Rap Scene

2012 has been for lack of a better word, an astronomical year for the Bristol Hip-Hop/Rap scene. Some of the Bristol & the South West's best have been all over the country, and for some, the world promoting their music. There have been a fair few releases (too many to name individually) and each have had their own element of greatness to them, and portrayed their own style of Bristol's talent.

From what I have read on various Social Media websites, I can envisage 2013 being even bigger than 2012 (which will take some beating) but with the amount of new music some of these guys are working on, if Bristol isn't already a force to be reckoned with within the UKHH Scene, then after 2013, it will almost certainly be one of the UK's main City's to watch out for.

I for one, want to congratulate every artist not just from Bristol, but from the South West, who have hustled, and grafted in 2012, and I wish you a prosperous 2013, I'm sure most people will be thinking 2013 will be more of the same from a music perspective.

All the best from the Bris Rap Scene, and have a good 2013. Be sure to bless me with releases, upcoming shows etc, so I can let the masses know.

Bless.

Half of 2

Nikkles