December 29, 2010

No Words Necessary

There is music that is just so good, it doesn't require any lyrics. When the beat of a song is just so powerful, so infectious, so dope, words become superfluous. I love songs with words, of course, but I also love instrumentals…there is just something so calming about them. It's the kind of music you can just vibe so easily to. There are many amazing musicians who have the ability to make these types of songs but here are some of my favorites in no particular order..

J Dilla: I could probably write a whole book about the musical legacy that this man left behind and about how deeply the music he made, and helped to make, has touched me personally. J Dilla is, by far, the best producer that has ever walked the face of the Earth. Ever. To say that this man’s work is amazing is a huge understatement. There is a certain soulful quality to the beats that he made that still stands out to me today compared to the other music I hear. Dilla's album, Donuts, is an instrumental hip-hop album that offers 31 tracks of pure brilliance. Each track tells a story, it is absolutely beautiful. 2 of my many favorite tracks off of the album can be found directly below the above photo. Rest In Peace Dilla.



Fall In Love (J Dilla Tribute) |  Massage Situation
Flying Lotus: Also known as FlyLo, this guy is too cool...I really enjoy his music. According to Wikipedia, he is an ‘experimental multi-genre music producer and laptop musician’. He is more on the hip-hop side of the spectrum but his music has an electronic sound as well, it is so unique & refreshing. If you watch Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network you should recognize the sound of his music because they often play it in between shows (bumper music). The first song I chose from him is actually a tribute he did to J Dilla by remixing my all time favorite song from Slum Village called Fall N Love. FlyLo has 3 awesome albums and a bunch of EPs so if you haven't yet, make sure you give them a good listen.



Something About Us  |  Make Love
Daft Punk: This is a duo that has been around for a while and whose music has impacted many many many different artists. Their beats have been sampled in hip-hop music; perhaps the most obvious example is Kanye West’s song Stronger which samples prominently from Daft Punk’s Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger. Also, the song Touch It by Busta Rhymes and the remix to the song where Missy Elliot says ‘touch it, bring it, pay it, watch it, turn it, leave it, stop, format it’ is straight from Daft Punk’s Technologic. Their music always makes me want to dance, I love the sound of it.




Wanderlust (Instrumentals)  |  A Little Soul
Pete Rock: Another amazing producer, I would put him right up there with J Dilla. Pete Rock’s beats are so smooth and soulful…he has a way of blending jazz elements and hip-hop and the sound of that combination is just so incredible. I vibe so well to Pete Rock’s beats, even to the point where I’m literally falling asleep. Not because I think they are boring, heaven’s no! But because the sounds that this man produces are just so relaxing, they really calm me down. I call his instrumentals my thinking music. The first track I chose is actually the very first song in my blog playlist located in the right side panel under the title ‘music’. I love the song Wanderlust to death, but those instrumentals just do something to me. The second track, A Little Soul, is my favorite track off of Pete Rock’s album PeteStrumentals. It is yet another amazing instrumental hip-hop album well worth listening to.




Brooklyn's Finest   |  Keep Dreamin'
The Stuyvesants: I actually just learned about this amazing duo this past summer. Their music takes me back, oh my goodness. I love it so, so, so much. The aim for their instrumental hip-hop album entitled Brooklyn’s Finest was to pay homage to the ‘70s while taking the listener on a musical journey through Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, NY and that is exactly what they did. The very first time I listened to the album I was in shock, every single track is so good and the sound is so reminiscent of that old school, soulful, jumping music. I urge/cajole/beg/command you to listen & download the album (and try not to break your neck while you're listening). You can find it on their awesome website here.




I know I left a bunch of great musicians out, but I didn't want the post to be too, too long. I hope you all like this music as much as I do. Enjoy! 

16 comments:

  1. Anonymous12/29/2010

    Pretty fucking dope if I do say so myself. Are you a girl?? I've never met a girl so into the type of music I like. Very impressive.

    RIP Dilla

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  2. Keep Dreamin' in my favorite track on The Stuyvesants album. It's definitely worth a listen or 1,000 listens. lol

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  3. This is a really well thought out post Dee! We have the same taste in music lol. J Dilla's music is crazy amazing, he really did leave behind a musical legacy. I love love love LOVE FlyLo! Love Daft Punk, I'm glad you mentioned that Kanye & Busta sampled from them bc I'm sure not a lot of people realize that lol. Pete Rock goes HARD. Love his music so much, I noticed you have a couple songs from him in your playlist, verrrry nice :) And I had NOT heard of The Stuyvesants prior to reading this post but they are really, really, really, really good. Wow, why have I been sleeping on them? Anyways lol, thank you for putting me on Dee!! Keep up these amazing posts on music I really appreciate them!

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  4. I can def. say Daft Punk is probably one of my favorite bands of all time. I remember first hearing their stuff way back when they did the cartoon opera and I've been fascinated ever since

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  5. Yemi U.12/29/2010

    There is so much greatness in this post! Jay Dee was an amazing producer and a true magician with his music. And now my new favorite group is The Stuyvesants! Love their sound, thanks for featuring them!

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  6. i love dilla but i didn't know about a lot of the others.... thanks for sharing!

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  7. I like a small number on instrumental artists, so I'm looking forward to listening to these after your recommendations! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas lady and hope you have a lovely new year.

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  8. Interesting music, thanks for sharing.

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  9. Aghhh I thought i was the only one who loved Pete Rock

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  10. You have very good tatse b/c I'm in agreement w/ several of your choices. However, I'ma have to check out this FlyLo cat, b/c before reading this, I wasn't hip to him.

    Thanks for visiting my spot.

    One.

    Lin

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  11. Great post! I appreciate the simplicity of instrumentals myself :) I love and have heard of all the artists you featured, great selections!!

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  12. Great artists! Have you heard of Alice Smith? She's one of my favorites.

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  13. Thank you all so much for commenting! I'm glad you guys liked the artists I chose!

    @Anonymous, yes, I am a girl lol :P

    @Brilliantly Me, yes!!! I LOVE Alice Smith, she is absolutely amazing :)

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  14. Yet another great musical post! I've never heard of any of these people before! This blog is really broadening my musical horizons lol. Great music!

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  15. Thanx for this, found some new instrumentals to improvise over =D

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  16. Love these instrumentals!!!!!!!! Good ish.

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