Pbzep70

Nicki Minaj - I Am Your Leader ft. Cam’ron & Rick Ross

This beat from Hit-Boy is amazing. Nicki makes a good case for herself but her verse is eclipsed by both guests. Rick Ross has really made strides and seems to be taking “actual rapping” seriously, and it completely delights me that someone thought Cam’ron should be allowed on this wacky, Dipset-worthy beat. Cam sounds pretty damn good, his experience on the mic showing in his perfectly tailored flow.

Lil Wayne - Boom Bap

This unusually chill beat sounds like doo wop rap, if there ever was such a thing. The nostalgic melody is lovingly mirrored in Weezy’s tale of the come-up.

David Bowie - Magic Dance

This obvious highlight from Jim Henson’s 1986 feature Labyrinth is permanently seared into my mind from a lifetime spent watching the film. Yet, I had not heard the unedited studio version up until recently. The pitch-shifted, wacky-as-fuck guitar noodlings sprinkled spastically throughout this lengthier affair make me sad that it took this long. I wonder which faceless guitar for hire shredded all over this endearingly corny shit? Great job, whoever you are!

ABBA - S.O.S.

As the O.G.’s of Swedish pop, ABBA were master craftsmen (and women). This particularly rousing affair’s melodramatic verses are followed by sprightly acoustic strums that are all up in-your-face about it. The glam-rock infused chorus highlights this surprisingly organic sounding ditty.

Freddie Gibbs - Flamboyant (Freestyle #2)

Absolutely decimating Big L’s classic by the same name, Gary, Indiana’s “all-time greatest” builds up quite a momentum. From the immediately gripping intro stanza that just boggles my mind, to the conclusion 3 hook-less minutes later, dude flows his ass off. The reason mixtape freestyles have to exist.

Think About Life - Nueva Nueva

But while I can’t say I’m a fan of dude’s falsetto stylings,  there is no denying the best part of this shit is when he shuts up. That luxuriant synth sound peppered back and forth in the speakers is incredible and makes me long for an instrumental version of this song to surface.

Slaughterhouse - Cut You Loose

Royce da 5’ 9” (Detroit), Crooked I (Cali), Joell Ortiz (BK), and Jersey’s finest Joe Budden = Slaughterhouse. A supergroup only in the eyes of a select few, these rappers just rap. That’s it. Ride a beat until there is none, “freestyle” shit. Say what you will, these fuckers are professionals. This beat would have fit nicely on The Blueprint 3 if that album actually tried to honor the first Blueprint’s sound. Joe’s anchor verse is the best, as he expertly plies his relationship-rap to the song’s theme of telling that bitch hip-hop to fuck off.

Bibio - Lovers’ Carvings

Britain’s Bibio has certainly got his shit together. Sounding like a relevant Paul Simon might, this is the end of the summer jam I have been looking for.

Curtis Mayfield & The Impressions - People Get Ready

Recently, Rod Stewart appeared on stage with Jeff Beck after not doing so for like 30 years. And this was the one song they played together. The best, most timeless spiritually centered soul song ever, after Sam Cooke’s A Change Is Gonna Come.

Discovery - So Insane

One of the best songs I have heard all year, this deliciousness comes from a side project that features a dude from Vampire Weekend and the dude from Ra Ra Riot. A perfect tempo shift from the skittery sweet verse to the chorus that gushes with head swaying warmth completes the deal. And may the remixes be fruitful and multiply.