4Play: Madlib, OneRepublic, DJ Shadow, Beanie Segel & Freeway

March 21, 2010

Madlib - Medicine Show No. 3: Beat Konducta in Africa - Madlib
Medicine Show This is the third in Madlib’s Beat Konducta series, in
which Madlib constructs his own potpourri of remixes, beat tapes, and
other productions into a cohesive listen. The Africa*set pulls quirky
vinyl tracks from the afro-beat, prog-rock, soul, and funk genres,
bringing the listener music from Nigeria, Botswana, Ghana, Ethiopia,
and the Ivory Coast, among other places. It’s interesting to see
Madlib’s personal stack of vinyl grow throughout his mixmaster
travels, and even more interesting to listen to what he builds out of
it.





OneRepublic - Waking Up - Interscope
OneRepublic obviously learned a few things from working with Timbaland
on their debut. While singer/writer Ryan Tedder began the band’s chart-
climb with an uneven mix of scratching-at-the-surface R&B hooks and
tepid compositions, their sophomore set shows that Tedder’s been
working on his songwriting, developing a more interesting mix of
influences. Jungle marimba and dubstep meet up on “Missing Persons 1 &
2,” piano brings a pretty ingenuousness to “All This Time,” and
“Marchin’ On” takes the vocals to a bigger arena.





DJ Shadow - Freeform Vinyl Set in L.A. - DJShadow
Shadow has released several live albums and mixsets that showcase his
mixing skills. His latest is sourced from his all-vinyl DJ set at
L.A.’s 2009 Halloween Masquerade Benefit Ball, during which Shadow
manned three turntables (yes, actual turntables, not netbooks or MP3
players) and offered up a cool 80-minute DJ set. Shadow’s one of
deejaying’s greats; he knows how to craft that perfect blend of pop,
rock, hip-hop, and trip-hop to both please the masses and keep things
interesting by throwing in a few twists in the set when you least
expect it.




Beanie Sigel and Freeway - Roc Boys - SN
While Roc-A-Fella may be long gone, Freeway and Beans jab at their
former label with this set, which also spends a decent amount throwing
antagonistic punches at feud subject Jay-Z. Other than the drama, the
pair also spend some time collaborating on this set with the likes of
DMX, Wale, and State Property, among others; tracks include the
Batkave-produced “Boss” and “Serious,” as well as the duo’s own “Under
Attack,” a solo track by Freeway (“Word Rite”), and “Flatline” as
interpreted by beat producer Isiah Salazar.