Its been a long time between releases for MC/Producer Crixus, but for fans of his individual style of honest, introspective lyricism, its worth the wait.

“Throwaways Vol. 2” is the ?rst full length release from Crixus since 2007 & the ?rst release by newly formed Tasmanian Hip hop label, Edge of the World Records. A hectic music schedule (& life) over the past 6 years, encompassing everything from resident club nights, regular radio appearances, national & international support slots, to quiet spoken word poetry nights in dingy cafes & published work in national poetry reviews has led to inevitable delays, but its ?nally here.

But this isn’t really an album per se. It’s more a collection of songs worked on in downtime between other projects. It consists of songs that were getting dangerously close to becoming obsolete & unfelt, remixes & collaborations that just didn’t ?t snuggly enough into the cohesive artistic vision of other projects. Some songs have been heard before, but the vast majority haven’t been aired outside Crixus‘ headphones, until now.

It’s a personal and cathartic journey through a few of the darker corners of Crixus‘ mind. From the story telling social commentary of “Grow a Pair” & “Danny” to the obligatory breakup song with crooning vocals of “Don’t Tell Me”, Crixus has touched on all areas of the sometimes painfully honest spectrum. It’s songs of neglect, depression and loss, but more importantly, its songs to move on.

With all art & design handled by the talented Archibald M. Popes, “Throwaways Vol. 2″ comes together as a completely complimentary package.
You can stream the album at http://crixus.bandcamp.com or download it directly from here

www.myspace.com/crixus
www.facebook.com/crixusmusic

Charge is the Second Full Length Album from Melbourne Mc Eloquor. Second? It’s easy too miss good artists these days. But in this case, Eloquor admittedly wouldn’t be surprised if you missed his first with his first album being a low budget production that he mostly put together himself.

Charge is anything but with production, beats and features from well known Australian Hip Hop celebrities including M-phazes, Jase, Slap618, Doc Felix and Lauren Gillard to name a few.

Now under the guidance of Frank Mincone aka Slap618 as his manager (Myspherical Entertainment & Obese Records) Charge is an album with a message. To me this me this message was move forward, don’t have regrets, constantly push what you think is possible and take control of your own destiny. I know that’s quite a few messages all rolled into one, but when you listen to this album I think you will agree.

Charge is the feature track for this Album and where the Album takes it’s name. This isn’t really a criticism but for an album with notable guests I found it odd that Charge’s chorus didn’t come with a bit more punch. I mean, this would have been a perfect opportunity to get a cunts in a room and scream this hook (CHARGE) into the mic. Maybe it’s just me or maybe because it’s part of the albums flow and the self introspective message that this album carries throughout it’s entirety and something he wanted to do himself.

Keep on ft Lauren Gillard is a inspirational track, which for me really set’s the pace of this album. The video clip features what appears to be a broken family and a man struggling to come to terms with what never was or what never eventuated. You need to check it and make your own mind up.

A song I can relate my own experience of becoming a father Daddy’s Girl ft Cisco Tavares is probably my favourite track on the album. Eloquor drops his experience with the birth of his daughter like it happened yesterday. Something all first time Dads can probably relate to. I’d never heard of Cisco Tavares and on the first few listens I thought it was a sample, it wasn’t until I picked up the press release and did some Google searches that I found he is a local R’nB artist. (well he lives in Australia now, so by Aussie by laws #1321321 * anyone who’s been here more than a year we can claim as our own) I will definitely be checking more of his stuff in the future.

The last track on the LP Like The Clouds also ft Lauren Gillard but more interestingly samples from his Grandmother who this album was also dedicated to. The translated Hungarian vocal sample translates to “On earth we are merely guests, time here is short, the whole thing is like a soaring cloud”. After hearing this track, it becomes obviously apparent where Eloquor has found a lot of his inspiration and guidance throughout the years and what made him the person that he is. In my opinion, Eloquor seems extremely grounded and happy with the person he sees in the mirror every day. Something we should all strive for.

There’s a bunch of other dope tracks on this album that I didn’t cover. You really need to give ‘Charge’ several listens before it WILL become one of your favourite releases of 2010. ‘Charge’ by MC Eloquor is available now where all good Hip Hop is sold and distro is through Obese Records.

You can also read a recent interview with Eloquor at Certified Scribe

Broken Tooth Records MC Maggot Mouf next release ‘You’re all ears’ will be on the shelves later this week July 17 2010. A kid from Canberra, Maggot Moufs new Album contains 16 banging tracks of ill Aussie Hip Hop.

‘You’re all ears’ includes work from Sammy Scissors, Ciecmate, 1/6, Scotty Hinds, Dekoda and additional production from the Joey Gargoyle and Bigfoot.

Have a listen to Wat U Lookin At’ from  ‘You’re all ears’ below

Heads are fiending for the New Optimen Crew release, due March 2010. In the mean time, Red Tape Entertainment has been kind enough to let us have a listen to a feature track called Fire Fighters. If you like what you hear you can show your support or hear more tracks at their myspace account below.

In the mean time have a listen to Fire Fighters

http://www.myspace.com/theoptimen

Some interesting pics from the 2009 Zulu Nation Anniversary gig. Pics are by Charlie Ahern. You should probably go to his website http://www.wildstylethemovie.com/ and buy some shit off him.

Click on the image to see more pics. You may need to login to Facebook to view.

Looking good Excel!

At the stage where Australian hip hop is reaching a broader audience than ever before, Visions (MC), Kahs (MC), Cheech (MC/Producer), Omega Beats (MC/Producer) and davidL (DJ) have formed Headstrong Company to spread their collective message of truth, belief and how make every minute count.

If you like rapid fire flows, intricate wordplay, thumping beats and tech scratching all combined to send a message with a meaning, look no further than Headstrong Company’s self titled 14 track debut.

The last five years have been spent perfecting this masterpiece for the streets, to ensure you won’t find any filler tracks on this well crafted representation of what it is like to be part of the Company.

Their energetic and electrifying live performances with the likes of Brother Ali, Delta and Staen 1, Def Wish Cast, Percee P, Social Change, Adroit Effusive, Mindfield, Dialectrix, Low Budget, Spit Syndicate and Bias B have now been transformed into the latest tasty treat to escape the Crackhouse. Once this album hits your system, pump up the volume and enjoy some of the best music Adelaide has to offer.

Guest appearances of the album include DJ Sum-One, DJ Sanchez, and the Crackhouse crew.