So I read this interview with Framework last night in Seaspot - I'm so far behind in reading my mag's. Anyway dude sounds fresh! And from what everyone is telling me he is the best Seattle has to offer? Does anyone have a copy or know where I can find a copy of his debut Hello World?

Hit me up on the email wwjohnsen@gmail.com, I think I need to hear this.

Anyone from around here is going to be looking at this album with just a slightly different take, making me wish I could be talking with some people outside of the S-E-A about what they think of the debut offering from Jake One.

The resident beat maker extraordinaire has been fudging the lines about what exactly "underground" and "mainstream" Hip Hop is for years now and to this end we see a diverse group of guests. From Young Buck and Busta Rhymes to MF Doom and a host of locally known emcees who will hopefully receive some much deserved attention after sharing grooves with the talent found herein.

Now it could be my own bias but those tracks from the local emcees stand up incredibly well, to a point that I have to say I find them to be the best tracks on the album. From the D. Black solo "God Like" with it's subdued beat (Blueprint esque? Shout to Crawford!) to the power trio of J Pinder, GMK and Spaceman on "Big Homie Style," this is the hidden gem if you ask me. All three emcees hold their own over a top 5 of all time Jake beat. If anyone is looking for some mid-nineties NY griminess tune in to this, I swear you will think you got caught in a time warp.

Opening with a great dialogue about music being "dope" Jake drops in a bouncing bass line and a great vocal sample before Black Milk shouts "drums" and in come some knockers for him and Nottz to rock. Chosing two producers who also emcee to open your album may be a ballsy move, but they handle the track and get you started off in a good mood, before being totally smashed on by the sounds of the Mash Out Posse for "Gangsta Boy." Props to Jake for creating a beat that is filled with the best of what both coasts style in beats has to offer, if this record will do one thing it will prove his versatility.

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Damn! Who was in the hosue down at the Showbox last night? If you weren't shame on you - well not completly as it was sold out so to all you late comers, sorry!

After some fun at the door, and a great manuver to pull off prime parking I walked in seeing (and hearing) N.E.R.D. in complete control. Immediately the two drum kits become apparent and, in spite of the terrible sound system, they tore it down with on point solos and continous hard knockin' beats!

Arriving just in time for Pharrel to invite all the ladies onto stage before launching into their hit "Everybody Nose" - these girls may not have been in line to the bathroom, but I bet some of 'em bypassed the line onto Pharrels bus.

For someone who isn't much of a fan (I haven't copped a record since In Search Of...) I was completly entertained and ready to have a ball - guess I gotta work on getting to shows earlier? If the closing of their set was any indication, don't pass up another chance to see N.E.R.D..

During the set I found myself wondering how this pairing happened? I mean, yeah Common and Pharrel have worked together in the past and from the sound of things they are cooking up some serious heat for the new joint coming soon(ish?). But muscially, and in pretty much every other respect, they are about as dissimilar two groups can be.

But it doesn't matter because Common killed it - and yes Pharrel came out too.

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I probably shouldn't admit this but the fact that I'm not from this city seems to weigh heavy on my mind these days. Is this why I hear so little music from the streets of the 6 that I enjoy?

Whatever the case may be about my own personal taste, I have always felt the beats of Seattles own Jake One and in just under 3 weeks the world will be treated to his debut album.

So while the hype builds let me just say that even if I've been hard pressed to be blown away by the countless emcees who pop up here, the best tracks found on White Van Music come from those who hail from our fair city.

On this note I'm finding my focus after a summer of fun and confusion. Don't let anyone fool you life after college isn't set!

Yeah I fell off on the bloggin tip, but I want to come back. And the first step is a new name? Any ideas?

Don't ask where I been at... couldn't tell ya if I new. But this caught my ear, will it catch yours?

Leave it to me to go from being overly inspired to being filled with no desire what so ever to write something for my little piece of this here internet. But today is a special day and the perfect time to pay tribute to one of the greatest to ever do it; Mr. Isaac Hayes, R.I.P.

Isaac Hayes "Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic"

When he passed, just 10 days ago everyone was quick to get their tributes out to the man and many were incredibly well done. But it's always bothered me how we tend to celebrate the work of great artists on the anniversary of their death rather than that of their birth. Does this make sense? Not to me, which is why today August 20th, 2008 - what would have been Isaac Hayes 66 birthday, I'm here to pay tribute to this genius.

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So I'm going back and forth on whether I should give y'all this new Game track with Nas "Letter to a King" - it's fire ain't it? - and what does the fool do but get on the radio down in Cali and bash Jigga. At least he learned something from Curtis.

I'm too disrespectful for Jay-Z, I go to hard. His beef is mediocre beef, it's more swag and less hardcore. Me, I go in on your grandma, your kids and your girl….it will get ugly and I don't mind. I have a whole coast to back me. My coast will turn their backs on whoever I turn my back on. So basically, let me commit suicide because I'm the only cat to commit suicide and resurrect every time. So for Jay to say that about me, that's cool man because he's Jay-Z and I'm jus lil ol Game. But if you f*ck with me I'll turn to a beast, and ill rip ya head off..bust ya lips…

I can be a fan of Jay and still rip him limb from limb and still be a fan. After I finish him off, I'm still going to listen to reasonable doubt afterwards. I'll kiss jay goodbye with his own lips. I'm going to make him mad enough to where he has to say something

"Make him mad enough to where he has to say something."

Wow. I don't think the West backs you like you think they do homie, and to quote Ev (Cats & Dogs!!) "I was born out here so don't go there."

This is gonna backfire. Game you are good, but not that good. I remember hearing about Game back in the day when he was still with the Unit and Aftermath and how he was this young kid surrounded by greatness, thus he had to come correct or they would check him - well someone in the Black Wall Street camp needs to check him right now cause this is a real bad look. Remember your own words!

On top of all this talk, a number of tracks have surfaced, many of which I'm real disapointed in. The Just Blaze joint is real weak, it just doesn't bang like their classic cuts on the previous records. Luckily most of them are from the cutting room floor.

The Game ft. Nas "Letter to A King"

And the ones that aren't? Well they are alot like this here joint "Letter to A King." Do I even gotta speak on it? If you haven't heard it yet just let it play, pure genius and probably the only reason I'm not completely mad at him for running his mouth - isn't that what he's always done?

L.A.X. leaked this morning, get on google and download that!

Call it tales of a sleepless blogger! And what better to do than give y'all more of my useless ramblings? I'm just playing I hope you enjoy my shedding light on some new music for your ears.

Given my tossing and turning hours ago and my jockin' of Alc and his homies I figured I should stop wasting time and head to work... so here I am, and go figure on the walk down I would find myself crafting yet another one for ya.

Flying Lotus. I dropped his remix of "A Milli" a while back and it seemed to get some good responses, I hope those of you who checked him were feeling him! I for one can't get enough of the man with his latest release Los Angeles staying in pretty constant rotation since it dropped back with C3 - what does it say that I'm still listening to this one, while I haven't popped in the martian in a minute?

Flying Lotus "Parisian Goldfish"

I'm a big fan of artists capturing the sound of night and or of the city. I know this is something that is completly subjective, but as I listened to this while walking down Denny to work as the sun rose I couldn't help but feel a special connection to the music FlyLo cooked up in his dope crib (I don't know maybe it's just me but read about his spot, doesn't that sound fly?).

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Damn... I was so inspired after watching this video that I came over here to blog, and right as I get ready to publish my internet decides to fail on me, poof - no more post.

But that can't keep me down! What do y'all think of the vid? Yes that's P's son reppin' for his father while he is upstate. I was checkin' ALC's new blog, which he kicked off with a post about his trip up north to visit with the HNIC himself - it's a dope read, check it here.

Al is one of the best producers in the game period. He kills everything he touches and like this track demonstrates perfectly he is able to blend that Cali smoothness with that raw and rugged NY sound, making his tracks something in between Primo & Dre.

But Alchemist isn't the only one in the crew, he happens to run with a gang known as the Dilated Peoples who have a new record scheduled to drop next year around this time. Can't wait? Good, neither can they!

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Well after all that hype late last week along with prominent DJ's Mick Boogie & Semtex giving us tidbits of information over the weekend about the possibility of a Jay-Z album entirely produced by Kanye West, the street joint is here! It's only the clean and word on the net is 'Ye is unhappy with the mix so expect a perfected unedited leak in the near future. I caught it early (still no beating the NMC, shout to Nah, Right on this one - y'all kill me with how quick you're on top of things) so I could pass it on to you.

Enjoy.

UPDATE:
They wasted no time the unedited version is out, peep it here! Thanks to 2db for the link!

So dope boy fresh!