I know that it’s been a while since I’ve done an album of the week and for that I apologize. It’s not that I haven’t been listening to any music, cause I’m constantly listening to something, it’s just that it’s been a while since I’ve heard something that really made me stop and say, “Holy shit this is amazing.” Well, that exact quote was said by me yesterday when I bought Camu Tao’s “King of Hearts.”

For those of you who don’t know, Camu Tao was a member of the famous New York underground group The Weathermen, which consists of El-P, Aesop Rock, Yak Ballz, Tame One, Cage, and Breeze Brewin. He was also one the Definitive Jux lineup before the label disbanded. And for those of you who don’t know, Camu passed away a little over two years ago after a long battle with cancer. “King of Hearts” was to be his solo debut on Def Jux and he was in the process of making the album during his battle with cancer.

After Camu’s death El-P took it upon himself to finish “King of Hearts” as best he could without taking any of what Camu wanted away from it. Because Camu died in the process of making his album a lot of the songs were only demos that he had made on his own, all of the beats he had made with garage band and vocal tracks were recorded on logic, but some of the tracks were already together on mp3’s but had not been mastered. Since Camu’s death El-P has worked on mastering the album and released the “finished” product yesterday.

I had been planning on getting the album for a while and when rave reviews of the album showed up in my twitter feed non-stop I bought it immediately off itunes. It was not even half way into the album that I stood there at the bus stop and said to myself, “Holy shit this is amazing.” I do have to say that the album takes a little getting into because of how rough the tracks can be since they are mainly demos but once you get past the rawness of it and really listen to Camu and what he was doing and where he was going to take his music it absolutely blew me away.

I can honestly say that this album is unlike any other hip hop album I’ve ever heard. Those of you who are looking for a traditional hip hop album, emcee rhyming over a simple beat, this is probably not for you. For those of you who are into “progressive” hip hop then this is definitely for you. Had Camu lived to completely finish his album and to have it realized entirely how he imagined it I can guarantee everyone would be talking about “King of Hearts” for years to come. “King of Hearts” takes underground hip hop in a direction I have yet to really hear it go and as my roommate put it earlier today “imagine what his next album would’ve been like.” That is something I think only Camu could have truly imagined but I can definitely say it would have been absolutely unreal.

So please do yourself a favor and go buy “King of Hearts” right now and help keep Camu Tao’s memory alive not just in your hearts but also through his music. You can get it from DefinitiveJux.com as well as iTunes. There are several different packages for the album, some of which include a donation to The Lung Association. I hope all of you who do purchase “King of Hearts” enjoy it as much as I am and be sure to let everyone you know listen to the album, I’m sure it’s different from anything they’ve heard. I’ve included one track from the album in this blog post but that is not how you should base your idea of what this album is at all, every track is different and offers a completely different vision of what Camu had in mind.

What you are about to watch completely blew my mind. I’ve seen a lot of people completely slaughter an MPC before but never with this intensity and style. This is araabMUZIK, the producer for dipset. I don’t really have much more to say other than watch how insane this is.

Come by the Luggage Store Gallery Annex Space to check out “Granny’s Missed You”

Curated by Constance Castillo, With Works By: Tucker Bennett, Constance Castillo, Josh Freydkis,  Francesca Ira and Maxine Puorro

The show will be up from August 20th to the 28th with

closing reception 7 – 10 p.m. on the 28th with live performances by Slow Loris and St. Mawr

Address:

The Luggage Store Gallery Annex Space

509 Ellis Street

San Francisco, CA 94109

Website

About The Show:-

Sometimes in silence there is a humming noise. A feeling that something might not be right. Through varied mediums, five artists under the age of 21 and raised in the Bay Area will engage in a disturbance of beauty. Focused around a short story written by Penelope Lin, the multimedia show will include installation, film, photography, and mixed media. Existing in the distance between lingering memories and emerging presence these artistic distortions will act as an elegy for the material life.

Artsit, SCUBA will be exhibiting work at Paxton Gate’s Curiosities for Kids. The opening “Block Party” is Thursday August 19th from 6 to 9 pm and her work will be up until September 15th.

Take advantage of the nice weather today and go check it out!

Address:

Paxton Gate’s Curiosities for Kids
766 Valencia St. b/w 18th & 19th
San Francisco

website

SCUBA’s Work:
www.drawingwhiledriving.com

Adidas is milking Star Wars for all there worth right now with the mash up designs inspired by one of the most influential Sci Fi films ever that has spurred a huge pop culture phenomenon over the last 30 years. Check out this university jacket for the dark side and the Wookie jacket for the rebels.

So this past week New York City subway riders got a little treat. The guys and girls from Improv Everywhere staged a climatic reenactment of “A New Hope” on the subway train. The entire train lit up with laughter as the storm troopers walked in and arrested princess Leia. Enjoy!

Hauntingly soft female vocals overlay unexpected guitar twangs. Grass Widow falls somewhere between post-punk and dream-pop with moments of retro surfer music. Their delicate harmonies accentuate the commanding, wacked-out instrumentals and makes the trio totally compelling. Their music has similar vibes as Lichtenstein and Liliput/Kleenex, the sound is intricate but commanding. They recently released their first LP “Make a Mess” and are planning on releasing an album soon with the Portland label “Kill Rock Stars.” You can listen to them on their myspace, and if you’re into it, you are in luck! They will be playing this Saturday with a number of other sweet bands at the Mission Creek music festival in McLaren Park. For more information on that go to the event website.

DSSF has just made a hilarious new addition to its collection, which is hard to miss. The store has been invaded by the breasts of the future: Lazer Tits. You can now wear a vixen with lazers coming out of her bosom on a shirt! Available in men’s and women’s styles. Also, check out their website for unlimited blazing boobs.

Liz Hickok, a SF based artists has recently been working in Jell-O. She has made a model replica of San Francisco out of Jell-O. Very toung and cheek for the city with the wiggle and always being a little shaky. Check it out.

A little bit more about Liz hickok
Liz Hickok is a San Francisco-based artist working in photography, video, sculpture, installation, and currently, Jell-O. Hickok received her Masters in Fine Arts from Mills College in Oakland, California. She earned a BFA and BA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts. Hickok lived and worked in Boston for over ten years before moving to the San Francisco Bay Area.

YouTube user 205rady turned the most amazing TV show Arrested Development into an action movie trailer. There are some amazing re-cuts out there and this is now added to the pile.