Saul Williams "The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust" Album not only has a kick ass name, it's a kick ass album. The pairing of Trent Reznor (of Nine Inch Nails) as Producer and Saul Williams seems strange but works wonders.Much like Radiohead's newest album, "Niggy Tardust" is an online only album. For $5 you can download a high quality version (CD sound quality). If you're tight on the funds or aren't sure this album's for you, you can also download a lower quality version for free (Ipod sound quality).Saul changes form from poet to emcee to singer freely. I prefer the rawness of the spoken word and emcee bits...but it all holds together nicely as Saul's voice and the beat take turns at the driver's seat of the musical composition.All in all a great album that more than deserves your $5.Niggy Tardust:: Tr(n)iggerNiggy Tardust:: Raw

Common (Sense), No I.D., and Hip-Hop music at it's finest. Poetic, poignant, and timeless.

Here's an amazing video by Madvillain. I love the Kirby-esque animation style. Madvillain is a group made up of rapper MF Doom and producer Madlib. MF Doom was also a part of Danger Mouse (the group behind the brilliant Lucha Libre inspired "Behind The Mask" video)...so he's definitely a man of wonderful taste. I was recently reminded of Madvillain because Kid Robot just released a toy figure based on the group's superhero mascot. Good hip-hop music, nice comic inspired art...Muttpop Bob is a very happy man!

Here's my latest post from my buddies' GetDown hip-hop blog. Check it out for our take on the music we love!:Damn! What could have been...Way back when The Roots had their temporary break up, Black Thought was on Sway & Tech's "The Wake Up Show" (around 2001) talking about two things that never came to fruition: 1. His Solo Album, 2. The beginning of MC Supergroup The Fantastic Four.The Fantastic Four was supposed to be a group consisting of Black Thought, Talib Kweli, Pharoahe Monch, and Common. I remember Sway & Tech were trippin' at the IDEA of such masterful emcees coming together to make an album...but unfortunately, it was all too good to be true and the idea became a forgotten kernel of possibility.About a year later, I bought Talib Kweli's "Quality" album and was BLOWN AWAY by a track called "Guerilla Monsoon Rap" produced by a younger Kanye West with rhymes by Kweli, Black Thought, and Pharoahe Monch. Was this a hint at what a Fantastic Four album could have been? If so, where's Common?Further evidence of the Fantastic Four's potential existence come from lines by Pharoahe Monch.From his first verse:"See these FOUR emcees came to get downRearrange the rap game, change ya whole sound"There's no rhymes on the song by Kanye (who at the time was known just as a Producer)...so where's the fourth MC?From Monch's second verse:"Guerrilla monsoon rap, smell the fumes, get in tune wit itWhen I attack your city, y'all gon' think DR. DOOM did it"A clear reference to Fantastic Four's main villain, Dr. Doom."I'm pissed - cumulus clouds of ominousWords of the FOUR, the rawness that'll restore ya calmness"Another reference to "The Four". Hmmmm...The song still KILLS IT five years after it's debut. Kanye and Kweli were a match made in heaven back in 2002 (remember "Get By"?!). But it makes me so damned depressed that the Fantastic Four never became a reality.Talib Kweli feat. Black Thought & Pharaohe Monch :: Guerilla Monsoon Rap

I'm not sure if it's an official collaboration but Jay-Z began work on his new Album after watching an advanced private screening of Ridley Scott's "American Gangster" starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe. The album will be released in early November (close to the release date of the film) and tracks from the album have begun appearing on the internet.Production-wise the stuff I'm hearing is close to Jay-Z's "Blueprint" (my favorite Jay-Z album). Lyrically it's closer to "Reasonable Doubt" (lots of gangster mafioso storytelling).I wish I could get a little more of the introspective Jay-Z...but I'm really digging the overall feel of the music.Intentional or not, this is a brilliant cross-promotion. The movie gets the street-cred it needs to make it cool from the young kids. Jay-Z has a justified reason for sounding both gangsta and soulful.Below are the tracks I could find on YouTube:Roc Boys (produced by Kanye West)Blue Magic Video (music produced by Neptunes)???? (featuring Lil' Wayne, prouduction sounds like Kanye West)American Gangster Trailer (the inspiration)

Here's the Hip-hop Classic that forever made me a fan of Hip-hop music. The combination of humor, sincerity, variety, and cleverness that Pharcyde provides on their first album, Bizarre Ride II The Pharcyde, remains unmatched since the album's debut in 1992.