liquorandbeats

The homie @ap2photography Has a dope series called “Mortal Man” on his blog right now. He was kind enough to feature me on his platform. Check it out when you get a chance and look for my brother @c00ley89 to do something incredible with the featured beat. #Repost @ap2photography (@get_repost) ・・・ MORTAL MAN Never Thought... by @trunkboundcooley ap2photography.com/blog In this essay Mike talks about the power of music and how it helped him deal with the death of a friend due to senseless violence. Be sure read the full piece on the blog where you can also hear the beat that Mike made in homage to his friend. #mortalman #man #men #mortality #music #healing #beatsrhymeslife #ohio #ohiostate #portraits #photoessay (also inspired by @hitek Music for Life.”

10 Favorite Mixtapes/Compilations of 2017: 1. Colemine Records - Soul Slabs vol. 1 Colemine has been filling the soul void like no other label for some years now, and this tape is no different. Released on both Record Store Day & Cassette Store Day this year, Soul Slabs brings sunshine right thru your speakers. Personal favorite here is definitely “Don’t Get Caught” by The Droptones, but there isn’t a bad track in sight. 2. Cam’Ron - The Program Not pictured above (currently unavailable in physical format) is the Killa Cam comeback tape that woke Ma$e up from his grave. Cam calls out Yeezy for being a weirdo, remixes the second Cyndi Lauper song of his career, and updates a Bill Withers classic in a magical way only he could do. Rumor has it the sequel drops in January. I’ll cross my fingers for a double-Cassette release. 3. Amerigo Gazaway - A Common Wonder The mash-up king of the universe returns with Common and Stevie Wonder to make what ends up being some of his best work yet. How does Amerigo continue to pair these artists in a way that makes you feel downright dumb for not thinking of it first? 4. Loelyxxx - Plastic Inners: Nigerian Boogie Mixtape I bought this on a whim with little knowledge of Nigerian funk and even less knowledge of Leolyxxx. Within seconds of pressing play I was texting the homie Beezus to tell him he needed to grab one too. If you don’t own a cassette player, this tape alone is reason enough to buy one. Plus part 2 is on the way. 2017 was a killer year for funk comps. More on this below... 5. Randy “Hotthobo” Ellis - Cold Showers Described as a “Bedroom Boogie/Electronic Soul” mixtape, the music here will take you to (and whoever you’re getting greasy with) straight to outer space. This is one of those tapes where it would be worth having a party just as an excuse to play this for others. Released on the same day as “Plastic Inners”, which ended up being easily the funkiest day of 2017 for me personally. 6. Tim Zawada - Contemporary Jacuzzi Aerobics vol. 2 MORE FUNK! This time with a soulful house take. The title is confusing until you realize that getting greasy in a hot tub would probably the optimal way to bump this tape. Vol. 1 is a must have as well. 7. @numerogroup - All Skate #1 One of the Numero curators dug deep into their personal stash to put together this tour only funk trip for us diehards. And I can’t thank them enough. The title says it all, and the mix will have visions of the backwards skate dancing thru your head. Have I mentioned how incredibly funky 2017 has been yet?? 8. Jazz Dispensary - Moon Rocks Jazz Dispensary has quickly established themselves as a top destination for my old school funk fix, but this record let me know they really have a finger on the pulse of what’s happening now. I was super excited to drop the needle and hear skate rink classics up against modern funk jams. I hope this isn’t the only trip they take to the moon. 9. Numero Group - Slowroll Another tour exclusive tape from the Numero squad. This one is more soul than funk, and is a nice cool down after you bump All Skate. I would love to hear what these folks could do with a 90’s R&B mix 10. Giant Single: The Profile Records Rap Anthology vol. 1 It was a battle between this and Soul Jazz’s “Boombox 2” for the final spot on my list. Both are excellent choices for your old school hip hop fix, but Profile wins out because 2 of the best drumbeats in rap history pop up here. How could you go wrong with a record that has “Sucker MC’s” and “Drag Rap”?

10 Reissues I’m Most Grateful For In 2017: 1. Funkadelic - Live @ Meadowbrook ( @tidalwavesmusic ) This concert STARTS with Maggot Brain. It’s as though the funkateers are trying to get you right with the universe before they get you in trouble with it again. 2LP reissue of pure madness that I never thought I would own til the good folks at Tidal Waves dropped it at the beginning of the year. Limited to 1000 I believe, but last I checked copies were still available. 2. Eddie Gale - Ghetto Music ( @bluenoterecords / @vinylmeplease ) The first of the Blue Note/VMP reissue collabs, and my introduction to subscription reissues. The homie Beezus got ahold of this and once I heard it I had to have it. Pressed on beautiful grey marble wax, the attention to detail in the packaging is outshined only by the music. I will never come across an Eddie Gale record again that I don’t buy immediately. Seriously if you can get this record, DO IT! 3. Joe Henderson & Alice Coltrane - The Elements ( #JazzDispensary ) Got this record on a whim because of a VMP swap. I had yet to dive into Alice Coltrane, saw one of my favorite compilation curators (Jazz Dispensary) did this reissue, and said fuck it. Needless to say 2018 will be one long Alice rabbit-hole for me. Such a great record. 4. Gloria Barnes - Uptown ( #Remined / #Colemine ) Colemine Records out of Loveland, OH is going to show up on a lot of my 2017 “best of” posts. This time they did the only reissue in history of this wonderful soul record that is otherwise far out of my price range. This is when reissues are at their best; when your only other options are go broke or listen to a shitty YouTube stream of the album. I also may have never known about this record if they didn’t put it back out. Hopefully they get ahold of the Roger & The Human Body masters next. 5. Black Moon - Enta Da Stage Deluxe Box Set ( @duckdownmusic-blog ) 6LPs of originals, remixes, and instrumentals to one of the most influential rap albums of my childhood. So dope I had to buy it on cassette and vinyl. Love to see more and more seminal Hip Hop records getting the box set treatment. 6. E-40 - In A Major Way ( @sony Certified Classics ) So a rap album I’ve heard hundreds of times was reissued by a major label this year. Normally this isn’t all that exciting (as rap tends to get the short end of the remastering stick) except this particular reissue sounds incredible. I hope more 40 water gets the reissue treatment now, particularly the Charlie Hustle album (my personal favorite). As an added bonus, this record came with an extra LP titled “Certified Classics Vol. 1” which is essentially one side of Sony rap hits from yesteryear and one side of Sony R&B hits from the same era. 7. Radiohead - OK Computer OKNOTOK ( @xlrecordings ) Limited edition blue 3LP pressing of one of the best rock albums of all time combined with a ton of additional b-side/unreleased material. Particularly thrilled because one of the included b-sides is “Polyethylene pt.2”, which has been one of my favorite Radiohead songs from the moment I heard it. 8. Bernie Worrell - All The Woo In The World ( @tidalwavesmusic ) I don’t believe the original is all that uncommon, but in all my years of digging I’ve yet to come across a copy on CD or LP. Not even a beat-to-shit dollar bin one! Anyone who knows me knows I’m a connoisseur of P-Funk, and never having a copy of this record has always bugged the shit out of me. All that changed last weekend when Tidal Waves put this orange vinyl copy out. Salute to them for doing proper justice to Woo. 9. UGK - Underground Kingz ( Jive / @vinylmeplease ) The Pimp & The Bun get a 3LP on Woodgrain vinyl reissue of their epic comeback album. This album changed my life when it dropped and still sounds as good as it did back then. Only a couple records have yet to be reissued from the UGK catalog, and I have to assume 2018 will take care of that problem. 10. MF Doom - Special Herbs Cassette Box Set ( Metal Fingers ) If we’re being honest with each other, I haven’t even cracked a seal on one of these tapes yet. I’m including it in my top 10 though, because at 49.99 it’s definitely the least expensive way to own Doom’s instrumental series in physical form. Also, unlike some other Cassette boxes, the packaging is designed to fit right alongside your vinyl on a shelf without fucking things up.

50. Sassy - Rapsody

I know my whole squad needs a #GemCityGetDown badly. So tomorrow night at @blindbobs we’re gonna have one. Hope you can join us!

Had to put one in the universe about it tonight.

Shout out to @ben_illson for the @flyinglotus hook up tonight. @madisontheater is bout to jump. #FlyLoFM

Who’s ready for another #GemCityGetDown? 11/18/17. All proceeds benefit @kiva.org. @blindbobs doors open at 9pm, grease goes til 2am, then we release you back into the universe. Come Funk with us! #dayton #ohio #blindbobs #hiphop #funk #soul #electro #grease

@moira_band is so dope. 2nd time I’ve had the privilege of DJing a show they’ve performed at. #daytonmusicfestival

I feel like y’all ain’t really preparing properly for this new @bigkrit that drops a week from now. I personally don’t have that issue though. #4EvaIsAMightyLongTime

@daytonflyers gear ready. Knock this shift out at @omegamusicdayton and it’s on to @warpedwing to try that #FlyerRed

#coffeeandcassettes this morning with this new/old @djclarkkent Mixtape

Catch a preview of the #GemCityGetDown tonight at @omegamusicdayton with @djdomesticbliss spinning that funk from 6-8pm. All ages welcome, no cover, and we will be providing all interested with more info about @kiva_microloans. #Dayton #ohio #omegamusicdayton #oregondistrict

Do me a big favor and call this douche bag "Jammie" and tell him to fuck off for me. But seriously. Please call him. Numerous times.

Dope pic my sister @inanewyorkstateofmind sent me from her train car. Long live Mobb Deep!

Firing up the Screwbox early cause it's June 27th! #np Chapter 38 "Headed 2 Da League" #DJScrew #DiaryOfTheOriginator #Houston #Texas #june27th

Get Down time approaches once again! #TrunkBoundRegime #PicketFence #BlindBobs #HipHop #Funk #Soul #Dayton #Ohio