That's That...: Brainstorm

Showing posts with label Brainstorm. Show all posts

Dyme Def - "Intro-Ducing" x "Conscience" x "DontEverGo" (feat. Choklate)

Your wallet seems real heavy, a little too heavy to carry,

I'm just trying to help 'em out by any means necessary,

Suddenly I'm in the game and suddenly I'm legendary,

Suddenly your permanent position's turning temporary,

Turn away before it's too late, I'm too great,

No more time to eat you old n***as, I'm on a new plate.

It's tracks like this that make the blunder that was Sex Tape all the more unbearable. People forget how groundbreaking Dyme Def were when they first dropped. When I first put Space Music into my car back in 2007, it was like nothing I'd ever heard before and certainly like nothing that had come out of Seattle. I didn't want to listen to anything else ever again and played the album constantly for a three-four month period. From the minute that you heard "Intro-Ducing," you were hooked. The album started with so much energy and so many one-liners that you didn't have a choice but to listen to the entire thing over and over again.

It was as if OutKast and the Beasties had an unholy trio of love children and an adopted son (BeanOne), then subsequently abandoned them in the Upper Left. They had out of this world rhymes and subject matter that seemed to be descended from ATLiens and out of the world BeanOne and Brainstorm beats that took what the Mario C did for the Beasties back on Hello Nasty (see "Super Disco Breakin'," "Intergalactic") to an entirely new level. Like the Beasties, the trio fed off each other, trading bar for bar and at times word for word with an impeccable chemistry that made them the best local live act.

Space Music and their follow up 3BadBrothaaas showed that you didn't have to solely be a conscious rapper to be popular in The 6. In the process, Dyme Def kicked in the door for an entire post-Massline generation of Seattle emcees from Fresh Espresso to Champagne Champagne.

And while everyone loves the high energy tracks like "GetDown," "TheGameNeedsMe," and "3BadBrothaaas," it was down to earth songs like "LetitBe," "Conscience," and "DontEverGo" that made the trio the complete package. Everyone knows and loves "LetitBe," but these two songs off 3BadBrothaaas deserve credit in their own right.

I wasn't the biggest fan of Damian Black's 2006 album, The Cause and Effect. The album presented a rough cut of the Sportn' Life founder as aspiring thug rapper that didn't quite ring true. It was the more honest tracks, "Secret Place" (a personal dedication to his mother who had recently passed), "This Is Why," and the Dyme Def-assisted "Welcome To The Life," that showed listeners what this Seattle emcee was truly capable of.

Both songs are held as 206 staples. "This Is Why" is a beautiful, soulful song about the trials and tribulations of growing up in South Seattle and depicts a much different perspective than Macklemore or the King of Ballard.

People forget that Dyme Def was initially closely associated with Sportn' Life and actually recorded their demo with Black's label. The BeanOne-produced "Welcome To The Life," is one of my favorite from the Space Music trio. It has a pre-Space Music grittiness that was evident on their demo and many tracks on their debut while still having all the humor, bravado, and lyrical skill of Space Music and 3BadBrothaaas. It has some of my Favorite DD/Black verses that paint a very distinct picture of urban life over a cinematic BeanOne instrumental. For some reason, I compare it to a musical version of 25th Hour (if Spike Lee was from Seattle and made a gritty, beloved film about his hometown).

Brainstorm - "Shadowboxin'" (prod. SolEternity) [Video]

Dyme Def member Brainstorm's Celestine Prophecy is starting to look like Seattle's Detox. At the moment, Brain's that girl at the end of the bar playing hard to get. He's been teasing DD fans for the past six months, giving us enough to keep us coming back, knowing that his solo debut will be one of the best albums ever to come out of the Northwest, but keeps pushing back the anticipated release date (the latest February 15th date came and went).

This latest video is no exception and reminds me of his dope "Say You Will" cover video he put out a couple years back. I trust that Michael Celestine has reasons for the delays, not the least of which is his newborn daughter (congrats Brain!) and that he's been slowly, meticulously crafting CP to get rid of the minor imperfections. When this project comes out, it may well be an album that Townfolk talk about for years to come.

As a bonus, I've included a couple of DD tracks from their Pay Day Series that I've been meaning to post for a minute including BeanOne produced instrumental for what may well be my favorite song of all time.

Peace, Love, & YukTheWorld,
Voodoo Child

Dyme Def - "LetitBe Instrumental"
Dyme Def - "Time Flies" (prod. BeanOne)

Previous: Dyme Def - "For The World" | "Rebel 2 The Grain" | 3BadBrothaaas Mixtape

Dyme Def - "For The World" | "Rebel 2 The Grain" | 3BadBrothaaas Mixtape

The closing track to one of my favorite albums of all time, "For The World" is perfect wrap-up to Dyme Def's Space Music. Produced by Bean One, I have to hold this track right up there with "LetitBe" as one of the Seattle trio's best songs.

One of the most talented Seattle artists in the game today, producer/emcee Brainstorm drops off this cut off of The Celestine Prophecy, which theoretically drops on Friday. Good to hear the Dyme Def rapper going in on this lyrically-laced track after the relatively subpar Sex Tape. Can't wait to hear CP.

Peace, Love, & Dyyyyyyyyme Def,

WordIsBorn

Dyme Def - "Over Freeverse"

Eminem may have bodied this track earlier, but I've been waiting on this version from the Seattle trio since hearing the snippet two weeks ago. I'm personally not a big fan of the instrumental and will welcome the day that rappers stop giving their rendition of it, but this is probably the second best version (after Em's) that I've heard thus far. Thank god they took Drake out of the equation entirely. No Beat Is Safe.

Peace, Love, & Dyme Def,
WordIsBorn

(Previous) Dyme Def - "Hayyyyy"

...and now, back to that philosophy paper. FTW.

Dyme Def - "Hayyyyy"

As a hip hop blogger, 4/20 is a nightmare. It's the one day of the year when your mailbox gets flooded (more than usual) with crappy songs. I typically wouldn't bother to sort through this shit storm, but Dyme Def will always get the pass. Much to my pleasant surprise (but not really considering who it's coming from), the Seattle trio's dedication to Mary Jane actually turned out to be a gem.

"Hayyyyy"

Brainstorm - "Blame Yaself"

Previous: That's That Mixtape, Vol. 8: 2010 'Til Infinity

Dyme Def - "Do Something" [Music Video]

It's not my favorite Dyme Def material, but here are the visuals for the first single off of Sextape.

Previous: Fearce Villain feat. Louis V - "Ransom Freestyle"

Brainstorm (Dyme Def) - "Yo Bitch"

The latest from Dyme Def's youngest member. It's not my ish, but some people will feel it. I'm still waiting on some new old Dyme Def sound, but that's just me. Sextape dropping soon.

Brainstorm (Dyme Def) - "Yo Bitch"
Previous: Dyme Def - "Do Something"

Dyme Def - Do Something Mixtape

New Dyme Def for free? My day just got a whole lot better. The DJ Scene-mixed mixtape includes snippets of old Dyme Def songs as well as some new songs of their upcoming EP. I was expecting some whole songs, but I guess we'll have to wait a few days. Overall, it's a less than spectacular prelude to Sex Tape (dropping December 15th). Hit the jump for the link.

Peace, Love, & Hip Hop,

Noah

So my day just got a whole lot better. As a prelude to their Sex Tape EP (release date 12/15), my favorite group has announced that they will be dropping the DJ Scene-hosted Do Something Mixtape on December 10th (a few songs from Sex Tape will be featured on the mixtape). Hit the link for the artwork/tracklist for Sex Tape as well as four of the better tracks DD has released over the past year.

Peace, Love, & Dyyyyyyyme Def,

Noah

I apologize to my daily readership that I haven't been more frequent with my posts the past couple days. School/crew has been hitting me pretty hard and the gf is coming into town this weekend, so I've been concerned with other things.

Anyway, here's the latest cut off of Dyme Def's No Beat Is Safe series in which they rhyme over other people's beats (they've been taking suggestions via twitter). In this edition, Brain raps over Officer Ricky's finest. I've also included the three previous cuts from the series (so far, my favorite is "Bang It Out", but "Kinda Like A Big Deal" comes close). Sex Tape EP dropping this winter...

Peace, Love, & Dyyyyyyme Def,
Noah

Previous: Dyme Def - "Freshinmykicks"

Brainstorm - "Mafia Music"

Dyme Def - "RedRum"

Fearce Villain - "Kinda Like A Big Deal"

Brainstorm - "Bang It Out"

Dyme Def - "Time4That"

I blame my obligations to class for not getting this out earlier, but here's the latest from the Seattle trio. This won't be on their winter EP Sextape, brought to you by the boys over at Soul Gorilla and T.I.T.S. Brand Clothing, but was on an EP that the group decided to scrap to promote Sextape. I've also included an older cut, that a lot of you may not have heard called "FreshInMyKicks." Enjoy.

Peace, Love, & Dyyyyyyme Def,
NW Noah

"FreshInMyKicks"

"Time4That"

Justin Bieber - "One Time" feat. Brainstorm (of Dyme Def)

Brainstorm finally dropped the link for this song that I've heard has been getting some serious radio time back home on KUBE. Props to Brain...I haven't heard of Justin Bieber before (at first listen I thought he was a girl), but evidently he's a 15-year-old from Canada who comes co-signed by Usher. As always, it's good to hear Brainstorm on a track and this is just more proof that he can spit over almost any beat/song.

I gotchu on Cloud 9,
Baby It's okay to float there,
I'll take you to the underline,
Insert witty quote here.

Peace, Love, & Hip Hop,
Ex Nihilo Noah

Justin Bieber - "One Time" feat. Brainstorm (of Dyme Def)

Dyme Def - "I Know" (Prod. Starkey)

New Dyme Def is new Dyme Def, so I'm not gonna complain, but I think the production on this track is a little bit overdone starting to grow on me. It comes courtesy of the Dubstep LA mixtape of several West Coast artists (which you can/cannot download...I'm on the fence about it myself and won't give a co-sign to it). Also, be sure to check out Brainstorm's very dope interview with All You Can Eat Hip Hop.

Peace, Love, & Hip Hop,
New New Noah

Dyme Def - "I Know" (Prod. Starkey)

Brainstorm (Dyme Def) - Say You Will (Kanye Cover) [Video]

I recently rediscovered this video from Dyme Def member Brainstorm. The thing I like about this video, courtesy of 800LB, is that it's beautiful in it's simplicity. It isn't flashy, and only involves Brain rapping while a projector displays images in the backdrop. Unlike the more costly that distract you from the lyrics, this video only further emphasizes the lyrics all the more (I have a hard time thinking of the lyrics of this song with out the visual of the video). Coming from Seattle, I appreciate the closing seconds with the Kingdome demolition. As far as the lyrics go, Brain kills it. Easily better than Kanye. The only version that I think comes close the be remix by Drake.

Peace, Love, & Hip Hop,
Noah

Dyme Def - Sportn' Life Promo CD

Just found this old school Dyme Def promo CD (circa 2006) and thought you guys would appreciate it...

It's only three tracks (of which, "Get Down" is on their debut Space Music), but I love it because it finds the group at a more raw point in their career, yet the tracks are still undeniably powerful.

Dyme Def - "LetitBe" and "Fresh2Def"

I'm sorry for dropping two Seattle groups two days in a row. I typically try and diversify my posts, but I'm going to see this group in a matter of hours and cannot contain my excitement. For those of you in Seattle, I definitely suggest checking out the show at the Mural Ampitheater at Seattle Center. The show with Fresh Espresso begins at 5 this evening.

Dyme Def is an up and coming trio out of Renton, Washington (a town just to the south of Seattle's downtown). The 206 natives are gaining a lot of hype in the underground and have done songs with the likes of OneBeLo and Saigon. Comprised of Fearce Villain, S.E.V., and Brainstorm, unlike many hip hop trios, Dyme Def has no weak link and each member feeds off the others, bringing an energy and lyrical prowess to match the incredibly dope beats designed primarily by Seattle legend BeanOne (with some additional production coming from Brainstorm). The trio doesn't sound like anything from the Northwest, a region generally associated with the Backpack-rap of Blue Scholars and Common Market, or for that matter the rest of the world.