Daily Archives: September 30, 2010

AS HE GOES ON…
IS THIS THE LAST WE WILL SEE OF BREEZ EVAHFLOWIN?
RAPPER TO RELEASE FINAL ALBUM, OCTOBER 12, 2010

With his last album receiving rave reviews for the way it dealt with the angst of dealing with personal and artistic transition, Breez Evahflowin’s newest album As He Goes On… set for release on October 12, 2010 reveals the mature MC: relaxed, confident, and wise. If the last album outlined the personal battles facing Breez as an MC, his newest reveals the aftermath. Unpretentious, at peace with his status as a mature artist ready to leave the game, Breez delivers his closing argument. The verdict? As He Goes On… is the last testament of an MC. It’s a title which alludes to the passing of a life.

In an interview with UGSMAG.com Breez acknowledges how he has changed during the course of his career. Coming into the scene as a combative battle rapper, he is leaving it as a songwriter who makes music “from a 38-old, for people in their 30s and maybe people in their 20s who understand what I’m talking about.” If a person’s music reflects their life, then As He Goes On…. reveals the changes of growing older, ultimately opening the door to the final transition. In As He Goes On… Breez steps through that door with no regrets.

Breez addresses his contemplative and final CD to the mature listeners he knows to be out there, and who have followed him through the years. This listener exists on the margins. Ignored by a music industry focused on gimmicky hooks and made up personalities, they find their music in the underground clubs, the pages of myspace, and videos on youtube. This sophisticated audience is perhaps the greatest untapped audience of hip-hop today, and they seek music more in tune with their age and experience. In Sound of My Life Breez speaks to them with clarity,

There will never be another Breez Evah’ nowhere
And there will never be another you
That’s if you keepin’ it true
Right now we dealin’ with some deeper issues
In this age of information, all the secrets is through
And you don’t know me yet
Young cats who show respect
Share it with ya’ peers, ‘cuz this here’s age appropriate
So we don’t forget
What the rhyme and beats is fo’
(The sound of my life got me reminiscing through the radio)
(Got me walkin’ down memory lane, thinkin’ about all the things that I’ve been through….)

Reflective and honest, the songs contained in As He Goes On… do what hip-hop does best: tell a story. It’s the closing chapter to Breez Evahflowin’s unique career. Featuring guest artists such as Rob Swift, Immortal Technique, Homeboy Sandman, and more, As He Goes On… takes one last look at a career defined by battle, but transformed by personal growth. As the MC closes the book, he delivers last rights and imparts the message of an artist at peace with his own successes and failures. His only request? Remember him for his honesty. In a new video interview with Emilio M. Junior on Trendsettin.com Breez revealed his plans to move on to other things:

“I’m feelin’ the weight of responsibility at this point, y’know? It’s not the same that it was before…. For the most part, I make music for myself. And I’ve come to accept that. After a long time I’ve come to realize that…. Ultimately at this point in my life, Breez needs me more than I need Breez. And that’s big, right there for me personally … Just remember my honesty, that’s all I want people to do, and it’s cool.”

Perhaps if someday listeners decide to rise up and demand sophisticated hip-hop for the mature listener, we’ll see Breez make an appearance again. Until that time though, As He Goes On… is likely to be the last we’ll hear of this multifaceted MC. It is a most fitting farewell from an artist who came to his own tested in battle, and who now sets the torch down at peace. Take it for what it is, it might be the last you ever hear. As He Goes On… Available October 12, 2010 in stores, on iTunes & Amazon.com

Title: As He Goes On…
Label: Domination Recording, LLC
Copyright: 2010 Little Ax / Domination Recordings

Tracklist:
1. Ageless (feat. Dirt E Dutch)
2. Sound of My Life (feat. Paulie Ethnic)
3. As He Goes On (feat. L.I.F.E. Long, Kid Lucky)
4. Wind
5. The Best (feat. Core Rhythym, Infinito 2017, Freestyle, Rabi Darkside, Homeboy Sandman, Atari Blitzkrieg, Agent 23, Dacapo)
6. Cornerstone
7. Wanted You
8. Uplift (feat. Rob Swift)
9. 30 Minutes (feat. Ria Mate)
10. Pay 2 Live (feat. Shonuff)
11. Now
12. Sacrifice
13. Dream (feat. Rob Swift)
14. Land of the Gun (feat. Immortal Technique)
15. One Mo Round

Free Download: The Best (Dirt E. Dutch Remix) (feat. Core Rhythym, Infinito 2017, Freestyle, Rabi Darkside, Homeboy Sandman, Atari Blitzkrieg, Agent 23, Dacapo)

All songs mastered by Eric Bassriel of Little Ax media

Breez Evahflowin
A founding member of the Stronghold underground rap collective, Breez Evahflowin (born Enrique DaSilva) emerged as a leading force in the New York and national battle rap scenes during the late ’90s, and was crowned the national grand champion of the famed Blaze Battle competition in 1999. During his freestyle rap days, Breez released his own independent solo 12-inch “Forsaken” in 1996, which appeared on the BBE Music compilation Hip-Hop Forever (1998) by DJ/producer Kenny Dope. In the early 2000s, Breez recorded singles for an assortment of different indie labels, including the Boston-based Detonator Records, as well as contributing a slew of guest appearances on records and tours. During his tenure, Breez has worked with several underground rap artists including Vast Aire, Slug, Chali 2na and the Molemen, and released his own solo EP “Fly” on Just Be Records in 2003. Breez Evahflowin’s first proper full-length album “Troublemakers” – a collaboration with producer Dirt E. Dutch – was released on Little Ax Media in 2008, followed by the critically acclaimed “Breez Deez Treez” released on Domination Recordings in 2009.

Little Axe Media
Dirt E. Dutch is a hip hop creator and curator from Connecticut. He is a longtime host and producer for IndieFeed, the oldest and largest music podcast network featured on iTunes. He is also owner of the record label Little Ax, and CT hip hop coalition the Antfarm Affiliates. As a host and producer for IndieFeed, his hip hop show has received over 750 five-star ratings and reviews in the iTunes Store, reaching 500,000 Nielson verified listens per month. The hip hop podcast has maintained a steady ranking in the daily top audio podcasts list in the iTunes podcast directory. In 2008 IndieFeed received a “Best of iTunes” award. In 2007 IndieFeed was the featured in-store music used in Guitar Center retail outlets nationwide. In 2006 IndieFeed was selected as one of eight “Best Online Pick” by Business Week Magazine. As a music producer he released his debut LP with Breez Evahflowin in 2008 entitled Troublemakers, which made it as far as #2 on the CMJ Hip Hop music charts. He has also appeared in and/or co-produced several videos for several artists in collaboration with director Arjen Noordeman of Elasticbrand LLC. The Dutchman’s latest endeavor is Beat Fead, a hip hop instrumentals podcast showcasing the highly talented, rarely accredited producers of the genre.

Domination Recordings
DominationRec.com

Produced Entirely By DJ Muggs, “Kill Devil Hills” Features Guest Appearances From B-Real, Raekwon, Sean Price, Everlast, Slaine, Chace Infinite, O.C., Q-Unique, Vinnie Paz & Sick Jacken

DJ Muggs is one of the industries most talented and best known producers.  Since Cypress Hill’s formation in 1991, the pioneering rap-rock quartet has come a long way from the streets of South Central L.A. Over the course of its 19-year history, Cypress Hill has sold more than 17 million albums worldwide, including more than 11 million records in the U.S. alone. The group has garnered 15 multi-platinum, platinum and gold certifications from the RIAA; headlined Lollapalooza, Woodstock and the group’s own Smokin’ Grooves tour, appeared on “Saturday Night Live,” made the late-night talk show circuit—all the while breaking down the musical and cultural barriers between hip-hop, alternative, metal, rock, reggae, ska and Latin music. In 2008, DJ Muggs, along with Cypress Hill received a VH1 Hip Hop Honors, to celebrate the vision and innovation that the group continues to bring to Hip Hop, strengthening its force around the world.  

Yet, that only touches on what Muggs has done as a member of Cypress Hill, as his highly-influential solo-projects (Soul Assassin Series, Grandmaster’s with Wu-Tang Clan’s GZA) and not to mention producing hits for House of Pain “Jump Around” and Ice Cube “Check Yo Self” among many others.  Ill Bill was obviously honored to be working with Muggs, as he affirms “I’ve always been a huge Muggs fan and his Vs. series is one of the last places to hear the vibe that made albums by Cypress Hill & Gang Starr so dope. Not too many producers can craft an entire album on their own, let alone an album that’s a classic. Muggs has done it many times over the past 20 years. It’s an honor to be part of that legacy.”

For the vast majority of his career, whether solo or in a group capacity, Muggs has established a precedent for working hand in hand with artists and creating cohesive bodies of work, rather then spreading around beats from project to project and that rings true once again on Kill Devil Hills “I prefer getting in the lab and actually creating projects with people instead of just sending out beat CDs. I’m a producer in the fullest extent, where I like to not only produce an album; but craft an album. Being able to start a record from the beginning and following through with it, making sure that all the songs compliment each other. I’ve always come from making albums and producing my records—I’m still into that” relays DJ Muggs.

Ill Bill was a founding member of Non Phixion who released their seminal debut, The Future Is Now, in 2002 and has also released two influential solo LP’s.  Bill has also released an LP as a member of the bi-coastal conglomerate La Coka Nostra (which also includes Everlast, Danny Boy and DJ Lethal of House Of Pain and newcomer Slaine).  Ill Bill’s The Hour Of Reprisal (2008) showed flashes of what the future would hold, as Bill & Muggs collaborated on two tracks (“This Is Who I Am” & “Only Time Will Tell”) for Bill’s most recent solo-LP. 

Kill Devil Hills is entirely produced by DJ Muggs and features appearances by B-Real, Raekwon, Sean Price, Everlast, Slaine, Chace Infinite, O.C. Q-Unique, Vinnie Paz and others, but by going where instinct took them, Ill Bill & DJ Mugg’s collaborative union manifested into a sonically cohesive album; seemingly very organically as Ill Bill asserts “”Production & conceptually, this record plays out like a movie. All the songs connect. It moves like a concept record the way the beats blend with the words even though we didn’t plan it like that. It’s basically it’s own sound, the Muggs vs. Bill sound” and Muggs adds “the chemistry between us was very natural. Any decisions we had to make, it was easy, like we’d worked together for years.  When we sat back & heard the final product, man, we were both blown away.”

Tracklisting and credits for DJ Muggs vs Ill Bill “Kill Devil Hills” LP:

1.) Cult Assassin
2.) Trouble Shooters f/Sean Price, O.C. & Sick Jacken
3.) Paul Stanley
4.) Illuminati 666
5.) Amputated Saint f/B-Real
6.) Skull & Guns f/Everlast & Slaine of La Coka Nostra
7.) Giants Stadium f/Q-Unique
8.) The Owl
9.) Millenniums Of Murder
10.) Chase Manhattan f/Raekwon
11.) Luciferian Imperium
12.) ILL BILL TV
13.) Secrets Worth Dying For f/Chace Infinite
14.) 2013
15.) Kill Devil Hills f/B-Real & Vinnie Paz
16.) Narco Corridos f/Sick Jacken & Uncle Howie

(****All Tracks Produced By DJ Muggs)

For More Information on DJ Muggs vs Ill Bill please visit:
http://www.myspace.com/illbill
http://www.myspace.com/djmuggs
http://twitter.com/ILLBILL1972
http://twitter.com/DJ_Muggs