April 25 • Bogart's
0 Comments · Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Hip Hop sensation Richard Colson Baker, better known as Machine Gun Kelly (or MGK), announced his current Lace Up
tour in novel fashion; he became his own street team.
March 9 • Mainstay Rock Bar
0 Comments · Wednesday, March 6, 2013
In the short amount of time it takes to get through the
EP Synesthesia: The Yellow Movement (just under 24 minutes), Ill Poetic takes the listener on a funky,
soulful trip through his creative process.
Feb. 20 • Thompson House
0 Comments · Monday, February 18, 2013
Aesop’s Indie style is reminiscent of early Beck while his
rumbling vocal rasp and brilliant sense of wordplay leans in the
direction of Mike Doughty, not to mention the MC’s numerous Hip Hop
heroes.
Feb. 19 • 20th Century Theatre
0 Comments · Monday, February 11, 2013
Mod Sun works a feel-good genre angle he’s dubbed Hippy
Hop that runs on sunshine, positive vibrations and righteous herb. His
infectious positivity and zest for living makes him Hip Hop’s Andrew WK.
Feb. 8 • Ballroom at the Taft Theatre
0 Comments · Monday, February 4, 2013
Typically, a musician's choice of touring partners says much about him or her. Exhibit A: Astronautalis. The Virginia-born, Seattle-via-Minneapolis rapper, born
Andy Bothwell, has shared bills with Tegan and Sara, k-os, Flobots,
Bleubird, Sims and Busdriver.
by Alli Walker
10.05.2012
Ohio Hip Hop artist releases new, much-anticpated mixtape
Sitting in my high school government class, I didn’t think
the guy quoting South Park was
someone I’d hear about after graduation, but less than a year after he put his
best foot forward, I hear Cal Scruby is now a boy genius.
On Sept. 19, Scruby released Boy Genius, which is his
second Hip Hop mixtape in less than a year. In two weeks, Boy Genius is less than a
thousand downloads from surpassing Best Foot Forward, which Scruby released
last November.
Over the 10 months since officially entering the music
scene, Scruby has taken off. While making Boy Genius, Scruby studied at Ohio
State University and played a few shows. His biggest shows included opening for
J. Cole at May’s BuckeyeThon Benefit Concert at OSU. Recently, he opened for
Machine Gun Kelley and performed at Ohio University’s 10Fest.
Along with live performances, Scruby and his team at LandSea
Media produced enough videos
to keep fans entertained while they worked on Boy Genius.
The wait for the new music was worthwhile. I was instantly blown away at the quality of
the music. It didn’t sound as if it was produced in a dorm room, but rather a
professional studio. The audio was balanced and the vocals weren’t hidden under
a blanket of bass.
As for the lyrics, Scruby uses a mix of wordplay and comedy
in his songs, and it works. His tracks follow a life of love (or rather, lovemaking), success and partying.
Although I find these themes to be a stereotype of rap, Scruby pulls off the stereotypical
rap lifestyle with ease.
Mixtape opener “Double Time” features Cincinnati’s own
DJ ETrayn. He welcomes fans to the musical journey before the song begins. The start of this
track is reminiscent of Dumbfoundead’s “Green.” This song makes me want to lean
my driver’s seat back and drive with one hand on the steering wheel while doing
50 in a 25.
What seems to be a fan favorite is “Fux With Me.” Crowds at 10Fest wore shirts donned with "I Fux With Cal Scruby." The song isn’t my personal
favorite, but I enjoy the tour of people who "fux" with Scruby and how he doesn’t
let it slow him down.
My personal favorite is the bonus track “Midwest City,”
which is a tribute to his hometown, that city where they sin two times. This closes the album and leaves me wanting
to hear more from Scruby.
Even though high school is long gone, I can’t go somewhere
without hearing about the guy who was super cereal about ManBearPig and now,
he’s super cereal about his music.
Check out Scruby on Facebook
and go here to download Boy Genius.
Oct. 4 • Bogart's
0 Comments · Tuesday, October 2, 2012
In the Rap game today, Danny Brown is a man among boys.
Not only is his musical style unmatched in the underground Hip Hop scene
but, at 31 years young, Brown was spitting rhymes long before Drake
took his first spin in that wheelchair on Degrassi.
July 26 • Riverbend Music Center
0 Comments · Monday, July 23, 2012
Having friends in high places never hurts and Kendrick Lamar has the fascinating fortune to boast a friend in a really
high place. In a recent interview, the Compton, Calif.-cultivated
rapper described Lady Gaga as “a good friend” — a connection solidified
by the Pop bigwig making an appearance during Lamar's set at the recent
Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago.
July 21 • Fountain Square
0 Comments · Monday, July 16, 2012
In the swelling tide of Dance producers with great ears, a
metric ton of talent and the laser-focused potential to take Electronic
Dance music to an exponentially higher level, few stars shine as bright
as Pierce Fulton. Recently spotlighted by genre bible Mixmag
in their “Keep An Eye On” column, Fulton is one of the most gifted
boardsmen among the Dance scene’s Nu Skool producers, an amazing
accomplishment for the 19-year-old Vermont native.
June 15 • Bogart's
0 Comments · Monday, June 11, 2012
Theophilus London’s selection as opening act on the
current tour of adventurous Pop artist Santigold was probably the easiest pairing the booking agent ever put it
together. Santigold might be under “Pop” at the record store, but
if there was a bin labeled “Various” or “Other,” that’s where her
records would be most at home. Likewise, London is a “Hip Hop” artist, but his music combines so many varied elements.