Eclectic Grooves

If you live in Portland OR, you have no excuse for missing the Hail Mary Mallon show tonight at the Hawthorne Theatre. Hail Mary Mallon is the culmination of two top-tier MC's from the Rhymesayers stable: Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic. The duo's latest long player was one of my most-played records from 2014, and continues to stay on repeat in 2015. Aesop Rock has been one of my favorite MC's ever since the lyrically and verbally dense Labor Days has graced my ears with its presence, and Rob has been Aesop's partner in crime ever since the glory days of the now defunct Definitive Jux label. For my review of their latest record Bestiary , click here , and go to #11 on the list. And for the uninitiated, check out the following YouTube video of their album complete with one of the best  Donkey Kong games ever played. You'll thank me later!

A couple weeks ago I was talking to a friend while we waited for our pizza when a song from the short-lived 90's band Filter played on the restaurant's PA. This lead us into a discussion where I admitted to liking them at one point, but going on to say that I don't really listen to aggressive, angst-filled music at this point in my life. He asked me what kind of music I did listen to these days, and I literally drew a blank.This is probably due to the fact that I listen to so much music that eventually it all starts to run together in an endless stream of chords and notes. Such is the life of a music junkie. I realized that it wasn't accurate to say that I didn't like angst-filled music anymore, just not the same type that fueled my teenage years. The answer that I was able to come up with is that I am currently digging music that has a funky groove or rhythm with unexpected drum breaks, and copious amounts of fuzz-guitar laced with wah-wah. Of course, he wanted ...