Marlo DeMore - Still Dreaming

Marlo DeMore reps Bellmore so hard he made it a part of his rap name. (DeMore means 'of Bellmore.') Furthermore, the 24-year-old MC regularly performs at the Bellmore Pool House and even filmed a sizable portion of his "Angels and Minotaurs" video there. He's also been featured in Hot 97's WHO'S NEXT and made several appearances in the Long Island Cypher series, but for a true introduction to the kid, check out his BMC Beats-produced Still Dreaming mixtape below, and if you get the chance, see him live. You won't be disappointed.

EPMD Unfinished Business 25 Year Anniversary Show

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of their sophomore album Unfinished Business, EPMD will be performing live at The Emporium in Patchogue, two weeks from today, on Thursday, August 7.

Also on the bill are local acts Ancient Tongue, Status, DiE$eL-E, Contradiction, and Musick Medics.

Doors open at 7, show starts at 8, tickets cost $20 in advance or $25 at the door and are available via ticketfly. You must be 18 or older to attend.

Of course, if you're younger than 18 and want to attend an EPMD show, you should be allowed to do so on GP ... but don't bank on that getting you past security.

SmooVth and Rozewood Freestyle on WNYU Halftime Radio Show

Jazz and SmooVth at WNYU Radio Studio

Last night I happened onto Facebook only to learn my FB friend Sean SmooVth (better known simply as SmooVth, one half of Tha Connection) was about to appear on the WNYU Halftime Radio Show, so I tracked down the live audio stream, opened up Audacity and hit record ... something like we used to do with stereos and cassette tapes back in the day. Anyway, I got everything together just in time to record SmooVth drop a few verses live on the air. I was all ready to press stop and go to bed, but then Hus Kingpin and Rozewood called in from Cali, and DJ Eclipse convinced Roze to kick a freestyle (like a real one ... off the head) a cappella. As if that wasn't enough, Mike Raw of The UN called in too, at which point he and Jazz (Roc Marciano's manager, the guy with the sick beard pictured to the left) alluded to a new UN project coming soon. Mike Raw also said he'll be dropping a solo mixtape, featuring previously unreleased UN tracks, on Digi Crates very soon. So that happened.

For your listening pleasure, I've included the SmooVth and Rozewood performances below, followed by the full interview, in which you can hear all of the aforementioned for yourself and get some more information on upcoming releases from SmooVth and the rest of the clique.

Supreme Force - You Gotta Come Out Fresh / Handling Things

Released in 1986 on Nia Records, You Gotta Come Out Fresh / Handling Things is the first record to feature Rockville Centre-born, N. Babylon-raised Freddie Foxxx aka Bumpy Knuckles, who was then known as Freddie C (short for his government name, Freddie Campbell). The Supreme Force trio consisted of Campbell rapping alongside MCs Cool C and Easy E (not to be confused with the Philadelphia and Compton rappers who rose to fame in the late '80s using these same names). Check out the single below, download it with the instrumentals here, and as a special added bonus, enjoy this insane interview, in which Foxxx claims that he once beat Big Daddy Kane in a battle, that he was a more diverse MC than Rakim, and that he employs circular breathing. Props To The Break Of Dawn blog, from which I grabbed the single, and to whomever conducted the aforementioned interview in 2005 at Foxxx's space in Lobo Studios, Deer Park.

 

Strong Island's Ol' Skool Summer Soul Jam

This Saturday, July 12,10PM at The Emporium in Patchogue, Melle Mel, Brand Nubian, Oran "Juice" Jones, T-Ski Valley, Aly-Us and Joeski Love will be performing, with DJ Legend and DJ Mitti Nyce on the 1s and 2s and WBLS's Doctor Bob Lee hosting.

Tickets cost $15 in advance or $20 at the doors and are available via Ticketfly or by calling The Emporium box office at 631-627-8787. For bottle service call 631-275-6200.

This event is 21 and over, and supposedly there is a strictly enforced dress code (no hats, baggy pants, shorts, cut-off shirts, tank tops, jerseys or athletic sneakers), but it's hard to imagine a hip-hop show where sneaker culture isn't represented, so take that with a grain of salt maybe. 

Or wear a tux...

Argotec - Language Of The Heart

Argotec is a self-described glitch-hop duo consisting of Deer Park MC Alex Argot and producer/vocalist Rich Courage a.k.a. Defpotec. (Argot + Defpotec = Argotec.) Some might remember Alex Argot as an original member of the now-defunct underground hip-hop collective Conceptual Elements, which consisted of MCs and DJs from across the Island, representing a number of different neighborhoods and styles. Argot's was always one of the less braggadocios, more introspective styles, and that continues here on Language Of The Heart, Argotec's second full length, released March 26, 2013. On paper, the combination of spoken-word rhymes, glitched-out beats and Palumbian hooks might sound like a recipe for atrocity, but it works here, and damn well at that.