Tag Archives: 80s Hip Hop

2000s, 2004, BeyondThere, CDs, DJ Kam, Mixtape, Mr Bongo, Netgroove

DJ Kam – Ear Drum Medicine (Netgroove, 2004 Mix CD)

A 2004 CD Mixtape from the BeyondThere production team member and Mr Bongo record shop resident, DJ Kam.

This promo-only mix was released in a CD-single jewel case on his own Netgroove label and is filled with an often obscure and occasionally not-so-obscure, selection of Old School Hip Hop, some Independent Hip Hop he had been involved in making from the time, and a plethora of breaks and beats all seamlessly mixed and beatmatched.

Featuring: BeyondThere, Just Four, Grandmaster Flash, Spyder D, Kurtis Blow, Outlaw 4, Manzel, Fonda Rae, T-Ski Valley, Cotton Candi, Tom Tom Club, Soho, Kenny Dope and many more. No track listing was included with the release… so you will just have to figure that out yourself!

1980s, 1990s, 2006, Aroe, Aroe and the Soundmakers, CDs, Gunshot, Hijack, Mixtape, Sleeping Giants

Aroe and the Soundmakers – The Crown Jewels Vol. 1 (Sleeping Giants Recordings, 2006 Mix CD)

While much fuss is made about US hip-hop’s golden era, it’s very easy to forget that the British rap movement basked in similar glory around the same time. Quantity wise, the output might not have been equal – and understandably so, given the sheer size of the US and its obvious head start in the rap game – but in terms of quality, the UK had its fair share of recorded gems.

Taking inspiration from DJ Ivory’s Hear No Evil mixes, and more importantly the deliberate absence of a track listing, UK & Brighton-based Graff Legend Aroe, has forged an anonymous compilation of landmark classics, forgotten treasures and elusive rarities.

What unites each track is that they’re all culled from British rap’s back catalogue, a vinyl heritage that may prove more extensive than many would first realise.

Whether it sparks a sudden interest and new quests among the vinyl junkies with the will and the wallet to identify and acquire each record remains to be seen. Hopefully, what it does do is serve as a worthy salute to UK Rap history.