For The Civil But Discontent...

Great new umbrellas Materious. Not much for me to say about these, I think their coolness speaks for itself. Fight the rain!

Buy them here

How To Stick It To The Man Pt. 1

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The Civil Underground's first segment of our new instructional course on sticking it to the man. Part One: How to pay a traffic ticket. A Washington man by the name of Michael Harold Lynch was recently charged $206 for a traffic violation, which isn't very remarkable, but Lynch did something I wish I had thought of the last time I had to pay a ticket; he filled a plastic bag with $206 in change, urinated in it, and sent it in. The best part is, he didn't do anything illegal. According to postal officials, it is acceptable to mail bodily fluids as long as they are properly contained and don't leak or smell. I strongly urge everyone to pay all fines this way from now on.

Method Man: G-Unit Radio Freestyle

In this video we see the M-E-T-H-O-D Man busting a sick freestyle. Normally I wouldn't post anything that contains the words G-unit but seeing how this is Method Man I figured I could make an exception.

Prince: Chocolate Box feat. Q-tip

The artist formerly known as O(+> and Q-tip team up in this video for the song Chocolate Box. It's good to see talented musicians teaming up like this to make great music.

Everywhere Is Kooley

Video from Kooley High's new mixtape Kooley Is High.

Download the mixtape here

N.A.S.A.: Gifted feat. Kanye West, Santigold & Lykke Li

This is my favorite video so far for any of the songs off of N.A.S.A.'s album, The Spirit Of Apollo. N.A.S.A. also plans to release a full-length documentary film which will include interviews with many of the artists who contributed to The Spirit of Apollo and behind the scenes footage of studio sessions.

Visit their myspace here

Exile x DJ Day: "Dope Man" Routine

Here's Exile and DJ Day performing their "Dope Man" routine at the Radio release party in Seattle. Radio is now available in stores and on iTunes and keep an eye out for remixes with the likes of Blu and Fashawn.

Smirnoff x Nice & Smooth x Pac Div: Funky For You '09

This may be just part of a Smirnoff campaign trying to get consumers to think of their vodka as "hip," but as long as they keep the songs coming I'll humor them and say that it is. This song features Nice & Smooth and Pac Div, who are quickly becoming one of my favorite groups. Check out the song below.

Funky For You '09:



Download it here

If you like that you'll also like the previous song in the campaign, If I Ruled The World '09, by Nas:



Download it here

David Ellis: 8 Million Stories

David Ellis: 8 Million Stories, 2009 from matthew mascotte on Vimeo.

You know player pianos? Well, this is a player garbage can.

Adidas Urban Art Guide

This is really only interesting to people with iPhones though it may make some people go out and buy one. Adidas recently launched a new app called the Urban Art Guide which can lead you to graffiti in cities all over the globe. The app allows users to log locations where they spot street art, upload pictures of the piece, and then uses the iPhone's GPS function to lead others who have the Urban Art Guide straight to the art. Then, once they get there, users can rate the art which helps others decide which pieces they want to see. The best though is that its free.

Download it here

Saint Pauli: I Need Rhythm

Here's the music video for I Need Rhythm by Saint Pauli.

Wale x Bun B x Señor Kaos x Young Chris: Searching For An Outlet

Pretty dope new song from Wale, Bun B, Young Chris, and Señor Kaos. I like, but the problem with songs like this where a bunch of emcees rap together is that there is always a weak link. That's just my opinion though and I have some pretty high standards, judge for yourself.

Download it here

The Good Morning Mixtape

Brought to you by DL along with Nappy Afro, Kevin Nottingham, and Your Favorite White Boy, The Good Morning Mixtape is a collection of some of the best Hip Hop out there to wake up to. The mixtape features songs not only by up-and-coming artists such as 88 Keys and Skyzoo but also established artists like Ice Cube, Kanye West, and Run DMC. Peep the sample song below.

88 Keys-Morning Wood


Download it here

Lupe Album Update

Many of you heard the news about the indefinite postponement of the final album in Lupe's trilogy, LupE.N.D., but now it appears that the album is being called off all together. Lupe announced his plans via his new twitter page and, in addition to canceling LupE.N.D., also announced that his new project, originally named The Great American Rap Album, will be titled We Are Lasers. Here's what Lupe had to say about the new title:

"[The name] Comes from some repressed high school outcast shit…blended amidst And He Gets The Girl ambitions. I’ve been working for about a week and around 60% done."

Lupe has plans to release two albums this year including We Are Lasers and as much as I was looking forward LupE.N.D. I'm relieved that Lupe won't be retiring just yet (official word is that he will still retire, just not quite so soon.)

Asher Roth: Just Listen (Acapella)

I have to admit, I doubted Asher Roth's skills as a lyricist. I thought he was overrated, but he's proven me wrong, which is good news for everyone because that means he dropped an ill track. In this video, Asher Roth drops science while rapping acapella.

Wale: Chillin' feat. Lady Gaga

After a whole lot of teasers at his live shows Wale has finally dropped Chillin' featuring Lady Gaga. This is the first single off his upcoming album Attention: Deficit which should come out this summer, meanwhile Back To The Feature is due April 29th.

Download it here

Tona: Major feat. Tenisha

Here's a very dope video, for the very dope song Major by Tona featuring Tenisha.

Samsung x Sheep

I don't know much about sheep but it seems to me like this wouldn't be easy to do. All I can say about this is that I now firmly support the addition of sheep herding to the X Games...or at least the Olympics...maybe ESPN Ocho will pick up coverage.

Mos Def: The Ecstatic Preview

Mos Def - Words - The Ecstatic - in stores Spring 2009


Mos Def hasn't dropped an cd in a while but that will just make his upcoming album, The Ecstatic, all the more enjoyable. This video is a promotional trailer for the album and personally reminded me his freestyle in the park from Freestyle The Art of Rhyme. If all the songs on The Ecstatic are this good then I'm pretty sure that the Mighty Mos Def has a classic on his hands.

Nickelus F: Bubble Lip

VA's own Nickelus F has let loose yet another track in anticipation of his upcoming album, Heathen. I really liked this song because, aside from his usual metaphors and punchlines, about half way through the song Nickelus F brings out a very sick flow. It's not the best flow I've ever heard, but I just really really like it for some reason.

Download it here

Pharrel Williams Buys Textile Company

Hip Hop producer and clothing designer Pharrel Williams (a VA native) recently added to his entrepreneurial résumé by becoming co-owner of the textile company Bionic Yarn, which manufactures cloth from recycled plastic bottles. Here's what Pharrel had to say:
.
“I have to think about the future of this planet,” said Williams in an e-mail interview, adding that he plans to use the fabric in his own clothing lines, although there are not yet any designs in the works. “I love quality,” he said, “And quality with environmental benefits is the cherry on top.”

You can visit the Bionic Yarn website Here

Consequence: Buggin' Out '09 Feat. Kid Cudi

10 years after its release Consequence and Kid Cudi remake the classic song by A Tribe Called Quest with a new set of lyrics and the same bumping vibe. The video was directed by Rick Cordero.

Puma: L.I.F.T.

Normally I wouldn't post a commercial but this one is just plain cool. It feature a man in and a woman dancing as images are projected onto the walls and tables in the room which are ever changing courtesy of stagehands opening doors and moving things around from dark spots where nothing is being projected. To top it all off the dancers themselves are projected on as well, but I'm not trying to ruin it for you, just watch the video.

Wale: Blog And New Song

If you haven't heard of Hypebeast before it is a online magazine for style and culture and is one of the top places to find breaking news on limited edition clothing and sneakers, and artists such as Kaws and Takashi Murakami. More importantly Hypebeast also features a section of blogs from an assortment of artists, musicians, etc. (Lupe used to be on there) who use the section as a personal journal. Recently Wale became the newest member of the Hypebeast blogging family and for his second post leaked another song off his upcoming mixtape. The song is titled Wordplay and features Curren$y and Tre of UCB.

Visit his blog here
or
Download the song here

The Ocarina Of Rhyme

Three things I love; Hip Hop, mash ups, and video games, so it goes without saying that I was incredibly excited when a friend of mine clued me into this mash up(props to Preston a.k.a. DJ Money Handz) by Team Teamwork which combines vocals from artists like Clipse & Jay-Z with theme music from The Ocarina of Time. Of course this isn't the first time someone has mixed video games with Hip Hop but that doesn't mean this isn't dope. Other artists featured include; MF Doom, Aesop Rock, Dr. Dre, and Snoop Dogg. Check out the streaming songs below.



Download it here

The Hundreds: '09 New Era's

Here are some fresh new fitted caps from The Hundreds. They are available for purchase at their online store.

John Forte: Runnin Up That Hill Video

George W. Bush didn't do too many things right during his time as president but he did shorten John Forte's prison sentence from 14 to 7 years so I guess we can forgive Iraq...right? Whatever. John Forte hasn't made much noise in the industry--mostly because of the whole prison thing--but he did produce and co-write a couple tracks for The Score by The Fugees back in the day so rest assured he doesn't lack talent. In this video Forte remixes Kate Bush’s 1985 track “Runnin Up That Hill.”

Nickelus F: Underground Freestyle

Nickelus F's album, Heathen, drops later this month. In the meantime here's another sick freestyle from the VA native.

Download it here

Vintage Kaws Footage-NYC & Tokyo

Once upon a time, before Original Fake and hyped out art exhibitions in California, Kaws was just another graffiti artist. In this video we see Kaws before he blew doing what made him famous.

Video From Space Invader

Those of you who read the 40 Street Artists You Should Know Beside Banksy already know the name Space Invader. for those of you who didn't see the list, Space Invader is a street artist who works with mosaics generally depicting iconic video game images. Anyway, this is a video from him.

Kanye West x Ahmad x Murdoch: Wake Up Show Freestyle

Ahmad was one of the first emcees I ever listened too and its great to see him in his element. Oh yeah there's some guy named Kanye rhymin' too, never heard of him but I can tell he's going places.

Christian Faur: Crayon Mosaics

The word 'awesome' is thrown around quite a lot these days and I think we've begun to forget what it means for something to be truly awesome. This artwork by Christian Faur should remind you. It's a mosaic made entirely out of crayons, a feat so incredible there is really only one word to describe it...awesome. Here's what the artist has to say:

My earliest memories of making art involve the use of wax crayons. I can still remember the pleasure of opening a new box of crayons: the distinct smell of the wax, the beautifully colored tips, everything still perfect and unused. Using the first crayon from a new box always gave me a slight pain. Through a novel technique that I have developed, I again find myself working with the familiar form of the crayon.

Because of the three-dimensional nature of the crayons, the individual surface images appear to change form as one moves about the gallery space. The images completely disappear when viewed from close up, allowing one to read the horizontally sequenced crayon text and to take in the beautifully colored crayon tips — all the while being reminded of that first box of crayons.

More pictures here

Don't Panic: Profile of Benedict Radcliffe

This guy is not the most interesting interview subject, but his art is damn tight.

John Mayer Drops A Beat

John Mayer recently put this video of himself playing with an MPC up on youtube. Not bad for a first time.

Nickelus F: The Thank You Mixtape (version pi)

This mixtape is, on a scale of 1 to dope, dope. I guess it's possible I like Nickelus F so much because he's a VA native but I suspect his rhymes have something to do with it. I mean, who can argue with lyrics like "And to there's no limit it's/like pool the way I take English and put a spin on it." This is definitely a mixtape you'll enjoy, and Nickelus F has even included some videos for your ipod too.

Click here to download it
or
Click here for the music videos

C. Finley: Wallpapered Dumpsters

Some cool street art from C. Finley. The name pretty much says it all.

For more images click here

RE:Generation Trailer

I'm really looking forward to this album. If you haven't heard of this yet, RE:Generation is an album re-imagining previously known and unknown Nat King Cole recordings by artists like The Roots, Cut Chemist, Will.I.Am, and Nas to name a few.

To hear the two singles click here

Japanese Graffiti

Here's an amazing video of some Japanese graffiti artists creating a mural over the course of one week. They repeatedly paint over their own work creating new art every time.

P.O.S.-Optimist

Jeepney: Think Big T-shirt

Here's a nice new tee from Jeepney. It features the mugs of three of the sickest emcees of all time. If you don't recognize their faces it's (from left to right) The Notorious B.I.G., Big L, & Big Pun. Also, if you don't recognize their faces, shame on you.

You can buy it here

Ivan Bravo: Bar-restaurant Icasual Mural

Yesterday night the product of two long years of work by Ivan Bravo was unveiled in Barcelona. Ivan hand-painted this mural at the Icasual Restaurant in Barcelona and filled it with a great amount of detail, interesting characters, and clever wordplay. Everything from the air vents to the bathroom doors was decorated so make sure to check out the pictures after the jump, or, if you happen to be in Barcelona, you can visit the restaurant here:

Bar-restaurant Icasual
Passeig del taulat 252
08019 Barcelona (Diagonal mar)
Theredmeetingpoint.com

More pictures here

House Of Tate #11

House of Tate #11 has finally dropped. The issue features some really talented artists and is available in full online. Also, if you're an artist, House of Tate is now accepting submissions for #12.

Read it here
or
Visit their main page

Affion Crockett: 2-0-0-9 feat. Talib Kweli

Affion Crockett isn't the first person I would expect to get a Talib Kweli feature, or for that matter, the second or third. If you don't recognize the name, Affion Crockett is probably best known for being a cast member on the comedy improv show, Wild-N-Out. He has also been on Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Def Comedy Jam, was in Ace Ventura 2, and was a voice actor for Rocket Power. I never watched that much of Wild-N-Out but I saw the episode where Affion breakdances with Common and that was pretty tight. Anyway, in this song Affion and Talib get down over the classic Common and Sadat-X instrumental for 1-9-9-9.



Download it here

Ludacris x The Roots: Theater Of The Mind Medley on Jimmy Fallon

Jimmy Fallon is getting some great musical guests when it comes to Hip Hop. And with The Roots as his house band this tends to lead to some great performances. This particular episode features Ludacris performing several songs off Theater of the Mind alongside Black Thought and The Roots.

Datpiff.com: Mixtape Madness

I've been a fan of Dat Piff for a long time. It has tons of great mixtapes, it's free (up to 5 downloads a day), and, unlike Limewire or Bittorrent, you will never get a virus from it. Well, Dat Piff has recently begun a wonderful promotion titled Mixtape Madness, or 31 Mixtapes in 31 Days. They are starting off strong too, with mixtapes from Talib Kweli, Eminem, and Dr. Dre among others. You can stream/download all the mixtapes at DatPiff.com.

Click here to see the mixtapes

Stussy Japan: World Tour Neon Shirts

Slowly but surely Stussy Japan is unveiling this year's World Tour collection. The shirt pictured above will be dropping March 7th in both grey and pink. Additional colorways are set for release at later dates as well

Spotted In NYC: Super Mario Mosaic

I saw this over at Wooster Collective. I thought it was pretty clever of the artist to put Mario under a pipe (he should have painted the pipe green though.) There's no information on who it's by but that doesn't stop this from being really cool.

The Amen Break

Here is an absolutely fascinating video that chronicles the history of the Amen Break. I had always heard of certain underground electronic sub-genres based around a single break beat but never did realize where the beat was from or its history. And I had never realized just how many genres it spanned. This video is 18 minutes long but it is well worth it.

Nickelus F: Heathen (Video)

I'm really becoming a Nickelus F fan. He's a VA native and a sick emcee. Lately Nickelus F has been dropping songs non-stop in preparation for his upcoming album, Heathen. Now, in addition to all the great tracks, he has dropped a great video too. Heathen comes out on the 12th.

Lil Wayne vs. Charles Gibson: Scrabble

Charles Gibson and Lil Wayne decided to have a little scrabble match while waiting backstage at the Jimmy Kimmel Live show.

Ripo: "Reflect On" Project

Since 2006 street artist Ripo has been working on a project that involves painting on and installing mirrors in public areas. Recently Ripo offered this explanation of the project on his site:

"Mirrors are more than just something to see yourself in.
As a child I always thought they were actually windows into another world,
one that was so familiar yet completely opposite.
The Reflect On project speaks via these windows. They are messages to us from our other selves
and a reflection of the world we inhabit.
The photos of these paintings are simply snapshots of paintings that
are constantly moving and changing.
When you look into a mirror you are the only subject that it speaks to and about
in that moment. When you move on it is no longer yours.
In the public space these mirrors are everyone's and they are about everyone.
This project has been ongoing since 2006 and the mirrors
have shown their faces (and yours) in Bucharest, Istanbul, Barcelona, NYC, and Mexico City."

For more information and additional pictures click here

New Skateboard Graphics

New Skateboard Graphics celebrates the best in contemporary skateboard design with over 400 full-color illustrations, ranging from the skulls and splatters of zero to the NYC grit of Zoo York and 5Boro to the sketchy lines of Evan Hecox's designs for Chocolate.It has 134 pages and full-color pictures.

You can buy it here

The Roots: Slow Jammin' The News feat. Jimmy Fallon

Jimmy Fallon got off to a good start last night as Conan O'Brien's replacement. Of course it helped that he has the greatest house band in the world, The Roots. Check out the video above, highly entertaining and it sounds good to boot.

Lad Musician: Sneaker 920

Lad Musician always has fly gear and these new sneakers are no exception.I really don't think its possible to put on something with more class than these and still be wearing a sneaker. But there's no such thing as a free lunch, especially when it comes to streetwear. These kicks will set you back about $375.00.

They are available at Opening Ceremony

Asher Roth: 20 minute Freestyle

Asher Roth was a guest on The Tim Westwood Show in England. In these freestyles Westwood attempts to tempt Asher Roth to diss Eminem by playing only Eminem Instrumentals, but Roth doesn't bite so eventually Westwood gives up and lets Asher Roth just spit. There are breaks in the rhyming but they are minimal.



Download it here

Mista Mista: Djust My Tie feat. LJC

This cat has some serious lyrics. Talk about a good way to start off the week. For more information on Mista Mista visit his myspace.

Quotable: "See I, handle my B.I./sorta like B.I. gee I generate buzz like bee hives"

Banksy Back In London

Banksy is probably the world's most famous street artist at the moment. What's more impressive though is that he's gained his fame without anyone learning who he is. Working primarily with stencils--though he has used such diverse mediums as telephone booths--Banksy has painted all over the world, even on the wall at the Gaza strip. Now he returns to his native England to do some bombing in London.

Raekwon: Stick Up Muzic Feat. Busta Rhymes and Uncle Murda

Here's a dope track to hold you over while you wait for OB4CL2. If you like Raekwon you'll like this. Plus, Uncle Murda's adlibs are pretty entertaining in and of themselves.

Download it here

Blame One: Wonder Why feat. Blu & Exile

When three of California's finest team up you can expect no less than beautiful music. Blu & Exile you most likely know, they've released a mixtape together and Blu was one of XXL's Freshman 10 for 2009. Exile also has considerable talent, which should get most people excited about Blame One's upcoming mixtape, Days Chasing Days, because he's producing it. Days Chasing Days is set to drop March 31st, in the meantime you can bump this soulful track.



Download it here

DJ Benzi & Don Cannon Present: Mike Posner & The Brain Trust-A Matter Of Time

Brought to you by Don Cannon(the dude who introduced most of to Asher Roth) and DJ Benzi, here is a brilliant little mixtape by Mike Posner and friends. I haven't been able to put my finger on exactly what it is I like so much about it but that hasn't stopped me from liking it. Check out the sample song below.



You can download the whole mixtape or just individual tracks through iTunes U
or
just click here

Q-Pot: Chocolate iPod Cases

Here's some great little novelty items from Japanese brand Q-pot. It's a line of iPod cases designed to look like chocolate bars. You can buy all of them at Q-pot's online store.

DOOM: Cellz

This track off of the upcoming DOOM aka MF Doom album Born Into This features DOOM's trademark rhyme schemes and a introduction forseeing a bleak future for the human race and predicting among other things, that "radiated men will eat the flesh of radiated men." Those of you with a copy of King Geedorah should be used to this type of intro. More importantly you should be used to this kind of wordy sci-fi/comic book inspired rhyming. Born Into This drops on the 23rd.