Again, I’m not that musically cool. But after my friends over at Mission South were so well received by you loyal Lemon readers, I figured I’d give this whole music rec thing another go. That, and my normal beat of politics is still inundated with political gridlock that would just bore you to tears and probably make me even more depressed about the continuing state of nothingnesss coming from our nation’s capitol.
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So this week, the soundtrack to my walk to work is Bramzwig. And before you let the use of “z” instead of “s” dissuade you, please note that replacing “s” seems to be the cool thing to do now in the music world (i.e.: Ke$ha). A fellow Westchester suburbanite, I’m moderately sure that he and I traveled in the same high school house party circles in the early 2000’s. What I like about his sound is that the beat doesn’t attack your ears (I am a strong opponent of the assailing nature of Skrillex) or up my blood pressure because it sounds like the bass is assaulting my brain. At the same time, there’s a nice mix of retro sound with modern rap tones, plus lyrics layered over that don’t include the words “tits,” “ass,” or other obscenities every other word – an almost unheard of feat in today’s world of rap music.
In the same way that Lupe got me hooked with “” I got into Bramzwig when I heard “Big Spender.” The intro is old school meets new school and as I was getting decked in tacky Christmas sweater garb on Saturday night, this was my song of choice when getting ready. Next in my Bramzwig Fan Starter Kit, I’d move to “Newer York” because I’m a sucker for anything glorifying my city and I love that he admits to being someone else on the planet that “had ever never seen a copy of Word Up Magazine” (I warned you I wasn’t cool).
Appreciate the smart rhymes, cool beats, and 30+ jams that frequently give a throwback vibe. And for all you New Yorkers, know that these songs pumping through your Beats/mini-Buds by Dre will definitely add some swagger to your step or give you some street cred on the 6 train. I know I’d much rather be overheard listening to this guy when I’m packed onto a subway car with everyone listening to my iPod selections than caught passionately mouthing every word of Taylor Swift’s “We Are Never Getting Back Together”…again. #awkward
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