Qwel and Meaty Ogre - Freezerburner
September 25, 2006 by Jeff

Release Date October 31, 2006

Ever since Qwel and Meaty Ogre first collaborated on 2000’s "The Manhattan Project" on the Typical Cats LP, heads have taken serious notice. The "Freezerburner" project has been in the minds of these two artists since they first worked together, and now it will finally see the light of day. Those familiar with the project know that it is well worth the wait.

This album marks the 2nd installment in Qwel’s "Four Seasons" series, the first of which was the highly acclaimed "The Harvest" with producer Maker (Glue). This, the winter war horse LP, is slightly darker than The Harvest, just as winter is darker than the fall. Qwel and Meaty Ogre have captured the feeling of winter, the feeling of being isolated and trapped with only your thoughts with the "Freezerburner". Qwel continues to break down controversial issues on tracks like "Saved" and "Machinegun Monkey", and brings back some of the crushing braggadocio style that helped make his name known on tracks like "Id Glue" and "Who’s the Boogieman?"

Meaty Ogre has garnered critical success from his LP "Leo vs. Pisces" (Galapagos4, 2003) as well as his productions on releases by Typical Cats, Robust, Offwhyte, Mestizo, Sage Francis & more. He is also a well-known Chicago record collector and has produced several sought-after instrumental 7inch releases on labels like Memphix & Heardrums. With Qwel’s master wordsmith skills and delivery he shows us with the "Freezerburner" that his abilities are only expanding. Meaty Ogre strings together beats that fit the album’s theme while keeping them banging. This album has a range, balance, and coherency between darkness and hope that only Qwel and Meaty Ogre could deliver.

added by: Jeff

Hellsent - Rainwater CD
September 4, 2006 by Jeff

From the South Side of Chicago emerges a complex MC with roots deep in the game, and something unique to prove. A longtime partner in rhyme of Qwazaar (Typical Cats) and member of the highly touted Outerlimitz crew, Hellsent has been honing his skills for years and it's time to take notice.

The stale and stagnant state of hip-hop is about to get a fresh breath of air. "Rainwater" is an album that will wash away expectations and force a clean slate upon those who have settled on merely going the motions. A combination of real life grit and honest-to-God enlightenment, "Rainwater" breaks boundaries in every direction imaginable. Produced mainly by Silence (Outerlimitz), with one gem ("I Got") dropped by Meaty Ogre and 2 self-produced tracks, the backdrop for "Rainwater" is in good hands as H.E. tears into the mic. Let it rain!

added by: Jeff

Upcoming releases from Galapagos4...
July 26, 2006 by Jeff

Hellsent Rainwater - Street date: October 3, 2006
- production by Silence, Hellsent & Meaty Ogre.
- guest MCs Qwel, Qwazaar & Silence

Qwel & Meaty Ogre Freezerburner - Street date: October 31, 2006

Deejay OM’s Reheated Naan & Curry - release date TBA
New Robust - release date TBA
New Mestizo - release date TBA
Offwhyte Mainstay - release date TBA

added by: Jeff

ROYCE - TUFF LOVE CD
April 20, 2006 by Jeff

ROYCE ""TUFF LOVE"" CD

Available May 16, 2006

Were it possible for a record to push itself off its belly and walk the earth, TUFF LOVE would be roaming alleys and dirt lots of Chicago on legs gilded in heartbreak. This is no chamber music album. TUFF LOVE is the undeniably infectious second full-length release from Royce.

Ruthless rhythm and backyard beats weave between intuitive, heart tugging ballads. Subtle, alluring vocals sit atop warm, glowing bass and percussive tremors signature to Royce's rumble and snap sound.

Once again, the bands' own DJ WhiteLightning has produced and engineered a record that slips from track to track like a slab of butter on a hot griddle. Also, in the company of Galapagos4 staples Qwel, Meaty Ogre, Offwhyte, Mestizo and Robust, TUFF LOVE seamlessly shape shifts with every listen, revealing an arsenal of Chicago flavor.

Continued success of their first release, "Subtleties of the Game" in addition to tours with Galapagos4 in Europe and the U.S., Royce has harvested fresh fuel for their sound. The quartet returned to the studio producing a record that captures the heart of growing up in the Windy City and reflects the bittersweet human experience at large.

Amidst this alchemy of sound called TUFF LOVE, Royce continues to carve out its niche in popular music.

"Chicago's Royce is the live band for all the hyper-electric record collectors out there, solemn heads that dig on blues, psyche, prog and hip-hop." URB

"Evoking a combination of Sam Prekop of The Sea and Cake and Chris Martin of Coldplay. . .disco-era beats. . hallmarks of the Isley Brothers or Can." Chicago Tribune

"Royce trudges through all the boring, arcane bits…crafting something more sublime." The Wire

"a band woven so intricately into Chicago's hip-hop scene that it requires attention." Chicago Sun-Times

Royce ""Tuff Love"" tracklist:
1 Tuff Love
2 Ebbs and Flows
(feat. Mestizo & Offwhyte)
3 Ginelle
4 Milwaukee
5 Girls on Bikes (feat. Robust)
6 Vladimir
7 Ocean Summer Mist
(feat. Dreas)
8 Slip Away
9 Big Tears
10 Cigarettes and Cisco
11 Moment to Moments
12 City Heat
(feat Qwel and Meaty Ogre)

The rest of 2006....
Hellsent ""Rainwater""
DJ OM's ""Reaheated Naan 'N Curry""
Qwel & Meaty Ogre ""Freezerburner""
Offwhyte ""Mainstay""
Rift Napalm... ?

added by: Jeff

Denizen Kane - Tree City Legends Vol. II: My Bootleg Life
November 7, 2005 by Jeff

New release from Galapagos4:
Denizen Kane "Tree City Legends Vol. II: My Bootleg Life" CD
Release date: 12/06/2005

Recorded over a year and a half span, Denizen Kane presents his brand new work "Tree City Legends: Vol. II". This album is the sound of an on-the-run poet throwing pages over his shoulder. Subtitled "My Bootleg Life", this long-awaited second installment bloomed in bursts of spontaneity.

Denizen Kane is a poet and musician born and raised in Tree City. He is one of the founders of spoken word quartet I Was Born With Two Tongues and also performed on three seasons of Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry Jam. In 2000 Denizen co-founded Typical Cats, a Chicago based hip hop collective who have released two LPs through indie imprint Galapagos4. Kane made his mark as a solo artist in 2002, with an EP entitled "Tree City Legends". His newest LP, "Tree City Legends Volume 2", furthers his reputation as a precocious lyricist, style innovator, and great storyteller-in-the-making.

"Lost," an elegiac ode to memory, sprang out of producer Alo’s sweeping string-centered beat. A whirlwind session with Mestizo, Chicago graff heavyweight Dymz, SF’s Olive Green collective and a scorching Kip Killagain beat yielded the anthemic "Patriot Act." Other compositions such as "Killa Killa" (a tube amp banger produced by Maker) were captured in notebooks between New York and Tokyo. New school rally-rockers like "Amerika Dub" (featuring Chicago’s Avery R. Young’s cataclysmic vocals) are the sounds of urban explosion, new protest music. Amidst the passion, Kane does not forget the quieter hushed moments. With acoustic guitar as the backbone, "When I see Him," is a song that solemnly reflects on fragments of emotion.

A record of a year in tumult - the world spins out of orbit, the body counts rise, the underground is restless... Welcome back to Tree City.

Kane has toured from New York to Tokyo to Los Angeles, and performed with such underground luminaries as the Visionaries, Living Legends, and J-Live. He continues to create, experiment, build, and break away. Tree City Legends Never Die.

added by: Jeff