Fine Art Friday: Mihoko Ogaki

Though some of the details may be hard to see in these photos, Japanese artist Mihoko Ogaki recently premiered a series of works where bodies are illuminated within dark rooms and seem to radiate the night sky and solar system all around the rooms. The sculptures are constructed out of plastic casts and contain embedded LEDs within them that shine outward in an almost deteriorating or suffering fashion.It reminds me of the scenes in "The Fountain" when the body of the time traveling conquistador explodes in nirvana upon reaching Xibalba and the scenes in "Prometheus" when the engineer off's himself at the beginning. Either way, there is something mystical about the thought of all humans as star dust and the exhibit illustrates that to great success.

Listen: Phedee - "An ILL Situation" Album

Not much information on the relatively new artist Phedee, but he recently dropped a full-length album entitled "An ILL Situation" to showcase his experimental, instrumental styles from the San Francisco bay. He seems to have a sense of humor about his work with constantly goofy titles and typos throughout his work, but his sense of skill for the spacey, lo-fi beat making is due for some exposure. I am always down to support my fellow instrumental artists from around the globe, especially the weird ones. Check it out below:

DOWNLOAD LINK
http://phedeee.bandcamp.com/album/an-ill-situation

SOUNDCLOUD
https://soundcloud.com/nf3

Listen: DTMD - "You Know You See Me"

On the heals of my recent nod to their older work, I wanted to share the most recent single from DTMD entitled "You Know You See Me". Released as a single and as a preview for another upcoming collaborative album titled "RESET", the track finds the DTMD crew (Dunc on the beats, Toine on the words) doing what they do best with honest lyrics about the struggles of an indy artist in the rap industry. Check it out below and support quality music! 

DOWNLOAD LINK
http://dtmd.bandcamp.com/releases

Listen: Sheff's Kitchen - "Sheff's Kitchen" Album

Maryland crew Sheff's Kitchen, emcee Knell Rashad and producer Kenju recently dropped a debut album that sounds like a mix of Little Brother and Mobb Deep, dark beats with insightful verses.  They mix honest lyrics with true school samples and anthem-like beats. Standout tracks to me are songs like "Just Watchin" and "Glahses Remix", but I am always a fan of more chilled out rhythms. These guys continue the quality sound coming out of the DMV these days and manage to link up with Mello Music Group emcee Substantial to show the support from the home team. So much quality music comes out of the DC area, that it is hard to keep up sometimes, but with more music from the Sheff's Kitchen crew in the future, hopefully more will follow in their footsteps. Check it out below and support your local hip hop.

DOWNLOAD LINK
http://sheffskitchen.bandcamp.com/album/sheffs-kitchen

Listen: Dibia$e - "10K" Album

For fans of the Dilla beat tapes and more experimental, hip hop instrumentals, Dibia$e continues to build his discography with jazzy, distorted, off-kilter beats that push the boundaries of rap standards. He recently dropped an short "Thank You" album of mini-heat rocks to celebrate the 10,000 likes/followers on social media giant Facebook. Below is the official blurb form the man himself. Check it out and support quality music!

"I know 10k likes on facebook is not a big deal too alot of cats especially when they buying likes or follows LOL, but it trips me out that this many ppl are tuned in to the music. So I wanted to drop a something showing my appreciation. thank you!!! Plus i been quiet for minute so I don't want cats thinking i fell off the map. More dirt on the way soon."

DOWNLOAD LINK
http://mrdibiase.bandcamp.com/album/10k

ADD MORE LIKES TO HIS FACEBOOK
https://www.facebook.com/pages/MR-DIBIASE/316523046376

Throwback: DTMD - "Fantastic"

After seeing these guys performing in the DC hip hop scene before the official DTMD EP dropped back in 2011, they always brought a purist hip hop vibe with their work by chopping samples, adding live instrumentation, and giving true school lyrics over the chill backdrop. For those that don't know, the DC hip hop scene is filled with quality music and lyrics and is loudly trumpeted by the folks at Mello Music Group. This tracks makes me wish I still lived there sometimes, but showcases the quality of music coming out of the DMV. I wish this track had an official music video, but this will do for now.

Check out the album from 2011 here and support quality music around the globe!