Playlist: 07/08/10 - Interview with ThaiMex

Date: 07/08/10

Note(s): Shifting gears a bit, Santanna Hill decided to put ThaiMex on the spot and perform an interview with him in light of the release of his new album entitled, "Brand New Starts" that was released on 07/06/10 and is available on iTunes and Amazon.

Santanna played "Brand New Starts" in its entirety and drilled ThaiMex with questions along the way. Nothing like a friend asking you questions to get all the grit and grime, huh?

Brand New Starts by ThaiMex:

01. Brand New Starts

02. My Intention

03. Cut It Out

04. Me & Mine

05. Anti-Etc

06. The Truth

07. Violent Rooms

08. Maintain

09. Never-Ending (Time)

10. Face It

11. You Don't Feel Me

12. Let It Flow (Breathe)

13. Tribute

14. How I End It

15. Haiku of the Frustrated MC

Extras:

16. Infinite Shades of Gray - 101 Reasons

17. Hue of Intuition - Californians

18. ThaiMex - The Truth (Demo Version)

Santanna's 2009 Review

Being that it’s the start of a new year and having been the co-creator of a hip-hop radio show, I found myself reflecting over some of the music I’ve run across during this past year. Having recently gained access to a LARGE library of music my selections were a little different. We’re not just talking hip-hop, but rock, jazz, r&b…you name it. For someone with a short attention span, it was actually overwhelming. So I did the only thing I could do and just jumped in.

Life, destiny, fate; whatever you want to call it, is funny. Why you come across a certain song or album at a particular time versus another is crazy. I’m a strong believer in fate and I’m comfortable with letting life take the wheel. So, my musical journey this year was exactly that--a journey. Below, I have compiled a list of the 10 most memorable albums I came across over the past year:

Artist: Illa J
Album: Yancey Boys (2008)
Debut album by Illa J, the little brother of deceased producer J Dilla. I thought it was all around a good album, the catch is that most of the production came from old Dilla beats.

Artist: J Dilla
Album: Jay Stay Paid (2009)
What can I say? I’m a Dilla fan. Album consisted of beats featuring various MC’s. The track “Reality Check” featuring Black Thought and “24K Rap” featuring Raekwon and Havoc were my favorites.

Artist: Modest Mouse
Album: We Where Dead Before The Ship Evan Sank (2007)
I had heard a song from them before and decided to finally go back and listen to some of their other work and came across this album.

Artist: Phat Kat
Album: Carte Blanche (2007)
I’ve liked this cat (sorry, pun intended) for a minute. A part of the whole Slum Village crew, he has a strong presence on the mic and has lyrics to match. I tracked this album down and I don’t think there was a disappointing track on the album.

Artist: Pink Floyd
Album: Dark Side Of The Moon (1973)
I knew this was a classic album, probably one of the most highly acclaimed rock albums of all time. After listening to it I could see why. I can’t help but smile thinking about how faded people got listening to this album.

Artist: The Clash
Album: The Essential Clash
“Rock the Casbah” has always been a classic, but I took some time to listen to this album and realized these guys really had some soul.

Artist: Terence Trent D’Arby
Album: Wildcard (2001)
TTD is one of my all-time favorite artists. I ended up diving into this album on a road trip to Phoenix and falling in love with the track “Girl.” The whole album is great and reminded me of why he’ll always be a favorite.

Artist: Drake
Album: So Far Gone (2009)
A friend gave me a copy of this CD and said just listen to it. It just so happened that I was driving from Atlanta to San Diego the next day. So, you could say I had some time. Let’s just say it became my official “Move To Cali” anthem.

Artist: Kenna
Album: New Sacred Cow (2003)
I heard one of his songs playing in the background one day shopping at Borders and had to find out just who the artist was. The album ended up being so good I never took the time listen to his earlier work. A shame, because I actually ended up liking it better.

Artist: ThaiMex
Album: Brand New Starts (2009)
What can I say? It’s my boy. The whole album is fresh with “Violent Rooms” and “You Don’t Feel Me” as my favorites tracks. Oh, but wait, if I said that I’d be tripping on “Let It Flow (Breathe)” and “Never-Ending (Time).” The guitar riff on “Time” puts it over the top.

- Santanna Hill