Slightly hard to come by outside of the UK, but If you’re in to your UK Hip Hop mixtapes and compilations, you may want to keep your eyes peeled for this one. It contains some of today’s finest underground UK Hip Hop and has been getting a lot of spins since it was given to me. Because of the broad area of styles MK has covered within the genre, there’ll be tracks on this mix that you’ll favour over others. And although styles differ from the one track to the next, the transitions flow well and are easy on the brain. The tempo and beat changes don’t confuse you and all scratches are smooth and subtle. Mixtapes crafted like this give you a hard time focusing on the lyrical content.
It feels a bit rude to skip to certain tracks on mixtapes, but a highlight I found is undoubtedly two tracks produced by DJ Mentat. I can’t help but listen to these over the rest. The first Mentat track we’re treated to is called; Where I Wanna Be, and features a positive vibe and summertime feel courtesy of Sireman’s lyrics and flow. The only other way I can describe the feel of this track, is that it sounds like it could have been picked for a Mushroom Jazz mix. Lasting just over 2 minutes, the next Mentat track; Put You Down, has some mouthwatering soul vocal-samples that leave you feeling hungry for more.
DJ MK manages to showcase the UK Hip Hop’s established elite alongside its younger generations, and by doing so proves that the scene is progressing. I think every artist on this mix has a MySpace so you need not look far to learn more about these artists. iPod kids, including myself, will be pleased to know that the majority of Above Board is shufflable. So do yourself a favour and bung some in your playlists.
Skinnyman: ‘Now let me get my shit straight. It’s a mix CD, I’m still calling this a mixtape’.
Tracklist:
01. DJ MK – Intro
02. DJ MK feat. Fallacy – My Show
03. Kyza & Pirelli – Left Handed 1 Foot Skank (Produced by Farma)
04. Loudmouth – Soduko
05. Plan B & Shameless – Past That
06. Mystro & MK – Product of the Environment (Produced by P*Nut)
07. D.Molish, Farma, Chester & Ramson – It Girls
08. Sireman, Mentat & MK – Where I Wanna Be
09. MK & Stylah – Tales of a Kingpin (Produced by P*Nut)
10. MR TI2BS – Dedication 2006 (Produced by Skitz)
11. Dutty Goods – Mus Bus
12. Jehst – Dynamite Sound
13. Skinny Man “" Put You Down (Produced by DJ Mentat)
14. Ramson Badbonez & Harry Love – Talking Medication
15. Nomadic Poet – MC’s
16. Apollo & Kope – Work
17. MK feat. Roots Manuva & Rodney P – Walk Thru The Fire
18. Lowkey – Sorry
19. Yun Gun & Mr Thing – Cross My Heart
20. Doc Brown & MK – Against The Grain (Produced by P*Nut)
