ROUNDUP: A Snowy Bandcamp Friday

Once again it's time for the Independent Artist Stimulus Plan. Sure, Bandcamp Friday gets more saturated every time, but is that actually a bad thing? With a big, dumb-ass culture war raging between the corporate behemoths, it's hard to make ethical decisions. Is Joe Rogan really worse than the African slave labor that makes your smartphone possible? Maybe you should support the Jeff Bezos Jihad to devour American business and automate away the few entry level jobs America has left instead? So few choices and so much time!

Or: just give your money directly to the artists you're trying to support through a US founded, owned and operated alternative. Let’s begin.

Humble Among - X-Mas Tape 3

Humble Among's gloriously profane X-Mas Tape series continues with the strongest installment yet. That's pretty much his whole modus operandi, after all: constant improvement and a bulletproof work ethic. This is a carefully paced journey, every bit as cinematic as Halloween Tape 4 was.

Raw Deff x THEN WHAt - The Others II

The sequel to Raw Deff x THEN WHAt's collaboration The Others was a long time coming. It feels like a decade, maybe two, since the easygoing, carefree days of 2017. That first album was solid, but this latest joint? Spectacular. Showcasing a tremendous amount of growth, every track is lean, clean and dope. One of the strongest releases of 2022 so far.

IAME x Tapewürm - Satyricon

IAME is a rap journalist, in both senses. (That’s Chuck D and Sage Francis, respectively.) When he first landed in the 802, his Wool See projects were intensely personal reflections on his life being upended and moved across the country. He also does politics. Archly opinionated but never "conscious rap" preachy, this extended single packs more ideas into one song than a lot of dudes bother to fit into their albums. It’s funny because it’s true.

Old Gold - ALongDrive

A new release outta nowhere from Old Gold, one of the 802's finest producers. This hugely improved my packed, shitty workday and I intend to leave it on loop for the duration. What more can I really say?

Robscure - Long Night | New Day

Robscure has had a breakout run of killer singles lately, but looking back, it all started with this late 2020 release, Long Night | New Day. This was where he started to really define not only his style, but his range, too. It's an ambitious project but a cohesive listen. It's also currently available on a limited run CD, so get in on the ground floor. Kid is going places fast.

Humble Among - Valentine Tape 2

Humble Among gets projects done faster than I can do Bandcamp Friday roundups, so sure enough, he's got two albums getting recommended this time around. Just in time for Feburary 4th, the second Valentine Tape has dropped. It's a shorter set than his last two releases but aesthetically dead-on, a celebration of Juggalo culture ... and love. Whoop whoop.

Old Growth Souljourner - The Immortal Realm

Finally, let’s fix a long-standing mistake.

Released in the middle of the longest hiatus that this website has ever taken, The Immortal Realm never got the shine it deserved here. It was an incredible debut, a fully-formed voice with a unique sound and a pantheon of 802 guest stars. Just the same, it still got enough Album of the Year nominations to make the ballot for the Vermont Hip Hop Awards. And holy shit, check out that cover art.