Browsing “The Bassment Series”

The Bassment is a weekly article bringing you coverage of the best in Hip Hop and Electronic music from around Vancouver. Weekly interviews, event coverage, album and concert reviews that show how awesome our city’s electronic and hip hop scene really is. If you think there is someone or something that needs coverage in this city in regards to the Hip Hop / Electronic community then get in touch with us.

For this post I am reaching all the way from Toronto to bring you the newest edition of The Freshest DJs’ live set videos. The first post I did interviewing the 4 man DJ crew from Vancouver included the inaugural video featuring DJs Marvel and Kutcorners. Today I introduce THE FRESHEST ‘LIVE SET 2.0′ FEAT. KUTCORNERS & MARVEL. Enjoy!

THE FRESHEST ‘LIVE SET 2.0′ FEAT. KUTCORNERS & MARVEL from The Freshest on Vimeo.

The Bassment is a weekly article bringing you coverage of the best in Hip Hop and Electronic music from around Vancouver. Weekly interviews, event coverage, album and concert reviews that show how awesome our city’s electronic and hip hop scene really is.If you think there is someone or something that needs coverage in this city in regards to the Hip Hop / Electronic community then get in touch with us.

Since local rap duo District 36 dropped their ‘Fresh Prince Project‘ last week on May 1st (as a free download), I’ve been playing a little game to challenge my friends who are into hip-hop (more specifically, to challenge preconceptions about Vancouver hip-hop). The game consists of playing them the first single off the mixtape ‘Maxin and Relaxin’ and telling them that it was put out by some new underground rap crew from ‘X’ big American city.  After they listen and the head nods start, we usually talk a bit about how they’ve got those new school ‘cool kids beats locked down,’ or that they are ‘killing that east coast 90s flow’ (or an equivalent played out statement likening them to one of raps great successors). Then the fun starts for me and I come clean, telling them that District 36 actually hails from Surrey.

District 36 is Grafic (left) and Seth Kay (right)

Yup, that’s right, good old Surrey. That purportedly abhorrent place ‘Vancouverites’ love to hate on is pumping out sounds that rub shoulders with some of raps most classic lyricists and popular beatsmiths.  I’m not even exaggerating here, the Fresh Prince Project is an extremely polished concept album that has appeal across hip-hop’s spectrum from backpackers to club kids, and will definitely bump hard in your headphones all the way from Waterfront to King George Station.

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The Bassment is a weekly article bringing you coverage of the best in Hip Hop and Electronic music from around Vancouver. Weekly interviews, event coverage, album and concert reviews that show how awesome our city’s electronic and hip hop scene really is.If you think there is someone or something that needs coverage in this city in regards to the Hip Hop / Electronic community then get in touch with us.

A while back we got the heads up from Kyle Kraft about an upcoming showcase coming up at Fortune Sound Club featuring a pretty deep bill of local hip-hop talent.  With SonReal,Evil Ebenezer, Snak the Ripper, Def3, Cityreal and Sweatshop Union all slated to play short (15 minute) sets, the format of the event alone was intriguing enough to spark interest.  A big old dirty (FREE) show from a load of Vancouver’s top rappers downtown on a Saturday night?  It all seemed atypical for such an event and sure enough there was more going on beyond just a too-dope-to-be-free hip-hop show.

Show Flyer

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The Bassment is a weekly article bringing you coverage of the best in Hip Hop and Electronic music from around Vancouver. Weekly interviews, event coverage, album and concert reviews that show how awesome our city’s electronic and hip hop scene really is. If you think there is someone or something that needs coverage in this city in regards to the Hip Hop / Electronic community then get in touch with us.

For the second year in a row, Blueprint has turned the Easter long weekend into a music filled, multi-day event featuring shows at clubs and venues all around the city. Building on last year’s event at the Vancouver Convention Centre, which featured Calvin Harris, Laidback Luke, Felguk, Lazy Rich, this year they upped the ante considerably. Thursday night was Swedish duo Cazzette at Venue, Friday was AN21 (fellow Swede and brother of Steve Angello) for a free show at Celebrities, while Saturday was at the Convention Centre downtown with Armin Van Buuren, Steve Angello and Morgan Page. Sunday night closed out the weekend with Skrillex-backed KOAN Sound and Gemini at Celebrities.

Flyer Image

Saturday in particular was always going to be the main event, but reports and pictures I checked out from the three other shows confirmed they were all massive. If there’s one thing Blueprint has been excelling at, it’s capitalizing on different genres, and having different shows on different nights for different tastes. Cazzette leans heavily on the electro side of house, while AN21 fills the neuvo-progressive house vibe. Armin is the un-disputed king of trance, whose long reign as the world’s #1 DJ (he’s settling for #2 now) will draw out even quasi-fans, while KOAN Sound and Gemini complete the weekend with a dubstep laced show at celebrities. Business-wise it’s brilliant move, allowing Blueprint to capitalize on every niche market in electronic music.

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The Bassment is a weekly article bringing you coverage of the best in Hip Hop and Electronic music from around Vancouver. Weekly interviews, event coverage, album and concert reviews that show how awesome our city’s electronic and hip hop scene really is.If you think there is someone or something that needs coverage in this city in regards to the Hip Hop / Electronic community then get in touch with us.

If you are from Vancouver and listen to hip hop then you probably know this week’s guests well. The Freshest are a 4 piece DJ crew that includes DJs Kutcorners, Rico Uno, Seko, and Marvel. As far back as I can remember going out in Vancouver these guys have been playing the go-to spots for hip hop. Nights such as Lucy Mae Browns and Re-Up are still talked about and referenced as formative events in regards to shaping the current scene. This past year has seen these artists move into a bigger spotlight with many new opportunities available. One of these opportunities was to play a set with all four members at the Redbull Threestyle Championships that took place in December. They are also creating a bigger audience for themselves by producing Live-Set music videos. The first of which has now been released starring Marvel and Kutcorners. I got to ask them a few questions about what they do.

Photo: Courtesy of Artsts

DJing has most popularly been known as a solo act. Explain the idea behind The Freshest Crew.

We were all regulars at hip-hop shows and parties in Vancouver and quickly became friends through a common love of music.  From there it was only natural for us to want to work on music and throw parties together.  It was clear that with the four of us we would have a bigger reach when we threw our first weekly party, Higher Ground.  Each of us had complimentary specialties around and beyond our hip-hop backgrounds making it an easy fit for us to come together musically.

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The Bassment is a weekly article bringing you coverage of the best in Hip Hop and Electronic music from around Vancouver. Weekly interviews, event coverage, album and concert reviews that show how awesome our city’s electronic and hip hop scene really is. If you think there is someone or something that needs coverage in this city in regards to the Hip Hop / Electronic community then get in touch with us.

I was emailed this week in regards to the new record from electronic DJ producer Morgan Page which includes a track and a new video with Vancouver/Montreal based Tegan & Sara. The song is produced by Morgan Page and is accompanied by the stylized voices of Tegan & Sara. The song is another example of the progression and amalgamation of many styles of music that have been increasingly converging. Since Postal Service I have personally been hooked on the mixture of electronic beats and indie style lyrics and melodies. Check out the vid and go see Morgan Page with Armin Van Buuren and Steve Angello on April 7th at the VCC.

Another video I have been loving lately is the song “Oblivion” by Vancouver born, Montreal native, Grimes. Grimes, who was born in Vancouver and lived here until 2006, has become an overnight success in some peoples eyes playing sold out shows and even getting nods from image and stylist heavyweights at

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