RE:UP Manual 12 - Music Review
Pauzetape: Remixes Vol. 1 | Son of Ran 12"s | Homegrown Blends

Dilla may be gone, but his legacy is very much in effect. San Diego's favorite sons, the Homegrown Blends crew, prove it with their first pair of 12"s, B-Boy fresh out of the box. Whether you're a die hard "head" scouring this scorched earth for rare gems, or a Top 40 type looking for something to warm up the hype, neither will be disappointed when these records slip on felt.

Up first is the Pauzetape Remixes, which you might describe as a "mash up" if you're the type to pick daisies with a chainsaw or swat flies with a shotgun. Yes there are rare acapellas, yes they are paired with original beats. Classic new-soul vocals such as Mos Def's "Travelin' Man," Jill Scott's "Love Rain," and Erykah Badu's "Love of My Life" are refixed over Pauze's sweet samples, but the key initials here are TLC, not BFD. Pauze's rework of the latter, for example, manages all the soul of the original, plus adding a string-filled hopefulness that makes you think real hip-hop might make it after all.

Further hope in the ol' boom-bap is found in the second twelve, this time an entirely original match of Pauze's beats and rapper Son of Ran, the dopest MC you've never heard. Fans of acts like the Soulquarians, Little Brother, Foreign Exchange, or Kev Brown will not be disappointed by these conscious, conscientious flows and snap-attack beats. Indeed, any one of the three songs included here, "Rumors," "Song for Survival," and "Infinite Lives" could be the next sleeper hit on your mixtape. The only question now is, "When's the LP dropping?"


Please cop the magazine, which is available at Barnes & Noble, Borders, various records stores, and -- for the folks in the SD area -- at 5 & A Dime Store (8th & G downtown).

Thanks for supporting the Homegrown Blends crew!