Revolutionary Minded 4
Marcel Cartier
Released July 26, 2014
http://bit.ly/1qYcIQ7
US rapper Marcel Cartier's lines usually ring out with the clarity of a clarion call - and the messages on his latest album are as loud and clear as ever. As he tells Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward, much of the material comes from first-hand experience with struggles around the world.
Mat Ward
The Invisible Hand of Market
Cyclotimia
Released April 2014
www.cyclotimia.com
Russian electronic duo Cycloctimia's fascination for technology and sharemarkets has paid dividends – more than 10 satirical albums so far. Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward spoke to Max K, who describes his role as “keyboards, music, sampling and market rituals”.
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Tell us a bit about your childhood in Russia.
Blue Volume
Joelistics
Released June 20, 2014
Elefant Traks
www.joelistics.com
The flawless music on Joelistics' second solo album is more than matched by the depth of his lyrics - an unflinching look at Australian reality. Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward went through the words with the rapper, who brings some much-needed grit to Australian hip-hop.
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On "Say I'm Good" you rap:
I'm an oddball, on the wrong team
All my friends are out of step with the mainstream
And the nightmare is in full swing
Big Kitty Life
MC Dukebox
Released December 2013
Impossible Odds Records
www.dukebox.net.au
MC Dukebox says he named his debut album "Big Kitty Life" because he was sick of seeing government funds misspent.
"It's referring to a big kitty of funding that everyone's lining up for with a different excuse for why they deserve the money and how they're going to benefit their surrounding communities," says the Indigenous rapper, who hails from Inverell in north-west NSW.
The Merry Grinchmas Mixtape
MC Bunz
Released December 25, 2013
Free download
When Glen Anderson was playing sport with his schoolfriends, he was suddenly surrounded by police who ordered him to lay flat on the ground.
One
L-FRESH The LION
Vienna People Recordings
Released May 9, 2014
www.l-fresh.com
Rapper L-FRESH The LION is as well known for his activism as he is for his music. Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward spoke to the Sydney-raised Sikh about his newly released debut album, One.
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The Snowden Files
Luke Harding
Random House
February 2014
352 pages, $30
Luke Harding's The Snowden Files is a well-constructed overview of the biggest intelligence leak in history - but it is not without its flaws.
The Guardian journalist tells a detailed story of Edward Snowden - from his childhood in a military, Republican family, his short education and brief, failed army career, to his meteoric rise through the intelligence services that eventually enabled him to turn whistleblower.
World View
AWKWORD
February 2, 2014
www.awkwordrap.com
Spoiled Indentity EP
Iron Reagan
Relapse Records
April 1, 2014
Free download
Radical punk-metal supergroup Iron Reagan have just released a free 13-track EP and are now playing it live across the US. Vocalist Tony Foresta and drummer Ryan Parrish answered some questions for Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward while they were driving to Dallas.
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RAPtivism
Aisha Fukushima
March 2012
www.raptivism.bandcamp.com
Travelling the world is a big enough challenge for most people, but Aisha Fukushima also managed to make a politically-charged hip-hop album while she did it. Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward spoke to the California-based "rap activist".
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You collaborated with rappers in the various countries you visited on your travels and emerged with a powerful album. Has your wanderlust been satisfied or do you have another similar album in the works?
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