Mat Ward

Jimblah in Fireproof.

Most people fear fire, but Jimblah embraces it. The element flares up again and again in the rapper's searingly original work - from his first album, Face The Fire, to the one that just rose from its ashes, Phoenix.

Green Left Weekly is taking a break for the summer from December 11 to January 22. To fill the void, it asked staff, contributors and others to recommend their favourite books of the year. Rachel Evans Green Left Weekly writer, activist, organiser How to Make Trouble and Influence People By Iain McIntyre http://goo.gl/l7GOfx
New Dub City

Tap Tap New Dub City Raspect Records November 18, 2013 www.newdubcity.com Melbourne dub-rap-reggae collective New Dub City have just released their politically punchy and sonically spotless second album, Tap Tap. Frontman, producer and author Ali MC spoke to Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward.

IED EP Pataphysics Out November 8 www.pataphysics.com Multi-lingual multi-instrumentalist Pat Marks fronts the multi-faceted Melbourne band Pataphysics. As the critically-acclaimed "guerilla hip-hop" outfit prepare to launch their new EP, Green Left Weekly's Mat Ward spoke to Marks about his multifarious pursuits, from refugee rights to juvenile justice. *** You've worked with refugees for a long time. Tell us a little about the work you do.
A Dose Of Reality Eskatology September 2013 Download free here www.eskatology.com On his latest EP, A Dose Of Reality, Adelaide-based emcee Eskatology raps about the refugees he works with. "I've worked with many refugees in my job as a youth worker," says the rapper, who is giving the 10-track EP away as a free download.
Chris Ruen

Chris Ruen reckons he is already seeing results from his anti-music piracy book, Freeloading: How Our Insatiable Hunger For Free Content Starves Creativity. "I think the book is giving some in the industry more confidence that this battle isn't over, as many have believed it is," the Brooklyn-based author tells Green Left Weekly.

Sole on stage

As US president Barack Obama ramped up his rhetoric about Syria's chemical weapons on September 17, US rapper Sole released his latest album, which reflects on his country's chemical weapons attack on the Iraqi city of Fallujah. Green Left's Mat Ward spoke to the prolific political emcee, who started releasing records in 1994, when he was just 16.

Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism Is Turning the Internet Against Democracy Robert W McChesney Spring 2013 www.thenewpress.com When award-winning author Robert McChesney wrote a much-needed political and economic analysis of the internet, the reaction from his peers was not quite what he expected.
Verbal Reality Volume 2 Provocalz Coming October 2013 www.provocalz.bigcartel.com Rapper Provocalz has dedicated a song to Australia's Liberal and Labor parties on his new album - but it won't be music to their ears. On his track "Liberals or Labor", the Indigenous emcee suggests the two big parties are so contemptuous of voters that some, like him, might consider swapping their ballots for bullets: Liberals or Labor, they both leave us to rot So it's criminal behaviour, politicians get shot Pop pop pop pop! It's that real hip-hop, hip-hop
ADF with Savale

Legendary punk-dub-electronica group Asian Dub Foundation are celebrating their 20th year with the release of a typically topical new album, The Signal And The Noise. Green Left's Mat Ward spoke to founding member, guitarist and band leader Steve Chandra Savale, a one-man riff factory who always has his finger on the political pulse.

Birdz Eye View Birdz Impossible Odds Records July 11, 2013 www.birdz.bandcamp.com Most rappers use their publicity photos to show off their bling, but Nathan Bird uses his to show off something a little more challenging - his books.

Born Free Ben Iota Butterthief Records June 20, 2013 www.beniota.com Radical rapper Ben Iota stands out in Australian Hip-Hop like a refugee boat in an empty ocean. Green Left's Mat Ward spoke to him about his new EP "Born Free". ***