New Music: Quakers - Quakers (LP)

A musical collective with 35 members churning out an album with 41 tracks? Sounds like a logistical nightmare if you ask me. But as Quakers show, it's not impossible.

The latest (and I'd wager largest) hip hop act to roll off the Stone's Throw production line was born out of the frustration of its three producers, who simply weren't hearing the kind of album they wanted to hear.

Rather than having a moan about it though, Fuzzface, 7-Stu-7 and Katalyst decided to embark on a rather ambitious journey to make the music they felt was missing from their turntables.

New Music: Q-Tip - 'Breathe & Stop' (Adi Dick Remix)

Adi Dick's re-lick of Erykah Badu's 'On & On' from earlier this month seems to have hit the spot for readers of this site, and a few more to boot.

17,000 plays and counting on the old Soundcloud doesn't lie. So to sign off on what has been a strong month of music from all comers, here's another tidy remix ting from Adi.

Q-Tip gets the once over today, with Adi throwing 'Breathe & Stop' up on some blocks and stripping it back to basics.

Video: Nas - Noisemakers with Peter Rosenberg

NYC radio dude Peter Rosenberg's Noisemakers series is heavenly business for the true school hip hop head. Nothing too fancy or flossy - just classic artists telling classic stories about their music.

Chances are that even the most hard core rap anoraks will learn something new every time Pete throws down, and his latest session with the one and only Nas is no different.

As part of the recent music melange that was SXSW, Pete drafted in Nasir to get in depth on a bunch of topics, spanning from his early years in Queensbridge through to the present day.

New Music: Foreign Beggars - 'Palm Of My Hand'

Sonic badness from British hip hop geezers Foreign Beggars today, with a rather smashing new tune from their soon to be released new album (or is it out already), The Uprising.

Depending on who you ask or what you read, The Uprising might have hit shelves/iTunes this weekend past.

But I'll leave the research up to you for now because I'm too busy bumping 'Palm Of My Hand', a bouncy, electronic-tinged jam which is all rather good fun.

New Music: Buddy – Staircases (Feat. Kendrick Lamar)

Staying on the Neptunes theme for today (what is this, 2002?), Pharrell has been busy grooming a new MC, an up and oming whipper snapper by the name of Buddy.

The Compton MC has been working with all sorts of big names as Skateboard P charts his path to world domination.

And what better way is there to build an artist than have another Compton stalwart, Kendrick Lamar, show you up on your own song?

New Music: Old Dirty Bastard - 'Operator' (T.Rice Mix)

It's always nice to hear an old tune that hasn't crept it's way onto the playlist for years, for whatever reason.

So hats off to T.Rice, who - after turning in a trio of Big Apple-inspired blends earlier this month - is back with a cheeky little edit of a jam I haven't heard in a while.

Old Dirty Bastard's 'Operator' is under the scalpel today, with Mr Rice taking the good times tune (which also features Pharrell Williams and the Clipse).

Mix Tape: Slum Village & Mick Boogie - 'The Dirty Slums'

A new mix tape from Slum Village? How can this be?

With the majority of the line up having either departed this earth too soon (rest in peace J-Dilla and Baatin), or walking out the door due to various management issues (Elzhi), it seemed that 2010's Villa:Manifesto would be the last we'd hear from SV.

But T3 and J-Dilla's younger sibling Illa J are still around and about and flying the flag, and have linked with Mick Boogie for a new mix tape, The Dirty Slums. Modern technology/where there's a will there's a way, etc. etc.

New Music: A-Trak Feat. Juicy J and Danny Brown - 'Piss Test'

What do you get when you throw Fools Gold main man A-Trak, Southern king pin Juicy J of Three 6 Mafia fame, and latest next big thing Danny Brown onto a track together? A piss test, that's what.

Fortunately, this experiment doesn't involve any plastic containers and spilt substances.

The 'Piss Test' I'm talking about is a bouncy, speaker-slaying tune with rhymes your mum will most probably hate. If she doesn't, your mum's probably quite different from mine (hi mum!).

New Music: Ghost Loft - 'Blow'

It's been all action stations on the hip hop front over the last few weeks. But now that I've got a chance to catch my breath, I'm going to mellow things out a touch with the help of producer Ghost Loft.

Ghost - a.k.a. Danny Choi, a Los Angeles native of South Korean extraction - makes rather lovely, somewhat whimsical lo-fi electronic music.

He's got a few tunes floating about under his GL moniker, (as well as some more upbeat business under the name Nowonder), but it's 'Blow' in particular that's caught my ear.

New Music: Tall Black Guy - 'Sweet Europe'/'Love To The World'

Tall Black Guy has been cropping up all over the place recently.

The Detroit producer has been on a rich run of form (including this little gem from last week) - and the latest jam I've locked ears on is certainly no different.

'Sweet Europe' is a sweet number indeed, with TBG flipping a loping guitar loop and tambourine clap into a grooving, hip hop-tinged trip.

New Music: Robert Glasper Experiment - 'Fever'

Alright, so I've been banging on about Robert Glasper's new album Black Radio for a while now (mix tape business here and here in case you missed it).

But have I gone out an bought it yet? No. No, I have not.

I'm planning on getting on top of that situation later on today (Sunday Jazz and beard strokery session coming up? Ooooh, yes).

But before I do, I think it's only fair to post the tune that reminded me it's time that I put my money where my mouth is.

Under The Radar: Talib Kweli & Max Tannone - Dub Kweli

True story time. While driving from somewhere to somewhere last week (details are hazy), a Talib Kweli tune popped up on the iPod.

What tune? I can't remember. Details are worryingly hazy for something that happened last week...am I going senile already?

Now, I'm not going to turn this into a Kweli bashing session. But it suddenly hit me how I've gone off him. I don't know why, but it just seemed a little bland to me.

But the world works in mysterious ways, and when DJ Hudge dropped a little Kweli jam on the radio yesterday, Talib made a little more sense to me.

New Music: Christoph El Truento - 'When We Enter New Dimensions'

New Zealand producer Christoph El Truento's EP01 has been on heavy rotation on the GOMWAB box brownie for the last month or so.

So I'm kind of excited that the young fella has dropped a new tune tonight that I can add to the playlist.

As the title suggests, 'When We Enter New Dimensions' is some cosmic business. Not so big on the beats, but there's more than enough vibes in the mix to make up for it.

News: Omar = ODB?

We all knew it would happen one day: the incomparable Ol' Dirty Bastard's incomparable life being immortalised on the silver screen.

But as it turns out, the inevitable ODB flick - titled Dirty White Boy - isn't all Grammy stage-invading and limousine rides to pick up the dole.

New Music: Tall Black Guy - 'Good Now' (James Brown Rework)

To celebrate cracking the 5000 follower mark on Soundcloud recently, producer/artist geezer Tall Black Guy has let off a little free download of a James Brown classic he's lovingly tinkered with.

'Good Now' shows TBG - who you might remember from this rather awesome little number - dissecting Brown's 'I Feel Good', rearranging it into a loping, head nod-inducing beat that positively smokes.

New Music: Dam-Funk - 'Serious'

It's been a while since I've posted up anything by the "Ambassador of Boogie-Funk", Dam-Funk. But the keyboard killer has been keeping seriously busy.

Dam clearly likes to make music, because there's plenty locked away in his vaults. But he's been unleashing a stream of these unreleased tunes as of late, with works in progress and scrapped cuts alike being liberated via his Soundcloud page.

Today's offering is a seriously jazzy affair. So serious in fact, that Dam's called it 'Serious'. There's a flurry of scattering cymbals accompanying Dam's trademark synth stylings in the mix, all of which combine to create a serious piece of music.

New Music: Killer Mike - 'Untitled'

Remember Killer Mike? Mr 'A.D.I.D.A.S'? Sure you do.

Well, Mike's back with a new album, R.A.P. Music (the R.A.P. stands for Rebellious African People's), which will be produced entirely by El-P.

Hang on a minute... El-P? Former Def Jux and Company Flow main man El-P? Well, yes, as it turns out, it's the one and the same.

I've not followed Mike's career closely to be fair, but on the surface, this seems like a slightly odd pairing to me.

The proof is in the pudding though, so the saying goes. And after hearing a tune called 'Untitled' (or maybe it's just a song with out a title) this morning, I'm thinking the pair might go together quite nicely.

New Music: Nas - 'The Don'

What the hell is Nas on these days? It seems like the majority of tracks he's graced in the last two years plus change have been fire.

Okay, so there's been the occasional blip. Hows about a duet with Carlos Santana? Sure, sounds grrrrreat. But to be fair, a tough divorce will do that to you.

Santana aside, Nasir has been enjoying a rich run of form. And 'The Don', the new single off his long-promised and naffly titled album Life Is Good, is certainly no exception.

Live: Jay Z @ SXSW (full show video)

Many a music fan/blog geek has been  silently shedding tears onto their keyboard this week as the whirlwind that is SXSW rolls through Austin, Texas.

SXSW sees a mix of the brightest, biggest and best names in music ride into Austin-town for shows, with pretty much every modern genre well represented.

Never one to miss out on a party, Jay Z decided to hold court at SXSW this year, reaching a gentleman's agreement with sponsors American Express to let them film his whole show and slap it on YouTube.

New Music: Riff Raff McGriff - 'Tell Em (Georgia Anne Muldrow Remix)'

Singer/songwriter/producer extraordinaire Georgia Anne Muldrow has done the decent thing for rapper dude Riff Raff McGriff today, giving his tune 'Tell Em' a little rework and releasing it to the masses for free.

This isn't a totally altruistic gesture, mind you: RRMcG is signed to SomeOthaShip Connect, an independent label owned by Georgia and her partner Dudley Perkins as a creative outlet for their personal projects and side production work.

New Music: T.Rice - 'The NYC Dream Team' edit collection

I've banged on about blends for a while now (when they're bad, they're really bad). But it's oh so true that a well concocted blend is an worthy weapon in any DJ's arsenal.

One of the master blendcrafters in these here parts is Auckland DJ T.Rice, who has been quietly building a stable of such edits, which he's kindly sharing with the masses through his Soundcloud page.

T has been extra productive over the last few weeks. After spending a weekend holed up in a hotel in Mexico (true story), he's cranked out a nice little edit collection which goes by the name of 'The NYC Dream Team' edit collection.

Mix Tapes: Robert Glasper - 'Bootleg Radio - The Robert Glasper Experiment Live'

When it rains, it pours. For weeks - sometimes months - I go through mix tape droughts, and then all of a sudden I'm surrounded in quality download material that cripples my internet download speed to Stephen Fry tantrum-inducing levels.

Following on from the blinding Kenny Dope Hip Hop & Funk 45s mix from a couple of days back, and the Big K.R.I.T jammy from the day before that, is another beauty from NYC jazz man Robert Glasper (who you might remember from last month's The Next Movement mix).

Mix Tape: Kenny Dope - 'Hip Hop & Funk 45's Mix'

Master at Work Kenny Dope has hip hop and funk chops for days. And in what is a nice little 'show and prove' moment, he's posted up a mix of the good stuff for your weekend listening pleasure.

Kenny's Hip Hop & Funk 45's Mix is exactly what it says on the tin, with top notch hip hop and funk mixed to perfection.

New Music: Cam Wallace - 'Saturday'

Here's a little test: let's see what the powers of social media and some celebrity endorsements can do for a relatively unknown song.

Let me break down the scenario. Cam Wallace is a producer/M.C from Atlanta. He has a song called 'Saturday'. After 5 months on Soundcloud, 'Saturday' has registered a few ticks under 120 plays and 9 downloads.

But a little big up from a couple of respected artists will surely work wonders. So when Skillz jumped on line an hour or two ago and tweeted how much he loved 'Saturday', I for one took notice.

Skillz also says that none other than DJ Jazzy Jeff has just listened to 'Saturday' and "snapped". Interesting. So let's just sit back and see how many plays Mr Wallace gets. Watch this space, and listen to/download 'Saturday' below:

Mix Tape: Big K.R.I.T. - '4eva N A Day'

My, my, my, folks have been waiting for this mix tape for a hot minute, haven't they? Internet darling Big K.R.I.T., doing the damn thing over a whole mix tape? Get in.

Since clocking up a breakthrough year in 2010, it seems that Mississippi man K.R.I.T. can do no wrong in the eyes of the critics. Their enthusiasm isn't totally misguided, either: the young man is rather good at what he does, after all.

Now, with a Def Jam debut, Live From The Underground, just a few months away, K.R.I.T is warming up the fire with 4eva N A Day, a silky smooth compilation which shows him flying the flag for the South with pride.

New Music: Ninja Tune celebrates International Women's Day 2012

A Grumpy Old Man With A Beard loves the ladies. Oh yes he does. And Ninja Tune loves the ladies too - so much so in fact, that they're giving away a bunch of music to celebrate International Women's Day 2012.

Alright, so IWD was actually yesterday (curses on you, time difference). But the love is still there. Oh yes it is. And so are the downloads.

New Music: NickNack & A.Dd+ - 'Can't You See'

A couple of A Grumpy Old Man With A Beard oldboys have joined forces for today's post, with Austin, Texas producer NickNack linking up with his fellow Lone Star-staters A.Dd+ to drop a sweet new tune.

'Can't You See' is based around a slow guitar loop and smouldering bass cooked up by Nick, while M.C.s Paris Pershun and Slim Gravy bring their vocal treats to the table.

New Music: Erykah Badu - 'On and On (Adi Dick Remix)'

Erykah Badu recently graced New Zealand with her presence, bringing a big old band with her and laying down what was by most accounts a pretty damn good show at the recent Splore festival.

I have a real knack at missing Ms. Badu. There's a new excuse each time she's playing live anywhere near me, but I don't want to bore you with the details. Let's just say I always seemed to be booked up at Badu time.

Kiwi soul man Adi Dick can share in my pain at least this once: turns out he missed out on Erykah, too.

New Music: Slugabed - 'Sex (Daedelus Remix)'

Changing gears a little today with some new tunage from Ninja Tuner Slugabed (a.k.a Greg Feldwick), whose electronic-tinged musical musings are soon to be corralled into an album by the name of Time Team.

What's on the menu for Time Team? Apparently the album will be "a concise documentation of Greg Feldwick's computational experiments analysing the directionality of hexagonal crystals." Don't know about you, but I'm excited. Or confused.

New Music: Killamanraro - 'Oops I Broke My Neck'

I've said it before and I'll say it again: most blends are pants. But when they're done right, they can be deadly - and one of the best in the business in my book is Killamanraro.

Manraro's Raro Blends Volume One features many a bomb track, but one of the best is the lovingly titled 'Oops I Broke My Neck'. Busta Rhymes beat + Tweet vocal = dance floor fun.

Mix Tape: DJ Teddy King & DJ Gravy - Back In Time

Throwback alert! As a Grumpy Old Man With A Beard™, it goes without saying that I love me some mid-90s, hip hop-flavoured dancehall shizz. And lo and behold, here comes DJ Teddy King and DJ Gravy to deliver exactly what I'm after. Lordamercy.

Ted and Grav have dug deep into their archives to put together Back In Time, a most excellent collection of dancehall from the 90s (give or take a few years, maybe), all of which has a solid, solid hip hop backbone to it.