various artists - Miami By Way Of Baltimore Vol. 1 (Orange Karma Records)

I got sent this mixtape back in January, been meaning to listen to it for a minute but didn't really get around to it until they sent me the 2nd volume more recently. It's kind of a weird concept, a random assemblage of recent music from 2 cities that couldn't be more different. I mean there are definite parallels, if you factor in the way Miami bass and Baltimore club have been long intertwined both with each other and with hip hop from both cities, but there's no attempt to draw that link here. More likely some folks with roots in both places just wanted to do something to represent, and I can appreciate that. There's not a whole lot of Baltimore artists here: just 4 Bossman tracks, 2 NOE tracks, and a Comp track. But I haven't heard some of those tracks before so it's still cool to hear those. I'm generally a fan of Miami rap, but I'm not really into any of the Rick Ross or Flo Rida or Plies selections here. You can download the whole thing off DatPiff.com.

Comp - "Embrace Me" (mp3)
This is a really weird-sounding song! I love how Comp just seems to get more into his own world as the years go by.

Labels: Bossman, Comp, mixtape/album review, mp3, NOE