Myself & my trusted resident DJ, Doc Adam,
have collaborated w/ Los Angeles-based clothing line, Twelve Bar
to bring you a special two-part Fresh Selects Retrospective mix.

This first installment of The Porch Sessions,
is meant to be a time capsule of sorts –
an audible freeze frame of the first 12 months of music posted on Fresh Selects.
I wanted to compile everything from the site’s first year
just to kind of sum it all up,
put a period at the end of the sentence,
& cement the foundation for us to build on for the next steps.
It can also serve as a starter kit
for anyone who found out about the site after the fact,
as well as a thank you to everyone that’s been down since day one.

I went through all of the posts from the site’s first year
& selected some of my personal favorite tracks,
plus all of the ones that garnered the most response.
Almost all of the songs included in the mix were exclusives
released or premiered thru the site
& they all played a part in shaping the sound & style that I had been going for.
To convey the full progression as it unfolded,
I wanted to put them all in one mix
(which actually ended up being two separate, hour-long mixes
because there was just too much music)
& let them play in chronological order.

Since mixing songs in order of release,
& not by BPM/tempo/mood, etc.
basically goes against all the most basic rules of making a mixtape -
I knew I had to get the very best to make it happen right.
Enter Doc Adam (no pause).
Plus his apartment has The Porch, so it was a no-brainer.

Included are some kind words from the even kinder people @ Twelve Bar,
who presented the mix & co-premiered it on their site today as well,
+ the tracklisting w/ links to all the original posts
so you can get the full versions & back stories on all of the songs.
I’m still in the process of updating some of the older posts
from the first version of the site,
so if you find any dead links just leave a comment & I’ll fix it.

Free download of the one-track, hour-long mix can be found below,
& be on the look out for Part 2 of The Porch Sessions RTRSPCTV coming soon.

There is a lot we could say about FRSH SLCTS – the Portland-based digital label and multimedia platform that has been providing you with the best in hip-hop, soul and cutting-edge music since 2008. All of it would be good. But the main thrust is right there in their name, albeit without the vowels as is their style. Seemingly everything they do is fresh. Freshly presented, freshly considered, freshly packaged, and freshly curated. And that is the second part right there. Because the “selects” element of the name is also key, as they hand-pick artists and songs with the educated touch of a musical magician, never failing to bring out the very best available. And so when the chance came to bring you the exclusive FRSH SLCTS Retrospective mix, an anthology of some of their favorite songs from their early years, we jumped at it.

1. devonwho – Dungeonraps (2088 Archives)
2. DaveNotti – Notti Break #5 (Notti Breaks 2008)
3. PPP feat. J Dilla – Shotgun (Waajeed’s Plinky Remix) (single)
4. TaRaach & Konphlict feat. Big Tone & Kawshus – Socialize (single)
5. TaRaach & Konphlict – 10 Feet High (Giraffe Pussy) (single)
6. Miguel – Overload (Mischief: The Mixtape)
7. Little Dragon – Twice (live) (FRSH KPT SCRT)
8. M64 – Rhythm Of The Drum (single)
9. M64 – Helium (single)
10. Invincible & Finale – Don’t Sleep (single)
11. PPP feat. Coultrain – Angel (Waajeed Remix) (single)
12. Coultrain – The Wanderer (single)
13. SA-RA feat. Bilal – Master Teacher (demo #1) (“Master Teacher” EP)
14. SA-RA feat. Georgia Anne Muldrow – Master Teacher (demo #2) (“Master Teacher” EP)
15. SA-RA – Master Teazer (KenBts.’ Revenge Edit) (“Master Teacher” EP)
16. Hi-Res – Thisworld (FRSH SLCTS – Loose Joints)
17. devonwho – Hold Up Zelda (FRSH SLCTS – Loose Joints)
18. Finale – Ice (FRSH SLCTS – Loose Joints)
19. Knxwledge – Relief. (FRSH SLCTS – Loose Joints)
20. Fatima – Wildchild (FRSH SLCTS – Loose Joints)
21. Noni Limar – Monogamy (FRSH SLCTS – Loose Joints)
22. Super Smoky Soul feat. Guilty Simpson – Knockout Kings (New Worlds PRVW)
23. Karma Stewart – Withdrawal (The Karma EP)
24. PPP feat. Coultrain & Jamila Raegan – Synchronicity (Abundance Mixtape)
25. PPP feat. Coultrain & Jamila Raegan – Can’t You Feel It (Abundance Mixtape)
26. Fatima – Do I Know You? (FRSH KPT SCRT)
27. Ab & Daru feat. T3 – Dirty Soul (A Work In Progress PRVW)
28. Blu – Say Say (FSR #1)
29. SA-RA Creative Partners – High Moon Lust (FSR #1)
30. Cubic Zirconia – I Wanna Freebase You (FSR #1)
31. Johnson&Jonson feat. Miguel – Stadium (FSR #1)
32. Suzi Analogue – SageBurns (World. Excerpts 1-9)

Selected by KNNY FRSH
Edited by Doc Adam
Presented by Twelve Bar
Artwork by Twelve Bar & Dennis de Groot
Hosted by ♎ & ♐ for Team 1984

Today I’ve got an unreleased collaboration from two of my favorite artists right now – Bay Area producer/MC, Trackademicks, remixing Swedish genre-benders, Little Dragon‘s song, “After The Rain.”

Coincidentally, the first time I had met Trackademicks was at a Little Dragon in San Francisco last year (which they KILLED, by the way). He actually told me then that he had been commissioned by the group to remix the track and I already knew it was gonna be crazy. So since the song was never officially released, Track decided to put it out through his Trackademia blog yesterday, since LD had their next SF show last night.

The remix lives up to the expectations with Track putting his own upbeat synth freak to the melancholy feel of the original. You can stream and download the track in the link below. Leave a comment and let me know what you think.

New video from FRSH KPT SCRT alumni, Little Dragon. The song is “Fortune” – a shining example of their signature smooth-but-noddy, sleepy-but-electric sound. The video comes from Japanese animator, Hideyuki Katsumata, and features a fun, literal interpretation of the band’s name. “Fortune” serves as our first taste of their upcoming sophmore album, Berlinmaster, which after hearing this, will hopefully be dropping very soon.

Check out the video and then download the song for free below, couresty of RCRD LBL.

Directed by Hideyuki Katsumata

When starting this post, I wasn’t sure whether or not it was fair to include Little Dragon in the Fresh Kept Secrets category, considering their recent success in certain scenes & demographics. But although they definitely have a large following already, I feel like a lot of heads still haven’t been properly exposed to them. So with that said – for those of you who are already up on game, I’ve still get some gems for you guys as well.

While I was already familiar with (and thoroughly impressed by) their lead singer, Yukimi Nagano, from her work with Ge-ology – it wasn’t until Waajeed played two of their songs on his Bling47 Radio podcast that I really got put on to the rest of Little Dragon. And since then, their self-titled debut album has quickly become one of my favorite new discoveries of the year – even if it did come out in 2007.

Although on a surface level, the Swedish-based group make pop music – they definitely do it in their own way. Written with a definite pop song sensibility, yet still played with the techniques of a modern jazz outfit, infused with stylish, electro-flourishes that fluctuate throughout. And if that wasn’t enough, they still manage to throw in enough bounce & swing to their tracks to appeal to the beatheads, without alienating their mainly indie pop/rock fanbase as well. Both emotionally and sonically, their album runs the gamut – containing everything from flirtatious, electric workouts that are equally as fit for a dance party as they are an upscale lounge (“Wink”) and playful synth-laden songs that’ll keep the 8-bit heads happy (“Turn Left”), to a jazzy anti-materialism swing with apocalyptic undertones (“After The Rain”) and movingly personal ballads (“Twice,” “Stormy Weather,” & “No Love”). These puzzle pieces, all similar in their differences to each other, then come together to form one concise movement that has something to fit nearly every mood.

To get better acquainted with what’s on the album, stay tuned after the jump for two examples of the LP’s highlights – and in typical Fresh Selects fashion, some bonus treats thrown in as well. For those of you who have already caught on to Lil Drag’s infectious sound (you were probably hip before me even) – I’ve included the short-but-sweet, non-album exclusive, “Infinite Love” below. Hopefully this track is a sign of the quality thats still to come from their forthcoming sophomore album.

For our more visual learners, I’ve provided two Little Dragon videos (“Constant Surprises” directed by Fredrik Egerstrand & a live in-studio live performance of “Twice” for The Black Room Sessions) below, along with 3 of my favorites from Yukimi Nagano’s recent guest appearances.

Ge-ology “Blues Alley” (feat. Yukimi Nagano)
(c) 2007 Mineral Werks Musik

Shuya Okino “Pieces Of You” (feat. Yukimi Nagano, prod. Dego & Akwasi Mensah)
from the album, United Legends (2007, Geneon)

Hird “I Love You My Hope” (feat. Yukimi Nagano)
from the album Moving On (2004, DNM)