It's the Hip Hop Issue from WaxPo, as always comin' correct with the meticulously detailed articles and jewels of knowledge you won't read in any other mags. In addition to the usual vintage singles reviews and solid photography, there's a piece on...
expand review the life of Bobby Byrd, hip hop history with 9th Wonder, NYC public access talk with "Uncle Ralph" McDaniels, plus pieces on Just Blaze, Devin The Dude, Percee P, Alchemist, Evidence, Osaka Monaurail and more. Naturally, they squeeze some funk and soul in there too. Great front and back cover paintings from Zachariah O'Hora seal the deal. 138 pages. -Larri Byrd
Ahh, the choice pick for the collector's collector. Wax Poetics has been feeding our wax fetishes from their first issue in 2000. In fact, they started up right after TTL, and in many ways, we've grown up with them. From the small...
expand review "heads only" mag at the height of the crate digger era, to the respected record connoisseur magazine it is today, you can definitely say they've come a long way. Since back issues of this mag are hard to find and in high demand (they're all shelved in the bosses' room), Wax Po put together this official hardcover anthology book, covering the prime articles from the first 5 issues. If you're avid WaxPo reader, you'll love the change to the large format. The pictures are just as priceless as the stories behind them, and when they're blown up this nice, it becomes that much harder to put down. 8.5 x 11", 240 pages, with 480 color plates. Recommended. -C'mish
The connoisseurs at Wax Poetics get brilliant on this one. The concept gathers some of the magazine's most esteemed contributors to pick out 20 of their most personable albums and pair them up according to their individual significance. The result is...
expand review a combination of rare record art, classics and funky music juxtaposed in an intriguing order. Kinda like a random assortment of "Desert Island" picks, if you will. The only text is in the preface and intro, but besides that the mystery of the pair ups are as subjective as the music locked in the grooves. The covers range from comedic, funky and outrageous, to refined, poetic and thought provoking(see detail pics) but all of them carry a timeless quality. Because this indirectly highlights the working artist before computers, I highly suggest this for anyone interested in graphics for music. I think you'll agree that the old methods were less fleeting. Recommended. -Cmish
This one goes out to the Godfather of Soul himself: his family, his legacy and the impact that he had on modern music. Full of great pictures (as WaxPo always is) and great angles (peep the never-before-published James Brown interview, it gets...
expand review deep). Other highlights include features on singer Minnie Ripperton, the exposed disco funk of Banbarra (whose track "Shack Up" was the impetus for Certain Ratio's cover) and a look into "Planet Rock" and the many electro pop percussions that followed. As always with WP, there is so much more, but I won't give away all the surprises. -C'mish
Between the great cover shots of Grandmaster Flash and Eddie Harris, the new issue of Wax Poetics features pieces on the Hot 8 Brass Band, Camp Lo, Build An Ark, Newcleus, S.O.U.L., Blue Note, Brownout, Cuba, Chuck Brown and more. The issue's...
expand review centerpiece is a collection of stunning photos from music journo / renaissance man Tom Terrell, including pics of Kurtis Blow, Rashaan Roland Kirk, Mississippi McDowell, Bob Marley, Funkadelic, Howlin' Wolf, Ras Michael and more. 138 pages. -Chris Lemon-Red
Time to be blessed once again by the record afficianados at Wax Po. This issue features an entrancing article on Betty Davis, ex-wife and muse of Miles Davis, and a new interview with the west coast's OG hustler, Too Short. Also includes...
expand review detailed pieces on Brazil's Jao Donato, Ornette Coleman, Pharoah Monch, Marva Whitney, Kon and Amir, portraits of the people of Sao Paolo by B+ and much more. The info is so densely packed, it's pretty much a must-have issue for any music fanatic. -C'mish
Another month, another quality issue of everyone's favorite music mag. Al Green and Q-Tip take the respective front and back covers this time; inside are features on Phil Ranelin, Flying Lotus, early James Brown accomplice J.C. Davis, Karriem Riggins, Dam-Funk, King Britt,...
expand review ?uestlove on the making of Al Green's Lay It Down, Estonian music, plus all the usual bells, whistles and drool-inducing rare record reviews you've come to expect from WaxPo. 128 pages. -Chris Lemon-Red
This issue is special. Not like every issue isn't, but this one's feature articles on one of music's greatest superheroes, Herbie Hancock and one of rap's earliest self made men, Spoonie Gee. It even features and a special cover with Spoonie and...
expand review Herbie printed in gloss and the background in matte. You can also expect the usual dopeness with rare rap, funk, and disco record checks, interviews with Mamao from Azymuth and Otis Jackson Jr(Madlib), Freddy Fresh, Saxophonist Cedric Brooks, Jazz pianist Lalo Schiffrin, Lee Fields, Jazzman Sam Rivers, Interview with Pete Rock and more...128 pages of the realness. -C'mish
Eight years deep in the game and WaxPo has become one of the most respected music rags (sorry, "journals") in the world with its distinct mixture of vinyl archaeology and behind-the-scenes stories of artists both obscure and well-known. Anthology, Vol.1 focused on...
expand review the first five issues, so it stands to reason that this new hardcover collection should bring us creme de la creme of Issues #6-10 (Fall 2003 - Fall 2004) in blown-up 8.5" x 11" format. Includes pieces on Sun Ra, 45 King, Incredible Bongo Band, Rev. Eugene McDaniels, Willie Mitchell, Scientist, Les McCann, DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Roy Ayers, Eddie Bo (and so, so many more) along with a slew of rare full-color pictures and label scans. Hardcover; 240 pages. -Van Hammersly
#30 is "The Rock Issue" of WaxPo, an issue which editor-in-chief Andre Torres has been in the works for two years and which comes with a great juxtaposition of covers, featuring Bad Brains on one side and Elvis Presley on the other....
expand review In addition to features on those two icons, we get pieces on Detroit's soul-rock mainstays The Dirtbombs, Black Rock Coalition, The Rascals, Black Merda, Dave Bartholomew, Ernie Isley, Prince's early days and tributes to a number of recently-passed legends (Jimmy McGriff, Buddy Miles, Bo Diddley, Ike Turner). 128 pages. -Van Hammersly
New issue from the Knights of the Wax tables. Really have to give it up to these dudes for growing their wax nerdus empire to the level of respect they have now. I've even seen hot girls reading it in the...
expand review city! Anyways, this months turn your attention to Herman Histon's Psychedelic Soul, James Brown collectible tour posters, NY DJ legend Eddie Cheba (Cheba-Cheba ya'll), Brazil's Marcos Valle, a full back story and interview with Brooklyn's own musical treasure, Mandrill. Awesome and thorough as usual. Don't miss. -C'mish
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