Blitz The Ambassador

By Kevin Jones

In stamping his latest musical endeavour with the one artistic trait he most seeks to vanquish, Ghana-born lyricist and musician Blitz has ensured the goal of avoiding run-off-the-mill hip-hop conventions would never leave his line of sight. As such, Stereotype places high emphasis on live, dynamic musicianship, with Blitz sharing the energetic limelight with backing band the Embassy Ensemble at every turn. The crew's boisterous horns make the greatest impact, blasting through cuts like "Something To Believe" and the reggae-infused "Lovers Remorse" with a mass the could move stadiums, while the record's extensive sonic detail garners further texture from the varied use of pianos and guitars. The Ambassador's insightful wordplay comes in just as heavy, as the Brooklyn, NY resident balances well-penned attacks on the world's many ills with necessary doses of inspiration, the culmination coming in seven-minute opus "Remembering The Future." Were listeners to hear no other track, that song alone conveys all you need to know about what this album has to offer. (Embassy MVMT)
Marina and the Diamonds / Young the Giant
Daniel, Fred and Julie / Lisa Bosikovic / Andy Bishop and Courtney Ewan
Hatebreed / Emmure / Dead and Divine / Straight Line Stitch / Baptized in Blood
The Slew / Rise Ashen
Bumbershoot
Interpol - Interpol 179
Siskiyou -
Malevolent Creation - Invidious Dominion 80
Boston Spaceships - Our Cubehouse Still Rocks 5539
The Thermals - Personal Life 81
The Great American Beast - Domestic Blood 5538
Neon Bastard - Meikhaus 1167
Sam Prekop - Old Punch Card 110
The Victory Square Block Party
Festival De Musique Émergente En Abitibi-Temiscamingue
Flying Lotus / Ultragamma / Mymanhenri
Angry Samoans / Class of 1984
Scissor Sisters
City and Colour / Tegan and Sara / Wintersleep / Ra Ra Riot
Ra Ra Riot
Jenny and Johnny - I’m Having Fun Now 41
DJ Muggs vs. Ill Bill - Kill Devil Hills 1652
Prosanctus Inferi - Pandemonic Ululations of Vespe 5297
Profanatica - Disgusting Blasphemies against 5297
Luke Doucet & the White Falcon -
Sonny and the Sunsets -
Reid Jamieson -
Various - Kompakt Total 11 2057
Lou Barlow and the Missingmen
The Specials
Vampire Weekend / Beach House / Dum Dum Girls
Ra Ra Riot -
S. Carey - All We Grow 632
Sarah Jezebel Deva - A Sign of Sublime 1055
Cotton Jones -
Neil Hamburger - Hot February Night 143
Fennesz / Daniell / Buck - Knoxville 110
!!! -
Oneida / Cowards
Ion Dissonance - Cursed 60
Various - Bloody War: Songs 1924-1939 4710
Mogwai -
Reason - Fools 41
Bars of Gold - Of Gold 5533
Jon Langford & Skull Orchard - Old Devils 159
Brad Laner - Natural Selections 2225
Surgeon / Various - Fabric 53 1855
Wildbirds & Peacedrums -
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