Written by John Dixon

Photography by Courtne Smith and Oliver

If there was one thing we could learn from the industry, it’s that success is a bitch. A big ass, overweight bitch that will eat you out of the house and home that she built you. We see artists blow up like party favors and disappear like point guards at Memphis on a regular basis. It’s no longer surprising for a rapper bouncing his feet against that silly suede couch, sitting in between Julissa and Terrence (106& Park) promoting their new album, and a year later be working full time at the post office licking stamps. Most artists just aren’t built for that type of pressure. However, Our main man Drake rose to the occasion, and showed some sac on this second album.

Maybe not officially, but So Far Gone was served and digested as Drake’s debut album. It was how we got to know Drake and most certainly the rubric of comparison for his later work. Easily one of the best bodies of music in the last ten years, it was followed up by a, safely played, Thank me Later. It’s easy to go platinum when you have the biggest buzz since Curtis in ‘03 and put out a compilation album with Hip Hop’s ’92 Dream Team.  Although an economic success, generating record sales of platinum status and yielding hyper profitable tours across the globe, for those who do this music shit, who live it and breath it, TML was not the self-proclaimed classic that Drake said it was. It was just another album that you got out of your system in a few months. It lacked the timeless adhesive used to assemble So Far Gone. October’s Very Own rushed through that album like 2 grams on the tour bus. Months after the album was released, Drake acknowledged this himself, “Thank Me Later was a rushed album, I didn’t get to take the time that I wanted to on that record, I rushed a lot of the songs and sonically, I didn’t get to sit with the record, it was like once it was done, it was like its done.” Drake said in a sit down with 1Xtra’s DJ Semtex. Time, isn’t something you can’t fake. You either Take Care, or you don’t.

Take Care, is the album that Drake fans, who that waited up till midnight on 2.13.09 to download So Far Gone, (only for it to be pushed back until 3am because Omarion couldn’t get his vocals right), wanted last year! So Far Gone showed us Drake’s range of musical appreciation from songs with Wayne over Jay-Z’s Ignorant Shit to love ballads with Lykke Li. The… almost lefty approach that Drake took on So Far Gone is what made all four corners of the states embrace him like their own and buy into his movement. Those clever arrangements return on this album with features from Mr. shoulder pads and grass skirts himself, Andre 3000, on The Real Her and warm riffs on the harmonica from Stevie Wonder on Doing it Wrong.

The album starts off a little sleepy with Over my Dead Body and Shot for Me. One more added to the “I’m better than you” play list, and something for the ladies. Crew Love, aside from having the funniest line on the album,

“Take your nose off my keyboard/ what you bothering me for/ there’s a room full of niggas/ what you following me for?”

brings us some more of that dark, arrogant, hedonistic, stick-your-tongue-out-and-let-this-E-pill-dissolve, Weekend music with big drum patterns asymmetrically sprinkled over the melodies. That Toronto synergy is a strong thing right now.

Title track Take Care, featuring Rihanna, is definitely a stand out record and is set off by that Gil Scott sample over up-tempo dub step rhythm. Even though this is the 5^th Gil Scott sample we’ve heard in Hip Hop in the last 5 years (Kanye, Common, etc.), Jamie XX pulls it off.  Kendrick Lamar was a pleasant surprise on the Buried Alive interlude. Not an expected collab, but if anyone is “next”, it’s Kendrick.

The middle of the album is full of big energy, machismo, and poignant tales of loving strippers. This is clearly the windows up, system bumping section. And the way Just Blaze volleyed and served Aubrey and Ross with the anthemic Lord Knows is sinful.  We love the flowery singsong hybrids, but sometimes we just want 3 minutes and 15 seconds of rapping.

He takes his foot off of the accelerator, and brings us under a microscope with Cameras. Tales of his girl going bat shit, as Drake borrows the cool of Denzel in the 80’s, (not Denzel in Pelham 123) and plays kissy face with some PYT in a music video. Not something most of us can relate to, but I can see that being a problem. Different. Hard.

3 Stacks doesn’t disappoint, not even a little bit, on The Real Her. Dre, Drake, and Wayne share stories of the cycle of women in the industry and the search for the real her.

A song better than the title would suggest, HYFR (Hell Yeah Fuckin’ Right) embodies a flow we don’t here often from Drake, that rapid fire, Chicago sniping, vehemently annoyed at the stupid questions of reporters. Dope!

Drake nails the landing with a moving song dedicated to his mother and uncle, Look What You’ve Done. Sounds like it’s the prior months to when it all started. You can never go wrong with a song for mama. The album closes with remake of the Juvenile’s Back That Azz Up. 40 and Drake took one of Rap’s most over played songs and made it palatable again. Nicely done.

One thing we pride ourselves on with music is being able to introduce you to musicians to pay close attention. I grab my crotch and say we’ve introduced you to artist like Theophilus London, Mike Posner and Kid Cudi. I can put the gloves on and pull our the analytics to prove it. So the next artist that we’re putting you onto that will be serious name to know is iFFY. Coming out of East Harlem, iFFY makes it a priority for you to believe and feel each of his words as it blares through your speakers or headphones. As a new member of this sorta “feel-good” music coming out, he manages to tailor a sound that he can claim his own.

iFFY’s love for music began with his brother’s nineties rock collection, decorated by the likes of Nirvana and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. It wasn’t until moving from his birthplace of Miami to New York City as an 11 year-old that he was introduced to hip hop, when a classmate lent him the Bad Boy compilation album, “No Way Out.” Almost overnight, he became an instant hip hop head, delving into the music of Cam’ron, Eminem, Jay-Z, Nas and Rakim. As a teen, he started writing and brought his talents to the ring, battle rapping and developing a reputation for poignant punch lines and clever wordplay.

Now as iFFY begins to wholeheartedly pursue a career in music. The influences of rap gods, combined with his early love for rock and punk, are helping him develop a distinguished sound that brands him as one of a kind. His debut mixtape “Songs of Love & Madness” displays his versatility and limitless range. Whether he is spitting the rawness of “Feelin’ iFFY” or singing the upbeat yet somber tune of “Cast Away,” iFFY melodically captivates ears.

With more projects in the works, he will continue to offer listeners his heart in the form of music. In the process, he plans to further polish his sound and keep testing the boundaries of creative freedom.

I will easily conclude that iFFY is on ours list of Face to Watch in 2011.

Follow Iffy on Twitter.

Download: Feeling iFFY Pt. 2 by iFFY

In partnership with the Enough Project, veteran taste-maker and former KCRW Music Director, Nic Harcourt, has enlisted the help of friends like: Bat For Lashes, Imaad Wasif, Konono No 1, Damien Rice, Amadou & Mariam, Norah Jones, Mos Def and more to donate songs to the Raise Hope For Congo compilation. The Raise Hope For Congo project aims to protect and empower Congolese women who are the subject of unspeakable abuse as a result of the high demand for the country’s conflict minerals used in cell phones and computers in the west. Listen to Mos Def’s contribution, “Priority (A Capella)” and go support the cause, take action now.

Neon Indian’s new single – Sleep Paralyst; here’s some background for the uninitiated.

I met Shyvonne back in 2007 and have watched her pursuit of happiness unfold in front her eyes. Needless to say that I’ve kept my eye on her progress and watched as she left the corporate world to something that she was much more happier doing; singing. As I listen to her music, it reminds me that her personal style is a diverse as her music. Experimenting with a mesh of genres to form her own, Rock & Soulectro.

Her eclectic mix of thrift to sassy is an approach that led to work with Hell Bellz, Funky Fannys well as bring outfitted by the legendary fashion house Gucci for most of the singer’s live appearances, which matches the aesthetic of our readers.

Her do-it-yourself approach inevitably landed her backup slots for the likes of Estelle, Theophilus London, and Mickey Factz, opening up for Dwele at Spellman’s Homecoming concert, all before locking in her own string of dates that placed the singer in over 30 + headlining spots spanning from New York, Miami, London, and D.C. She also recorded an exclusive online promotion sneaker giant Converse for their 09 holiday campaign.

After infiltrating clubs and the consciousness of the young, progressive and exclusive, the song landed a deal with A-trak’s Fool’s Gold. Her yet-to-be titled debut (an EP, to be released March 2010) will guarantee a vast sounding body of work from the dancefloor jolts to your nervous system to the lover’s rock.

Without any further ado, Limité Magazine welcomes Shyvonne as one of our “Faces To Watch” in 2010.

Sex! There I said it. I had mind-numbing, sweaty, bed-shaking, hot sex. In fact, I did it in public in front of a packed room of strangers. I even tried to prepare myself for it by getting some extra rest the night before. But it just wasn’t enough. Right now I’m breathing heavy, there are beads of sweat running down my neck, I feel light-headed and I’m weak in the knees. I need a cigarette and I don’t even smoke! It was orgasmic, magical and unbelievable all at the same time. Now before you start jumping to conclusions, take your mind outta the gutter and away from your crotch. See I was at last night’s Them Crooked Vultures show at Roseland in NYC and this is the only way that I can begin to describe how I felt as I exited into the cold February night.

Now unless you have been living under a rock or serving a sentence in a Turkish prison you have heard of Them Crooked Vultures. You may have heard that the band has some musical heavyweights in the band and you may have heard that their self-titled album was one of the best records of 2009. Well guess what? It’s all true. TCV is comprised of Josh Homme of QoTSA, Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters and John Paul Jones of Led Zeppelin. Supergroup? Some might try to shortchange the band with that description, but, you’re selling yourself short if you try to pigeonhole the band with that label.  This is a band full of musicians that over the years have made their own marks in the music world with their individual accomplishments. But combined they are a force to be reckoned with, and a band to fear. This is a band that has nothing to prove and nothing to lose!

Dave Grohl behind the drums is a sight to behold. Savage, insane, monstrous, these are just some of the words that can be used to describe him. But to put it more simply Grohl is one of the greatest drummers of our time. Them Crooked Vultures allows Grohl to play with a reckless abandon that he’s unable to do while fronting the Foo Fighters. John Paul Jones is a living legend and the elder statesman of the band. Some would say that JPJ was long overshadowed by the other members of Led Zeppelin and it’s almost understandable if you overlooked his many contributions to the “Mighty Zep”. But those days are long over and JPJ is simply a God. Seeing him let loose and letting his fingers pull notes from his bass during the show is jaw-dropping. The man makes a bass sing and scream like no other. Josh Hommes rounds out the trio as their charismatic front-man and the man behind the wheel of the band. Longtime fans of QoTSA and Kyuss are already familiar with Mr. Homme’s talents. His riffs make you want to bang your head, make your body sway and your ass shake all at the same time. Toss in haunting and soulful vocals and you can see why Hommes is one of rock’s greatest talents.

This is a band that is not a side project or a one-off CD. This is a band that is here to save Rock n Roll! The passion can be felt through each note, each cymbal hit, and each roaring power chord. This is Them Crooked Vultures and they’re here to rip off your face and make your head explode.

For more information on Them Crooked Vultures visit: http://www.themcrookedvultures.com/us/home

Photo by Terry Richardson for GQ

If my memory serves me right, this is Weezie’s first post on Limité (clap it up) and receiving the news about him serving 8 months in the pin on gun charges is disappointing, maybe this will get a chance for rappers to come up with good music on their own while Mr. Featured on Every Damn Song will be penning up verses alongside of another Hip-Hop champ. Anyway, being locked up certainly isn’t going to slow Wayne down as he’s definitely already got a bunch of material and plans for two albums by December, the upcoming No Ceilings mixtape from which this song came, plus whatever else he decides to record before his sentencing in February…and you know Drake will drown us while his boss is out of the office.

Download: Lil Wayne “Swag Surfin”

A few months back, Vega began ramping down from a nice run (& mini-tour) with several web drops, including “No Reasons”, “All Too Vivid” & “Kyoto Gardens” (via Nicky Digital).

We noticed the group had started working on a different sound, adding “a girl from brooklyn” – this was the birth of Neon Indian. A completely different – more chilled out, psychedelic ( and dare I say, hypnotic ) sound (compared to Vega).

Neon Indian has been on tour for the past few weeks (& will be until Jan of 2010) – with their album “Psychic Chasms” debuting last Tuesday as a top 10 album in iTunes “electronic” category.

We wanted to give you something you couldn’t hear on the album; a remix of Au Revoir Simone’s “Another Likely Story”. Enjoy!

Another gem born out of a collabo of three of my favorite New York musicians, vocalists Peter Hadar, Theophilus London and producer Machinedrum. Thanks to my homie Law who put me on this freebie today! Also make sure to check out both Peter Hadar’s dope new site here and Theo’s This Charming Blog.

Download: Want U 4 Myself: Peter Hadar & Theophilus London

Via Lichiban Blossom

Photo by Daniel Warrington

Fresh from the source, this dope remix by top UK producer Sasquatch of Crunc Tesla‘s original VOODOO SOUND from his 2008 release “What’s Really Rad?” on Tigerbeat6/ Ekleroshock/ Luv Technologies has been on heavy rotation…intented for lucid dreaming stimulating flying experience to terrestial and outofspace jungles. Thanks for my fellow intergalactic bhakti Aeon for putting me on this!

“What’s Really Rad?” is a 23-minute kinetic energy burst along the lines of Outkast, The Pharcyde, Squarepusher, and even Harry Bellafonte. Acid basslines, gypsy organs and tweaked synths melt into grimy beats while creamy, rapid-fire lyrics flicker from dark to brilliant. The bipolar fusion of tones melds Middle Eastern melodies with dirty south drum kits, dancehall riddims and broke-beat glitchology.” The vocalists bombard from all angles, with MCs hailing from Jamaica, Baltimore, D.C., Atlanta and New York.” You can take a listen and download the album on amazon.

Via Lichiban Blossom