Soulmate Records’ inaugural release, Boltz’ The Wishlist, hits stores next weekend. With a spate of worthy debut solo artist albums in the past month (see also Vents’ Hard To Kill and Damo’s D-Classified Files), you might be having trouble deciding where to spend your hard-earned.

To help you decide we have, for a very limited time, an exclusive download of the track “Spitfire”, as featured in Acclaim Magazine’s quotable column “Sweet Sixteen” this month. The Mules-produced track features a sample you may recognise from last year’s comeback record from a group of Aussie pioneers, but flipped differently and embedded in a thick, funky track that really lets Boltz, aka Bobby Rocketz, get busy with his. Additional production on the album comes from Styalz Fuego, Canada’s Muneshine, Weapon X, Trials of Funkoars and M-Phazes, while Royce Da 5′9″, A-Diction’s Breach, Fergo One and Ken Hell-alter ego Take It Easy Heezy collaborate on the mic.

Stream or download “Spitfire” right here.

Boltz on MySpace
Soulmate on MySpace

Download “Comin’ Home” (mp3)
from “Jewelry Box Sessions”
by Planet Asia
Gold Chain Music

• Buy at iTunes Music Store

More On This Album

Cali Agent and chief-jewellery-rocker Planet Asia is hitting Australia for the first time, with five shows scheduled in four days! With a conveniently timed new album on deck (which, if I’m not mistaken, comes less than a year after his last full length, the Evidence-produced The Medicine), Asia brings his rock solid flow and stage presence to Adelaide, Melbourne (free show!), Sydney, Byron’s sold out Splendour in the Grass festival and Brisbane this week. See above to download a track from the new album Jewelry Box Sessions.

Those dates in full:
1st August @ Electric Light Hotel, Adelaide: $20 (or $12 before 9pm). Featuring DJ Sum 1 on the cut and BVA from Mnemonic Ascent.
2nd August @ The Espy, Melbourne: Free! Support from DJ Flagrant, Illy, M-Phazes and One-Sixth. And it’s free!
3rd August @ Bar Broadway, Sydney: $21 on the door/$15 before. Asia joins the 2nd birthday celebrations for ever-busy local label Nurcha. Last Credit launch their album Breakfast of Champions and Def Wish Cast perform.
4th August @ Splendour in the Grass, Byron Bay: The only international hip hop act at this year’s Splendour (though megastars the Hoods and The Herd rep for the homeland), Planet performs what must be an afternoon set at the sold out winter festival before hot-footing it north for:
4th August @ Step Inn, Brisbane: $22.50 presold. Asia rocks the venue formerly known as the Shamrock. Support from DJ Staen 1, Clinic, Stricknine, Proclaim, Nikk C and Kingskonekted.

Download “The Heist” (mp3)
from “Interview With A Madman”
by Mark ‘Chopper’ Read
Rott’n Records

Buy at iTunes Music Store

Buy at eMusic

For a taster, here’s “The Heist”, produced by Nino Brown and featuring Anecdote and Justice dropping verses around Chopper’s spoken word-ish material.

Chopper on MySpace

Meanwhile, Obese Records have scored themselves a nice little feature on the Aussie iTunes store and The Hard Road unsurprisingly remains one of the most consistently popular hip hop tracks on the site. Speaking of which, the Hilltop Hoods are following in the path of Portishead and Metallica by preparing an orchestra-accompanied version of the multi-award winning album, presumably a la their performance of the title track at last year’s ARIA awards, but without the accompanying suspect sound mixing. Will The Hard Road Restrung convert classical purists to Aussie hip-hop, or at least open some minds? Will the Hoods launch the album at the Sydney Opera House? I’m willing to bet they will.

EDIT: The Adelaide launch was announced about the same time I posted the above. The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra will perform with the Hoods on May 12 at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. Purported to be the trio’s only South Autralian performance for 2007, this doesn’t necessarily rule out a SOH launch in NSW. The latter half of the year will see the Hoods, who have hit high orbit in the Oz indie music stratosphere, attempt to crack overseas markets.

Hilltop Hoods on MySpace

Hot on the heels of Biz Markie sampling Little River Band’s ‘Reminiscing’ for his ‘Throw Back’ joint (from 2003’s Weekend Warrior), ya boy Ghostface Killah has gone and done the unthinkable – pillaged the John Farnham back catalogue for his More Fish album!

Yep, apparently the track ‘Blue Armor’ (sic) (featuring D-Block hitman Sheek Louch) rides a (whispering) jacked loop from the Farnsey banger ‘Always The Same’ (from 1993’s Then Again). I didn’t cop More Fish so I can’t check the liner notes to verify if this is true, or to see who the producer was (great taste!), but as you all know net gossip is rarely inaccurate.

Even so, this is a victory for the Aussie crooner and will see his music live on through the hip-hop generation. I’ve put the track up for a sneaky download if you’re keen for a listen (link will self-destruct soon though):

Ghostface feat. Sheek Louch – ‘Blue Armor’

In the mood for a shiver down your spine?

The new Clandestien album is less than a month away. Chasms of the Citadel will be the third full-length from Perth mainstays and SBX-affiliates Mortar, Tomahawk and Graphic. A three-track sampler distributed to hip-hop radio suggests that while the distinct Clan flavour is still in effect, they’ve made a conscious effort to expand both their sound and subject matter. While the first two cuts on the sampler are signature clan bangers (check the beat on “Harvey Wallbanger”) , the third joint is a chilling head nodder, with each of the MCs narrating a disturbing chapter in the life of a troubled young woman.

Get this exclusive download for a limited time only. When it’s gone, it’s gone.

Download: “Her Choice” from Sendspace

Chasms of the Citadel will be in stores February 24 on DoubleBeef through Shogun Distribution.

Clandestien on MySpace
DoubleBeef on MySpace (yes – Mass MC is on MySpace and the world is one step closer to apocalypse).