Tonight: History of Boston Hip-Hop comes alive at Enormous Room. Plus: Pacey Foster video and mixtape
This week in the Phoenix, Chris Faraone talks to PACEY FOSTER -- "the biggest nerd hip-hop historian in all of Boston" -- about Pacey's Boston chapter in the upcoming HIP HOP IN AMERICA: A REGIONAL GUIDE, and specifically about the early days of Boston hip-hop. Topics include Magnus Johnstone's groundbreaking WMBR show "Lecco's Lemma," extremely rare demos from Edo G's original Fresh To Impress Crew and Keithy E, who later had more success as GURU of Gang Starr.
Above, click the video to watch Pacey give Faraone a tour of his crates and memorabilia, and spin some ridiculously rare tracks. But if you're craving more wax, Foster teams up with fellow hip-hop historian BRIAN COLEMAN -- author of Rakim Told Me: Liner Notes for Hip-Hop Junkies -- to celebrate the release of Hip Hop In America tonight at Enormous Room. They'll both be spinning what Coleman calls a "Boston hip-hop history lesson": "It's a celebration of Boston hip-hop, from the early 80s ('Pak Jam'!) to the advent of Magnus Johnstone's 'Leccos Lemma' show on WMBR in the mid-'80s, up through the indie explosion led by Brick Records, 7L & Esoteric, Mr. Lif, Akrobatik and others in the mid-'90s, straight into the present day."
Also mandatory listening: Pacey's "Lecco's Lemma Megamix," a collection of talk and tunes rescued from old tapes of Magnus's WMBR show -- including what may be Guru's first interview.
DOWNLOAD: Pacey Foxter, Lecco's Lemma Megamix [mp3 via Library of Vinyl]