Acclaimed west coast rappers Prometheus Brown (of Blue Scholars) and Bambu have teamed up once again, this time under a new group name–The Bar–to follow up their 2011 collaboration album Prometheus Brown & Bambu Walk Into a Bar with a new album to be released on March 11, 2014 titled Barkada.

Released through Beatrock Music, Barkada ranks among the most important contributions to hip hop, landing somewhere between Nas’ Illmatic and Y’all So Stupid’s Van Full of Pakistans. Furthermore, it is the finest expression of drunken warrior Filipino uncle-hood since the rise of pre-Born Again Manny Pacquiao. Throughout the album, Prometheus Brown and Bambu simultaneously delve heavily and lightheartedly through such topics as police brutality, cockfighting, substance abuse and lusting after your mom’s friends in your pre-adolescence. Production on the album is handled by DJ Nphared (Grynch, Sol), Justo (The Physics), Bean One (Dyme Def, Black Sheep), 6Fingers, Chops (Mountain Brothers), Osna & Anton Glamb with features from Thig Nat of The Physics, Dash Calzado & Hollis of The Flavr Blue and that one song with Macklemore and Schoolboy Q.

Prometheus Brown has successfully released 3 albums and toured nationwide as half of the Seattle-based duo Blue Scholars. Bambu, formerly of the legendary trailblazing Filipino American rap duo Native Guns, has similarly carved out his own lane as a formidable rapper with the Soul Assassins collective. Both have balanced their lives as fathers and community organizers with the rigors of so-called rap life.

Longtime comrades and collaborators, the two rappers began working as a recording duo upon a trip to Hawai’i where the duo literally walked into a bar and decided “f–k it, let’s make an album.” That album, recorded in Honolulu, was Prometheus Brown & Bambu Walk Into a Bar. It included a song dedicated to actor Rashida Jones, which friends of Rashida have said both flattered and offended her. The album received many illegal downloads and positive reviews, eventually landing on 206up.com’s list of the 10 Best Albums of 2011 (by acts with ties to Seattle).

Thus, Barkada also follows in the tradition of two rappers with their own respective accomplishments colliding to bring the best of both of their worlds to one project, similar to El-P & Killer Mike’s Run The Jewels and Kanye West & Jay-Z’s Watch The Throne, but with .0001% of the budget and resources and 100x the swug. But as Filipinos have done for more than a century, Pro Brown & Bambu have learned to take America’s scraps and turn it into something colorful that everybody can ride with. Like a jeepney.

http://beatrockmusic.com/