Need some new music today but don't want to open the wallet? There's a trio of must-hear releases out this All Saints' Day that you can listen to for free. First up is ASAP Rocky's much-anticipated mixtape LiveLoveA$AP. Who is A$AP Rocky? Up until last month, he was just another 23-year-old rapper in Harlem and a member of the A$AP Crew collective. But then Rocky was signed to an insane $3 million deal by Sony/RCA without even releasing a street album. By comparison, Drake, the most hyped rapper in years, only scored $2 million when he signed with Young Money, and he only earned that much because he already had a chart topper ("Best I Ever Had") on his resume. "They say I sound like Andre [3000] mixed with Kanye," Rocky raps in "Leaf." If that's the case, he's potentially worth the investment.
The rapper did score some radio play previously with his "Purple Swag," but that song was left off this tape. There's no doubting Rocky has promise, but many of the highlights on LiveLoveA$AP come courtesy of one of hip-hop's most innovative producers right now, Clams Casino. The producer has five gauzy beats on the mixtape, and it's only a matter of time before he catches on with established rappers like Jay-Z, Lil Wayne, and Kanye West. Watch the ASAP's video for "Peso" here, and download the mixtape over at Nah Right.
Another must-download mixtape comes from Freddie Gibbs, one of the elite talents in the burgeoning stoner-rap genre along with Curren$y. Hip-hop enthusiasts have been critical of Gibbs' monotonous flow, but this mixtape, Cold Day in Hell, sees the rapper throwing some curveballs with his cadence to prove he can do more than just rhyme at a fast pace. Gibbs has been on the mixtape circuit for a while now -- his midwestgangstaboxframecadillacmuzik and Str8 Killa No Filla are essential - and Cold Day in Hell should serve as a final reminder of his skills until his major label debut Baby-Faced Killa arrives in early 2012. The rapper is also responsible for this writer's favorite song of 2011, his and Curren$y's "Scottie Pippen." Download Cold Day in Hell at LRG.
Finally, there's the reissue of the Beach Boys' long-unreleased masterpiece SMiLE. Originally envisioned as a follow-up to the group's Pet Sounds, the LP was nixed at the last minute and never formally released, though demos from the recording sessions as well as Brian Wilson's 2004 solo version have earned a cult following. The Amp could write an entire dissertation on SMiLE's backstory and importance, but let's just say that listening to this album is like discovering a lost Sgt. Pepper's four decades after it was recorded. It's that good. Stream it in its entirety at Spinner.