We’ve been long supporters of Sweden’s Adam Tensta for a minute now, and I’m glad to see that he’s still dropping more music after his stellar debut It’s A Tensta Thing a few years ago. Since then Adam has toured the world, making a few stops in the States, with the last time rocking Brooklyn Bowl on behalf of Talib Kwei. Since we last left Adam, his style has changed somewhat, incorporating more Euro-electro vibes than his previous effort.

The track Like A Punk dropped today via EMI music Sweden and it’s a banger. As always, the videos are next level, and I’m sure this track is destined to become a Euro hit. Check it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Most of y’all know that we’ve been supporters of Adam Tensta (he rocked our SXSW showcase with Senari remember?) for a hot minute now, and I’m glad to see that he’s back over in Scandinavia grinding it out. Recently he hooked up with Lars Vaular, one of Finland’s hottest rappers for his edit of the track Rett Opp Og Ned. Don’t let the foreign language fool you. This track goes hard!

Our homies Eboi and superstar rapper Adam Tensta have been on their grind since playing our showcase at SXSW. Their St. James dance collaboration is steady making noise and they recently teamed up with Swedish electro stars Addeboy vs Cliff for the song “Sinner.”

“Sinner,” continues the rap electro mashup trend that Tensta and his crew at Respect My Hustle have been pushing (it’s happening people), and the video…well let’s just say that you might want to turn away from the bare white ass if you’re squeamish.

After several months of planning, The Couch Sessions, in association with NYC promoter Senari was proud to introduce their signature showcase at Speakeasy in Austin. It was, by far one of the most diverse lineups at SXSW this year, combining reggae, hip-hop, club, and electro.

Starting off the night was New York’s Deadly Dragon Soundsystem. The selectors played classic reggae tunes on all 45s, warming up the crowd for two straight hours.

Jahdan interview from SOCIETY HAE

Getting things started was Couch Sessions Approved Artist Jahdan Blakamoore. Coming off of his highly acclaimed CD Buzzrock Warrior and headliner of New York’s Brooklyn Tropical parties, the MC ratcheted through tracks from his debut solo album. Buzzrock combines everything from reggae rhythms to dubstep, and the MC (who was also featured on Diplo and Switch’s Major Lazer project), proved capable, rocking the audience for a full 40 minutes. The set, accompanied by his DJ Matt Shadetek, was a winner.

Next up, was the DMV’s Tabi Bonney, in what many people were calling his breakout performance. The front room of Speakeasy was packed with heads from all over the country – Texas, Cali, NYC, and a full slate of artists from the DC area in the front row. Tabi ROCKED IT, going through a set that included his hits “Rich,” “Superhero,” “Rock Bammas,” and his signature track “In The Pocket,” making it absolutely the most raucous performance of the night.

Swedish hip-hop sensation Adam Tensta followed, holding his own in front of the crowd, which thinned slightly as Madlib was rocking no more than 50 feet behind him in the other room. His combination of hip-hop and electro got the crowd jumping, as people were waiting over two years to see him perform in Texas. Tracks like “Dopeboy (Do You Think That I Sell Drugs),” were straight dope, and I was actually surprised to see that a lot of people in the audience knew the lyrics to his songs, proving that the distance between Sweden and Texas is shorter than most people think.

Ending the night was New York’s Cubic Zirconia. Already one of the most buzzed bands coming into SXSW, Tiombe Lockhart and company continued to wow audiences with the dope combination of soul, club, and R&B, as well as some dope percussion. Let’s face it. Ms. Lockhart is one of the sexiest frontwomen in music at the moment, and her sultry movements and short dress most surely got the crowd more than a little excited.

But it’s all about the music right? And the music was the winner of their set, as she got the Texas audience to scream “Fuck Work,” and move along to the track “Josephine.”

At the end of the night, we were blessed with the sounds of Gavin Holland. By that time, the crowd had thinned out considerably, and the dance floor was left with our friends and associates that we met during out time in DC. We danced and celebrated with smiles on our faces, knowing that our showcase truly killed the game.

Big up to Austinist, Do 512, Newschannel 8 Austin, Tarik from RadioMilwaukee, Chuck, the Stone’s Throw Crew, Campo$ and the bellhop from the hotel for rolling through, the girls who drove 3 hours from Houston to see Tabi, and everybody else who showed up to Speakeasy that Wednesday. It was truly a special night, and we will most certainly be back next year.

Adam Tensta is one of the best hip-hop MC of the past 5 years.

There, I said it. Hip-hop it seems has been in a creative void lately. MC’s are either trying to bring back the boom bap of the 90s or trying to go ultra Southern with repetitive synths and dumbed down lyrics. Even the very few artists who are pushing the creative void are being copied on the daily by guys with skinny jeans and a MySpace account. A once creative genre has lost its voice.

To truly find some of the best talent in hip-hop, you must travel abroad. Enter Adam Tensta. The Swedish MC is slowly making a household name for himself in The States, but the lack of a Brooklyn or ATL residence unfortunately is keeping him off of the XXL Freshman 10 list this year. For shame. Coming from the land of IKEA and Volvos might make true hip-hop “purists” give him the side-eye, but Tensta is a dominant MC, that can outrap some of the best rising stars in the game.

With a swagger that rivals any ATLien, and a sped up cadence that would put any rapper to shame, Adam represents the future of hip-hop. Tensta, who’s name derives from his hometown outside of Stockholm, Sweden has been making some of the most progressive and insightful hip-hop in the past few years. Forget the bling and club talk, Adam’s rhymes talk about racism (Bangin’ On The System), and racial profiling (Dopeboy), harken back to the day when the genre was the CNN for the ghetto. However, don’t get it twisted, Tensta makes Euro club jams such as “Back Before You Know It,” and “My Cool,” balancing consciousness with party-ready anthems.

His album, “It’s A Tensta Thing,” won a Swedish Grammy, and he has rocked shows in Europe, Africa, and the US, opening for such acts as The Cool Kids, U-N-I here and getting respect from pioneers such as Mos Def and even Perez Hilton. And before you give Swedish hip-hop another skeptical glance, his crew, consisting of such cats as Eboi and Pato Pooh are very capable MCs’s in their own right dropping straight amazing freestyles

What does an Adam Tensta show look like? Well, check out this video from his sold-out DC show for a primer:

Deriving largely from the Euro club scene, expect an energetic set next Wednesday at Speakeasy’s. This is not a “head nodder” affair, expect a lot of jumping and dancing–not your typical hip-hop at all.

The clash of hip-hop and electro has already begun, and European club has entered the mainstream, thanks to artists like The Crookers and David Guetta pairing with the Black Eyed Peas, Kid Cudio, and Akon. These DJs have opened up the door the next wave of Euro artists into the American mainstream. It’s time for Adam to walk through that door.

Adam will be performing at the Senari x Couch Sessions SXSW showcase next Wednesday, March 17th at 10:00 PM. RSVP Here.

BONUS: Pato Pooh feat. Adam Tensta – Follow Me

We’re bringing back our Writer and Reader Top 5ives for the of the best releases of the year. I’ll be profiling a new reader and writer each day over the next several weeks to see what their best tracks of ‘08 were. If you want your Top Five releases to appear on the site, enter your submissions here.

Name: Kaiser
Location: Washington, DC

Top Five:

1.) I’m Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance (Twelves Remix) by the Black Kids

2.) Quicksand by La Roux

3.) Bangin on the System by Adam Tensta

4.) Hold the Line by Major Lazer feat. Santigold and Mr. Lexx

5.) Try Sleeping With a Broken Heart by Alicia Keys

Photos by Joann Gomez, Music Looks Like This. Follow her on Twitter @MLLT.

Last Tuesday night, Myspace and Digiwaxx presented The Release at Hiro Ballroom in New York, on the first night of CMJ. The show was headlined by The Clipse and featured a bill that included Couch Sessions favorite Adam Tensta, newcomer Jasmine Solano and ATL rapper Donnis.

Click on the link below for additional pictures.

Jasmine Solano

Donnis

Adam Tensta

Clipse

Seriously, who can mess with that beat? And the video is bringing up all those video game memories from back in the day.

If you’re going to be in NYC, check my homie Adam, who’s headlining the Nicky Digital showcase on Wednesday, and playing with Clipse on Tuesday night.

DC fashion line DURKL marches to the beat of a different drummer by comparison to the rest of the city. But they’re not about to change. Thery’re in the process of molding the city to meet them. Having existed for three years in relative anonymity, 2009 has been the year of DURKL in the Capital City. Having moved headquarters from a top floor loft just three blocks from Union Station to a spacious showroom/headquarters/retail space near Gallery Place in the shadows of Capitol Hill, DURKL is now prepared for their most audacious step forward into branding not just themselves, but the entire city in a movement towards creating a revised culture and feel.

DURKL’s latest mix, the Survivor Series Volume One Mixtape, was feted with an amazing blowout affair at their new space at 443 I St., NW in DC on Saturday evening, an event that bridged gaps racially, culturally and socially, all in the name of local music, and yes, professional wrestling.

Produced by Judah (“on the best, sound so sweet,” as Wale would say), and mixed by DJ Maf, this latest DURKL foray into the mixtape is the most DURKL specific of them all so far (the brand has available for download two dance music mixtape creations on their website), as it involves drops from the Ultimate Warrior and the “Macho Man” Randy Savage all over the place, in reference to the “Thanksgiving tradition” of the former World Wrestling Federation (WWF), current World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The creative vision of DURKL, namely that of Will Sharp, on some level, actually has a lot to do with pro wrestling. The heroic iconography of pro wrestling fashion designs of the early 1990s have crept into numerous DURKL fashions, including Bret “The Hitman” Hart’s silver sunglasses, Hulk Hogan’s “Hulk Rules” t-shirt, posters of the Ultimate Warrior ending up on tees, and the use of absurdly bright neon graphics all owe their history to Vince McMahon’s juggernaut promotion.

Featuring a multitude of various local DMV rap acts from DC’s Tabi Bonney, Phil Ade and RA the MC to Baltimore’s Greenspan, to dance music creators Nouveau Riche’s Gavin Holland and disco mastermind Chris Burns as the “Party Bros,” the dance pop of Exactly (featuring DURKL’s Cole Sharp), Suckers’ low-fi, even the ridiculous yet thrashing hair metal of Rattler, you get a sense of the DMV’s intellect, skill and on the rap level, lyrical depth (June Lova’s “LA Sex Scandal” deserves a lot of love in the wordplay department). This compares favorably, in what we could call the “Survivor Series battle,” against the international acts on the mixtape, as Skream’s #1 International hit remix of La Roux’s “In for the Kill,” is here, alongside Sweden’s hottest emcee Adam Tensta, and Australian alt dance rockers Empire of the Sun all make appearances.

If looking for the best representation of what DC brings to the national table, this mixtape allows one to believe that DURKL is indeed on that level.

Medina ft. Allyawan – D.O.A. (Swedish)

Download: DJ Rooftop – The Blue And Yellow Print 3

When my homies DJ Rooftop, Adam Tensta, and Eboi were in DC a few weeks ago, I got a preview of the Yellow and Blueprint mixtape, and now I’m proud to announce that the project has his the world this week. The Yellow and Blue Tape (check the flag if you can’t get the reference) combines some of Sweden’s hottest lyrical talent with the instrumentals of Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3. Again, don’t get it twisted–in addition to having some of the hottest acts out right now (Lykke Li, Little Dragon, The Knife and Miike Snow to name a few) they have some MCs that can destroy the mic in not one, but TWO languages. A very good look.

It had been previously decided that the shoot would be in and around the area of Florida Avenue known fondly as “The Block”.  Mr. Tensta and his crew made up of rapper Eboi and DJ Rooftop had expressed interest in seeing Commonwealth and For The Greater Good. So I more or less followed them around while they checked out clothes and kicks.

Then, with Adam rocking some things he found at FTGG, he was kind (and patient) enough to pose for me, even after I asked him to change something about his look that he liked (Sorry!).

(Yes, I had him stand on a found mattress. I’ll probably add it to my collection of mattress photos.)

Unfortunately I missed the concert at the Swedish Embassy due to some religious and cultural obligations. However, I heard it was an amazing show, and I’m definitely looking forward to our Swedish friends returning sometime soon, hopefully.

If you want to see the whole photoset, check it out at my Flickr album and also stay tuned for more Adam Tensta coming at you soon!

This is just a teaser of everything that went down. More of our day with Adam Tensta coming soon.

As most of y’all know, Sweden’s Adam Tensta was in DC this past weekend for two shows at the French Embassy and the House of Sweden. I spent the whole day choppin’ it up with Adam, Eboi, DJ rooftop and his manager on Saturday as we checked out Commonwealth, The Greater Good, and Durkl, as well as setting up a photoshoots with Lady Glock and Sexy Fitsum.

Later that night, Tensta and Eboi straight up killed it at the sold out House of Sweden rooftop rocking the crowd with hits from his latest album Its A Tensta Thing, while also dropping some new material. Also, DJ Rooftop killed it as well with an all Swedish set that included a preview of the Blue and Yellow Print Mixtape, coming soon.

This is just a teaser of everything that went down. More of our day with Adam Tensta coming soon.

Much thanks to the Subsoniq Radio, The Swedish Embassy, Respect My Hustle Entertainment, Babak, Adam, Eboi, DJ Rooftop, Commonwealth/Greater Good, and Durkl.