Kool A.D. of Das Racist headed to Oakland to cut his second mixtape of 2012, but he clearly brought along the stoned flows and dense, hyper-referential punchlines that made his crew internet famous: "Hard to read like a cryptogram/Lady Gaga, Poker Face, chips in hand," he rhymes on the Dipset-esque Marvin Gaye-sampling "No". Producer Amaze 88's quirky soul loops are all highlights, but the project veers off course when A.D. taps Bay Area-beatmaker Young L, and derails entirely (and possibly intentionally) when the rapper steps behind the boards for songs like the grinding, non-sensical "Power/Refinement Knowledge". Still, zingers like "I'm Drake versus Common, who cares?" on "La Piñata" suggest that Kool A.D should record in the Bay Area more often.

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• Photos: Random Notes

“Is It True”

As the British Invasion reached its peak in 1964, Brenda Lee went from Nashville to London to record one of her hardest-rocking hits, her perky vocal backed by a stuttering, squalling guitar. That guitar was played by session musician Jimmy Page, yet to skyrocket to fame with first the Yardbirds and then Led Zeppelin. "She said to me, 'I've come here to make a record with the British sound,'" remembered producer Mickie Most. "She felt she wouldn't get the same sound in Nashville because they're only just catching up on the British beat group sound of about six months ago."