http://whodat1.bandcamp.com/album/medical-leave-beat-tape
A beat tape is a collection of track sketches meant to be used as te basis for a hip hop track -- an MC would write a rhyme to it, then chop the beat to fit the rhyme's structure. As such, beat tape tracks have a bare 'music-minus-one' feel, and often have abrupt or completely missing intro and ending sections -- that's left up to whoever ends up buying the beat. Like Jamaican dub 45s or other utilitarian musical objects, beat tapes have their own kind of beauty; they're like watching a movie for the extras, or buying an ice cream when all you wanted was the cone. Terri (owner/operator of Ya Digg Records in Detroit), really has a unique flavor going on in these pieces, even as they make you think of Dilla and Shake hip hop beats. Not because she copies them, but because she keeps things raw and loose.
