Josh Martinez

There’s little doubt that Midriff Music — the first album of new material from Josh Martinez since he started dropping various versions of Buck Up Princess in 2002 — is definitely an album of chilled-out summer jams, and acts as filler while Josh prepares his "real” new album. Midriff Music is primarily smooth productions from Samix accompanied by Josh Martinez’s sing-song flow. Samix intricately layers his beats, which remains interesting even with straight instrumental tracks like the Spanish-influenced "Tranzar” and the piano-guitar hybrid "Time Alone.” Using a voice that sounds like Dose without the helium, Josh Martinez raps about his place in the world of hip-hop, and does it especially well on "Tour Is War,” which recounts his tour-of-duty in the trenches from one city to the next, and "Played Out” featuring Kunga 219, which goes back and forth with Josh about wack hip-hop artists. It’s laid back, so bare your midriff, toss on your walkman, and enjoy the new soundtrack to the summer.