Ahhhh, Capitol Hill Block Party—my absolute favorite two-day blackout, now with an extra day of ear, brain, and liver damage for the whole family. Hiphop, you'll notice, is checking in reeal heavy this year with the likes of Shabazz Palaces, Blue Scholars, Atmosphere, Macklemore, Champagne Champagne, THEESatisfaction, Air 2 A Bird, Grynch, Spaceman, State of the Artist, Stay High Brothaz, the Physics, Candidt, J.Pinder, Mad Rad, Victor Shade, and Fresh Espresso. Believe it or not, there's other music going on too, and plenty of it, so get loose and see some shit you've never seen; don't cheat yourself, treat yourself.

But if you're outside those gates or just in between thangs on Saturday, July 24, you might hit up the HG Lodge roof deck for the all-day one-year anniversary party for Members Only, featuring a bevy of surprise guests (you know how that go), plus DJs Swervewon and 100proof (who just released the fourth in his summer-crucial Backyard BBQ mixtape series, available for free at www.dj100proof.com). Then, on Sunday, July 25, catch All the Ladies, featuring a special in-store performance from Stas and Cat, some surprise DJs, and more up at Throwbacks NW.

Okay, the world doesn't revolve around Cap Hill, I realize, so know that if you're in Tacoma on June 24, you can find G-funk inventor Warren (to the motherfuckin') G at Hell's Kitchen—where rhythm is life, and life is rhythm. Opening up are three of the 253's finest: Fice, City Hall (the trio of EvergreenOne, Todd Sykes, and DJ Slimrock), and Island Trybe. Fice just dropped a video for his Tactown anthem, the sentimental but not treacly ode "Two Five Three," which features cameos from all of those guys, a great deal of other players from Tacoma hiphop, and a Neko Case–sampling intro. City Hall have Milk on Wax coming soon, and Island Trybe—a four-deep crew of Chamorro rappers and singers—have dropped a couple mixtapes and an LP, Fresh Off Da Grill. Know your neighbors, Seatown. However, if you're in the cultural capital that is Fremont on Sunday, July 25, hit up Nectar for All You Can Eat, the buffet-slash-hiphop show featuring Billy the Fridge's new group LBS, along with Type, Death*Star, Lil' Dwayne, D-Dove + Destructo Bunny, and DJ Nanino. Yes, there will really be a buffet to go down with your nerdcore rap sounds; what better to go with hiphop's ever-healthy lifestyle?

Speaking of: While recently in the state of California, a doctor prescribed to me some natural medicine for anxiety, chronic pain, and muscle spasms. That really has nothing to do with anything, but if you yourself suffer from any of the above, I would recommend Pilot Talk, the new album from New Orleans' Money MC Curren$y, an artist who long ago bounced from Lil Wayne's at the time fruitless Young Money plantation to grow his own money trees. "Spitta" is perfecting a certain kind of carefree lifestyle rap, breezy and unforced—the kind of rap Devin the Dude and Stan Getz would probably smoke to. Exhale. recommended