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    <title>Jon b</title>
    <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya</link>
    <description><![CDATA[I am a producer from Edmonton and <I>Beat Diarya</I> (bEEt dy-UH-rEE-UH) is my latest "rap experiment."  This is essentially a remix project where I've taken some of my favorite rap songs and remixed them.  About half of these songs have been "warped" (sort of like mash-ups, but with my own twist), while the other half are straight-forward remixes.  In addition to these remixes, I also included a mini-anthology of exclusively Canadian talent, showcasing some of the country's greatest rappers: Touch (The Representatives); Wordburglar (Hand'Solo Records); Mindbender (Supreme Being Unit); Max Prime (Low Budget Affiliates) and Corvid Lorax (Eshod Ibn Wyza).

<B>Track List</B>
01 HIP 2 MY GAME
02 THE UPDATE (FEAT. MAX PRIME)
03 LIFE'S CHECKS
04 THE WORDBURGLAR
05 SUFSTE BEAT INTERLUDE
06 MAXIMUM SUPREMACY (FEAT. MINDBENDER)
07 WOOOO HAAAA! 
08 PUDDING IS ON WARP
09 SHOOK ONEZ WARP
10 WOMEN (FEAT. TOUCH)
11 DIRTY SOUF (CANUCK CRUNK REMIX)
12 BLAZE BEAT INTERLUDE
14 WHIRL THRU CITIES
15 MY FATHER'S HOUSE (FEAT. CORVID LORAX)

<a href="http://www.phonographique.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=588"><img src="http://www.jonb.ca/visual/web_banner.gif" border="0" alt="Beat_Diarya_Hardly_Novices_BANNER" /></a>]]></description>
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      <title>Take A Breather</title>
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      <pubDate>Tue, 28 Aug 2007 17:35:03 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>Blaze Beat Interlude</title>
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      <pubDate>Fri, 03 Aug 2007 20:13:59 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>Pudding is on Warp</title>
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      <pubDate>Fri, 03 Aug 2007 20:13:28 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>The Update (Feat Max Prime)</title>
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      <description><![CDATA[]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 03 Aug 2007 20:12:32 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>The Wordburglar</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/audio/142707</link>
      <description><![CDATA[]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 03 Aug 2007 20:12:00 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>Life's Checks</title>
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      <pubDate>Fri, 03 Aug 2007 20:11:25 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>Get Ripped and Try Dying</title>
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      <description><![CDATA[]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sun, 15 Jul 2007 18:22:58 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>Backward Polaroid</title>
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      <pubDate>Sun, 15 Jul 2007 18:19:52 -0700</pubDate>
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      <title>At the Black Spot Café August 2007</title>
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      <pubDate>Tue, 21 Aug 2007 15:59:20 -0700</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/photos/1399111</guid>
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      <title>Hip Hop Canada Review</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/456843</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Jon B - Beat Diarya (independent)
By: Thomas Quinlan

Splitting his time between Edmonton, AB and his new home in Toronto, producer Jon B attempts to expose his skills behind the boards to a larger audience with Beat Diarya, a collection of remixes, warps, instrumentals and new tracks. About half the album consists of remixes and warps - what Jon B calls his own brand of mash-ups. For the two warps, Mobb Deep's "Shook Onez" gets sped up on a bass-heavy beat and Big L's "Pudding Is On" is slowed down over a glitchy beat. Although unable to match the high-energy intensity of the original (or even the remix with Ol' Dirty Bastard), Busta Rhymes' "Woo-Haa (Got You All In Check)" still ends up being the best remix on the album thanks to an elastic bassline and a child-like piano loop, while Lord Finesse's "Hip 2 My Game" is drenched in jingle bells. The remixes and warps might have the name recognition to attract the listeners, but it's Jon B's original productions for a selection of top notch underground Canadian emcees that truly showcases his talents. The highligth is Max Prime's funny raps over Jon B's fun beat for "The Update," which builds anticipation for a follow up to their collaboration album Hardly Novices from three years back. And then there's Mindbender, who brings the sci-fi braggadocio over warped horns and heavy drum for "Maximum Supremacy"; Touch, who macks your girl over piano and even heavier drums for "Women"; and Corvid Lorax, who gets abstract over a smooth beat and what sounds like an electro-cardio machine for "My Father's House." And frankly, it's these Canadian contributions that really makes Jon B's Beat Diarya worthwhile.

http://www.hiphopcanada.com/_site/community/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=53182
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sat, 09 Feb 2008 16:28:12 -0800</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/456843</guid>
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    <item>
      <title>Discorder Magazine Review</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/378262</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Disregard the juvenile title that is Beat Diarya--producer Jon b (a.k.a. Jonathan Balazs) has already come up with his fair share of clever titles in the past, including "Get Ripped and Try Dying" on his eponymous Hardly Novices featuring Max Prime. It turns out that ingenious rappers are not yet completely extinct, but rather a bunch of them are thriving in Edmonton, much like most guest artists on Beat Diarya.

Jon b successfully produced an aural piece of art that transcends hierarchy. He didn't reinvent the wheel, but Beat Diarya is packed with unique beats, nice grooves and skillful, no-show-off rapping. About half the tracks are Jon b-flavoured remixed or "warped" (basically alterations of pitch and tempo) pieces, classics from Mobb Deep to Lord Finesse, which are slightly redundant, but connoisseurs should be keen on the many references thrown in there. It gets better: collaborations with Canadian rappers such as Mindbender and Touch. Jon b should continue to pursue this vein in his upcoming productions. Let him age a bit-he's only 21 and already demonstrates what an accomplished producer he can be. Balazs admits he would perhaps sign with a record company if an offer comes up, but simply not at the price of changing his music. Damn right, Jon. Get Beat Diarya for $5 at www.phonographique.com

Maude Lachaine, Discorder Magazine]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:40:31 -0800</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/378262</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>CREAM MAGAZINE INTERVIEW</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/294093</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Beat Diarya is a remix album. Can you explain why you chose these tracks and guests?

Beat Diarya was a way to experiment, showcase my production skills and get my stuff out there. All the rappers on there are were guys with a lot of skill and people I wanted to work with. The remixes were from some of my favorite 12" acapellas.

Who´s Corvid Lorax? Can you tell a few words about him?

Corvid Lorax and I went to the same highschool in Edmonton and he's a dope rapper. He released an album last year called "Kalashni-Cancerous" which got a lot of attention in western Canada. He's part of a popular band in Edmonton called Eshod Ibn Wyza which is fusion group of sorts. They've got a couple of emcees, singers, guitar players and a drummer. Anyway, Lorax is always working on lyrics; I mean he writes lyrics on cigarette packs, bus transfers, scraps of paper, anything...he's always writing and he's impossible to miss on the street.

You are about to shoot videos to some of the tracks off the album. Can you tell when the videos will be released and what songs have been chosen?

I'm thinking about doing 2 videos: one for the Big L warp on the album, which will be a kind of "video remix" and the big one I'm thinking about is the Mindbender song called "Maximum Supremacy." My life is pretty hectic right now with making/promoting my music, other film/video projects and school. School eats up a huge amount of my time, but I can tell you one of them is in the pre-production stages as we speak, since I'll likely be using film for the project, everything has to be planned properly.

In one review of Beat Diarya, they said that remix of Busta Rhymes´Woo Haa is a "Timbaland-inspired beat perfect for Missay Elliot". Based on the quality of her music, would you make a beat for her?

Haha, I noticed that. I would make like 20 beats for Missy Elliot  I'll give her a call tomorrow. In the end, I'm flattered to be compared to Timbaland and I think it's an interesting comparison because I had no intention of "sounding like" anyone other than myself when I made the song. Shout outs to Henry Mancini!

Today´s mixtape is not what a mixtape used to be. Now some put together their unreleased tracks and call it a mixtape. What´s your opinion on today´s mixtape market and form of mixtapes in general?

I find people are hustling a lot of shitty CDRs (with no labels, poor quality inserts) in slim cases and most of them aren't worth the plastic they're burnt on. I ignore guys who try to sell a CDR for $10 because usually the "tape" is a big disappointment. If Emily Post had some rules on hip hop eitquette, she would say that CDRs should be no more than $5  unless the disk is packaged nicely like mine is. I charge $5.

What´s your opinion on DJ Drama issue?

Oh yeah, that shit's wack. I'm on Drama's side for sure. There are people out there who are putting out professional, high-quality mixtapes that put people on. Multi-national corporations are scared shitless about them for some reason, it's like elephants afraid of mice or girls afraid of spiders...it makes no sense. It's one aspect of the biz that multi-nationals don't have their fingers in. When they see an independent moving 100, 000+ copies, they want a slice of the pie. Personally, I don't think that being on a mixtape will translate to more sales, but I've been on a few mixtapes and I think they're an effective way to get your shit out there.

You released an album with Max Prime two years ago. Can we expect a follow-up?

Yes, one day there will be a follow up. Hardly Novices really put independent music in perspective for us and I think Max is a little more discouraged about the prospect of underground rap. I don't blame him, it's like climbing a shitty rope-ladder.

You ´re an editor of UGSmag. When and by whom was the magazine started? Any other underground hip hop magazines in Canada?

I'm actually not an editor of Ugsmag, just a contributor. The magazine was started by Noyz (and a couple of others) in 2000 when underground rap was more fashionable. They used to sell the best independent music on it too. Over the past year or two, I saw the magazine waning a bit and decided that it was time to get it started again. I think it's starting to get into pretty good shape, but we need more quality contributors and more consistent content. Ugsmag is the best indpendent hip hop magazine in Canada, I don't see why you'd want to read another one!

What´s next for Jon B?

I'm working on resurrecting the careers of Saafir and Mic Geronimo, reuniting Nas and Primo, venerating Chubb Rock and Prince Paul, getting more underground talents on Ugsmag, producing beats for my hip hop bretheren, a film career and a new concept album with an unknown rapper. An EP with Birdapres? Some songs for Epic? A Max Prime/Jon B LP. A Corvid Lorax/Jon B EP. Plus, I really need a record deal, indie labels contact me ­ seriously. I'll be waiting by the phone.

<a href="http://www.cream.cz/?rozhovor=jon-b-dnesni-cd-r-mixtapy-nemaji-cenu" target="0"><span style="color: rgb(000,000,000)"><i>Cream Magazine</i></span></a> (Czech Version)]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sun, 28 Oct 2007 13:30:39 -0700</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/294093</guid>
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    <item>
      <title>Ugsmag album review</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/262303</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Is the famous 1990's R&B singer back to resurrect Tupac for another hit single? Apparently not; this is a different Jon B altogether, one who is actually a pretty dope producer from Edmonton. There definitely is some resurrecting going on here though, as this is a remix album, but these aren't your everyday remixes. The press release states very fittingly that this is a "rap experiment." Jon doesn't shy away from things such as playing with familiar pitches, turning a couple of your favourite rappers into chipmunks. You can end up first thinking he's going to fuck up one of your favourite tracks, but by the end of the song thinking that, hey this is pretty cool. The overall sound here is distinctly lo-fi, evoking the image of a kid in his parent's basement having fun making pause-tape remixes with cassingle accapellas and instrumentals. Along with classics from Mobb Deep, Busta Rhymes, and Afu-Ra...to name a few; Jon B also takes time out to showcase local Canadian talent such as Touch (The Representatives), Wordburglar, Mindbender, and more. These sprinklings of lesser known rappers, such as one of the stand-outs by Corvid Lorax, combined with Jon B's somewhat untamed production style are what make this album really worth checking out. If you're not hearing the original familiar beat in your head, then you're probably listening to good remix, and more often than not that ends up being the case on Beat Diarya.

<a href="http://ugsmag.com/reviews/hiphop/jon-b-beat-diarya/">Ugsmag.com</a>
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 09 Oct 2007 10:41:24 -0700</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/262303</guid>
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    <item>
      <title>Exclaim!</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/241422</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Edmonton producer Jon b presents his beat-making skills with this compilation of remixes, warps and original songs. A little under half of the album falls into the first category: standard issue remixes of underground hip-hop classics, as well as Busta Rhymes's "Woo Ha," now with a stripped-down, Timbaland-inspired beat perfect for Missy Elliott, which also happens to be the best example of Jon b's well-crafted remixes giving a song a whole different spin. The second, smallest category, what Jon b calls "warps,"features a couple of mash-ups where one or both songs involved are manipulated by the addition of drums and alterations in tempo, pitch and cadence. For example, Big L is slightly slowed, while Mobb Deep become chipmunks, making the warps much more warped than the remixes, although they are otherwise pretty similar. The final category is made up of original songs, with two fairly safe instrumental interludes and a few vocal tracks from Canuck MCs Max Prime, Touch, Mindbender and Corvid Lorax. It's these latter four songs that are the special treat of this compilation, demonstrating what he can do when collaborating with a rapper. Perhaps next time the whole thing will be originals but for now, these interesting reinterpretations will have to do as filler, albeit of the high quality variety.

Jon b
Beat Diarya 
By Thomas Quinlan

<a href="http://www.exclaim.ca/musicreviews/generalreview.aspx?csid1=115&csid2=865&fid1=27630" target="0"><span style="color: rgb(000,000,000)"><i>Exclaim!</i></span></a>]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 25 Sep 2007 23:09:38 -0700</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/241422</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Maaad Love from Hero Hill!</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/231820</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Edmonton hip hop does not let me down. Hip Hop from the rest of Canada however, does. Here I am just sitting around waiting to tell the world about your excellence, and yet you continue to snub me. Especially you Saskatchewan, how long are you going to ignore me, hiding in all your flowing golden wheat, I can see you in there you know. But never fear, as long as I have Edmonton and the rest of Alberta I'll never be lonely. 

The latest Edmontonian to darken Herohill's doorstep is Toronto-based producer Jon b. I know what you're thinking, wasn't there a terrible R&B singer named Jon b? Well yes there was, but this isn't him. Well I suppose it could be, but by now I think I know everyone in Alberta and that terrible Jon b. doesn't live there. The Jon b. we're discussing has produced a mixtape/remix album featuring a number of Canadian MC's as well as some classic hip hop tracks. 

But I think I do the Diarya a disservice by calling it mixtape, so here's the album description from Jon's site:

...he was just uninspired by the idea of a traditional remix album/mixtape, so Jon b resolved to include material that was spastic, odd and unexpected. In this rap experiment, Jon b includes "warps" of songs--sort of like a mash-up, but with his own unique interpretations. 

Sound interesting? Well, it is. The album opens with Bubbles discussing J-Roc's album (which as it turns out seems to describe Beat Diarya), before Lord Finesse's Hip 2 Da Game kicks in with a Microphone Fiend-ish beat. Herohill's old friend SJ The Wordburglar's aptly named The Wordburglar gets the remix treatment with a loop I absolutely recognize, but cannot place. Toronto's Mindbender makes an appearance on the jazzy Maximum Supremacy. Jon b. freaks the Busta classic Woooo-Haaa! with a spacey beat, which is awesome as I've always loved that jam (people forget how awesome Busta was before that before he got kind of fat and became a Q-List actor). Mobb Deep's Shook ones Pt. II gets the "warp" treatment, which pairs the speeded up vocals with big echo-y drums. Lil Flip and Afu Ra also make an appearance, while the Canadian content is boosted by Edmonton natives Touch and Corvid Lorax. 

All in all I have to say my most recent Edmonton excursion has been a pleasant surprise and it's certainly worth checking out.

<a href="http://www.herohill.com/2007/09/news-jon-b-has-beat-diarya.htm" target="0"><span style="color: rgb(000,000,000)"><i>The Hero Hill</i></span></a>]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 19 Sep 2007 19:30:49 -0700</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/231820</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Love in The Eyeopener</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/231814</link>
      <description><![CDATA[When Jon B describes his Diarya (dy-UH-rEE-UH) he says it's "spastic, bumping, retarded, and awesome." But just before I start feeling sorry for his roommates he tells me more about Beat Diarya, his latest project- a compilation of rap tracks he produced that features other local artists from Canada. 

The album's style is based on traditional rap sounds. "I am inspired by the drum and beat sounds that came out of the golden era of rap from about '93 to '98," he says, "but I like to incorporate more electronic sounds, making it eclectic." 

Jon B, real name Jonathan Balazs,, 21, is a film studies student at Ryerson who came here after studying film at the University of Alberta. The rap scene in Alberta is much smaller then Toronto's and doesn't have the diversity either. He loves that the artists here range from free style, spoken word, political to poetic because it inspires him and his work.

Right now he is working on shooting videos for some of the tracks off the album using knowledge from school. "It's all tied together. My professors really encourage us to use our own music in our work," he said.

Jon B got into music through DJing only couldn't afford the equipment. He has released two CDs independently because he still had the ambition to learn production and how music is made. Even at five bucks a disk, it's a hard sell. "Nobody is buying music anymore," he says with frustration "so I'm working on getting the tracks available online for download purchase."

Reactions to the album are mixed. "People either really like it or they're indifferent," he says "but it is getting a lot of air time on different college radio stations." This summer he also got attention from Edmonton newspapers.

Currently, you can hear his work online at www.radio3.cbc.ca or visit his website at www.jonb.ca.

Jesse Trautmann, The Eyeopener]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 19 Sep 2007 19:25:23 -0700</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/231814</guid>
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    <item>
      <title>General Praise</title>
      <link>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/203062</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Mix of local hip-hop and film references is labour of love

It's the perfect mix for a laid-back house party: tight rhymes laid over funky beats -- wait, is that from the Merchant of Venice?
Beat Diarya doesn't sound quite like anything you might have heard before, which was what local producer Jonathan Balazs, a.k.a. Jon B, was aiming for when he put together the compilation of 15 rap remixes.
"At first I just wanted to do a straight remix album and just make it like a kinda mix tape with guest rappers on it from Edmonton," said Balazs. "I did a couple of them and they were good, but I just sorta felt that there needed to be something more substantial."
So he decided to experiment with film, throwing in bits from movies with lines or scores that just stood out.
"People -- myself included -- just love how you can throw in a reference and you get it," he said. " 'Oh, that's from that obscure film,' or 'Oh, that's from The Graduate.' "
Scheduled to drop Aug. 15, Beat Diarya features Canadian artists well-known in hip-hop circles, including local rappers Touch, Max Prime, Corvid Lorax, Conspiracy and Mindbender.
Including artists from his hometown is important to Balazs. "There's lots of talent that's just ignored," he said.
That's partly due to the nature of independent music, he explained, but people also forget that Edmonton has a thriving music scene.
"I think in some respects, Edmonton's music scene is better than Toronto's," said Balazs. "Toronto gets bragging rights just for the sheer volume, but Edmonton gets bragging rights because the people who do it actually care and they're not quite sure why they do it."
Balazs said he's not quite sure what motivates him either -- for him, it really is a labour of love.
From September to May, the 21-year-old is a full-time student majoring in film studies at Ryerson University in Toronto. Then he comes back to Edmonton in the summer, and works full-time as a technician at Cine Audio Visual.
It's hard to believe he's found the time to produce the record, design the artwork for the disc and, finally, market and distribute the album all on his own.
Balazs has seen Beat Diarya, a limited edition project of 300 copies, from start to finish. "It's so personal it hurts," he said, as he diligently stuffed a stack of mailouts to radio stations and media outlets across the country.
It'd be nice to have a record label behind him, helping him out with the business side of things, said Balazs. But while he won't say no to getting signed, he hopes it doesn't mean having to compromise his love for the craft.
"I have no problem doing a little bit of the work, but I just need a balance," he said. "I think the whole thing is that if I decide to make a career out of music then it wouldn't be fun anymore."
All of Balazs' hard work will finally come to fruition when he throws Beat Diarya's official CD release party Wednesday at the Blackspot Cafe on Stony Plain Road. It will be a split show with Vancouver's Low Pressure Records, whose artists -- including DJ Moves of Len -- are touring Canada this summer.
Beat Diarya will be available for $5.

Jennifer Fong, The Edmonton Journal
<a href="http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/culture/story.html?id=d1df8da1-0fc2-45eb-aec7-bbb4fee7088e" target="0">Read the original here</a>]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sat, 01 Sep 2007 10:57:20 -0700</pubDate>
      <guid>http://virb.com/beatdiarya/posts/text/203062</guid>
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