Last week when I was mastering the mundane act of washing clothes at the card-enabled laundromat in my neighborhood, I found a stack of Stash magazines next to a dude who was clipping his toenails. I snagged one and temporarily cured my boredom reading insider hip-hop information from this decidedly bay-area rap-scene focused zine. Small enough to fit in your back-pocket and published in Frisco, Stash magazine is chock-full of interviews, articles, top-5 lists, album reviews, and paparazzi photos from concerts and other events.

Stash seems to pride itself on nodding to the underground, featuring pieces on The Jacka, Yukmouth from the Luniz, Prodigy of Mobb Deep, and Lyrics Born (who I’m hoping to see on Friday at the SF Outside Lands Fest). The stories herein deal with anything from label problems to struggles with the law. My favorite page had to be the E-40 slang word search. So don’t be a beezy and check it out at Stash Online.

If you are in San Francisco this weekend and you want to see some real underground rappers throw a party, check out the Universal Figures reunion show at the Red Devil Lounge on Saturday night. I got a chance to see them a few times during their hay, and they have some great lyricists including Bucc Rogerz, who has a dope song with Kool Keith on his myspace page. I’ll be in LA and unfortunately I can’t make it.

In this show, the Green Rapper heads to the Mission in San Francisco to catch up with Jon and Mimi of Mijuanito. As we vibe to the melodic sounds, we also find out how their green record label Parks and Records is making a difference. A concept that blends their two passions, music and mother nature, they share with us their 4-part mission to build a community of like-minded musicians and fans, release passionate indie-pop/ noise-rock albums, reduce waste through 100% recycled/reused packaging, and support organizations dedicated to making our planet greener.

Check out tracks from Parks and Records’ newest release, Carcrashlander on Myspace.
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