The last great work to claim the title, Innervisions, was of course Stevie’s seminal ARP synthesizer laden LP from his classics period. Big shoes.
In their own lane, backdrop and era – Fatima and Floating Points (Sam Shepherd) collaborative effort Follow You (out in May on London’s distinguished underground label Eglo) is without a shadow of doubt one of my fave EPs in 2011 thus far – the sh*t actually makes me weep a little.
Production through-out is nothing short of emotive, hovering Contemporary Soul-Hop with Shepherd’s analogue atmospherics led by the elegant kook Miss Fatima’s sinewy, drifting pipes on a career high. Musically, this lot have really delivered. Ideal Spring-transcending-into-Summer sounds. Read our prior full review here.
Peep fresh visual drop up top directed by Akinola and The Boy King. Vinyl anticipated May 16th.
This dropped on National Weed Day last week (April 20th according to the worldwide pot protesters, groovy over-45s and arthritis sufferers), but I forgot to post it. No Afroman excuses by the way, whatsoever.
Caught this new Soul brother Chris Turner backing Bilal at Jazz Cafe earlier this month and his tones were tight, check out the chap’s bandcamp.
This cut has sexy, mellow strums and MPC-mechanized church claps courtesy of Chocolate Boy Wonder – the flavour drips, just before you do. Ooh whee.
Out to all the responsible adults who work hard and play hard.
All hail Peterson, all hail Peterson, shut your unworthy cyber-pseudo-tastemaking faces and bow to one of the Buddahs!
Deeply respected legend Giles and his Brownswood label have been dishing out some of the most landmark and influential ‘off-base’ compilations with various volumes of Bubblers these last few years. Not to mention he signed badman Jose James and our boy Ghostpoet (cue yourself clicking on this to see the smashing Rehearsal Rooms episode that ensued if you’ve not already). I mean I’m not a royalist but give this man a knighthood if not willing to hand him over your mothers as mail order brides.
Expect this second volume of Brownswood’s other series Electr*c to be yet another psychotropic voyage across a few continents worth of promising, progressive producer works, cherry-picked by some of the best ears in the business.
Out June 27th (UK) and June 28th (US). Now, sampler tings…
After we rinsed the hell out of his previous tape that gained serious viral momentum through word and mouth amongst the headnodders, this rising French Alt-Hip-Hop-Soul producer has capitalized on buzz dropping a debut extended player of Post-Yancey’esque jams smoother than Brazilian waxed surfaces.
Drums snap like collars, electric piano chords to melt for, vocals restrained so as not to ruffle the endo puffers and should overall seriously help amplify your swag this week I’m sure.
Covert art is sweet as a nut too. Playground will be out 16th May on newly formed imprint Catblock co-run by one of our other Gallic favourites, cool ass Onra. Check out the teaser below…
Been up and down with Alex Clare’s stuff these last few months – liked the first single, not so much the second (Wobbly-Pop-Soul for smelly 16 year olds in Fabric), but think this third single that’s been floating around a while is the right balance for what producers Diplo and Switch are tryna’ do with this cat. The undercurrent of a potentially cringe wobble synth is there but doesn’t take precedence over the cold, airy electronic notes, thespian strings and dare I say rather Blues-Rocky songwriting/delivery that Clare really gets his already quite robust voice in gear for.
On top of that, I’m finding this video totally compelling. Simple concept, executed (freakishly) well.
Worldwide traveller, producer and musician Mark de Clive Lowe recently dropped this 5 track beat breaking, funkified, percussion infused EP in the lead up to his forthcoming long player ‘Renegades’ due later in this summer.
It is truly a global affair, as per usual. Features Peruvian rhythm section, vocalists from LA and Atlanta, as well as London’s very own Sharlene Hector. Definitely worth the listen below via the bandcamp player. If you’re feeling it, cop it.
Last year’s below-fi, spooky-white-boy ‘R&B’ project Love Remains by the Berlin-Brooklynite calling himself How to Dress Well (Tom Krell) was amongst 2010′s most curious projects. That’s not just because it sounds vaguely like Terius Nash’s estranged and troubled middle-child offspring singing into headphones whilst on special meds meets Burial* with an updated reverb plug-in and laundry bag of ambient noise loops – but as proof we’ve definitely entered the era of chucking this long disfigured term ‘R&B’ at just about every new, slightly-left-of-centre, Logic 9 enthusiast who might also have a copy of TP2.com lying around. After all, the act of being a hip, allegedly well informed music journalist is tough nowadays…
Now, eyes roll, but save that polemic for another post. What I will say however is that I did also happen to enjoy Love Remains for what it isn’t. There weren’t many other records that sounded quite like it (in the same month atleast, I mean this is internet time frames we’re talking) and props to Krell, it does contain some chillingly affective moments of woebegone expression over disturbing, cracked soundscapes. If you haven’t checked it out yet, it’s not an easy listen to begin with (purposely f**kery, disconcerted sound engineering or lack thereof) but a range of influences are buried in the mix and it’s definitely one to absorb yourself in, during some nocturnal hour where you’re contemplating weather or not a bread-knife is really the best option for a slit wrist.
This new refix though, hype it up one-time fam. The versatile twiddlings of UK producer Starslinger have whipped ‘Ready For The World’ into a more polished half-time stomper and given new life to one of Love Remains best cuts.
*Yes, can get tired of often citing ol’ boy as a reference point, but don’t front like he hasn’t fathered half these recent ambience-soaked babies out here now.
Prince brought out Alicia Keys during his show in L.A last night – the two performed ‘How Come You Don’t Call Me Anymore?’, a song famously covered by Keys’ on her debut album Songs in a Minor.
Another video for another massive tune off Nas & Damian Marley’s collaborative album Distant Relatives. It’s great to see these guys working so solidly on this album; touring, releasing videos etc. A lot of the time, after the initial release these projects fall by the waste side. Good to see two artists come together and work so well together.
… Something about this video I really like. It’s simple, but has such a great atmosphere/vibe.
Still one of the illest underdogs of wordplay, Elzhi (formerly of Slum Village) is taking on a rather leviathan source for inspiration – Nasir’s biblical book of bars and beats Illmatic – with live instrumental re-creations from Will Sessions and flippin’ it to Elmatic. Gunshots lick off May 11th via Elzhi.com.
I’d normally say it was sacrilegious to f**k with mine and many others favourite Rap long player of all time, but if one emcee could honour that royally, I’d entrust the sceptre with El.
That menacing bassline Premier originally snagged and pitched down off Joe Chamber’s Mind Rain for the ’94 classic, is still sounding like one of the gulliest things I’ve ever heard in my goddamn life.
This is the first single from Sosa, a sultry singer from Maplewood, New Jersey on Bridge Kids Media. From the jump the beat bangs hard and if Sosa were a weaker vocalist she may have been overpowered by the synth-based production. You can wait for the beat to swallow up the lovestruck songstress as she edges towards succumbing to her wounds but it doesn’t happen- shorty is a trooper. You can hear it in her voice.
Sosa’s got a clip of her in the trendy Soho section of New York City on her way to the studio to record ‘Exit Wounds’ off the upcoming project See Sos Run.
Jill Scott’s been on our radar here lately so when we came across this video we had to bring it to you.
In New York City on April 20 Jill Scott hosted an exclusive, invite-only The Light Of The Sun album preview concert.
In the video the radiant singer/songwriter performs ‘Quick’ a song apparently about her baby daddy (!) and ‘Boom’ a bouncy number that proclaims her desire to bounce from a relationship.
Wanna know what the rest of the album will be like? At a recent concert Jill added: “Pay attention to the lyrics. This is a grown-ass woman talking; that’s the kind of artist I am. I don’t hold back. When you listen sisters, you’ll hear yourselves. And brothers, maybe you’ll learn a little more insight about us. We should all appreciate the all of us. That’s what’s in this record.”
Did you like what you heard? Will this be your soundtrack for the summer?
According to a tweet from producer Polow Da Don M.I.A. is in the studio with him and Chris Brown, the Cataracs, and Swizz Beatz.
“In the lab with the great @ChrisBrown THE LAB WIT THE GREAT @chrisbrown and the incredible @_M_I_A_ Thank you, Dear Lord!” Polow wrote. “I’ve waited on this moment my whole career!!!! It’s happening. Magic is upon us. Let’s go!!!!”
CB also confirmed the news on his website:
“Was in the studio with the incredible M.I.A and Polow!! Amazing artist! Real talent.”
I don’t know about you but I didn’t see that one coming! And Team breezy grows…
One-half of California duo the Cataracs, Niles “Cyrano” Hollowell-Dhar, says he has recently spent some time with the singer/rapper and says M.I.A. is “working on a mixtape, and she wants it to be like an album.” So who knows what she’s cooking up, but her third album /\/\ /\ Y /\ wasn’t nearly as successful as as her previous releases so maybe she’s under some pressure to really wow us.
The release date and title of M.I.A.’s new project has not been announced yet. Does this sound like a project you want to hear so far?
SBTRKT recently dropped the Machinedrum remix of his track ‘Look At Stars’. And I have to say, I prefer the remix to the original. Pairing with the stateside producer/composer has definitely given the track a new lease of life. The breathy vocals by Sampha on loop is just the right amount of the prototype to coincide with Machinedrum’s trademark glitches.
