Heavyweight vibrations to take us into the early hours here. A faint Sisqo sample, rapid fire woodblocks and minor chord stabs prove familiar, loved ingredients, but dare we deny that growling sub groove when it drops like a bully in the playground. Shylo is a production duo comprised of producers Mculo and Shivas Regal, two upcomers from London and their game-face wearing slice of deep House socks it to disco wimps one-time.

Canadian songstress Rochelle Jordan previews a new song and teases fans with a trailer for her upcoming album Pressure. The previewed song confirms Jordan’s belief in classic R&B melodies for which she and producer KLSH are distinguishably experimenting with right now. Expect that debut album August 14th and stay on top of matters with ‘Losing’ and ‘Too Long’.

The second preview of upcoming Coexist arrives in due course. Jamie opting for a more 2-Step inclined rhythm and cottony drums (*Wiley voice* whatchu’ call it? Post-Dubstep?!) as both Romy and Oliver engage in their famous, softly-spoken interplays. Whilst still not hugely digressive in styling, why would it need to be… the magic formula of foot pedal etherealism and intimacy, as always still very beautiful. As far as indie popping vibes (*Wiley voice* whatchu’ call it? Guitar Music?!), take it from us, they’re still amongst the sexiest and most soulful this country has ever managed to produce. Cannot wait till September 10th. Meanwhile, pair this up with ‘Angels’ right now for maximum gratification.

R&B crooner Robin Thicke teams up with The Neptunes and returns with a new jam titled ‘Another Life’. And even though it doesn’t fully reignite The Neptunes’ sound, it’s breezy, airy production does nod to past glories. It does however ultimately sound like a throwaway Justified record… Which is great except, it’s 2012 now, not 2002.  Even Thicke’s harmonies sound a bit Timberlake-ish. Need/been needing something exceptionally new/left from these lot for a minute now… But even with all that said, I’m still a sucker for vintage Neptunes #swoon.

Despite pretty concrete rumours (including spilling the beans herself) that Adele was going to be performing the latest James Bond theme, it appears that honour has gone to Jeymes Samuel and his outfit The Bullits. The appropriately dramatic ballad named after the upcoming new movie has a typically elaborate orchestral feel boasting rich brass sections and cinematic strings. It also features some powerful vocals from Samual who sounds better than he ever has.

Not the most obvious choice for this, but an interesting one and although I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed that Adele isn’t behind it (007 deserves those Bassey lungs) – I think The Bullits have done a great job with it.

Oh my god. After all the rumours and the speculating…

Shut the internet down – now.

… Picking our brains from off the wall and our hearts from off the floor – it’s probably important we share our thoughts on this. Not only because it’s a pretty seismic event, but because it’s transformed into a huge topic among music fans and Aaliyah admirers over the past few weeks…

Well, it’s here. A brand new Aaliyah single has arrived a decade after her last. But what to make of it? Well, produced by Noah ’40′ Shebib, it uses previously unheard vocals from our beloved Baby Girl and features a guest verse from Drake. Slyly titled ‘Enough Said’, it opens with the expansiveness 40 has become known for creating well: a sound that cunningly fits in near-perfect harmony beneath the clean, airy vocals that Aaliyah so effortlessly commanded (ahem, as said here). Honouring the love Houghton had for her sensual, time-capsule ad-libs, he builds his moment slowly… Respectfully. The beat slow burns before swelling into crisp snares, trademark filtered drums, sustained synths and guess what? Aaliyah sounds f*cking incredible over it. Her voice drifts like some spiritual seance, her ‘yeah, yeah, yeah’s’ are tear-inducing and her melody so classically sexy I could cry. Her heartfelt lyrics are brought to life because Shebib is a master of creating such a strong sense of widescreen, studio-polished ambience and atmosphere, while still ingeniously paying homage to the essence of staples like ‘One in A Million’.

… And yes, those dues are riddled everywhere within this. Listen to how much space is created between each breath Aaliyah takes; listen to the off-kilter production she’s singing over; listen to how the beat shows restraint and irrevocable cool. ‘One in A Million’? 2012 updating.

‘Enough Said’ is not faultless though. It has one unfortunate downside. And despite (seemingly) popular opinion, it has nothing to do with the exclusion of Timbaland and Missy Elliott. The main issue with the record, rather unfortunately (god bless him, we do love him, but) is Drake. His “feature” isn’t the issue, it’s more to do with his overall presence. What Drizzy did on Thank Me Later worked because Aaliyah’s voice was sampled around what he created – she was very much the feature artist, he the star.

But this is supposed to be Aaliyah’s record, she’s the star and Drake should have harnessed his efforts to respect that; instead his verse becomes overbearing and intrusive. His appearance jolts the composure and instead of complimenting, self-indulges. Perhaps Drake needed to employ that emotional, grown man steeze he’s become noted for by approaching this more tenderly: consider how sensitive the issue’s been and listen to the fans. This song shouldn’t have been about anyone but Aaliyah although it’s understandable, taking into account she is one of his musical idols, and that he may have even wanted to use his superstardom in this era to introduce the R&B deity to a younger Pop generation, that he’s opted to make his mark on it. I feel though, he should have stepped back slighly and either not featured at all or delivered his vox more appropriately – softer, more baritone, more complimentary. Even the inclusion of the OVO Owl on the cover-art could be argued as a little indulgent…

That said – I’m so very happy this has materialized, that it’s even in existence. Some generation’s have their Edith Piaf’s or their Janis Joplin’s – for us here at PinBoard, as school kids in the 90s, we were self-raised on this figure. It’s an emotional, heart warming, respectable tribute to an icon and her legacy. We’ve championed our case and expressed our opinion as to why we felt Drake & 40 were the right team for this (near impossible) task of taking the Aaliyah sound ahead and after hearing ‘Enough Said’ – I’m hoping you’ll agree we weren’t wrong. We’ve lived through So Far Gone, ‘CMYK‘, House of Balloons, The xx… times change, technology changes, as do the sonic interpretatives.

After all, the expectation that Timbaland and Missy Elliott would be able to recreate the magic they once produced with Aaliyah is both unfair and unrealistic. In fact, lets not forget (because most seemingly have) Aaliyah’s final, biggest and most revealing album before passing at the dawn of the millennium was not produced entirely by Timbo (two tracks out of fourteen). She made a very strategic and deliberate move to work with relatively unknown, new producers – a sign that even amidst her commercial and creative peak, she was an artist wanting to evolve, adapt and think forward. The greatest thing about Aaliyah was her fearlessness to try new things and that’s why this works, that’s why fans need to support it and look beyond their own interpretation of her legacy.

In a time in commercial R&B music when we need more than just bandwagonry, as much as we support the authentic effort and the best intentions of that output – we also need legitimate iconography to inspire the next wave. We need a new album. Who wants Aaliyah circa 1996, if you can have Aaliyah circa 2012?

And breathe.

P.s For those curious, listen to ‘Enough Said’ without Drake’s verse here.

Recently accepted into RBMA NY 2012, experimental split persona Dirg Gerner (alter ego of fLako) releases this tonic of swirling instrumentation and spook. Prone to providing brilliant sleeper gems as he has been in the past with records like ‘I Want You‘, ‘Lonely Town‘ and ‘My Queen‘, it’s another prog-soul mutant that takes his love of tribal, dusted percussion and psychadelics whilsts reversing his vocal in pain-numbing SFX.

‘Azul y Blanco’ roughly translates to ‘blue and white’ in Spanish…but what does it mean? A metaphor for two forces seeking serenity in coexistence? Schizophrenia? Forbidden love? Decipher for yourself below.

A$AP Rocky drops off a new single dedicated to some of his favourite things. The Harlem birthed rapper continues his journey deeper into the trillwave stratosphere with this hazey, grungy, cold-as-f*ck previously unreleased number. To be found forthcoming on DJ Clue’s Desert Storm Radio: The Takeover mixtape, but expect his debut album LiveLoveA$AP in September.

Working his signature static and warp drive magic on Waka’s chickenhead ode is one of Britain’s most unique producers, Two Inch Punch. This is an official remix done for Warner and apparently laid down before the other equally tremendous recent flip by TNGHT. Similar in it’s quadruple time hi-hat sentiments, this take edges more towards the cerebral electronica, intergalatic R&B mid-tempo and deftly bastardized vocal chops that ran beautifully rampant on T.I.P.’s latest EP Saturn: The Slow Jams.

After slaying snitches with her mixtape Do You Know Who I Am last month, Sasha Gohard from Chicago brings forth her impossibly trill ‘Tatted’ video. Featuring the same ratchet steeze she introduced herself with, Gohard makes a point to shun any chicks potentially eyeing her spot. Go in my girl, go in.