In preparation for the release of Watch The Throne, Kanye West and Jay-Z have announced that the two have formed a duo called The Throne and will be embarking on a massive North American tour together this fall.
Kanye and Jay-Z also announced that Watch the Throne will be released on iTunes on August 8th. The album will then be available on other physical and digital retailers on August 12th.
The tracklisting and full tour dates are available below. You can listen to “Otis” here.
Donald Glover / Childish Gambino appeared at San Diego’s Comic Con this weekend to promote his show Community, but the actor/rapper also managed to play a show on Friday night, tearing up the House of Blues and premiering a brand new song. Apologizing for his recent disappearance online and lack of tweets, Gambino announced to the energized audience that he has been busy working on new material before launching into the song, our first taste of the new album. While most of the beat is hard to make out, Gambino’s clever punchlines are clear enough to be made out: “Man, why does every black actor have to rap some? I dunno, all I know is I’m the best one.”
Check out the video after the break. Childish Gamino’s new album will be out in September.
Seattle-based singer-songwriter Grant Olsen, best-known as half of the folk duo Arthur & Yu, is making his return not with the second Arthur & Yu record, but with a new project called Gold Leaves. His debut release The Ornament has been four years in the making, accompanying Olsen through a wide range of new experiences: marriage, traveling through Central and South America, birth, and death. Linking up with producer, engineer, and multi-instrumentalist Jason Quever of Papercuts, Olsen created a collection of intimate, heart-warming tracks, blending Americana with ’60s pop influences. You can listen to two songs, “Cruel/Kind” and “The Ornament”, below. The album will be out on August 16 via Hardly Art (tracklisting after the break).
MP3: Gold Leaves – “Cruel/Kind”
MP3: Gold Leaves – “The Ornament”
[Via Stereogum]
I’m a huge fan of Angus & Julia Stone. If you were around for our 2010 year-end list, you’d know that their 2010 release, Down The Way, topped my album of the year list and that the brother-and-sister duo were kind enough to grant us a streamof “Draw Your Swords” from the album.
So when I stumbled upon this cover of the Stones’ “Big Jet Plane”, performed byThe Maine, I was a bit skeptical. However, the band manages to pull off an impressive rendition of the song, complete with harmonies and birds chirping in the background. You can watch John, Kennedy, and Jared of The Maine perform “Big Jet Plane” below.
Hoodie Allen does not disappoint his fans. With a year’s worth of experience under his belt since releasing Pep Rally, Hoodie’s back and better than ever. He just released a brand new track (and the corresponding music video!) entitled “The Chase Is On”, which serves as the first single from Leap Year. “The Chase Is On” has the same sound and vibe we’ve grown to love, but Hoodie’s lyricism and deliver have certainly improved, with the rapper employing a sing-song flow over a synth-driven beat.
“Pulling a Lil B,” Hoodie gave us a free download of the song, but also posted it on iTunes. You can support him by purchasing the song here. Leap Year will be out on July 26.