News
tUnE-yArDs Perform “Gangsta” on Fallon
tUnE-yArDs, with the assistance of The Roots, lit up Late Night with Jimmy Fallon the other night with their live rendition of “Gangsta” from w h o k i l l. Mesmerizing vocals from lead singer Merrill Garbus and a fantastic verse from none other than Black Thought make this an incredible performance.
Check it out below.
Mayer Hawthorne Covers Chromeo’s “When The Night Falls”
While touring with electro-funk duo Chromeo, Mayer Hawthorne recorded his take on “When The Night Falls”, giving the lighthearted track a smooth, vintage vibe.
MP3: Chromeo – “When The Night Falls (feat. Solange Knowles) [Mayer Hawthorne Cover]”
Chromeo released their new When The Night Falls EP last week. You can purchase it here. Tour dates are available after the break.
Listen: SBTRKT – “Up & Down (feat. Sampha)”
SBTRKT, the masked producer who is taking the music world by storm with his debut album, took to his Soundcloud to post a brand new live recording featuring vocals from Sampha. There isn’t much information behind this track, but the basic beat and signature synths blend well with Sampha’s vocals. Laid back and perfect for a relaxing Monday night listen. No download is currently available, but you can listen below.
J. Cole Releases “Any Given Sunday” Part 1: New EP
J. Cole has yet to put out his debut album, but the young emcee has already established himself as one of the most talented lyricists in the game. To keep the hype rolling around Cole World: The Sideline Story, which comes out on September 27, Cole has decided to release something brand new each Sunday as part of his “Any Given Sunday” series.
Track descriptions from Cole himself can be seen after the break.
Listen: Drake – “Headlines”
With the release of “Dreams Money Can’t Buy”, “Marvin’s Room”, and “Trust Issues”, Drake‘s forthcoming Take Care has quickly become one of our most anticipated releases of the year. October’s Very Own has finally released the first official single, which is called “Headlines”. The Toronto rapper linked up with his long-time friends Boi-1da and Noah “40” Shebib, who team up to produce the track.
The two previously collaborated on the rapper’s debut album Thank Me Later, working on quite a few songs including “Miss Me”.
MP3: Drake – “Headlines”
“Headlines” features more sung vocals than rapped ones from Drake. The song will be most likely be released officially on iTunes next week, but Drizzy released the song for free on his blog earlier today. You can listen or download above.
Ariel Pink, Kurt Vile, and More Contribute to ‘Recorded for Japan’
Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti, Kurt Vile, R. Stevie Moore (with members of MGMT) and more artists recently recorded a compilation album entitled Recorded for Japan to aid the relief effort in Japan. A hundred percent of the proceeds will be donated directly to the ongoing relief and reconstruction, with the money going to the Japanese Red Cross.
The compilation will be available on August 4 and is digital-only. You can purchase it here.
Recorded for Japan Track Listing:
01. Beige – Focus *
02. R. Stevie Moore (feat. Members of MGMT) – You Are Too Far From Me *
03. K. Heasley – Belief Match
04. Ice Choir – Two Rings (Hard Mix)
05. Chairlift – The Chase (Propaganda cover)
06. Pablo Picasso – Whip *
07. Kurt Vile – Been Searchin’
08. Kuroma – Running People
09. Acrylics – Sparrow Song *
10. Violens – When To Let Go *
11. Erika Spring – 6 More Weeks (Vacation Version) *
12. Patrick Cleandenim – In My Baby’s Eyes (After Dark Version) *
13. Regal Degal – Excuse Me Who Am I Talking To? *
14. Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti – Thespian City (Live)
*in-studio performance
Mixtape: Hoodie Allen – Leap Year
It’s been quite a year for Long Island-based rapper Hoodie Allen. After releasing Pep Rally to widespread acclaim and accumulating tons of buzz in the blogosphere, Hoodie decided to leave his stable job at Google and pursue his music career full time. To wind up a whirlwind year of touring and recording, the MC released a brand new mixtape, entitled Leap Year, for free download on his website.
Hoodie says that the mixtape is “me growing up on record” and on first listen I’d have to agree with him — for the most part. While the mixtape still features a number of fun and poppy samples intended to draw in first-time listeners on the Hype Machine or just through blogs in general (Fitz and Tantrums on the first track, for instance), Hoodie’s lyricism and delivery has greatly improved since Pep Rally. But the greatest change between this mixtape and the latter is Hoodie’s attempt to open himself up to his audience through slower, more introspective songs. Most of the production is still handled by long-time collaborator RJF and the mixtape still sounds quite similar to his earlier work, but Hoodie attempts to tone himself down, a bold move towards revealing his serious side.
Sure, he hasn’t yet mastered this new style and he’s still finding his comfort zone, but that’s alright — considering his work ethic and dedication to his music career, I’m sure Hoodie will eventually find his place. Until then, here’s to leap year.
Download: Hoodie Allen – Leap Year (Mixtape)
Stream Aficionado’s New Album
Aficionado has officially released the stream for their new self-titled album, which is out today on No Sleep Records. This new release follows the band’s successful debut EP, When It Comes To Creaton. Aficionado was recorded with AJ Mogis, who has also previously worked with Cursive, Bright Eyes, and M. Ward. You can stream the album here. Read more to see if the band is coming to play near you.
Aficionado Track List:
1. The Things You Like
2. Stir Like Hell
3. Everything Was Right
4. Grandfather
5. Confidence Is Intimidating
6. Honesty
7. Falsified Inspiration
8. Permanent
9. Characters
10. Open Doors
Listen: DOOMSTARKS – “Victory Laps”
MF DOOM (all caps when you spell the man’s name…) and Ghostface Killah, known together as DOOMSTARKS, have finally released “Victory Laps”, the first official single from their forthcoming album. While the two masked rappers have yet to announce the album’s release date, Nature Sounds will first be releasing a picture disc vinyl with “Victory Laps”, the Madvillain remix, and the two instrumentals. You can listen to the two trade lines over a grimy piano loop below.
MP3: DOOMSTARKS – “Victory Laps”
You can preorder the Serato 12″ here.
Kanye West and Jay-Z Announce Tour Dates
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.
Connect