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astronomar

According to Sir Issac Newton’s laws of physics, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. In the world of overblown dance/rap hybrids, this is especially true. With the whole trap bidness jumping the shark a long time ago, an equal and opposite response appears to be simmering below the surface. The response won’t come in the form of stodgy remarks about the trend’s viability, but in a reversal and re-appropriation of its best elements. Seattle-resident Astronomar has taken the first stab at this task via a series of three “Untrapped” edits. Astronomar takes on track’s by Baauer, UZ and Etc! Etc! & Brillz and removes them from their dubstep approximation roots. UZ’s “V6″ is transformed into a piece of rollicking techno while Baauer’s “Harlem Shake” falls into the as-of-yet-to-be-defined category of North American club music championed by Body High. The elements of each track will be familiar to revelers at college parties and rave festivals, but Astronomar adds some much needed flair and innovation to each edit. Stream and download below.

Jeffree’s is quickly becoming a weekly occurrence in these parts. With releases from Baauer, Lockah and Lockah under their belts in the past several months, we aren’t complaining. This week’s release comes straight out of the fire belly of the internet.  ︻╦╤─ ƱZ ─╤╦︻ is everything we love and hate about the internet. Dumbfounding usage of the deepest, darkest backwaters of the keyboard. Eccentric personalities, or lack there of. But mostly, the type of genre-bending music we’ve come to love in the Soundcloud era. ŤɌ∆Ҏ ᶊῌῗ† 6/9 is out today on the Mad Decent imprint and features the trunk rattling brand of trap (tarp?) that we’ve come to know, love and eventually hate. Despite his AK wielding internet antics, ƱZ’s brand of the sub-sub-sub-genre or whatever is far more nuanced than most. With some exceptions (namely “ŤɌ∆Ҏ ᶊῌῗ† 7″), ƱZ’s tunes are not dance tracks and function far better as hip hop instrumentals for some mythical Danny Brown/Young Jeezy hybrid (science?). They’re weirder than the standard Lex Luger fare and more complex than your average Flosstradamus banger, putting them somewhere in the mid ground between the past and the present. Whatever it is, ŤɌ∆Ҏ ᶊῌῗ† 6/9 bumps like holy hell and makes me wanna jump up and down and head bang so he’s got that right. Stream and download below or grab the whole EP here.

So the other day I stumbled upon a soundcloud page with the most puzzling, arresting vibe I’ve come across in a while. Trap (tarp) and puzzling symbols rule the day on UZ’s virtual page. Comment on one of his songs and you are greeted with a symbolic depiction of an AK, regardless of what you say. I give the guy props for his internet savvy, and now that I’ve listened through this minimix a gang of times, I have to say that he gives Mr. Luger, them Flosstradamus boys, and anyone else making that trap shit a run for their money.

One of my favorite things about trap music is the mysterious vibe. Its hard to pin down why it sounds so cool but it does. Early Luger beats were huge, murky, and menacing. A listen through UZ’s earlier work shows a pervasive sense of aesthetic; he makes music with mood and character, something lacking in a lot of 808 & hi-hat constructions of late. His TrapShit 6/9 tape now combines the vibes with big boy sound quality we’ve come to expect from Jeffrees releases and some hooks that grab you from the first listen.

Be sure to stream the generous preview below and watch out for the TrapShit 6/9 EP on the Jeffrees the 21st of June.

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