Scion A/V continues their run of putting out incredible releases (check out Nick Hook’s debut here) by getting behind the new EP from Daedelus. Set to drop tomorrow as a free download, Daedelus let loose the title track before the release. “Looking Ocean” features the handy work of Brainfeeder pianist, Austin Peralta, over Daedelus’ jarring percussion and synths. Peralta’s live instrumentation on the piano blissfully rises above the heavy synthesizers and are wonderfully juxtaposed against Daedelus’ production. Stream “Looking Ocean” here and another track off the EP, “Platforming”, below.
Robert Glasper has alreadyreleased what is easily one of my favorite albums of 2012 in Black Radio. With an outstanding list of featured artists including, but not limited to, the inimitable ErykahBadu and Yasiin Bey (Mos Def). Now, half a year since the release of Black Radio, the Remix EP has been released with a mouth watering lineup of producers and guest vocalists. I guess I will just list them off: ?uestlove, Phonte, 9th Wonder, Black Milk, Pete Rock Georgia Anne Muldrow, and vocals from Bilal. I’ll start you out with this remix of “Letter to Hermione” by Robert Glasper and Jewels, accompanied with the slick flow of none other than Black Milk. One of my favorite parts of this track is the minute long outro that is then backed up by an awesome voicemail from Ma Dukes.
Up next? How about a Pete Rockremix of the track, “Black Radio” also featuring Mr. Yasiin Bey.
To top off the remix project, Glasper followed up his previous Dilla tribute, from In my Element, with “Dillalude #2”. A nine minute compilation of a couple of Dilla tracks ranging from “The Look of Love” and “Open Your Eyes” that all feature Casey Benjamin on vocals!! Give ‘Dillalude #2″ a listen below and you can find the rest of the tracks on Robert Glaspers’ soundcloud here.
My oh my…This has been a long time coming. LA producer, Nosaj Thing, has been off the radar from the blogosphere for what seems like an eternity. Since his release of his debut LP Drift, Nosaj has been at work on his follow up LP Home and doing specific mixes for select shows (check out his mix for Mary Anne Hobbs here). Home is set to drop in 2013 from the good people at Alpha Pup. Before that though, we will see a 10″ with the album single, “Eclipse/Blue”, dropping from Innovative Leisure. The single is driven by low key beats that are only accentuated by Kazu Makino’s (of Blonde Redhead) cooing vocals. Stream the single in full below and hopefully we will see some more material off the album soon.
Kieran Hebden akaFour Tetjust recently released his fantastic Pink LPand is now following it up with a remix of Ultraista’s“Smalltalk”. A little background on Ultraista: the band consists of Radioheadproducer Nigel Godrich, Joey Waronker (produced for Beck, Smashing Pumpkins, R.E.M, Elliot Smith and others) and London artist Laura Bettinson. Needless to say, with a cadre like that, the original is phenomenal. Bettinson’s subtle vocals are accentuated by delicate synths, which Four Tet then blows out into his most dancefloor oriented track in a while Breaking the song down to Bettinson’s eerie vocals, he then continues to add on intricate layers of his now recognizable percussion. Catch the original here and stream Four Tet’s remix below.
Been a little slow to get this one up here, but that happens when you work out in the woods for the summer. Peaking Lights dropped what is, in my opinion, one of the best albums of 2012 so far. Peaking Lights have been emerging onto the scene since the release of their debut album, 936, in 2011. Composed of Aaron Coyes, and Indra Dunis, the duo have already established a a huge following with two lp’s under their belts and a 936 Remixed project. The remixed project features artists Dam Funk, Damu, and Main Attrakionz reworking some of the classic tracks.
The duo capitalizes on hidden guitar riffs and synths interspersed with vocals from Indra. “Lo-Hi” is a perfect example of the smooth production that has been integral to Peaking Lights’ success. Even with the vast conglomeration of sounds on the track, “Dream Beat”, the duo blends these assorted sounds flawlessly.
I highly recommend giving this album a spin and it can be found on the Weird World Record Co’s soundcloud page herealong with the 936 album and the remix project. The 936 remixed album also has some gems on it, like this remix from Main Attrakionz. Check out that entire project here.
As you should know by now, we raved quite a lot about the new Hudson Mohawke and Lunice collaboration TNGHT. Their EP is absolutely massive and we couldn’t be more excited to see that BadBadNotGood covered the duos breakneck banger, ‘BuggN’. BBNG performed this cover live at the Mad Decent Block Party. It’s the perfect track for the group to perform and the track is huge.
It’s been awhile since I have posted on any new jazz albums or groups…until now! I would like to introduce you to Indigo Jam Unit. Formed in Osaka, Japan, in 2005, these guys have been dropping great releases for awhile. The unit consists of Yoshichika Tarue (piano), Katsuhiko Sasai (double bass), Isao Wasano (percussion & drums), and Takehiro Shimizu (drums). The unit initially started out as a trio and then added Shimizu to the drum line up before their first album, DEMONSTRATION (February 2006). Since this first album, the quartet has released five LP’s, an album remixing some of Common’s songs with his original verses over their jams, and a cover album, Rose.
This track is from the album, Re:Common , and reworks his song ‘Come Close’. Indigo Jam Units unique sound comes from the combination of all four members. Tarue’s melodic piano and Sasai’s driven bassline are integral to each track with the two artists pairing their instruments perfectly. What sets Indigo Jam Unit’s apart, is the use of two drummers. With Shimizu and Wasano working together to create an explosive rhythm that is prominent throughout each track.
The unit’s most recent release was the album, Independent, and should be checked out by anyone who enjoys complex drumlines and if you want to check out a band that can meld their unique sounds flawlessly. Even more impressive, is the bands devotion to uphold their ideal of being ‘live musicians’. The unit performs only single takes for every song that they put onto a record. I strongly urge you to explore their music and with some easy google searching you can find album downloads. Lastly, check out their awesome cover of ‘Funkier Than a Mosquito’s Tweeter’ by Nina Simone
If you’ve been following us for awhile now you will certainly recognize our gushing love for the Dropping Gems label. We recently did an in-depth interview with label head, Aaron Meola, and DJAO from the collective. You can check out the interview here if you missed it. Besides learning the ins and outs of running a label, we also inquired about DJAO’s production process. Like magic, the Seattle producer just posted a new track to his soundcloud, a remix of Devonwho’s “Strangebrew” off of his most recent effort, Perfect Strangers Vol. 1. DJAO keeps true to the original and capitalizes by adding his own crisply tuned bubbling sounds… then the bassline comes in. The track is topped off with what sounds like a space-age xylophone to add some more lush vibes. Stream the track below off of his Soundcloud and be sure to check out the rest of his tracks on the page.
Got out of the woods for my summer job and came back to a multitude of exciting releases including new Oddisee, Evil Needle, some posthumous Dilla, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Blockhead, Sonnymoon, and this fresh new BadBadNotGoodcover of Yeezy‘s “Mercy”. Like always, BBNG provide a fresh new interpretation of the track with knocking drums and transformational solos to boot. BBNG took a new approach for this performance and have many of the verses laid over their instrumentation. Watch the video below and let it tide you over until we the next release from the Toronto threesome.
Beat Connection just dropped a new cut for us today off of their upcoming Palice Garden LP. The “Palace Garden, 4am” is the first official single for the LP. This is a killer track with otherworldly synths, upbeat bass, catchy vocals, and some interesting high frequency bird chirps…Give it a whirl and if you’re one of the lucky ones who can go to Sasquatch this weekend, get excited for some new material during their show! The album is set to come out on June 19th and for now, you can stream the single below.
The Astral Plane 