Alright, I'm sure we're all sick of the rumours, but I'm hearing that this is legitimately the first single off of Dr. Dre's perpetually anticipated album Detox. Unlike the leak in the summer featuring Jay-Z this seems to be legit as it has shown up on iTunes and Dr. Dre's website has been updated to reflect the new single "Kush" which you can listen to below, or download here
Aussie dance-rockers Cut Copy have released the cover art, track listing, and the first single "Take Me Over" from their forthcoming LP Zonoscope. Check out the new track below. Their sophomore album In Ghost Colours was a huge hit, and the anticipation has been (and will continue) building for Zonoscope, set to be released February 4 in Australia, the 7th in Europe, and the 8th in the US and Canada. In other words, we'll likely be listening to it online by the 4th. After listening to this track a couple of times, I'm even more amped to get my hands on this. I'm sure this will be a great summer album when it hits in Australia, and a welcome change for those of us who will be braving cold winters.
Matt & Kim's new album Sidewalks is out. Get it. Also, watch this video and interview.
The album is fairly short, clocking in at just over 35 minutes, but within that half-hour are some absolutely awesome songs. In the interview below, Matt talks about how they focus on the core of a song - the beat and the melody - and describes the rest as intellectual bullshit. Sidewalks is a synth-heavy production and features less traditional drumming and more handclaps, bells, and other trendy percussive gimmicks. The album is full of even more catchy hooks than 2009's Grandif that's even conceivable. Listening to this album comes with a few guarantees: you'll be bobbing your head and you'll be catching yourself smiling for no apparent reason. Give it a listen, it's worth your while. Other than the first single "Cameras" which is featured below, a few of the most instantly memorable tracks include the opener "Block After Block", "Where You're Coming From" which features the Atlanta Philharmonic, "Good for Great" and the closer "Ice Melts".
Video for "Lessons Learned" off of their second album "Grand"
and Alan Cross' interview with Matt & Kim hyping the new album Sidewalks and talking about the filming of the video for "Lessons Learned" and their reaction to Erykah Badu ripping it off.
Today I want to bring your attention to a duo from Brooklyn called Matt & Kim. Their music falls into the trendy category of indie-dance/rock that has been so popular for the last little while. Their third album Sidewalks is set to be released on November 2 so keep an eye out for that, but today I'm bringing you the first single off of that album, a track called Cameras.
Despite their indie cred, Matt & Kim are unabashed about how they want to be heard. While bands like MGMT shun the spotlight even after releasing an album to both commercial and critical acclaim, Matt & Kim say they want to write songs that connect people, songs that stick in your head and songs that stick in your grandmother's head too in the mold of Gorrilaz' songs Clint Eastwood and Feel Good Inc.
The other day, while listening to my satellite radio, a song came on that caught my ear because it sounded at once so familiar and at the same time so different from anything you hear these days. The song was 'Castles in the Snow' by Twin Shadow. Now there isn't a whole wealth of information about Twin Shadow out there, but this is what I've tracked down: Twin Shadow is a band formed by Dominican-born, Florida-raised George Lewis Jr. who has gone from fronting a punk band to performing for European theatre troupes to the 1980s inspired Twin Shadow. Lewis' sound on this album draws on the sounds of 80's New-Wavers Roxy Music, The Smiths, Depeche Mode and Morrissey while mixing in some of the synthesized guitar and bass sounds found on Radiohead's more recent albums - no doubt courtesy of Chris Taylor's (bassist for acclaimed indie-rockers Grizzly Bear) production.
The songs on Forget are more than 80s throwbacks though, the lyrics have a depth to them that can only come from being inspired by experiences and it is this aspect that gives the album repeat-listening value. It is this quality that takes Forget to the next level: the 80s sound is not the show, it's a vehicle for Lewis' nostalgic stories.
Although the album may end with a repeating chorus of "This is everything I'm wanting to forget" that's not a possibility because these songs, and this album will be sticking around in your head for the foreseeable future.
This next feature has everything to do with the last one. A guy calling himself "wait what"has taken the xx album and remixed it with lyrics from Notorious B.I.G. Check out his website and download the torrent for the album here.
If you aren't sure if you'll like this mashup album (you will) check out the vids after the jump.
To kick off the music reviews I thought I would go with an album that was released about a year ago but is still making noise. The band the xx released their eponymous debut last summer and it was picked up for wider distribution in October 2009, named pitchfork media's third best album of 2009, and in early September 2010 picked up the prestigious Mercury Prize as the best British album of the year. The album comes in at a tight, very listenable 38 minutes. There is no filler on this record, and almost every song is a standout. The group's vocalists, Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim have incredible chemistry: their hushed vocals playing off of each other just beautifully, while Jamie Smith delivers some of the most nuanced and apt production/drum programming I've heard in a long time.
The album begins with the simple but eerie guitar riff of 'Intro' followed by the uptempo sound of 'VCR', the steady build-up that is 'Crystalised', then the chilling guitar-based 'Islands', before starting the descent into the soft and beautiful sounds of 'Shelter', 'Basic Space' and 'Night Time'. The tension that the album begins with is expertly balanced with the softer, gentler songs on the second half of the record.
Every now and again there comes along an album that just works perfectly. This is one of those albums.
Welcome friends, strangers, and people in between. This blog is dedicated to bringing you the best music available, and where to find it. The aim is to keep you informed about current and upcoming releases, and to provide you the opportunity to listen to new music that you may otherwise not hear on traditional radio stations. My musical preferences are diverse and span from blues to rock to hip hop to dance music, so there will likely be a little something for everyone. That's all I'm going to say about genres for now, as I believe that better music is better music and I don't want to risk pigeonholing the music selections that I post; I believe in an organic evolution of taste, and I recognize that sometimes an album may not immediately resonate until listening to it some time after the first listen. In the coming weeks and months I will be adding new music as it is released and as it comes to my attention.
