Newsflash from academic frontier: YACHT is back and better than ever. Dystopia is just plain unstoppable. Four minutes of post-apocalyptic electronic strutting.
Yacht - Dystopia (The Earth is on Fire) (YSI) (filesavr)
April 28, 2011
This Yacht Just Sank Tiger Woods' Yacht
April 19, 2011
Still Ill
On this day in 1994, 20-year-old Nasir Jones dropped Illmatic.In other words:On this day in 1994, 20-year old Nasir Jones dropped the greatest hip-hop album of all time.Obviously this is not a statement of fact. There are a number of contenders for this title, and many would argue that Illmatic can't even be called the best hip-hop album of 1994, a year which also saw the release of Biggie's Ready to Die and Outkast's SouthernplayalisticadillacmuziMostly, it's about Nas's flow. It's not just about great lyrics, though Illmatic has its share. It's about his delivery. The rhymes are rhythmically complex, but Nas navigates them with such ease that you'd be forgiven for not noticing. Indeed, the delivery seems just about as natural as normal speech--only the most thrilling and charismatic speech you've ever heard. Next to Nas, every other rapper (except for maybe Biggie) sounds like he's trying. The best make it look easy, like Nas does on Illmatic.Nas's singular flow puts this album into the pantheon, but the beats musn't be overlooked. Illmatic's producers, from Large Professor to Q-Tip to Pete Rock to DJ Premier, really bring it. Premier's lean, bass-heavy production on "N.Y. State of Mind" creates an ominous paranoia which fits the lyrics, and also drives forward with a subtle momentum that nicely augment Nas's flow. The result is one of my favorite tracks of all time, a perfect pairing of beat, lyrics, and flow. Pete Rock's radio-friendly production on "The World is Yours," deserves kudos as well, and...I started to continue listing standout tracks, but then realized that I would have touched on pretty much the whole album. This incredible consistency is what pushes Illmatic over the top into the top spot on the list of great hip-hop albums. There simply isn't a bad track here. There aren't any skits (a real pet peeve of mine) that break up the musical flow, and while I could skip the opener "Genesis," the rest of the album hits hard from start to finish. Find it and give it a listen on this, the day of Illmatic's anniversary.Inhale deep like the words of my breath
I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death
I lay puzzle as I backtrack to earlier times
Nothing's equivalent to the New York state of mind
April 18, 2011
Who Wants a Purity Ring?
I can't really describe Purity Ring. Perhaps I don't really understand them myself. The best I can say is that these two tracks are hypnotic. Synthy, somber, bouncy, repetitive, delicate - all of these adjectives could be applied to these tracks. Give them a listen, I guarantee you will have to listen to them multiple times in a row.
Why they those such a silly name is something else I cannot hope to answer.
Purity Ring - Lofticries (YSI) (filesavr)
Purity Ring - Ungirthed (YSI) (filesavr)
April 15, 2011
Jamie Woon, More Like Jamie Wow!
Oh, hey there. Its a post! Miraculous!
Imagine the introspective dubstep of Burial, add in some smooth R&B vocals, tone down the moroseness, and lastly add a bit of swagger and you have Jamie Woon. Another graduate of the London-based BRIT School, Woon is primed for massive success. This is some genre-blending stuff. I cannot stop listening to Jamie Woon and the new Burial tracks -- is this the year that dubstep takes over the US of A?
Jamie Woon - Lady Luck (YSI) (filesavr)
Jamie Woon - Night Air (YSI) (filesavr)
