Some dismissed Mayer Hawthorne’s debut, A Strange Arrangement as overly contrived. But the record was truly one of the great growers of 2009, helped in no small measure by Stones Throw Records and Hawthorne’s vintage connoisseur taste. Not to mention, Hawthorne’s rare knack for pleasantly deluding people into believing that they could do what he… Continue reading »
One half of Crown Nation, Detroit spitter/producer Quelle Chris (@quellechris) does double duty as minimal synth one-man band Awesome in Outerspace and a zonked-out rap wonderkind with a lot to say for himself. His excellent album Shotgun and Sleek Rifle got substantial burn around these part. Since we already got him on the line for… Continue reading »
Sometimes your mission finds you. For Daniel Sewell, a Black-Filipino kid from Linwood, Detroit, his career was never a choice. Danny never learned how to rap, words came together in his head even at elementary school age. Borrowing the name of his favorite Reservoir Dogs character, Danny Brown found joy ripping into the twisted corners… Continue reading »
There’s something brewing with Portishead. After the release of Third in 2008, the Bristol-based trio lay relatively low, focusing more on family and pet projects than driving the wheels off the tour van. But over last summer Geoff Barrow, Beth Gibbons and Adrian Utley began to again make their presence felt, packing in a hectic… Continue reading »
Exile deserves every ounce of renown he receives. The LA native is an MPC maestro, a producer, a rapper, and now a Nas collaborator. But first he was Aleksander Manfredi, who started with a pre-fame Aloe Blacc in rap duo Emanon, recording several singles, cassettes and the 2005 album The Waiting Room. Production for Mobb… Continue reading »
It’s rare that you randomly stumble upon something on Soundcloud that truly grabs your interest, but New York native and Washington Heights resident Frankie P’s recent release “Hazy Nights In The Heights” did just that. A self-proclaimed “instrumental journey through the mind of Frankie P,” the album is produced with maturity, incorporating live instrumentation and… Continue reading »
As a child, Stephen Bruner, a.k.a. Thundercat, experienced a similar upbringing to most 80’s babies. He dug cartoons, video games and music — “kid stuff” as Dave Chappelle once put it. Those hobbies become obsessions as his adolescence extended. In any other family, they might have incited a Ritalin prescription. Thankfully, Thundercat grew up amongst… Continue reading »
For Los Angeles readers, DJ Revolution hardly needs an introduction. During his 13 year stint manning the decks for Sway and King Tech on 92.3 The Beat’s Wake Up Show, he became a household name for households glued to The Box. These days, he’s busy producing music for radio and TV, and deploying his formidable… Continue reading »
The long hours and more rigorous aspects of recording can easily strip away the experimentation and purity behind the ostensibly enjoyable process. Drummer Tim Walsh realized this early on in his post-collegiate career, opting to build his own studio in his hometown of Bridgeport, Connecticut in 2009, where he later invited bassist Dan Edinberg and… Continue reading »
After playing “Think of You” about seventy consecutive times, I emailed Jeff at what must have been 2:30 in the morning and breathlessly praised them a little longer than I should have. He received an equally long-winded rave in his box when I found out that Bleached principals Jennifer and Jessica Clavin– formerly of Mika… Continue reading »
Excellent Adventures
Bogus Journeys
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Listening
Jeff Weiss
Sach O
Douglas Martin
Aaron Matthews
Abe Beame
Evan Nabavian
Tosten Burks
Matt Shea
Jonah Bromwich
Reading
Jeff Weiss
Sach O
Douglas Martin
Tosten Burks
Aaron Matthews
Abe Beame
Jonah Bromwich
Watching
Jeff Weiss
Sach O
Douglas Martin
Tosten Burks
Aaron Matthews
Evan Nabavian
Jonah Bromwich
Inner Sanctum
Miscellaneous Apostles
Local Natives
Understanding Media
The Sporting Life
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
Miscellaneous
