There’s not a lot of singers with a more recognizable voice than Cee-Lo. From Goodie Mob to Gnarls Barkley, Mr. Green has been the voice behind some of the most unusual, soulful music of the last two decades. So needless to say, when Hyphen hit me yesterday with news that a new single dropped, I got pretty juiced. An ode to the woman and the place that raised him, “Georgia” is the first solo record from Cee-Lo since the brilliant collection of experimental soul that was Cee-Lo Green…Is the Soul Machine. Believe me when I say it doesn’t disappoint. Expect The Lady Killer to drop sometime in the next few months, and check for “Georgia” on iTunes if you feel so inclined.
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Okay, so the lineup speaks for itself, but I feel I should say a little more. For one, Jesse, Cole and Danielle deserve some serious credit for putting in the grind time it takes to put together something like Jazz Reggae. I’ve had the privilege of watching this one come to fruition from behind the scenes, and I can say without a doubt, it’ll be an incredible couple of days of music. As far as the practical details go, you got Saadiq, Nas & Damian, Barrington, Q-Tip, Bilal, The Foreign Exchange, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Tha Boogie, among many others. It’s a reasonably-priced, two-day outdoor festival on a big ass field, with great food, great folks and trees everywhere. If you can’t find some reason to get juiced here, this might not be the blog for you. Cop tickets here, before they’re gone.
I was already putting on for Francis & the Lights before this weekend, because frankly, their music is just dope. But after watching Francis take over The Echo, I can say I’m a believer. Francis is absolutely electric onstage. He gets the crowd juiced. He dances like he’s possessed. He drops to his knees to jam on a synth keyboard, and swings the mic stand like a young James Brown. And then he leaves the stage with just the words, “thank you very much”. It’ll Be Better is the latest from Francis and his band (three of whom are Berkeley High graduates, including Francis himself) but it’s just one of the quality albums they’ve put so far. With a concise eight songs on the record, it’s hard to go wrong, but “For Days” just happens to be my jam at the moment. Cop the album here.
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Over the past few years, there aren’t a lot of artists who have been hyped as much as Janelle. With The ArchAndroid, I think she proves it was warranted. Not since The Love Below has anybody ventured into the kind of musical territory the 24 year-old songstress breaches with her debut. ArchAndroid is a fully-fledged concept album, a bizarre story centered around the android savior of a futuristic world, spanning just about any genre you can list. There’s an orchestral string overture, 60′s psychedelia, futuristic funk and just about everything in between; and by some miracle, it all meshes together into a brilliant pop record. “Locked Inside” is a gem, but the album is one of those things you just have to hear all the way through. It’s pop music at it’s weirdest, it’s most experimental, and most fun. Janelle came in guns blazing with this one, and believe me, the originality will separate her from the pack. Hit the MORE to watch her shut down Letterman.
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You can always tell when summer’s around the corner, because some of the cleanest people in music step up to provide the soundtrack. Yesterday, for example, saw the release of a ridiculous amount of quality music, including the latest from The Black Keys, Janelle Monae, Talib Kweli & Hi-Tek and Nas & Damian Marley. Some of those hit harder than others, but really, I can’t complain. As usual, there’s plenty of dope shit to throw your way. On a related note, with summer well on the way, we thought it was only appropriate to celebrate in style. Friends, family and good folks, we’d love to have you there next Thursday at The Dime. We’ve got a lot to celebrate. Hit the MORE for some slaps that have been in heavy rotation recently.
Alicia’s been winning for a long time. “Fallin’” dropped damn near a decade ago, and since then, she’s provided the soundtrack to a grip of different people’s love lives. Okay, so she’s ridiculously bad and her voice is amazing. But what distinguishes her from a long list of other females blessed with the same talents is that she really knows what makes a great love song. The stories she tells are just too relatable. For the Drizzy-written “Unthinkable”, Ms. Keys actually plays on a lot of the same themes as Aubrey’s “Find Your Love” video from earlier this week, with Alicia falling for Chad Michael Murray (sorry Swizzy) in another forbidden love story. Not the most original idea, but it’s one that’s always going to resonate if you pull it off. Props to director Jake Nava on this one.
Mayer continues to impress with the creativity. The OG version of this song from the album was already pretty devastating, and now with the release of the song as a single, Mayer and Stones Throw once again came with a creative way to drop it. The single, available on a limited edition green vinyl, features remixes from Waajeed, as well as Classixx, who happened to absolutely kill it with theirs. Classixx took this one from soulful to spaced out, transforming Mayer’s original into something new and different. Highly recommended for the session playlist.
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Covering Vampire Weekend could have gone one of two ways: really corny or really dope. Luckily for us, Bobby is on top of his game right now, and he brought Janelle along for the ride. Rehashing VW’s “The Kids Don’t Stand a Chance”, Bobby and Janelle express some concern for the youth these days, and take a minute to reflect on their own childhood. As cliche as it sounds I think it’s always a valid point. It’s on us to put on for the younger generation, because the world they’re coming up in is fucking crazy. It’s hard enough to make sense of it at my age, let alone when you’re six, or even sixteen years old. PSA’s aside, this song is cool, so Matt thanks for putting me up. Bobby’s album is something fresh and original and it’s stacked with quality tracks. If you still buy music, drop some bread on The Adventures of Bobby Ray if you feel so inclined.
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There’s a lot of music coming out these days I like. A little less I really feel. And then there’s a third category, that’s pretty sparsely populated: the music that inspires. Theophilus’ latest, I Want You is imaginative, eclectic and understated all at the same time, and I’m happy to say it falls under that third category. The tape moves seamlessly from electro to disco-soul to hip-hop, borrowing bits and pieces from Stevie Wonder, Dam Funk, Vampire Weekend and Marvin Gaye to name just a few. If any project in recent memory does as much to blur the lines between genres, none do it as smoothly or cohesively. If This Charming Mixtape hinted at it, this is the proof. Theophilus is a superstar with a style all his own. I would suggest getting used to him. He’ll be around for a while. Download the mixtape below to see what I mean.
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A conversation Max, Jesse and I had the other day sparked some interesting thoughts about music. The question was basically, whether there’s an inherent value in keeping up with the new shit. I’m not sure if I really have a good answer to that, aside from the fact that I’m a fiend for any music I can get my hands on. And that, contrary to the impression you might get from the radio, there’s a lot of quality music being made on a regular basis. So if I feel it, I’ll throw it your way. If the artist gets some shine, and you get some slaps to throw in your iTunes, I think that’s worth something. Hit the MORE for the latest from Bobby Ray, jj, Mayer Hawthorne, J. Cole and a handful of other folks. Shit, Chris Breezy even came with a slap.
“Every day the sun comes up around her
She can make the birds sing harmony
Every drop of rain is glad it found her
Heaven must have made her just for me…”
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Theophilus continues to dazzle as we lead up to the release of I Want You. Covering Marvin’s ’76 hit, Theophilus croons over settled drum patterns and soulful guitar licks. It’s songs like these that get me juiced. Perfect for the celebrations, even better for the bedroom. I think the artistry is coming back to music, and folks are having fun with it. Chillin on these playoffs right now. I hope you’re settled too.
“I want you, but I want you to want me too…”
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If the new Erykah isn’t in your life yet, it needs to be. After combing it front to back a few dozen times in the whip, I honestly can’t say there’s one weak track on the whole album. Return of the Ankh finds Ms. Badu balancing the sonic strangeness of Part One with the emotional honesty of her Baduizm-era work, and forming a set of philosophical meditations on life, love and her own, unique perspective. I’d keep making the sales pitch, but you’d probably be better off just slappin this one once or twice. This shit is just too dope.
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From where I’m standing, life has been kind of hectic lately. I get the feeling that folks around me are lightweight stressed. Fortunately, today is what a lot of folks celebrate as the national holiday for trees. Why exactly we need a special day to smoke weed is beyond me, but I’m not one to argue with it. Without getting too corny here, I think what’s more important is just to take some time out of your day to chill out, remove yourself from the bullshit you’re wrapped up in, and put things in perspective. Some things happen that are really crucial, but the rest of them are only as crucial as you make them. If burning helps you come to that realization, then by all means, do what you do. Okay, that’s all I got for today. Here’s some slaps for your 420 playlist. Rest In Peace Guru.
