Atoms For Peace -AMOK
86/100
Radiohead’s Thom Yorke has been flirting with making the music that sounds like what he listens to. The problem with that is his audience mainly want Radiohead songs with guitars and sad lyrics. It’s 2013 and several years past Radiohead’s last relevant record in 2007 with In Rainbows, which followed Yorke’s solo debut with Eraser. Eraser was Yorke’s electronic playground, his fun personal record, and with this record it’s Eraser growing up. Much more accessible and enjoyable. Yorke is a well known fan of electronic wonder boys in relative new school producers Burial, Flying Lotus & Four Tet. And it’s here where Yorke draws his inspiration. Atoms for Peace was originally cobbled together as Yorke’s live band, featuring producer Nigel Goodrich, Fla, Joey Waronker and Mauro Refosco. Word in advance says after a late night of Fela Kuti and the very best marijuana–boom– a band is born, sort of. It’s still Yorkes show but he gets nice contributions from Radiohead mates in Goodrich and their percussionist Refosco along with Flea and Waronker. Dubbing the live effort Atoms For Peace and quickly recording a record with band. Well almost recording as band, well at least Yorke’s band. Yorke’s has spent the past few years making music that seems to represent a free spirit and sense of exploration.
Opening with the lightweight glitch of ”Before Your Very Eyes” Yorke tweaks intro guitar lines before quickly giving away to an electronic flurry of stops and starts hinting at older drum n’ bass. The first single sets the pace of the direction with “Default” loaded with galloping rhythms and electronic patches throughout. The strongest statement maybe be the simplest of lyrics as Yorke reflects “The will is strong/But the flesh is weak”. Yorke hasn’t sounded so clear and delicate as his falsetto on the sensuous ”Ingenue” as he softly beckons over the coolest runaway music “And you know it/Fools rushing in/Yeah /Well you know it./Who let them in/Yeah/Well you know it/Gone with a touch of your hand/Gone with a touch of your hand”. One of the more ambitious tracks ”Dropped”, is anchored by awkward rhythms as Refosco seems at home with Afro-Beat as Yorke brings the band to a spell, as he cries himself into a trance with hollow chants of “I don’t want to stop”. Than the song awakens and springs fourth that magic moment. Despite some great breaks and stutter grooves “Unless” feels like the score from a chase scene.
Guitars appear quietly as “Stuck Together Pieces” begins to ramble along with the exception of Yorke not bothering to actually finish writing the song, instead he gives the wicked toss-off lines “We don’t get away/ You don’t get away/We don’t get away so easily”. With perhaps his band in mind “Judge, Jury And Executioner” feels like its off a later day Radiohead record as Yorke’s voice soars ”Don’t worry, baby/ It goes right through me/ I’m like the wind and my anger will disperse…I went for my usual walk/Tell it like is/ Tell it like it was /Judge and jury, executioner”. Among the highlights “Reverse Running” is built on muted piano lines, an easy thump and a sexy baselines as Yorke delicately pleads “Pressed up to the glass/ All the things that you shouldn’t ask/But you see through me/ It doesn’t mean anything/ a meaningless plaything/ Reverse running. Closing with the serene beauty of post disco sexuality on “Amok”, a meditative flex successfully synthesizing his passions.
Yorke and company have a made a contender –Kid A it’s not– yet it’s still worthy without being weighty or taken too seriously which is a refreshing and satisfying as the rhythms and textures capture an overall sound design that is immaculate even with it’s faults, it expands and ignites whats great about Radiohead in the first place. Taking a risk. via Reviler
Kanye West – Yeezus
88/100
Mr. West returns with his sixth album, the follow-up to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. His new mantra is going full blast on cultural flashpoints, racial animosity, flagrant sexual content, out as usual to be the Michael Jordan of this music shit. For now, gone are the soul samples – West is going minimal electro with orchestral breaks, bending hip-hop’s broken parts or as he would say Black New Wave.
Yeezus opens with “On Sight”, where Daft Punk’s production brings some lightweight electro circus action, and Ye don’t give a fuck: “Black dick all in your spouse again, how much do I not give a fuck. Let me show you right now”. A more interesting collaboration with Daft Punk is “Black Skinhead”, based on a defiant military drum roll as West scowls “Stop all that coon shit, early morning cartoon shit, this is that goon shit. I keep it 300, like the Romans, 300 bitches, where’s the Trojans?, Baby we living in the moment”. On the most masterful moment of Yeezus West declares, “I Am A God” and goes hard: “Soon as they like you make ‘em unlike you, cause kissing people ass is so unlike you, the only rapper compared to Michael, so here’s a few hating-ass niggas who’ll fight you”. He calls out racism and black’s fascination with consumerism (the same consumerism he exists in/of) in “New Slaves”. “You see it broke nigga racism, that’s that ‘Don’t touch anything in the store’. And this rich nigga racism , that’s that ‘Come in, please buy more’.” What you want a Bentley? Fur coat? A Diamond chain?? All you blacks want all the same things…New Slaves” And, as record labels treat their uneducated black artist like idiots, West states: Y”all throwing contracts at me , You know niggas can’t read, throw him some Maybach keys, fuck it, cest la vie”, before he finishes with a distorted Frank Ocean melody. There’s “Hold My Liquor” with Justin Vernon and Chief Keef for a look back at love lost against winding synths. “Bitch I’m back….pussy had me floating, feel like Deepak Chopra”. The reggae induced “I’m In It” glides over a sinister RZA production. “Blood On The Leaves” and “Guilt Trip” take a nice trip back to the 808 ‘s and Heartbreak with a few flourishes of Auto-tune. “Blood On The Leaves” also features a Nina Simone sample from her anti-lynching protest classic “Strange Fruit”. “Send It Up” sounds like some 1980′ lost rap instrumental. Finishing the record with perhaps the most conventional track “Bound 2” where West is on his “Prom shit”. With The Gap Bands’ Charlie Wilson crooning on deck ”One good girl is worth a thousand bitches”. And there’s the sentiment.
While there’s nothing here approaching the genius of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, still it swerves as a nice left turn, even for West. Its ending is rather anti-climatic. It feels like an long EP and like that one knockout punch is missing for the complete victory. It’s full of all things Kanye, it’s vibrant, thought-provoking, contradictory, defensive, celebratory ignorance, stunning, confusing, vulgar, menacing, exploratory, chaotic, political – all capturing Yeezus as an art project, and isn’t it art we want. Or claim to want. There’s excellent moments here on “Black Skinhead”, “I Am A God”, “New Slaves”, “Blood On The Leaves” and “Bound 2”, which all deliver various aspects of West ‘s cultural zeitgeist. The Yeezus appears to have multiple producers on every track making for a uneven journey. West wants the gold, and always gets there ususally on ambition alone, that’s cool however, but we want bangers from Yeezy. The bangers are here, just hard to find and often buried – and it’s a fantastic, if difficult addition to his evolving catalog. via Reviler.
James Blake – Overgrown
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Pusha T – My Name Is My Name
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Arcade Fire – Reflektor
Arcade Fire, Reflektor, review - Telegraph
The Weeknd – Kiss Land
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M.I.A. -Matangi
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Polica -Shulamith
Poliça: Shulamith | Music Review | Slant Magazine
Darkside -Psychic
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My Bloody Valentine- MBV
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Rhye –Woman
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Purple Snow: Forecasting the Minneapolis Sound
As if the Smithsonian opened it's vaults to Minneapolis black music during the 1970's and discovered an unmarked era before Prince. Modern, or post mid- 1970's, Minneapolis music history boils down to Replacements, Husker Du, Prince, Time and all things connected to them. Purple Snow shines an excellent light and documents a rich musical history that seemed all but forgotten, at the very least undocumented. Many of the artist played in and around the Twin Cities capturing the energy and environment that produced Prince, Jimmy Jam Harris & Terry Lewis, Andre Cymone, Alexander O'Neal and many others who were musically related. Purple Snow collects the music that predated Prince's explosion. He even shows up on the opening track by 94 East playing guitar on "If You See Me", on the Lewis Connections'"Got To Be Something Here" he's on guitar and background vocals and on Music, Love & Funk's "Stone Lover" he adds guitar. Traveling through R&B's post funk pre synth period with shades of Parliament, Isley Brothers, Gap Band, Cameo and other acts of the era. In 1978, the same year Prince released his debut album For You, Twins owner Calvin Griffith was caught stating that the reason he picked Minnesota as the destination city for the Washington Senators' 1961 relocation was because “we found out you only had 15,000 blacks here.” This was the climate at the time.
Purple Snow: Forecasting the Minneapolis Sound - Pitchfork
NME: Prince looms large over this 32-track history of an overlooked scene
Free Angela -various
A beautiful collection from the folks at Secret Stash Records who reissued this lost soul nugget.
Reviler Preview: Free Angela Reissue on Secret Stash Records
William Onyeabor – Who Is William Onyeabor
First Listen: William Onyeabor, 'Who Is William Onyeabor?' : NPR
Afrobeat Airwaves vol.2 -Return Flight to Ghana 1974-83-various
Afrobeat Airwaves Volume 2 // Return Flight to Ghana 1974-83
Kenya Special -various
Soundway Records present Kenya Special
Mind & Matter -1514 Oliver Avenue (Basement)
Minneapolis has long been seen as that little midwest town that garage rock and funk. What's not known is the black music scene that existed before Prince. There was tons of interesting musicians who lived here and moved here that was making music no one apparently heard outside of their circles. Imagine The Isley Brothers, Earth , Wind & Fire, Parliament, The Gap Band all rolled together. Light years ahead of various soul that led into the modern music, with an early look into what nurtured future Neo-Soul artist and their predecessors.
Led by a 16 year old keyboardist Jimmy “Jam” Harris. Laying down the blueprint for Questlove. Harris would go on to work with future partner Terry Lewis who would later become Grammy winning producers Flyte Time productions. Jam & Lewis would leave the The Time and start working with many of pop & R&B artist among them Cherrelle, Janet Jackson, George Micheal, Human League, Usher, Gwen Stefani, Mary J. Blige, New Edition & Rod Stewart.
Music & Matter captures the early inspirations. The first nugget is the smooth summertime “The Wonder Of It All”, another knockout is “I Don't Know Why (I Love You Like I Do)”. “Disco Child” goes in a more heavier funk range and “When You're Touching Me” brings that positive roller skating feel. They clean things up on “Virgin Lady” reaching for the The Stylistics style romance. Closing the record with the reflective “Now That I Don't Have You”. Minneapolis music is richer as jewels from it's recent past get discovered. Thanks to The Numero Music Group, who also released the dynamic Purple Snow compilation featuring a plethora of early Minneapolis funk, soul, and R&B sounds in a glorious package.
Mind & Matter: 1514 Oliver Avenue (Basement) (Numero Group)
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