Ep Review: Young Black Preachers - YBP Ep

I'll be completely honest. I really don't know anything about Young Black Preachers except that they are an underground hip hop trip on the Brainfeeder record label. I stumbled upon this ep on the Brainfeeder website while searching for something new to listen to. I was pleasantly surprised. The first thing I noticed when I listened to this ep was the unique production. All of the beats have tasty, catchy bass lines and weird scratchy samples. All of the beats sound as if they are being played through an old television set from the 90's. This group's music easily fits the description of lo fi. The lyrics are not particularly high grade but they are definitely interesting. The trio definitely has a lot of charisma. I feel like if I were to hang out with Young Black Preachers, they would be very cool and I could learn from them. I can see YBP receiving a lot of recognition from the underground in the future and I hope they do. 8.8/10.

Album Review: Shigeto - No Better Time Than Now

It seems that 2013 is more than just a year full of decent hip hop releases. With OPN's R Plus Seven on the way and Shigeto's recent No Better Time Than Now, it is safe to call this year well rounded. This is Shigeto's third album and by far the most interesting. 2012's Lineage was a solid electronic ambient release but was lacking in originality. This new release succeeds at solving this issue while still remaining very mellow and relaxing.
The first notable characteristic of No Better Time Than Now is the jazz influence. An electronic house style keyboard opens up the intro with a long smooth jazz sounding chord. The rest of this progression is followed by some more authentic electronic sounds as well as some glitch hop. This intro seems to sum up the album as a whole. It is truly a great way to kick off the album. My mental image of this track is somewhat like a person diving into a pool relaxation and peeking curiosity. The second track, "Detroit Part 1", maintains the jazz feel and brings in a tight hip hop beat. The electronic influence returns in full force on the song, "Perfect Crime", with a very rigid synth lead. It is the type of synthesizer in which the wavelengths are very easily heard as the notes a held.
No Better Time Than Now is a perfect fix for any glitch hop/beat music fans. For me, this record is my solution to hearing too much Flying Lotus. Though his music is nearly perfect, I cannot listen to it forever. This is what makes Shigeto so great. 7.8/10

Track Review : Danny Brown - ODB

Announced along with the release date of Danny Brown's up coming album, Old , set to be released on september 30th. This is actually the second released from his soon to be new album the first being kush coma which featured A$ap Rocky.

ODB, which stands for "Old Danny Brown" sounds quite particular from start to finish, it's production in particular. The song features a mixture of production styles which sound like a fusion of chill wave, ,electronic, of course hip hop ,and even seems to sample a slowed psychedelic down tune most likely coming from the 60s. The production also fluctuates in speed, adding a sort of melting and mind bending effect. During my first listen, I found that Danny's flow wasn't fitting the beat as it seems too fast, but this thought quickly disappeared into my second listen. This song is arguably more serious and innovative then anything he released in XXX, which was not set in the same direction as Danny Brown wants Old to. The delivery to this song is definitely fast, energetic and really hits you verse after verse. Danny Brown's easily recognizable voice fits the production as they both sound a bit deranged, or crazy. This song got me a lot for excited for Old and made it, for me, an anticipated 2013 release. 7.9/10

Friend Review: Matthew Ashley Stewart

I've known Matt Stewart for close to 5 years, I've been Matthew's close friend and mentor for 3 years. He has always had a great sense of humor and great taste in male sex toys. He introduced to me many great things. These are things like At The Drive-In, Marlboro cigarettes, Blink 182's first record, the importance of belittling women, and a corner store that sold me cigarettes before I was of legal buying age. I've spent many great times with Matthew. We've played pool, gone to parties, and explored our homosexual fantasies so many times that I stopped counting a long time ago. Matthew greatest characteristic is his charisma. Never have I met someone who could propose the idea of unprotected  anal sex with strangers and make it sound so goddamn fun! 9/10.

Matthew Ashley Stewart quotes:

"Hey can I borrow some lube? I got my penis stuck in a _____ and used up my last bottle."

"You can't judge me! All my niggas rich as fuck!"

"nigger nigger nigger imma catch ya catch ya nigger nigger nigger imma hang ya hang ya  nigger nigger nigger from the tree from the tree in my backyard"

"This isn't ghetto. Trust me I know what a real ghetto looks like. It's in my blood baby."

Crystal Castels Live!

Last night I had the chance to see Crystal Castles for the first time at the For Noise music festival in Pully Switzerland. Opening for Crystal Castles were Poliça, Franz Ferdinand, and The Animen. Poliça REALLY surprised me with their show. Featuring two drummers, a bassist, and a female vocalist, Poliça diverges from normal indie rock primarily a result of their two percussionists, which give them a very textured rhythmic sound which is perfectly accompanied the by the bass who supplies the band with the melody. To me, they sound better live then in their studio recordings.

Crystal Castels gave a really energetic and punk performance. They entered with no intro and left without an outro, actually the band never said a word to their audience. As expected, Alice Glass was drunk (actually drinking Jack Daniel's on stage) and but it actually added to the effect or mood Crystal Castles wants to administer, she gave a really raw, and aggressive attitude, jumping into the crowd. The sound was good, my only critique being it was a bit hard to hear Alice in some songs. Playing songs sung as Alice Pratice, Plagues, Crimewave, Untrust Us. A surprising amount of songs from their first album to which they added a kind of dub-step twist. They are totally worth seeing, a very exciting show.

Album Review: Oneohtrix Point Never - R Plus Seven

After hearing Oneohtrix Point Never's 2011 album, Replica, I fell in love. I  truly have never heard anything like it. OPN really takes ambient and electronic music to new heights. In most cases ambient music puts me to sleep and electronic music annoys me. Somehow Daniel Lopatin, the man behind Oneohtrix Point Never, has discovered a method for achieving a wildly interesting version of both genres together. Even without all of the signature, blissfully glitchy samples scattered throughout his records, his music is never anything less than enthralling. Combine a gift for recognizing good musical atmosphere with an unreal knack for audio manipulation, and what you have is a nearly spotless discography.

R Plus Seven does what most new albums should. It brings something new to the table. Previously mentioned was Lopatin's last solo record, Replica. This album featured many natural sounds such as piano and vocal samples. This gave the album a very organic feel (even though experimental, electronic noise is quite literally the opposite). On R Plus Seven, Lopatin seems to have moved in the opposite direction. Many of the sounds on this record sound distinctly artificial. Anyone who considers themselves even a little bit familiar with electronic music will recognize the arpeggiation and style of synthesizers used on this album very quickly. At first I found it quite unusual for an artist as unique and "off the wall" as OPN to use these types of sounds. After listening for just a little longer, I was reminded that it is not the instruments used that matter. It is the person using them. Of course what is Oneohtrix Point Never without all of those scary sounds that make you think you brain is broken? R Plus Seven comes with a delightful assortment of incomprehensible vocal snippets everywhere. Possibly even more than the amount used on Replica. I have always felt that these strange samples induce a sense of confusion. In many cases they really sound as if they are saying something but the listener is never able to understand. This sense of confusion is likely to provoke thought in the listener. R Plus Seven instigates the brain, and then provides the perfect background music to accompany it. This album is most definitely one of the best this year and one of Daniel Lopatin's best works ever. 9.5/10.