After the release of a series of EP's and mixtapes throwback Chicago rap duo "The Cool Kids" have finally dropped the first single, "Swimsuits" from their long-awaited debut album "When Fish Ride Bicycles". The track has that classic Cool Kids sound and features none other than soul crooner Mayer Hawthorne on the hook. The Cool Kids debut studio album, When Fish Ride Bicycles is set to be released on July 12 through Mountain Dew's Green Label Sound imprint. In the meantime you can stream Swimsuits below with single artwork and purchase details after the jump.
I'm having a little mixtape throwback with this post today, taking you all the way back to 2007. Yes, this mixtape came out 4 years ago, but I only just stumbled across it the other day and thought it was so good that it was worth bringing to everyone's attention. The mixtape that I am speaking of is "Ludacris/J5: Re-Release Therapy" by DJ "J.J. Brown". As you may have guessed from the title, it's a mash-up (or as J.J. Brown likes to call it a "match-up") album taking Ludacris a cappella's from his Release Therapy record and mixing them over a range of Jackson 5 instrumentals and adlibs. I've mentioned plenty of times on the site that I'm not really a huge fan of mash-up albums as they always seem to be so hit and miss, but I can say without a doubt that this one is one of the best mash-up albums I've heard! There isn't a dud track on the tape and each track has been arranged so thoughtfully that there are no glaring mismatches and nothing seems out of place. It's a prefect combination really, the Jackson 5 instrumentals are timeless and Ludacris is one of the most underrated and technically proficient rappers ever, he has been ridiculously consistent acorss his whole career. If there's one mash-up album you lend your ears to this year definitely make it this one. I don't know how much more of a glowing endoresement I can give this mixtape. The one thing that puzzles me is even though I have listened to J.J. Brown's "Connect The Dots" album previoulsy I don't know how I slept on this mixtape up until now? Anyway check out a little taster below with the tracks and "Warning/To Know" and "Woozy/I Am Love", with artwork and download link after the jump.
Yes, welcome to another edition of Throwback Thursday Saturday. Yeah I know it's actually Satruday but this weeks Throwback was actually a hard one to compile, not just becuase I've been very busy but because there's not a whole lot of information or media readily available for the group I chose. However this doesn't mean I'm going to leave you empty handed, I've dug deep into the archives and the crates to bring you this week's installment (#8, who would have thought the Throwback's would still be going strong?) So this week's selection is another perfect example of a Throwback song, a truly great soul gem from the 70's that I'm betting not many people have ever heard. The track that I am speaking of is "When Will The Day Come" by soul group Rasa. Now Rasa wasn't just any old soul group (of which there were plenty in the 70's and 80's) they were actually a group brought together through the common belief of Hare Krishna. So this song and all the others that appear on Rasa's album are odes to Hare Krishna. Now I know you're all probably thinking this is going to be a rubbish song, but don't let this put you off as When Will The Day Come is a straight up soul classic! The stripped back instrumental with its subtle strings and bongo's combhined with the pitch perfect falsetto of the lead singer, the background harmonies and the truly upbeat message make this song such a rarity. It has a real groove to it and the mellow soul sound perfectly illustrates the classic style of music that was being produced during the 70's. It's truly a shame that more people haven't heard this track but that's what Throwback Thursday is all about, bringing lost musical gems like this track to the attention of masses. Anyway check out When Will The Day Come below with stream/download of the track, and the regular bonus content after the jump.
Legendary jazz and soul musician and the "Godfather of rap" Gil Scott-Heron passed away last week, age 62. Producer Cookin' Soul has put together a tribute mixtape "The Revolution Will Be Televised: A Tribute To Gil Scott-Heron" to celebrate Heron's long and illustrious career. The 17 track mixtape showcases classic Heron sounds combined with speech samples. This is a really dope mixtape and I highly recommend you all download it and celebrate the man, the legend Gil Scott-Heron. Artwork, track-listing and download links after the jump.
It's Thursday! AKA Thunor's Day, the day between Wednesday and Friday, the fourth day of the week, and that means only one thing.... it's time for another edition of everybody's favourite segment "Throwback Thursday". For this weeks edition (#7 for those playing at home) I have chosen a track that is a perfect example of what a Throwback song should be, in this case a lost funk gem! The track that I am speaking of is "Brothers On The Slide" by funk group Cymande (Cymande is derived from the Calypso word for Dove, hence last week's cryptic clue). I must admit, I only heard this song a few weeks ago myself so I wasn't familiar with it or Cyamnde and I'm betting most of you haven't heard of the group or the song before either. However the first time I heard that unmistakable bass line kick in I knew that this was going to be something special. Cymande were pretty big back in the 70's and were comprised of Guyanan expats living in London. Brothers On The Slide is one of their standout tracks, it has that unmistakable groove that you just can't resist. The bass-line, the bongo's, the horns and the smooth vocal harmonies make this a truly great song. It is classic funk at it's best and I challenge any man, woman or child to listen to this track and not dig it. Anyway check out Brothers On The Slide below with stream/download of the track, and lots of other bonus content after the jump.
OK I'm finally back with another installment of everyone's favourite weekly segment, Throwback Thursday (that's #5 if you're still keeping score at home). Now I know that it's actually a Saturday, but I'm a very busy man and as they say, better late than never (especially considering today is supposed to be "the rapture"). Plus due to my tardiness I'm also going to include a few extra treats in this weeks Throwback, so read on to find out what they are. Anyway this week I'm going to hit with you all with another absolute bona-fide, hands down funk/soul classic. The classic that I speak of is none other than Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up". This is a song that I think many people have heard and have loved but probably don't actually know who the track is by or the history of it. This track is just a real feel-good funk track that was written and produced by Curtis (just quietly he was a really talented cat). Move On Up is really the perfect combination of everything I love in a track, the strings, bongo drums, Curtis' wailing falsetto and don't even get me started on the horns. You literally can't help but dance when this song comes on plus it's got a real positive message which is always a help. It's strange to think that such a good song was never released as a single and didn't even chart in the US (although it did spend 10 weeks in the UK top 50). Anyway enough of my waffling on, check out the Move On Up video below with the stream/download of the track and a whole host of other goodies after the jump.
It's no secret that Mayer Hawthorne is another one of my favourite artists. His 2009 debut album "A Strange Arrangement" was one of the best albums of that year in my opinion and don't even get me started on the heart shaped vinyl for his "Just Ain't Gonna Work Out" single (I loved that one so much I copped 2x copies of the vinyl). Well Mayer is back, with a free EP entitled "Impressions: The Covers EP". The EP is a mix of the old and new with Hawthorne not only putting his own spin on some classic tracks by Electric Light Orchestra and the Isley Brothers but also a couple of current contemporary acts in Chromeo and Jon Brion. Mayer has always had a knack for keeping his sound true to that classic soul sound of the 70's while still giving his tracks a modern feel. The way that Mayer can take a song like Chromeo's upbeat single "Don't Turn The Lights On" and turn it into an orchestral soul slow jam is amazing and it works so well. Stream/download of Don't Turn The Lights On below with the EP artwork, track-listing and download link after the jump.
So it's that time of the week again, yes Thursday and that means I'm back with another installment of Throwback Thursday. Now last week I promised you a bona-fide soul classic and that's exactly what I'm going to give you, although OneHD kind of stole my thunder a bit with this one when it started running this song as the backing track for it's Sons of Anarchy promo's (A very dope show which you should check out if you haven't already seen it). Of course the song I speak of is none other than Marlena Shaw - "California Soul". Now I can already hear all the music nuts out there saying "...but Marlena Shaw wasn't the first person to record this song, it's a cover!" Well to those people I say, this is my Throwback Thursday and I'll choose whoever the hell I want. Only joking, of course I'm aware that she wasn't the first to record this song (The 5th Dimension and Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell did it first), but Marlena Shaw's version is most definitely my favourite, so she gets the nod. This song has been a bit of a lost soul gem to many people unless you listen to a lot of late 60's/early 70's soul music. Even I only heard it for the first time around 6 years ago when someone decided to use it as the backing track for a longboarding video I was watching on YouTube. Needless to say as soon as I heard it I had to find out who that divine voice belonged to. It's just the perfect laidback soul track and it reminds me of summer for some reason, sitting out on the back porch as the sun goes down while cracking an ice cold beer. You can't help but feel good when listening to this song, plus Marlena is a pretty happening lady and that opening violin riff gets me everytime. Anyway enough of me waffling on, check out the video below with stream/download of the song + a Diplo Remix after the jump along with the videos of "The 5th Dimension" and "Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell" versions so you can judge for yourself which one you like the most.
After dropping his critically acclaimed album , "Good Things" towards the end of last year, soul artist Aloe Blacc has blessed us with the visuals for the single "Loving You Is Killing Me". The video is a must see and suits the song perfectly, plus the dance moves of 5 year old Baby Boogaloo in tandem with Aloe are classic! In fact I challenge anyone to watch this video and tell me that it didn't make them feel better... on the inside. Click through to check out Aloe and Baby Boogaloo break it down.
