Monday Mixtape, Vol. 113

Lots of upbeat jams for ya this week from some tried and true winners.

If you can’t notice that the first track is live by Natalie Prass, that’s because her silky voice and great band behind her defy expectations. I’ve seen her play live to a group of about eight people, and she’s a talent, one I wish got a bit more recognition.

Speaking of great live acts, the cherubic lead singer of St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Paul Janeway, gives everything he has when you see him live, and these guys just released a new album, which I’m a bit disappointed in but still looking forward to seeing them live in October to perform a bunch of their great jams, including the catchy “LivWithoutU.”

“Moonlight” might be the best Disclosure song I’ve heard, this song in a very loud car just crushes.

All this upbeat music is recipe for a little downturn in vibes which AlunaGeorge and Bas provide. The Bas album is one of the better rap albums of the year, not amazing but solid. “Tribe” with J. Cole might be my favorite track on the album, I just love when the drums come in a 0:45.

Wale has gotten better with age. It’s somewhat surprising he’s still around, but his last three EPs have been great.

Finally, we end the mixtape with BRONCHO, a no frills rock band that bring a little bit more swagger and reverb to this track than their usual. Pump it!

Have a good week all.

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 104

Apologies! I have been on hiatus for quite some time. I went on vacation, took an impromptu visit to DC to attend the Caps parade (!!) and am planning on moving shortly. ANYWAYS, I still have been listening to a ton of new music so I'd like to share some :)

I've listened to Lykke Li for years now, more as a bystander than an active listener. I have never loved her but always appreciate her music. I think she's an artist who veers into the pop world but has always been genuine and creative. The first track on her new album, "hard rain," has such a beautiful start to an album in pain from heartbreak:  

"If you like the feeling of a hard falling / I have a secret / I can give you an ocean"

 My favorite Natalie Prass has released her sophomore album, unfortunately one that just can't stand up to her phenomenal debut. My favorite song is likely the first track "Oh My" which gives me tinges of Rhythm Nation-era Janet Jackson with a little extra funk.

Arctic Monkeys took a HUGE departure in their sound from any other albums for their sixth. I absolutely love these guys (their first album and then their fifth AM are so so good) and respect anything they do because it's so damn different. If anything can explain their sound for this album, listen to this track on the mixtape. 

As always, any track with Frank Ocean will inevitably make it to the mixtape somehow! This, sadly, is the best track on A$AP Rocky's new album. I say sadly because it's pretty much all Frank Ocean. Wish the album was better.

Snail Mail has been getting a ton of love from the music critics for her new album Lush. If you like this track, I'd check it out. 

Speaking of albums getting love from critics, it may come as no surprise that Beach House is getting a ton of love for their new album, including being named the best album (so far!) of 2018 by Stereogum. So check it out! 

Alright, I'm out and will try to be better at posting. Adios!

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 96

Natalie Prass is back! And boy is she ever with this knockout catchy jam, a departure from her more subtle and delicate (and amazing) debut album (that I talked incessant about back in 2015 and was my #2 Album of 2015 - so yeah, check it out!). I just love this song, and I can't imagine not bopping your head to that beat! 

The remainder is a hodge podge of artists, some of whom I've recently discovered and really been digging their albums (particularly Dega and Surf Harp) and others who have been on the mixtape before (Wye Oak and Little Dragon).

Regardless, it's an "indie music" (yeah yeah, whatever that means, right?) kinda feel to the mixtape. Enjoy!

Monday Mixtape, Vol. 30

When I was at Outside Lands this year, there was a teeny tent where artists would play a handful of songs prior to their sets on the big stages. One of these artists was Natalie Prass, who I have written about a number of times on this blog. 

It was Prass, her guitarist, and no more than twenty of us watching. I was an arm’s length away from her, and her delicate voice and stripped down renditions of her tracks was subtly beautiful. 

Prass’ debut album is easily one of my favorite albums this year, and she just released an EP (recorded live at her record label’s studio in Richmond, VA) which includes one of her best songs from her debut, “My Baby Don’t Understand Me,” and a few covers from the likes of Anita Baker, Simon & Garfunkel, and Grimes.

Which segueways perfectly to the incomparable Grimes. I haven’t written a lot about her new album Artangles. It’s an album NO ONE else could have made. She is an original melding genres in a kaleidoscope of sounds. If you’d like to get into the mind of one of the most brilliant and innovative artists out there right now, listen to this album.

She’s also respected and beloved by fellow artists as the cover by Natalie Prass would indicate. I included both the original Grimes song as well as Prass’ cover. 

I stumbled upon Mutemath accidentally, and I'm really digging their electro-pop sound. Check this album out if you like this mainly instrumental track (the other songs have singing!).

Last but not least is Freddie Gibbs, the rapper from Gary, Indiana. His new album, Shadow of a Doubt, is one of the better rap albums this year. Gibbs initially made a name for himself with a ton of mixtape but started to get a little more critical attention with his collaboration with Madlib on the crazy spacey, Pinata. I think he’s furthering his case as one of the best rappers out there. 

I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving!