Review: All time Brainfeeder great and LA beat scene legend Thundercat surfaces once again in dramatic fashion for Flying Lotus' flag bearing US imprint. It's stoic title, It Is What It Is, hints at how many of us might be feeling right now - isolated but managing - with Thundercat's album said to be something of a sombre record that treads a darker path, as described in a New York Times interview. Presenting his fifth studio album and first since 2017's Drunk, Thundercat delivers 15 tracks (and skits) all clocking in at around three minutes with a huge cast of feature collaborators including Ty Dolla Sign, Lil B and Childish Gambino to Kamasi Washington and comedian Zack Frost with the sensual "Overseas". Our highlights include the royal grooves and slap bass of "Black Qualls", the floating rhode solos in "King Of The Hill" and frenetic funk of "How Sway".
Review: Brainfeeder as a project have been known to bring together the weird and wonderful, more often than not supplying the world with stunning original music. This latest compilation from them celebrates 10 years of the label, putting Flying Lotus's visions into reality. We explore previously undiscovered realms of futuristic hip hop production, with immediate stand outs being the the unpredictable neurotic drum crunches of 'Delusions' from Little Snake, along with the pulsating drum work and 4x4 flavours of 'Squaz' courtesy of Ross From Friends. Another shout out has to go to FlyLo himself as he teams up with Busdriver for a super skat heavy run out on 'Ain't No Coming Back'. This one is a fantastic listen from start to finish.
Gene Williams - "Don't Let Your Love Fade Away" - (2:46) 95 BPM
The Chosen Few - "People Make The World Go Round" - (3:18) 89 BPM
Esther Phillips - "Home Is Where The Hatred Is" - (3:25) 99 BPM
Delegation - "Oh Honey" - (5:41) 123 BPM
Velly Joonas - "Kaes On Aeg" - (2:52) 98 BPM
Stereolab - "The Flower Called Nowhere" - (4:55) 105 BPM
Kiki Gyan - "Disco Dancer" - (6:56) 116 BPM
Admas Anchi - "Bale Game" - (5:14) 59 BPM
Francis Bebey - "Sanza Nocturne" - (5:51) 95 BPM
Thundercat - "For Love I Come" - (3:35) 69 BPM
River Tiber - "West" (feat Daniel Caesar) - (2:32) 80 BPM
Charlotte Day Wilson - "Work" - (3:44) 65 BPM
The Beach Boys - "Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)" - (2:58) 78 BPM
Donnie & Joe Emerson - "Baby" - (4:10) 91 BPM
Les Prospection - "Lido" - (3:44) 72 BPM
Grady Tate - "And I Love Her" - (4:47) 81 BPM
Badbadnotgood - "To You" (Exclusive Andy Shauf cover version) - (2:25) 60 BPM
Steve Kuhn - "The Meaning Of Love" - (3:00) 110 BPM
Lydia Lunch - "You, Me & Jim Beam" (Exclusive Spoken Word Piece) - (4:25) 96 BPM
Late Night Tales: Badbadnotgood (continuous mix) - (1:08:19) 98 BPM
Review: Beyond all the clubbing action, another often forgotten tradition of the 90s was the post-club 'all back to mine' session. The air thick with 'smoke', a curated chillout mix by an established dj would sort everyone out. The Late Night Tales series continues that tradition and here we have a new volume curated by Canadian quartet BadBadNotGood. The album features 21 cuts from their record collections woven together in a hazy nocturnal fashion. Highlights include the psychedelic electronica of "Oh Honey" by Delegation, the seductive 60s folk-soul of "Kaes On Aeg" by Velly Joonas and the campy synth-boogie of "Disco Dancer" by Kiki Gyan.
Review: Flying Lotus collaborator Thundercat returns to Brainfeeder with his first full album since 2013's superb Apocalypse. Drunk is a thrill-a-minute, mix-tape style trip through the multi-instrumentalist and beat-maker's various inspirations (think skewed hip-hop, jazz, soul, funk, left-of-centre electronica, and so on), all of which have been fused and mutated to fit his unique musical perspective. His high standing within the leffield hip-hop community has allowed Thundercat to snag some impressive guest stars, too, including Kendrick Lamarr, blue-eyed soul legend Michael McDonald, Kenny Loggins, Pharell and jazz man Kamasi Washington. Old pal "Fly-Lo" also lends a hand.
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