Texas Sun EP Khruangbin & Leon Bridges Dead Oceans Records Columbia Records Night-Time Stories By John-Paul Shiver channelsubtext (@channelsubtext) From their start in 2010, Houston-based Khruangbin — the genre-bending psychedelic band consisting of guitarist Mark Speer, bassist Laura Lee and drummer Donald “DJ” Johnson — have pursued projects dedicated to craft, not trend. Founded on […]
By William Sheehan Annoying // Dayne Jordan & Decap One of the more recent releases by Dayne Jordan and San Francisco’s Decap – real name Nicholas John Piantedosi. Decap’s a man in demand and – while we’re on the topic of annoyances, a follow up to this collaboration can’t come fast enough. Among Unlovers […]
The latest tracks from Medasin, David Guetta, Suzi Analogue, RL Grime & Graves, Lophiile and more.
By William Sheehan The party’s over. CD’s skipping. September’s the month where certain-let down correlates with a change in color you’ll see everywhere; on the branches of trees, in the shades of your neighbors’ wardrobe, or on their faces like uniformed angst with slanted mouths, minds idling. Acknowledge the spread: cut-and-dry, hardly-knew-ya, sure, but no […]
An Essential Collection of Summer // Pulp Lab Playlist July 2018 By William Sheehan Music streaming services had barely hit solid ground by the time they were generating a culture that thrived under a banner of manufactured ambience. An effort to counter the mellow timbre exists in the form of an audible companion to your […]
By John-Paul Shiver Pulling from the influence of grime, hip-hop, electronic music, blog culture and jazz, Binker and Moses are among the pacesetters of the London based jazz renaissance happening now. ‘Alive In The East?’, their new live album slotted to drop this upcoming June, captures the drummer and sax player in full “shamanic” spiritual free jazz […]
By John-Paul Shiver Los Angeles based musician, singer, songwriter, and producer Kadhja Bonet is so expansive with her retro colour wheel of sounds on Childqueen, you swear it was playing on the crappy Radio Shack ceiling speakers at the local Gas & Shop during the early 1980’s. And that is meant as a compliment. Straight […]
Adrian Younge presents: Voices of Gemma Adrian Younge Linear Labs By John-Paul Shiver Musician and producer Adrian Younge writes his compositions in a visual language for the big screen, independent of whether it makes it there or not. His current project, Voices of Gemma, is an amalgam of David Axelrod orchestral bravado merged with Burt […]
By John-Paul Shiver Typically, March is the month where “fashionable” musicians, techies and the media descend upon Austin, Texas for ten days of networking over Shiner Bock and breakfast tacos. Southby (aka SXSW) is the rare occasion where bands are either coming off of or just beginning a tour schedule. For artists from other countries, […]
It’s a new year, new gear and a new fit. And as January closes out we have a playlist to recap some of the underneath-the-radar, slept-on music that maybe you missed the first time. These artists could be future Grammy winners or just performers who create songs that smack upside the head now…. and make you pay attention.
No artist here is pushing an energy drink or attempting to steer a “DJ popularity” poll; it’s just some of the best music that came out in 2017, that maybe you never had the chance to hear.
Cold Specks Fool’s Paradise Arts & Crafts By John-Paul Shiver Ladan Hussein, who performs as Cold Specks, excels most effectively on her recent release “Fool’s Paradise” when her sound design is just as bleak and terse as the immutable odds she sings about. This vocal presence, ingrained by wavering staying power, conveys the license of being […]
By John-Paul Shiver The Canadian born, LA based singer/songwriter/producer ANML aka Lila Rose, has always injected her career with grand cinematic gestures. Leading with messages that are fierce and unapologetic and then emboldened further with a highly distinctive voice. All being driven by this animated exuberance that refuses to be silenced or ever quit. It is by […]
RYAN PORTER Spangle-Lang Lane “ABC Song” World Galaxy / Alpha Pup Records ** FIRST-LISTEN** “ABC Song” by Ryan Porter “I want to dedicate the Spangle-Lang Lane record to my mother Maggie L. Schaffer, who introduced me to the power of creativity and also to my daughters Anaya and Anya, who are both my answered prayers. […]
Mermaidens Satsuma Perfect Body Flying Nun Records By John-Paul Shiver Combining a 1970’s color wheel aesthetic with a deep sullen tone that proselytizes a fluffy bunny rabbit might not make it, “Satsuma” is that alluring “something is out of alignment” video by the New Zealand psych outfit Mermaidens. The video was filmed and directed by Ezra Simons, with concept […]
Your Old Droog Bangladesh (ft Heems) PACKS By John-Paul Shiver Displaying the well-paired ying-yang punch of grimy flow versus nasal tone, the single Bangladesh by Your Old Droog and featuring Heems from Das Racist, is the “straight-talk no-filter” poster child for what genuine NYC hip-hop has been and remains. Droog, the Ukrainian-born, and Brooklyn based […]