Though we are publishing this during the first few weeks of True Fall 2018, Justin captures unmistakably the feeling of early Spring in this playlist.
- Matt
Playlists brief enough to pay attention to, songs hand-selected to make it worth it
Saturday, September 29, 2018
Thursday, September 27, 2018
Viva Latina: "Mujeres" ROSALÍA, Mon Laferte, Laura Pausini, Natalia Lafourcade, Natti Natasha, Aitana, Julieta Venegas, Beatriz Luengo
Too often I seem to play songs with male artists, but there are so many great female artists in latin music that I wanted to do a post featuring some of the music these women are making.
I started off with the Barcelona-born flamenco pop singer Rosalía whose Malamente is nominated for best song of the year for the Latin Grammys. I love how she fuses flamenco with pop, reggaetón, and R&B here. The staccato sound of hand claps and Rosalía’s smooth voice draw you into her story.
Other favorites on this list that are different from more main stream latin pop include Amárrame by indie pop Chilean singer Mon Laferte, and the final track on this list, Caprichosa, by Spanish singer/songwriter Beatriz Luengo featuring Mala Rodríguez.
- Elaine
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
Vinyl Club #14: Guggenz "After Hours"
From Electronic Colorado's 2017 album review:
"The chill, melodic, and soulful After Hours should be well-received around the globe, but definitely so here in Colorado.
"Whether you’re watching the sun set over the Rockies or carving out fresh lines down the slopes on a snowy January day, throw on After Hours and your troubles will seem to float away with the breeze.
"Keep your head on a swivel for this promising producer out of Minnesota, as After Hours is surely only a tasteful sample of what’s still to come."
Monday, September 24, 2018
Monday Mix 180924: Lyrics Born, Dungeon Family, Three 6 Mafia, Beastie Boys, D12, A$AP Rocky
It's really fun when you get the feeling of a group rappers "passing the mic" around, each bringing their own flavor to the beat.
"One Session" is not a "pass the mic" song, but some kind of cyborg does get a verse so it makes it in as an honoree.
"6 Minutes (Dungeon Family It's On)" From the crew that gave us Outkast, Goodie Mob, and CeeLo Green.
Have to link to Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick's "The Show," "Six minutes Doug E Fresh you're on..."
Big Rube passes to Big Boi passes to Big Gipp (hook) /
Witchdoctor passes to Cool Breeze (hook) /
Khujo passes to T-Mo (hook) /
Backbone passes to CeeLo (hook)
"Stay Fly" Now when I hear this hook I think of the hook on Ariana Grande's "Let Me Love You." That could be a fun mashup: "Gotta stay fly-yyy-yy-yy-y, let me lo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-love you..."
Juicy J passes to DJ Paul (chorus) /
Young Buck passes to Crunchy Black (chorus) /
8Ball passes to MJG (chorus)
"Pass The Mic" Beastie Boys are one of the groups that popularized the pass the mic sound, and brought the phrase into popular use with this song. Lacking a chorus or a hook, the focus is on the MCs and the DJ, which is a stylistic choice I approve of.
MCA / Mike D / Adrock / MCA / All / Mike D / MCA / Adrock / Mike D / All
"Purple Pills" Eminem gets a little into the biography of D12 on "Stepping Stone," off his new album Kamikaze, which I like a lot. I've been sitting on this list but thought it was timely to drop it because of this.
Hook / Eminem > Kuniva / Hook / Proof > Swift / Hook / Bizarre / Hook
I close it out with "1Train" because it's such an epic song. Again, no hook, no chorus. Love it. Hit-Boy on the beat.
A$AP Rocky > Kendrick Lamar > Joey Bada$$ > Yelawolf > Danny Brown > Action Bronson > Big K.R.I.T.
I do love this track, but I think sometimes the beat drops out at less than opportune times, and ends up making the rapper sound weak.
It works great at 1:55 and 2:16 for Joey Bada$$' verse. When Yelawolf comes in at 2:31, the main theme of the track is cut out, and for a long time. He comes in with a syncopated cadence, but there's nothing in the instrumental to bounce it off of, so it sounds to me like he is having trouble with his syllables, even though he may be doing it on purpose. At 2:54, the theme comes in again and his syncopation sounds great. It also trips up Action Bronson at 4:26.
Love the cold ending, too -- like a mic drop.
- Matt
Saturday, September 22, 2018
Retzmix #18 - February 2006
All in all, a sentimental mix from Justin.
Some fun moments, but a lot of emotionally-packed, meditative numbers. A perfect lazy Sunday playlist.
Justin breaks up the Beatles here, too. Two solo cuts from McCartney, and two from Lennon, one of those with Yoko Ono.
- Matt
Thursday, September 20, 2018
hooked.evd/feelgood: Daryl Hall & John Oates, CeeLo Green, Martin Solveig, Fitz and The Tantrums, Michael Jackson, Janelle Monáe, Two Door Cinema Club, The Beatles
Sometimes I need a playlist to pull me out of the emotional funk the rest of my playlists put me in.
This month's playlist is comprised of songs that have previously topped assorted playlists I've created - each being an emotional high for me.
I hope you enjoy this collection as much as I do.
- Erin
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
Vinyl Club #13: Vansire "Angel Youth"
From Kid With a Vinyl's August, 2018 album review:
"I’ve always been a person that pays attention to the way artists choose to structure their track listings in order to give their listeners the best possible experience, and part of the initial overall beauty of Angel Youth is that it more than takes this into consideration – it possesses a remarkable sense of fluidity, a beautifully subtle electric current coursing through its seventeen tracks despite the inclusion of so many different techniques and styles, including everything from bedroom pop to jazz (the trumpet solo in “KW” from Kyle Matthees is not to be missed), even at times minimalist compositions any Steve Reich fan would immediately fall in love with.
"None fight viciously for your attention – instead they work together seamlessly, emitting a sense of peace and quiescence even in its most complex, emotional moments, impressive considering the duo recorded, mixed, and mastered everything on their own (with the exception of Winemiller’s brother Issac on bass for a handful of tracks) in just under a year."
Monday, September 17, 2018
Monday Mix 180917: Stevie Wonder, Spoon, Samantha J, The Weeknd, Charlie Puth, Foals, Arcade Fire
First, a special note:
Last Tuesday was the one-year anniversary of Monday Mix, which started as a weekly Facebook post.
A year later, we've moved to a dedicated blog configuration, with almost 100 individual playlists published, 10 formats, social media accounts on four platforms, and four regular contributors in addition to me.
I offer sincere gratitude to Erin, Elaine, Leslie, and Justin. Their contributions have rounded out and deepened the mission of this project beyond what I thought we could do.
Thank you.
To celebrate, I've prepared a Monday Mix inspired by the original playlist (included here).
Stevie Wonder: "Uptight" & "Higher Ground" Instant party-starter. Love this style of percussion and horns. A song situated firmly in the Sixties, just as "Higher Ground" finds itself an iconic song of the Seventies. Credit to Stevie Wonder, though, in that both songs sound relevant today.
Spoon: "The Way We Get By" & "Can I Sit Next to You" Fifteen years separate these two songs, but both have that undeniable raw power strut, centered in the bass groove. Both songs build and build and are captivating from first note to last.
Dej Loaf: "League of My Own" & "No Fear" I really appreciate Dej Loaf's style. I think she's got the laid-back delivery appropriate for the musical moment, but she has a style and urgency to her flavor that makes me root for her. I'm not sure what it will take. She's not a Nicki or a Cardi. Is there room for her?
Future: "All I Know" & "Mask Off" I'm not a huge Future fan, but I'm into both these cuts. I think he just happens to be on a lot of songs and odds are you'll like one or two. Likewise, I'm not a huge The Weeknd fan. (For starters, "The Weekend" is a dumb band name. If some other band already has that name, removing one of the e's doesn't make it any better.)
However, I AM a huge Starboy fan. A bit lengthy at 18 tracks and 68 minutes, it goes a number of interesting places and takes some significant risks and pulls off most of them. What makes "All I Know" so interesting to me is how Future's half feels so much deeper than the first half. The track is a tightening coil, and it's almost as if we go through the looking glass. "You sleep one eye closed / Too scared to get heartbroke..." "Sleep with one eye open / I'm terrified to get my heart broke..."
Charlie Puth: "We Don't Talk Anymore" & "Attention" Puth's light voice and tight control lends itself well to songs with subtle pop and vulnerability. Supported by Selena in the former and that thick bass in the latter, we've got some opposing forces that make both these tracks work for me.
Foals: "Night Swimmers" and "Birch Tree" Another case where I love the album way more than the band. Lightning in a bottle on this album. Not only do I not care for Foals outside of this album, I don't usually care for newer rock music at all. These are two deeper cuts from the album. If you like these, I think you'll love the singles and the album as a whole.
Arcade Fire: "Everything Now (Todo Ya)" & "Everything Now" It took a while for the latter to click with me. Once it did however, I'm an evangelist. Crank that one up every time. The laudable Bomba Estéreo mix it up and really flip it. At first, I thought it was too much oil and vinegar, but upon repeat listens, I love it as its own song.
- Matt
Saturday, September 15, 2018
Retzmix #17 - September 2005
A really fun one from Justin.
We're starting to see the psychedelic side to Justin's taste, as well as the funky, joyful side.
Capped off in a very 2005 way with Arcade Fire.
- Matt
Thursday, September 13, 2018
dolphinbright, "September pause" with Count Basie, Sylvan Esso, Janelle Monáe, Frank Ocean, Sampha, Solange, Billie Holiday
With September comes beginnings: the beginning of the school year for some, the beginning of autumn for all. It's a strange time. The heat can still be lingering in the air but the night is advancing more and more.
Transitions are hard.
This month's playlist is peppered with songs that will help you mellow and eventually melt into the next phase...
- Leslie
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Vinyl Club #12: Low "Double Negative"
Low will be touring in the Rapid Transit footprint this November. Under the Radar has a nice preview of the album and tour here. I'll quote it here, which, itself, is mostly a quote. What a world we live in!
- Matt
Music writer Grayson Currin wrote the band's bio for this album and described the album as such:
"Double Negative is, indeed, a record perfectly and painfully suited for our time. Loud and contentious and commanding, Low fights for the world by fighting against it.
"It begins in pure bedlam, with a beat built from a loop of ruptured noise waging war against the paired voices of Sparhawk and Parker the moment they begin to sing during the massive 'Quorum.' For forty minutes, they indulge the battle, trying to be heard amid the noisy grain, sometimes winning and sometimes being tossed toward oblivion."
Monday, September 10, 2018
Monday Mix 180910: Chromeo, Alexander Robotnik, Shit Robot, Gino Soccio
I'm off to see Chromeo tonight! I put together a little playlist to psych me up. Maybe you'll enjoy it too!
- Matt
Saturday, September 8, 2018
Retzmix #16 - July 2005
This one covers a lot of territory. Justin does a great job making it all seem to work together.
- Matt
Thursday, September 6, 2018
Top Tunes 1808 Hot 100: Drake, Drake, Cardi B, Juice WRLD, DJ Khaled, Ella Mai, 6ix9ine
Here’s a little secret: The charts. Don’t. move.
I don’t care what season it is, we are always stuck with the same handful of songs for months and they quietly weed themselves out and replaces themselves with other songs that we will listen to for months.
But, some genius came up with the term “Summer Jam” and the title “Song of the Summer.”
By capturing our love for the season, some exec convinced us not to be completely bored with a song after three months, but to dedicate our hearts and our playlists to it and forever and ever to pledge allegiance to “In My Feelings.”
Ed Sheeran dominates the charts for months but it’s never a summer jam so we all grow bored or resentful. And remember that awful song by Magic!? (Don’t get me started on that terrible name). “Rude” ruled the charts during the warmest months of the northern hemisphere and so it will go down in history as the song of the summer, not that terrible song that stayed on air for too long.
All said, what is my point? Do we need to be more critical of songs in the summer time or more lenient the rest of the year? Honestly, I don’t have a point. I just love a summer jam and maybe that means I’m too nice when it’s hot out.
- Erin
#1 IN MY FEELINGS / Drake
Erin - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "My jam" I’m completely sold. Also, there’s this terrible theory that the Kiki mentioned is Kim Kardashian, which I suggest researching if you’re bored.
Matt - ⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Turn it up" A nice baton-pass from "Nice For What." I'm "riding" this one into fall. I heard a mix show show blend this and "Boo'd Up" because of the the "in my feelings" lyric they both share. I love that kind of stuff.
#2 NICE FOR WHAT / Drake
Erin - ⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Turn it up" A fine song in its own right, but I would probably be more excited when this song came on if it wasn’t for In My Feelings.
Matt - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "My jam" That sample. That beat. That break.
#3 I LIKE IT / Cardi B
Erin - ⭐️⭐️ "Leave it on" Honestly, I’m a little surprised this is still charting. I stand by my original commentary that this song is a minute too long.
Matt - ⭐️⭐️ "Leave it on" As summer wears on, this one is feeling heavy and over-wrought compared to some of the other songs on this list. And it's a nice reminder that Cardi B is actually fun to listen to, despite whatever is going on on that Maroon 5 song...
#4 LUCID DREAMS / Juice WRLD
Erin - ⭐️⭐️ "Leave it on" My inner emo kid loves this song, so despite not really caring for it I do have a soft spot for it in my heart.
Matt - ⭐️⭐️ "Leave it on" An over-flowing handful of very nice key elements beat to death while at the same time being under-developed. Probably fodder for two excellent 3:15 songs.
#5 NO BRAINER / DJ Khaled
Erin - ⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Turn it up" 2 requests: 1) More Chance all over this 2) Justin, shave your face.
Matt - ⭐️⭐️ "Leave it on" The whole time my brain is like "ooh is this "I'm the One"? I loved that song." Chance sounds good on the track and reminds me he exists and that it is good he exists.
#6 BOO'D UP / Ella Mai
Erin - ⭐️⭐️ "Leave it on" It’s a nice change in energy when it comes on the radio, but I’m surprised by the staying power of this song. The word play is less charming with each replay and, while I’m not actively wishing this song away, I don’t believe I’ll miss it or even remember it when it’s gone.
Matt - ⭐️⭐️ "Leave it on" The warm-electro instrumentation and vintage drum machine sounds keep me from switching the station on this one. Nothing to compel me to skip the track. I'm glad it gained the popularity it did over the summer.
#7 FEFE / 6ix9ine
Erin - ⭐️ "Turn it off" 6ix9ine is a pedophile and a creep. [Ed. Please see this Jezebel article regarding the child sex complaint filed against the rapper.]
Matt - ⭐️ "Turn it off" Colorful hair don't care. Derivative and uninspired. Nicki, I hope this got the 12-16 year olds bumping Queen for you.
Tuesday, September 4, 2018
Vinyl Club #11: Damu The Fudgemunk & Flex Mathews "Dreams & Vibrations"
From Scratched Vinyl's May, 2018 album review:
"There’s no real secret to the formula behind this album. You take a talented producer and team him up with a talented emcee, and then they make great music together.
"Damu has killer soul samples for days, and he’s got a knack for flipping them into these bright boom bap beats with some of the crispiest drums you’ll hear this year, and as the album progresses, he subtly expands the sound without losing his core identity as a producer.
"On the mic, you might not know Flex Mathews, but this relatively young emcee comes across like a veteran who has been doing this thing forever on this album. He’s got just the right amount of verbal dexterity and trash talk to combine with some really earnest personal lyricism to make this album extremely fun and relatable.
"On top of all this, Damu and Flex have great chemistry together, and there’s a give and take with the beats and rhymes that’s tough to teach that these two pull off on this album that makes it that much more enjoyable."
Monday, September 3, 2018
Monday Mix 180903: Aesop Rock, A$AP Ferg, Iggy Azalea, Rihanna, Gang Starr, Kelly Rowland, Ministry
Ordinarily, I try to avoid doubling up on an artist or album, but Aesop Rock's Labor Days is just so so good.
A$AP Ferg, with a few special guests, lays down textbook trap five years ago. Five. Years.
Capturing the mumble moment, Rihanna brought attention to this track by dropping the k from work. I was really pleased with R3HAB's treatment here.
Kelly Rowland. Something about that groove that drops in about the one-minute mark. Dang.
This Ministry cut is like at the end of the party when no one's left and you start playing deep cuts.
- Matt
Saturday, September 1, 2018
Retzmix #15 - June 2005
Only Justin can make angst seem chic.
At almost 6 minutes, lead-off track "Over The Neptune / Mesh Gear Fox" dares you to get into this list.
Those who do will be rewarded.
- Matt
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