DJ Quik - The Book of David

DJ Quik's newest is self-produced and it shows. It sounds like something out of the 90s. The beats are rather bland and could use a serious beef-up, and, because of beautiful evolution, Quik's voice is just that right amount of high pitched to make it sound like a throwback. That being said, The Book of David is a strong album. Although the beats could use some finishing touches, they come off as interesting and fresh. The focal point of the record, Quik's rhymes, are a force to be reckoned with. His lyrics are aggressive yet respectful, and he gets some support from some pretty big names: Ice Cube, Kurupt, Dwele, and Bun B.

Verdict: 4.2/5. Favorite tracks: Ghetto Rendezvous, Killer Dope, Hydromatic (feat. Jon B and Gift), Nobody (feat. Suga Free), Boogie Till You Conk Out (feat. Ice Cube), Flow For Sale (feat. Kurupt The Kingpin), So Compton (feat. BlaKKazz K.K.), The End (feat. Carry Shider).

tUnE-yArDs - w h o k i l l

Okay, this album is awesome. I need to argue in front of a few appellate judges tomorrow so I don't have time to write anything nearly as impressive as this. Read up and buy this album now.

Best, Jonathan

New Deerhunter

Check out this new track from Deerhunter titled "Nosebleed" here.

New Animal Collective

AC is playing Coachella very soon. They're playing a few shows across California and have tried out some new material.

You can check out live videos of a few untitled, new tracks here.

Best, Jonathan

Tonight's action

And that's the end of the NHL regular season.

The Boston Bruins will be facing their archenemies, the Montreal Canadiens, in the first round. This best of seven series scares the crap out of me. As a huge Bruins fan, I don't like when these two teams play. It's the most heated rivalry in sports' history and the Canadiens have the edge historically. A huge egde. But this season the Bruins are clearly the better team. Tim Thomas is having an incredible year, making history with his .938 save percentage statistic. He surpassed goalie great Dominik Hasek's seemingly unbeatable record. They have the biggest defensemen in the NHL and their front lines are versatile, physical, and aggressive. The Canadiens, however, have one thing the Bruins don't: speed. Montreal is a super fast team; if the Bs can't keep up, they're going to have a difficult series.

The Florida Panthers missed the playoffs for the 10th, that's right... 10th, straight season. I'm pretty sure that has never been done before. They fired their coach earlier this afternoon, their goaltender is a free agent starting now, and I'm sure he wants to get the hell out of Florida, they have no veterans on their team anymore especially after trading McCabe, and their young players don't really have much experience. I don't know. This team as a long way to go. I give them four or five years until they become a real contender in the playoffs again.

Regardless, this year is going to be a crazy post-season. The teams are scarily talented.

To win the East: I really want to say Boston. When you look at all the teams in the East, only Boston has not had a ridiculous up-and-down season. Philly has lost Pronger and has slumped recently. Washington is dangerous, but I really think they're going to lose to New York; they haven't played well against the Rangers this season. Even if they get past New York, their weakness is goaltending. That's something that Boston boasts. The Bruins also bolstered their blue line by adding top-tier defenseman Tomas Kaberle and forwards Rich Peverley and Chris Kelly. Basically, they have the team and tools to win the Cup this year.

To win the West: Vancouver. Not even a question.

To win the Stanley Cup: Vancouver over Boston in six games. That really hurts to say, but I think Boston might need to wait another year.

There's nothing like playoff hockey, guys. The only thing I've found to come close is World Cup soccer. But even that pales in comparison. Watch a few games; hopefully you'll see what I mean.

Best, Jonathan

Pictureplane Free Mixtape

I don't know anything about this guy. It doesn't matter though because his mixtape is really dancy and one that shouldn't be passed up.

Altered Zones has put up two of the better tracks for sampling. His remix of "Closer" is as they say in Miami, fire.

Best, Jonathan

New Curren$y

Head over to LFTF to see what I wrote about the new Spitta track that leaked this afternoon.

It's pretty chill, but very unlike his recent two albums. Covert Coup is due out April 20th.

Best, Jonathan

New Incubus and Beastie Boys tracks

A new Incubus single from their upcoming album If Not Now, When? released yesterday. It's titled "Adolescents". Mike has a sick guitar solo as usual and the band has curbed their sound to be more like vintage Incubus. Check it out here.

Also, today the Beastie Boys released a track off their upcoming May 3rd album Hot Sauce Committee Pt. 2. It reminds me of early 90s' Beastie, which can only mean that the album has the potential to be awesome. Check out "Make Some Noise" over here.

Best, Jonathan

Russ Chimes - Midnight Club EP

Wow. Watch this video. It's three tracks back to back to back. Whoever Russ Chimes is wrote a crazy electronica score over an even crazier video, which documents any lover's biggest nightmare. Seriously, you'll be glued to the video. The music itself is actually really technical. Chimes has a perfect balance among the low, mid, and high ends. The high synth isn't piercing, but rather muffled and strong. The melodies are so damn catchy. The lyrics are simple and universal. And holy crap is the video captivating.

5/5 for the overall experience. Music itself: 4.8/5 for a few moments of lag and prolonged suspension but they were few and far between. My favorite track is the first of the three. Although the second and third are just as incredible.

Best, Jonathan

Papercuts - Fading Parade

Papercuts reminds me a lot of Deerhunter. The only problem is that Deerhunter is really good whereas Papercuts is just okay. Fading Parade is somewhat of a plane jane. He plays a lot of off-beat rhythms and sings off key at certain points on purpose. It is nothing to be proud of and nothing to be ashamed of. It would sound better if he were not intentionally unsynchronized. It would sound better if he didn't strain his voice and just sang in tune. But yeah, you get the picture.

I'll give it a deserved 2.9/5. Favorite tracks: Chills, Marie Says You've Changed, and Charades.

Best, Jonathan

Stream all of Panda Bear's new album Tomboy

Oh yes. Thank you, NPR.

Best, Jonathan

Malachai - Return To The Ugly Side

Malachai is stoner funk. Released in late February, Return To The Ugly Side is dark and creepy. Listening to it makes me feel like it's Halloween in the dead of winter and I have a shotgun. In other words, there is a general and well-mixed blend of uneasiness and stability.

They have a sound that I've never really heard before. I can't even make abstract comparisons to anything. As a result, Malachai is really in a world of their own. They are individualistic enough to be unrecognizable but for themselves; its hard to listen to Malachai without realizing it's them. It's kind of like how when you hear something by Animal Collective you just know it's AC and that it can't be anyone else.

Despite its total unfamiliarity, Return To The Ugly Side is an excellent album. I listened with confusion and curiosity, but it still captivated me to the point that I listened four times straight (it's a quick 35-minute, 14-track compilation). What draws you in is the fact that they borrow from a motley of genres. There really is something that appeals to everyone as long as you can get over the initial moments of unchartered territory.

Verdict: 4.0/5. Favorite tracks: Monsters, Anne, Rainbows, (My) Ambulance, Distance, The Don't Just, How You Write, Let 'Em Fall, and HyperNation.

iTunes is the only place I can find the tracks for sampling. Let 'Em Fall is one of their more normal songs, but it's not at all indicative of their overall sound.

Best, Jonathan

The Weeknd - House Of Balloons: get this R&B album ASAP

Damn, I didn't think R&B associated with anything popular could be mature and innovative. The Weeknd shatters that perception. This trio, consisting of Toronto singer Abel Tesfaye and producers Doc McKinney and Illangelo, have teamed up with Drake and allegedly his producer Noah Shebib, although those rumors have reportedly been claimed false. Regardless of with whom they've worked, The Weeknd has pumped out what I like to coin a "transition album" for R&B. In other words, it contains all the regular characteristics of R&B, but adds new elements that I believe benefit the genre in a way that every artist should start using and building on them in hopes of contributing to the evolution of the genre. Stagnancy is boring.

House Of Balloons is jam-packed with soul, free-flowing, and eclectic-sounding, but it's remarkably different from other modern R&B releases. There are noises used in the beats which would make even R. Kelly shiver in fear. This is most apparent in What You Need and House Of Balloons - Glass Table Girls, which exude dark auras with interesting cavalcades of backdrop samples that are almost impossible to identify. This occurs throughout the album and although it may be foreign, it works wonderfully. Overall, this album is one you need to buy.

Verdict: 4.6/5. Favorite tracks: High For This, What You Need, House Of Balloons - Glass Table Girls, Wicked Games, The Party & The After Party, and The Knowing.

Animal Collective's Keep mixtape

One track from each of the four members.

Here.

Best, Jonathan

Dancy African jazz

Ebo Taylor is a fascinating human being. A Ghanaian guitarist who really took flight in the 1950s and 60s, his popularity was confined to mostly Ghana as his first international release was no more than a decade ago. His newest release from back in November titled Love And Death is Afrobeat meets jazz meets soul meets funk. Love And Death centers around unison horn melodies that harmonize simply on any given phrase's concluding note (typical of African jazz horns). The melody is repeated a few times and then the soloist kicks in. This is where the album really shines. The melodies are catchy, but they're simplistic. That's all they need to be to provide some type of home base. But when the lead starts, tracks turn into grooves that have dance written all over it. Why? African music is festive and soulful because Africans are festive and soulful people. For example, when my Moroccan family gets together, it takes no more than 10 minutes for my Aunt to get excited about something incredibly trivial and then within seconds the entire family is up and dancing and making noise just to make noise.

Buy this cat's album, break into spontaneous dance, and make a lot of noise. I promise it'll be fun.

4.3/5. Favorite tracks: Nga, Nga; Love And Death; Victory (Instrumental); Mizin; Kwame (Instrumental); Oborekyair Aba; and Obra. That's all but the second track on the album.

Best, Jonathan

New Justice

CIVILIZATION

Best, Jonathan

A psychedelic jam band

One of my favorite aspects of Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon is how you can get lost in its psychedelic and jam-like expanses. This type of breakdown can be transferred from genre to genre obviously. If done well, expressions of true passion are most powerfully felt (The Great Gig In The Sky). If done poorly, the listener either gets bored quickly or is left feeling a little cheated. There really is no middle ground.

Moon Duo sounds nothing like Pink Floyd; I want to make that very clear. Mazes, however, centers on the same type of otherworldly improvised stretches that Pink Floyd perfected. A lot of the time it would hit me after a while of my not noticing. I'd be digging a guitar solo or something and then I'd realize I hadn't heard lyrics in quite a while.

These guys don't like to play with structure. Every song is no more than two or three verses and then an extended jam. The tracks rest on simple, repeating hooks, which at first don't seem too exciting, but they really pick up and take shape once the soloist kicks in. For every song I thought I wasn't going to like the break, but I always was satisfied by the end.

Verdict: 3.7/5. Favorite tracks: Mazes, Fallout, When You Cut, and Goners.

Also. Some exciting news. Over the Ultra weekend I met two guys who run a music site called LFTF. I suggest you scavenge. They've been running it since 2008. I'll be contributing to LFTF in the very near future, but the frequency with which I will is still uncertain.

I'm going to go listen to some Pink Floyd.

Best, Jonathan

In the spirit of Ultra

Ultra is in full force and it's awesome. The only thing that sucks is the traffic.

In celebration, I suggest taking a look at A-Trak's Dirty South Dance 2. A-Trak is very similar to Girl Talk in that he takes popular tracks and fuses them together to create intriguing remixes. But A-Trak is also significantly different from Girl Talk in that he turns the tracks on their heads and adds his own beats rather than just putting them together and pressing play on his laptop. It's pretty cool.

Verdict: 3.6/5. Favorite tracks: How Low Can You Bake, She Got a Dumb Donk, Ice Cream On Blast, Vampire Going Ham, and Loonies To Blow.

If you're in Miami, A-Trak is playing tonight at Grand Central.

Best, Jonathan

New Curren$y mixtape

Curren$y and a few of the Jets released a new mixtape today. You can download it here.

Best, Jonathan

A folk rock

Wye Oak is a folk rock group that most certainly has been influenced by dream pop. Civilian is their newest release and third full-length. The duo have a very interesting setup. The frontgirl plays guitar and sings while the other guy plays the drums with his feet and left hand, plays a bass-sounding synth with his right, and sings backup vocals. Pretty cool if you ask me.

Wye Oak's style hinges on transitions from very soft and gentle parts to bursts of high energy and distortion. It makes for a well balanced album. The loud parts don't really detract from the relaxing feel because their folk influence is significantly more powerful than their rock one. As a result, Civilian is great to have around to pass time and to destress. I can just press play and let the pleasant and melancholic listening experience go uninterrupted.

Rating: 4.1/5. Favorite tracks: Two Small Deaths, Holy Holy, Civilian, Fish, We Were Wealth, and Doubt.

Also, my new favorite song here.

Best, Jonathan