Category Archives: Music

Kanye West’s ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ out today

Music, News, , ,

At long last, Kanye West’s latest and greatest album has released.  My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy has been lauded as Ye’s best album to date; in fact, prestigious music review site Pitchfork awarded it a perfect 10 score. Ryan Dombal’s review in which he makes intelligible comparisons between Michael Jackson and Mr. West makes for a great read after you’ve listened to the album in full.  Snag a copy of the album at the links provided below:

iTunes: standard / deluxe // Amazon: standard / deluxe (“See Me Now” is an iTunes bonus track available on both versions.  The deluxe version comes with the Runaway film.  And I recommend the physical copy; the packaging is aesthetically superb.  If you want to learn more about the five interchangeable album covers read this insightful NYMag interview with artist George Condo.)

Upon listening to Twisted Fantasy all the way through without interruption I experienced a natural high; it’s hard to explain but you’ll see for yourself.  It’s easy to be a Kanye West hater since the rapper producer often provides a basis from which things like this will grow.  But in the end, it all comes down to the music.  And I am happy to say with Twisted Fantasy Kanye West delivers on an unbelievably high level.  The man is a perfectionist, and this album reflects that statement.  From top to bottom, it’s a perfect record.

Music video: Diggy Simmons – “Shook Ones Freestyle”

Music, Video, , , ,

The young MC is back at it again.  Diggy Simmons has collaborated with director Phil the god once more to fashion out this far too short music video.  Watch Diggy freestyle over a Mobb Deep instrument.  I’m telling you, this kid’s got game, look out.  His second mixtape released in early September; download Airborne here.  It features the Lupe Fiasco & Pharrell assisted track “Oh Yeah!”  Been slacking?  Download his first mixtape The First Flight here.

[Via RapUp]

Single: The Black Eyed Peas – “Do It Like This”

Audio, Music, , ,

“Do It Like This” follows “The Time (The Dirty Bit)” to become the second single off The Black Eyed Peas’ forthcoming album The Beginning.  It’s another thumping dance anthem you should enjoy.  I’m sorta bummed that the Peas have failed to produce a radio smash single this time around; in my opinion the two released singles do not live up to the catchy chart-topping hits “Boom Boom Pow” and “I Gotta Feeling” of yesteryear.  At least we can look forward to the album releasing soon, so we should wait before making any rash judgments.  There’s bound to be a money-maker somewhere on the album.  The Beginning drops November 30.  Look after the break to watch a fun music video preview of “Do It Like This”; it features the Peas in 8-bit style, the rad theme of the album.

[Via Dipdive] Continue reading Single: The Black Eyed Peas – “Do It Like This” →

Kanye West covers Complex, offers a peek inside Hawaii studio

Images, Music, News, , , , , ,

Today Kanye West’s fifth studio album released.  My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy has been a long time in the making.  After being shunned by controversy (read: the Swift incident), Kanye left the public spotlight and eventually made his back into the studio to create new content.  Complex editor-in-chief Noah Callahan-Bever gained access into Avex Honolulu Studios in Oahu, Hawaii during Kanye’s peak of creativty as the master rapper and producer worked day and night on Twisted Fantasy.  ‘Ye covers the December 2010/January 2011 cover of Complex, and in it Callahan-Bever takes the reader through the life and times of Kanye working on the album.  The article has been posted and it’s an intriguing look into the way Kanye handles his business when he means business.  The first half of the article follows Kanye in the studio and sheds light on his extremely high level of dedication towards his music.  The second half features block quotes from Twisted Fantasy collaborators and guest artists such as Justin Vernon (of Bon Iver), Pusha T, Kid Cudi, Nicki Minaj, and Q-Tip.  Read the article here.  Also, be sure to look in the gallery below to browse through some stills from the story; click here to view the full Complex gallery.

[Via Complex]

Glee’s newest member Darren Criss lights up Billboard’s Hot 100 with first performance

Music, News, Television, , , , , , ,

In “Never Been Kissed”, the November 9th episode of Glee, new cast member Darren Criss (he plays Kurt’s new best friend Blaine) sang Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” and almost instantly crawled its way up  Billboard’s Hot 100 music chart.  The song debuted at #1 in digital track sales with 214,000 tracks sold.  This marks the first time any Glee song has made it all the way to the top.  Season 1’s Don’t Stop Believin’ made it to the #2 spot back in May 2009.  With the addition of the “Teenage Dream” cover, Glee has had a whopping 93 songs on the Hot 100 list.  The only other artist to rack up the chart-topping hits this high with 108 of ’em?  Elvis Presley.

In other related Glee news, another concert is in the works but this time the gang will be travelling overseas.  Glee Live! In Concert! will hit up Manchester, London, and Dublin this summer.  The show will include the following cast members: Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Amber Riley, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, Jenna Ushkowitz, Mark Salling, Dianna Agron, Naya Rivera, Heather Morris, Harry Shum, Jr., Chord Overstreet, and Darren Criss.  Look after the break to see the European tour dates.

[Via Deadline; EW, here & here] Continue reading Glee’s newest member Darren Criss lights up Billboard’s Hot 100 with first performance →

Single: Dr. Dre – “Kush” (Featuring Akon & Snoop Dogg)

Audio, Download link, Music, News, , , ,

Yeah, you read that right people.  A Dr. Dre single has landed on the Internet.  Detox, the follow up to 2001’s The Chronic 2001, was put on the back burner when Dre decided to help out fellow rappers in the studio as producer. But now it’s starting to look like things might just be moving forward with the creation and dissemination of this vapor-album.  Today a single called “Kush” hit the ‘Net and it features Dre, Akon, and D-o-double-g rapping on top of a thumping base line that should get your blood pumping.  The verse material is all about the marijuana, and in a radio interview Dre wanted to dispel rumors that Detox is only going to be about this particular drug.  “[The single is] about weed smoking and I don’t want people to think that’s what my album’s about,” he said.  “This is actually the only song with that type of content in it.  But it seems that  everybody likes it.  So we’re going to go ahead and push with it.”  Dre did not intend for “Kush” to release as a single, but the current crop of positive feedback is making him think twice about it.  Official single or not, you need to take a listen and add this song to your playlist right now. I’m not gonna scream Dre is back just yet, but I have a feeling that expected early 2011 release date is certainly on the horizon.

Download: Dr. Dre – “Kush” (Featuring Akon & Snoop Dogg)

[audio: Dr. Dre – Kush (Featuring Akon & Snoop Dogg).mp3]

[Via EW; NahRight]

T.I.’s new record renamed No Mercy, tracklist and album cover revealed

Image cache, Music, News, , , , , ,

T.I. just can’t catch a break these days.  Shortly after being released from prison on weapons charges, he was sent back to the doghouse for drug charges.  The King is not longer Uncaged, so the rapper decided to rename his seventh studio record No Mercy.  The tracklist includes some great featured artists including Kanye West & Kid Cudi on the opener “Welcome to the World”, Drake, Eminem, and Pharrell.

1. Welcome To The World (Feat. Kanye West & Kid Cudi)
2. How Life Changed (Feat. Mitchelle’l & Scarface)
3. Get Back Up (Feat. Chris Brown)
4. I Can’t Help It (Feat. Rocko)
5. That’s All She Wrote (Feat. Eminem)
6. No Mercy (Feat. The-Dream)
7. Big Picture
8. Strip (Feat. Young Dro & Trey Songz)
9. Salute
10. Amazing (Feat. Pharrell)
11. Everything On Me
12. Poppin Bottles (Feat. Drake)
13. Lay Me Down
14. Castle Walls (Feat. Christina Aguilera)

Though he’ll be behind bars when it drops, you can expect No Mercy to hit stores December 7.

[Via HipHipDX]

Cudder’s MOTM2 sells over 176,000 copies in first week

Music, News, , , ,

Kid Cudi’s sophomore record Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager had a terrific first week in sales.  It sold 176,298 copies in just seven days!  Feel free to compare this to sales from last years debut; MOTM: The End of Day sold 104,000 copies.  Cudder’s heading in the right direction, that’s for sure.  And here’s a awesome stat for yah: 26,000 copies were preordered on iTunes, making this album one of the fastest selling records for Universal Music before it even released!  Speaking of iTunes, 55,000 copies of the album were purchased on iTunes on day one. Quite impressive, young Mescudi.  If you haven’t got your paws on this runaway hit, only lord knows what you’re waiting for.

[Via DatNewCudi]

The Beatles has arrived on iTunes

Music, News, , , , , ,

After years of legal disputes, including trademark infringements, originating in the ’70s (it was Apple Corps. vs Apple Computer), the band and the tech company decided to make peace in 2007, and just three years later the two are able to celebrate with the release of the entire Beatles music catalog on iTunes.

Apple threw up a teaser page last night that said, “Tomorrow is just another day.  That you’ll never forget.”  This morning at 10AM ET the teaser disappeared to reveal an image of the Fab Four and it reads, “The Beatles.  Now on iTunes.”  iTunes now offers the band’s 13 studio albums, ranging from Please Please Me (1963) to Let It Be (1970).  Each remastered album comes with their respective tracks, a mini-documentary, and iTunes LP content (which includes liner notes and photos); they priced at $12.99 and individual tracks go for the standard $1.29.  The mini-documentaries are “album only” purchases.

In addition to the 13 studio albums, iTunes also offers Past Masters, Vols. 1 & 2, the 1988 release that bundles 33 Beatles songs that were not included on the original U.K. albums.  The store also sells The Beatles (1962-1966) collection known as “The Red Album”; it includes 26 popular Beatles songs ranging from their debut up until the release of Revolver.  The Beatles (1967-1970) or “The Blue Album” includes 28 popular Beatles songs from their later years.  The “Red” & “Blue” albums released simultaneously in 1973, three years after the band broke up.  Past Masters, Vols. 1 & 2 and the “Red” & “Blue” albums cost $19.99 each; like their studio album counterparts they come with iTunes LP content.

And finally there’s the Beatles-iTunes motherload.  For $149 you can make your life easy and purchase The Beatles Box Set which includes all 13 studio albums, Past Masters, Vols. 1 & 2, and a video of the band’s first U.S. concert–the 1964 show at Washington Coliseum.  The box set comes with every mini-documentary from the individual albums, as well as a ton of iTunes LP content.

That about sums it up.  The Beatles are on iTunes. Boom.  Besides adding all this amazing content to iTunes, Apple has put together a new ad campaign featuring Beatles songs and black-and-white photos.  Head over to Apple’s new Beatles page to watch all five ads.  There you’ll also find a link to watch the 1964 show at Washington Coliseum; the 41 minute concert (which is a “worldwide iTunes exclusive”) will be available to stream for free on the site for the remainder of the year.

Look after the break for the official PR.  In it Apple CEO Steve Jobs, the two remaining Beatles Ringo and Paul, Yoko Ono Lennon, Olivia Harrison, and EMI Group CEO Roger Faxon share their excitement and relief that the Beatles collection has finally arrived on iTunes.

I happened to purchase the physical Beatles box set when it released in limited quantities last year, but I’m glad the entire collection is available in the world’s largest online retailer of music.  The ease of previewing and downloading tracks will give newcomers a healthy dose of some of the greatest music ever produced.  With The Beatles: Rock Band and Beatles music on iTunes, the current generation of young people is pretty much golden.

[Via Apple; iTunes] Continue reading The Beatles has arrived on iTunes →

Classic Disney movies get radically remixed

Movies, Music, Video, , , , , , ,

Pogo, an Australian electronic music producer, was commissioned by Disney to remix a bunch of their classic movies.  He is best known for his work recording small sounds from a single film or scene and sequencing them to form a new piece of music.  His latest creation “Wishery” combines vocal syllables, musical chords, and sound effects recorded from the 1937 animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.  The video quickly became a viral sensation and started exposing people the rest of Pogo’s fantastic work.  For about a year Pogo was contractually obligated to keep his remixed video offline, but now that the Disney gag order has been lifted, you will find over a dozen of them at his YouTube channel.  Some of my favorites include sounds from Up, Toy Story, Harry Potter, and Alice; these are embedded after the break.  Pogo’s got a Pirates Of The Caribbean remix waiting in the wings; he calls it his best mix yet.

[Via PogoMix; YouTube] Continue reading Classic Disney movies get radically remixed →

OK Go’s latest music video stars 2,430 pieces of toast

Design, Music, Video, , , , ,

By now you should know that when it comes to making music videos, rock band OK Go never holds back.  From datamashing to Rube Goldberg-ing to training 12 dogs and a goat, OK Go knows how to wildly impress its fans by representing their music with imaginative and awe-inspiring visuals.  For their next experiment video, the band used–drum roll, please–toast.  But it’s not that simple!  Using a Samsung NX100 micro four-thirds camera they took pictures of 2,430 pieces of toast (or 215 loaves of bread) and effectively used the process of laser-etching and stop motion to tell a story.  They took 15 still shots for every second of video.  The animation stages must’ve been painstakingly difficult to produce, and yet there’s something quite beautiful about all of it and this helps direct your mind to the final aesthetic instead of towards the blood and sweat put into it.  As always, a nod of gratitude is due here.  These guys can do it all.

[Via OK Go website, Twitter, YouTube]