Now, the Las Vegas-based singer, rapper, DJ and yoga instructor has dropped his first official video – for MU.ZZ.LE track ‘The Blame’. Directed by Neil Krug and with cinematography by David Myrick, it’s a post-apocalyptic, mesmerising exercise in hazy, dream-like motion picture – the perfect complement to the song.

Take a look below.

warp.net/records/gonjasufi

London-based singer and producer Joseph Deenmamode, who also goes by the moniker Mo Kolours, is set to drop Banana Wine (the follow up to his debut EP Drum Talking) next month.

With rhythm-heavy slabs of psychedelic beatage that hint at the producer’s Mauritian heritage, Drum Talking showed Deenmamode to be a unique musical talent to savour. We’ve no doubt his sophomore release on London’s One-Handed Music (home to Paul White, Bullion and Tranqill, amongst others) will offer yet more heavy, worldly percussive delights.

For a taster of the new EP, check out the teaser video of the man at work below – the song is EP cut ‘Temi’ (‘Watermelon Man’ anyone?).

To cop Mo Kolours’ first EP, head over to his bandcamp, and stream it below.

In the press release that accompanies Raffertie’s new EP Mass Appeal, the artist explains how his music should not be compared to any other genre or style. Listen to the record and you understand why; in terms of genre, it is unique within electronic music.

Mass Appeal is made up of four tracks which act as singular themes; each is as distinctive and independent from the other. The opening title track is compiled of an assortment of electronic components, harmoniously configured together. The song never settles on a sound and twitches about with enterprise – the only sound with any repetition is the two-chorded melody that is interplayed at irregular times, to refocus the song. It takes a curious twist at the end, as it drifts into an almost familiar Michael Jackson-inspired pop record. Wholly unusual, but absorbing nonetheless.

Elsewhere, ‘One Track Mind’ is the most accessible song on the EP, containing a swirling synth melody set against a backdrop of ethereal ambience. For ten minutes your attention is entrusted to this melody, which unhurriedly flows along, gathering tonality, until it reaches a feverish climax: it is a tantalizing dance record. Further themes are explored in the last two songs. ‘Brevity’ has a darker, more mechanical aesthetic – a sample of a rasping printer is contrasted with the clarity of the looped vocal sample, “Come on, let’s go” – whilst ‘Courage Boy’ shifts focus to the artist’s vocals, driven by a stuttering beat and a pulsating bass.

Mass Appeal is difficult to define, yes. The only thing that this collection of songs has in common is the uniqueness of each of its tracks. But, if you are prepared to give the EP the deserved amount of time, it is an extremely rewarding piece of music. With so much depth and complexity, it’s like a classical concerto for electronic music.

Words: William Stevens

Mass Appeal is out now on Ninja Tune

raffertie.com // ninjatune.net

The mysterious metal-faced rapper DOOM has once again teamed up with frequent collaborator Jneiro Jarel to form JJ DOOM. And, the fruit of their labours is a newly complete album titled Key to the Kuffs. 

Slated for a release in May through Lex Records (although we’re not sure exactly when yet), the record is sure to be every bit as perplexing and mind boggling as DOOM’s previous works. Probably more so. So, all well and good, but where’s the new Madvillain record? We’ve been waiting for that to drop for a minute.

The duo has released a first taster of the record in the frenetic, industrial ‘Banished’ – have a listen below (appropriately brain-melting artwork by ESPO).

DOOM and Jarel will be dropping by the Boiler Room to play a set on 21st February – make sure you head over to Lex to keep an eye on further movements from the pair.

Hudson Mo’s series of Valentine’s Slow Jams are swiftly becoming staple listening for Valentine’s Day. Five years on, the bombastic Glaswegian beatmaker drops Chapter V to get all you love birds going tonight.

From the peeps at LuckyMe:

5 years deep, the kid Hudson Mohawke returns with the definitive soundtrack to Valetines. Look, cancel that reservation. Put the money into good pizza and champagne. You’re getting this shit for free so buy your spiritual counterpoint something: the Heathers DVD. A single rose. Some salted caramels. Whatever. You got all the other magic you need right here. And if you’re alone tonight that’s okay; being into shit like this you’re gonna be fine. Trust us. Buy yourself those caramels. Get naked enough. Let a lil Mo get inside you… Happy Valentines everybody.

Listen to Chapter V below, and to download the sultry tunes for free, click HERE.

LuckyMe Present: Hudson Mohawke’s Valentines Slowjams Chapter V by Hudson Mohawke

Oh yes.

It’s a strange affliction (a malfunction in my programming, perhaps) that, when faced with the word ‘food’, I automatically think of Mark Lester. Y’know, Mark Lester, who – as Dickensian whippersnapper Oliver Twist – hot-steps to Harry Secombe, and, incredulously, requests another bowl of gruel. “MORE?!” Secombe irksomely interrobangs. Meanwhile…in a musical galaxy far, far away, DJ Food’s first release in eleven years is more Google than frugal: the range of influences it draws upon, and concoctions it presents, are seemingly unbounded. And, like any ‘reliable’ search engine, it frequently produces results you don’t see coming; although, fortunately, they’re rarely of the sort you wouldn’t want. With Safesearch switched off, then, allow me to switch on.

It’s clear, from the inner space The Search Engine navigates, that the sci-fi element is strong with this one. While, at times, electric-sheep dreamy (‘Colours Beyond Colours’, for instance, is a wonderfully ethereal end to proceedings), it also shifts unexpectedly to more perilous landscapes. ‘All Covered in Darkness (Pt.1)’ is perforated by errant Buck Rogers blips and bleeps, and a piano tinkles against Merseybeat-style harmonising. Out there, somewhere, in the vast nothingness of space, Twiki is spocking out.

The cover version of ‘GIANT’ (by The The) is rather special. Admittedly, it’s hard to better the original, but it blends in, with the scene hitherto depicted, endearingly: we find Matt Johnson in fine fettle amidst the knock-knock of primal clapsticks and binary-code melody. Immediately after, a Moebius-era Orbital voiceover features on ‘Intermission: a New Language’, which, inadvertently, presents one of the few common threads on the LP.

That’s all before Natural Self apes Mike Patton on ”The Illectrik Hoax’. I’ve no idea what the lyrics mean – and I think that’s beside the point – but the verses are more than a bit vocally-reminiscent of John Garcia’s drawl on ‘Born Too Slow’ by The Crystal Method. Personally, I think the album is far stronger when it relinquishes these trappings and reverts to non-derivative type. The caustic ‘Sentinel’, for one, is unnervingly heavy, and verges on Amon Tobin territory. I particularly like the pre-Millennium (Bug) tension of ‘Prey’. Going back to the Patton allusions (think: Tomahawk; Fantômas) cast earlier, the shredded vocals are as if siphoned through a malfunctioning gas mask; a Frank Booth-lullaby.

The cosmonaut-crackle of ‘In Orbit Every Monday’ pulls the ship closer to planet Psyence Fiction; information-gathering swirls sweep in and out of the intermissions and creep into neighbouring tracks. That ominous sentinel makes its presence known once again on ‘Outermission: Sheer Fiction’ before the intergalactic squelch of ‘Magpie Music’. The latter’s sample-heavy logic is tinged with Coldcut-era nostalgia; yet, the result is markedly more abstract, and impressive for it.

Caveat emptor: if DJ Food’s latest LP really were a search engine, you might ask for your money back. Just as well it’s not. For this album takes you on a labyrinthine journey through the abstract section we don’t see; the imagined expanse in which the data exist. This journey, far from being routine, is a mind-bending one; hence, it isn’t about where it brings you, but how it brings you there. And, while it’s certainly not gruel, that won’t stop me from saying: please, sir, I want some more.

Words: Ben Nicholas

The Search Engine is out now on Ninja Tune

Brother Ali is set to unleash a new EP this coming Monday. Aptly titled The Bite Marked Heart to coincide with that most sincere of romantic holidays, the EP will be available for free download.

Featuring seven brand new tracks and production from regular collaborators Ant and Jake One (rarely does Ali sound better than with these two), we’re expecting the record to boast incendiary heart-related wordplay and soulful, dope beats. Natch.

For a taster of The Bite Marked Heart, check out the ‘Shine On’ video below, directed by Dave Wilson. You can also download the track for free here.

Ali will be releasing his new studio album - Mourning in America, Dreaming in Color – on Rhymesayers soon, and will be touring Europe in support along with labelmates Grieves and Budo. Full dates below, and you can cop tickets here.

10/05 – London, UK @ XOYO
11/05 – Manchester, UK @ The Ruby Lounge
12/05 – Bristol, UK @ The Thekla
13/05 – Brighton, UK @ Green Door Store
15/05 – Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg
16/05 – Paris, FR @ Le Divan du Monde
17/05 – Berlin, DE @ Festall Kreuzberg
18/05 – Munich, DE @ Hansa 39
19/05 – Antwerp, BE @ TRIX zaal
21/05 – Copenhagen, DK @ Little Vega
22/05 – Stockholm, SE @ Fasching
23/05 – Oslo, NO @ Bla
24/05 – Bergen, NO @ Garage

twitter.com/brotherali // rhymesayers.com

Some great new music for you to wrap your ears around this Friday, from fairly new production duo Tensei. Made up of Simple X and Midas Wells, the pair met whilst studying at Southern Illinois University – bonding over a shared love of hip-hop. Tensei, just so you know, means ‘heaven star’ in Japanese. Pretty apt when you listen to their ethereal soundscapes boasting all manner of live instruments. And drums. Lots of drums.

So, have a listen to the group’s new One EP below, available to download for free if you feel the urge. It’s mostly instrumental, but guest vocals do come from ADAD, Denmark of Crown Nation, Scarlet Monk and others.

What do you think? Expect another EP to drop April 3rd, with an album proper coming later in the year on Plug Research.

twitter.com/_tensei // www.plugresearch.com

From Essex to Los Angeles, it’s the story of the latest addition to the LA beat scene’s most prized label: Brainfeeder. When You’re Gone is the new EP from Lapalux, whose sound perfectly complements the choppy beats, glitchy samples and hip-hop nostalgia associated with the label.

‘102 Hours of Introduction’ is a fascinating opener to the EP, acting as the perfect introduction to Lapalux’s sound. Light ambience with melancholy vocals breezes through before an explosion of shimmering piano samples and cascading strings. It ends before it begins and all you’re left with is the hypnotic sound of rain – a perfectly measured piece. This track is essentially the portal into When You’re Gone and for the next six tracks you’re confronted with the world according to Lapalux.

However, after the opening two tracks, including the fantastic, sultry R&B of ‘Moments’, you start to become conscious of the issue with this EP; it’s all a bit much and there is hardly any refinement. Tracks such as ‘Yellow 90s’ and ‘Construction Deconstruction’ are lost under the wave of sound and effects. It seems Lapalux, at times, is too eager to condense all of his musical knowledge into one song, meaning it loses its fluidity and becomes weighed down. Having said that, when Lapalux gets it right, it is excellent. ‘Gutter Glitter’ is the perfect amalgamation of manipulated R&B vocals, heavy blasting bass and a plethora of fluttering samples, which never loses its momentum.

The Essex producer is undoubtedly a talent and When You’re Gone has great moments, but at times the music is impeded by his enthusiasm to add more. One thing is certain however: from the highly skilled levels of production throughout, Lapalux is an artist to really keep an eye on.

Words:  William Stevens

When You’re Gone is out now digitally on Brainfeeder, and the EP will get a vinyl release on on February 27th. Listen to a sampler of the EP below.

After a six year hiatus (and various solo projects from Evidence, Rakaa Iriscience and Babu), LA backpack hip-hop stalwarts Dilated Peoples are set to unleash their 5th official studio record this year. Titled ‘Directors of Photography’, expect lyrical fire and drums for days.

With no official release date for the record, the legendary crew are embarking on an extensive tour of Europe – presumably to showcase some material from the new album. Full tour dates are below, but if you’re in London, you’ll be wanting to head to the Islington O2 Academy date on 27th February. Tickets are still available, but best get them before they sell out. Click here.

See you at the front!

twitter.com/peoplesdilated //dilatedpeoples.com