This week’s download comes from Haviah Mighty. You have seven days to download her song “Atlantic.”

From the press release:

Mighty Prynce created this ominous, percussion-driven production and the moment he showed me, I knew I wanted to write to it. The melodic mood of the instrumentation felt almost hopeless, a feeling of despair in the flute that cries on top of the repetitive guitar chords, strumming a minor lick. I went into the songwriting process channeling these sensations, and resonating with the hopelessness my ancestors must have felt, and how that hopelessness hasn’t disappeared.

What ties this hopelessness together, past to present, is the concept of money. After all, money is an idea, a perceived identifier of value that was once rooted in the actual value of a commodity – gold. The Atlantic Slave Trade, involving the transportation by slave traders of enslaved Africans mostly to the Americas, existed because of the idea of money. The process of producing/labouring goods for little or no compensation, is the basis of large corporations and conglomerates prospering and why some of these corporations are so successful to this day.

In present day, we still collectively revolve around these concepts of ‘value’ – the importance of it us instrumental to our livelihood – and with the media, misinformation and confusion of history, we labour and produce resources for big companies, and spend our little profits on the same resources our ancestors laboured – gold, diamonds etc. Even a lot of our food is still produced at the expense of marginalized groups of people. This concept that we can’t escape, is so disgusting, and the reason they say ‘money is the root of all evil’.

Specifically, the Atlantic Ocean was used as a vessel of support for these wicked practices, at the expense of my black ancestors. We were forced to come to the Americas to make this idea of value stronger, bigger, better, with very little benefit. Now we are the ‘bottom of the barrel’ in the Americas, a disposition I explore with the lyrics ‘Never seen Atlanta, but we travel the Atlantic’. The singing vocals at the beginning and especially the end, are to represent our ancestors crying out – a reminder that they were so strong, so resilient, and still here, keeping us empowered. Our history is with them, and if we talk to them, learn from them, do our research – we will be stronger.

This week’s download comes from the Atlanta band Lesibu Grand. You have seven days to download the song “Hot Glue Gun.”

From the press release:

Lesibu Grand (pronounced Le-SEE-boo Grand) is an indie rock band from Atlanta that grew out of a songwriting partnership between singer Tyler-Simone Molton and bassist John Renaud. Released on AWAL, Hot Glue Gun is an 80s new-wave punk-inspired song about doing whatever you can to fix a broken world, while also transforming yourself into the superhero you always wanted to be.

The band takes its influences from the NYC new wave scene, particularly Blondie and Talking Heads, and from 90s rockers such as Pixies and Green Day. Distinguished by Tyler-Simone’s warmer, ethereal vocal style, Lesibu Grand fuses these two strains into a refreshingly modern sound in songs that explore the unexpected joys, sharp anxieties, and beguiling mysteries that abound us all.

This week’s download comes from The Nix and their debut album “Sausage Studio Sessions.” You have seven days to download the song “The Drop” featuring Khloe Anna.

According to the press release, The Nix, a loose collection of uniquely talented musicians corralled together by Nick McCarthy (ex-Franz Ferdinand) and Seb Kellig around their Sausage Studio in east London. The record features Laetitia Sadier, KT Tunstall and Basement Jaxx vocalist Vula Malinga.

This week’s download comes from Jim-E Stack and his latest album “EPHEMERA.” You have seven days to download the song “Jeanie” featuring Bon Iver.

From the press release

EPHEMERA packs together an all-star cast into a tight, beautifully composed set of songs, each as lovely as they are widely interpretable. True to its title, the album places focus less on the words and more on the vocals, blessing songs with a wide range of interpretations and feelings. He melds timbres as distinctive as Justin Vernon’s booming tenor and Lorely Rodriguez’s rich soprano into his guitar and synthesizers for an emotive as well as danceable effect. Its contents echo in your mind long after they finish, a testament not only to their hooks but also their expert composition.

On “Jeanie,” both artists meld their trademark sounds together to form an uplifting number. Justin Vernon’s booming, Autotune-drenched vocals feel right at home among Jim-E’s warm, rhythmic synths. Eventually, those synths melt to free up room not only for Justin’s crooning but also Jim-E’s bass and piano. It’s all a groovy balance, a quality mirrored by the opening lyric: “Don’t want you to feel too much.”

Jim-E creates sounds he wants to hear—to listen to a Jim-E Stack song is to know him. Born James Harmon Stack, Jim-E Stack grew up in San Francisco’s Inner Richmond, where his passion for music evolved from playing in garage rock bands and school jazz bands to making beats inspired by Daft Punk, Burial, J Dilla, Timbaland, and The Neptunes. As a senior in high school, he began DJ’ing after successfully sneaking into clubs and lobbying promoters. Since 2010, Jim-E has lived in New Orleans, New York City, and Los Angeles, and credits his time in each city with reshaping his music. He continued to evolve and refine his sound as he began opening for acts like Shlohmo and Bonobo. 

This week’s download comes from producer Machinedrum and his latest album “A View of U.” You have seven days to download the song “Kane Train” featuring Freddie Gibbs.

From the press release:

Machinedrum (aka Travis Stewart) released his new album “A View of U” on 9 October 2020 via Ninja Tune. It’s the LA-based producer’s ninth solo album in a glittering career that has cemented his reputation as “one of electronic music’s biggest and brightest stars” (DJ Mag). It features an incredible cast of collaborators including Sub Focus, Chrome Sparks, Father (Awful Records), Freddie Gibbs, Mono/Poly (Brainfeeder), Tigran Hamasyan, Jesse Boykins III, Rochelle Jordan and Tanerélle.

A truly career defining record for the North Carolina born producer, “A View of U” distills his signature fusion of IDM, UK rave, jungle and bass culture blended with myriad US regional hip-hop and club music styles. Evoking a pace, warmth and groove synonymous with “Vapor City”, it’s a potent and masterfully executed fusion. From the trunk-rattling swagger of ‘Kane Train’ featuring Freddie Gibbs and ‘Spin Blocks’ with Awful Records founder Father, to the deep ‘n’ deadly subs of ‘1000 Miles’, a future liquid D&B anthem with drum & bass royalty Sub Focus, and ‘Sleepy Pietro’—a collaboration with the acclaimed Armenian jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan—the depth and quality running through this album is astounding.

A keen advocate of meditation, Stewart explains that the tools he has learned from his daily practice—in this case the ability to step back from his art and view it with greater objectivity—were fundamental to the process of completing the album, often allowing him to reach a point where he feels like he is leaving his body and is surrounded by infinite space. “I view myself from outside myself with love and admiration, proud of all my achievements as well as the wisdom I’ve gained from failures,” he says. “It is from this out of body place of loving awareness and non judgement that I am able to objectively look at all my behaviours, thoughts, feelings and emotions.”

“A View Of U”—the use of “U” represents the Universe or the Infinite—is based on this concept of having an out of body experience (OOBE). “The feeling of being out of your body feels infinite. It feels like time has stopped. It feels like the birth of creation,” explains Travis. “It feels like the impossible becomes possible. It feels unfamiliar and familiar at the same time. It feels scary at first but once you let go of that fear and surrender to the experience it feels incredibly beautiful and life changing.” He began thinking about how the power of the OOBE is also felt in the song creation process. “When I am in the creative zone I tend to forget time, who I am and where I am,” he explains. “As I became aware of my OOBE through song creation, choosing what songs should go on an album as well as through my meditation, I realized that this was meant to be the central theme of the album.”

This week’s download comes from Noga Erez. You have seven days to download her song “You So Done.”

From the press release

Tel-Aviv based artist Noga Erez shares the next in a series of game-changing singles leading into her mysterious second album (details yet to be announced). “You So Done” and its striking accompanying video are out now via City Slang.

Following the sparkling sass of “VIEWS” and the irresistibly upbeat lockdown anthem “NO news on TV”, Noga Erez and her collaborative partner Ori Rousso’s latest offering “You So Done” has been highly anticipated online since appearing on NBC’s Good Girls earlier this year. It sees Erez shift from outward looking political themes, opening up for a stirring track about rejection, toxic and emotionally violent relationships, and ones own inner violence.

Along with the track she has shared a moving statement, saying: “At some point, exactly one year ago, I started flashing back to one of the darkest times in my life. I was young, incredibly confused and lonely… There was a moment during this period where I was actually so weak, insecure and in need of love that I was not able to step out of what I know now to be an emotionally abusive relationship.” Read the full statement HERE.

She concludes: “It really, truly means the world to me to give this song to you. I hope this story can help some of you to realise that you are not alone. And I really do hope to make it clear that even the darkest places are not impossible to free yourself from. They are eventually an opportunity to learn, grow and to become a stronger person.”

This week’s download comes from the group Dal. You have seven days to download their song “Those Days” featuring Leah Yeger.

From the press release:

Formed in 2018, Dal are a Jazz/Hip-Hop trio comprising of multi-instrumentalists Josh Allmark, Kal Lawrence and Aubrey Simpson. The group are based in Totnes, Devon, UK.
Bonding over a love of 90s Hip-Hop records, Josh (28), Kal (22) and Aubrey (22) began writing and recording music together in a small, cramped garden cabin.

Inspired by the likes of J Dilla, D’angelo, Robert Glasper and BadBadNotGood, Dal make music that sits somewhere in between Check Your Head Era Beastie Boys and Third Era Portishead.
Their beautiful debut single “Those Days” (released on June 26th) features vocals from Leah Yeger and is the perfect soundtrack to re-emerge from your house to.

This week’s download comes from Ian Isiah and his latest album
“Auntie.” You have seven days to download the song “Princess Pouty.”

From the press release:

At the beginning of May, as the pandemic raged through his hometown of New York, Ian Isiah revealed his latest creative incarnation: the AUNTIE project to be released this fall on Chromeo’s new record label Juliet Records. The announcement was accompanied by a striking picture by Bronx-born photographer Renell Medrano, in which Ian recreates the famous image of Coretta Scott King at MLK’s funeral, sitting at a pew, their daughter in her arms.

Then last week Ian’s official funk manifesto “Princess Pouty” was premiered via an explosive performance, and is now available on all platforms. Over oozing, fuzzy synths and an undeniable two-step groove, Ian calls out “Momma’s baby, Daddy’s maybe” in an ode to empowerment and street-savvy sass.

The accompanying visual finds him in head to toe clown attire, roaming around a deserted Coney Island. “Princess Pouty” is a Commedia dell’ Arte reimagined Brooklyn style, intersecting fine art and fashion photography for a tale of post-gender love and spirituality.

This week’s download comes from funk pioneer Steve Arrington and his first solo album in 11 years. You have seven days to download the track “Make A Difference” from “Down to the Lowest Terms: The Soul Sessions.”

From the press release:

Arrington’s new album “Down to the Lowest Terms: The Soul Sessions” — his first solo record in eleven years — is the sound of a funk legend hitting a new creative stride. Created in collaboration with several contemporary producers, Down To The Lowest Terms is a state of the world address and a statement of personal creative renewal.

Though Arrington had dreamed up the album title Down to the Lowest Terms decades ago, the actual album came together over the last two years with the oversight of Peanut Butter Wolf. Stones Throw’s founder brought Arrington together with artists from the Stones Throw stable and beyond: Knxwledge, Mndsgn, Jerry Paper, Apifera, DJ Harrison and J Rocc from the label roster, along with producers Shibo, Jamma D, Benedek, and Brian Ellis.

“I love so many styles of music, and on this record, I was able to move into different areas,” he says. “But there’s a connection with my approach — not soulful in one, traditional way, but soulful in many ways. That’s why I subtitled it The Soul Sessions.”

While fans of classic Steve Arrington hits will find plenty to love on Down to the Lowest Terms: The Soul Sessions, the record explores new territory for an artist who continues to evolve. “I love this music because it shows a continuing development,” he says. “I’m trying to push forward and do fresh things.”

This week’s download comes from Vancouver duo Potatohead People and De La Soul. You have seven days to download the song “Baby Got Work” featuring Posdnuos & Kapok.

From press release:

A dream team connecting schools of hip-hop, Vancouver’s Potatohead People connects with De La Soul for the second single off their new album “Mellow Fantasy”. Over a typical Potatohead Production with a funky bassline, smooth drums and guitar chops, De La Soul’s Posdnuos’s rhymes about getting your head down, putting your boots on and getting to work, truly helping to make the world. better place for all of us. Vancouver collaborator Kapok sings aboout the shortness of our lives, and the potential in all of us to get the work done that we need to do. It’s an allusion to the desperate times we’re live in, with a hopeful call to action for all of us to roll up our sleeves and get down to the business of change.

Comprised of Vancouver producers and multi-instrumentalists Nick Wisdom and Astrological, Canadian duo Potatohead People boast a number of noteworthy accolades thanks to a their signature sound drawing influences from 90’s boom-bap, future soul, classic jazz, deep house and boogie/funk. Beginning with a series of EP’s, including their landmark “Kosmichemusik” EP, Potatohead People’s productions quickly made their way to artists like Illa J who tapped the duo to produce his now critically acclaimed self-titled album, as well as producers like Kaytranada (who co-produced Illa J’s “Strippers” with the pair).

After their first full length in 2015 (“Big Luxury”), the duo followed up with 2018’s ambitious LP “Nick & Astro’s Guide to the Galaxy, ” which further developed the group’s songwriting skills. Supporters such as Soulection, Nightmares on Wax, Pomo, DJ Spinna, Big Boi, and Phife Dawg have also played formidable roles in championing the sound of Potatohead People worldwide.