Emancipator has done it again. Man, Doug never fails to amaze me with his chilled out, unique sounding beats. I love the hip hop vibes that I get from a lot of his tracks – like I can imagine someone throwing down some rhymes over them, and it will sound damn good. His newest single, Elephant Survival, is comprised of a soothing blend of flute notes, a steady flowing beat, and playful vocal incorporation. It is just one of those feel-good songs that give me a feeling of delight; you can tell that he put a lot of soul into producing it. Liquid sunshine baby! Grab Elephant Survival free on his Bandcamp page.
The aura that Emancipator has during his live performances is almost luminous and god-like. He is so composed and you can watch and feel his essence seeping out of his fingertips and into your eardrums. I have seen him quite a few times, but the most memorable that I have seen was his sunrise set at The Bounce Festival 2011. I was in a state of pure bliss. Nothing beats watching the sun come up next to a river in the woods of Northern California with Emancipator and his violinist Ilya – the energy between them was unbelievable. It was the perfect culmination to a night of raging to some more heavy bass sets – it allowed me to reflect on the previous night, as well as look forward to another unbelievable day on the beach of the Feather River. I am so psyched to see him at SnowGlobe again, although I know that nothing can possibly trump my last experience in Emancipator’s presence.
Although it’s not brand new, I also wanted to share with you this inspiring song by Sadistik that Emancipator produced. I guess they are homies because Doug is Sadistik’s driver in the music video (check it out on Youtube!) – I believe that Emancipator produced the entire album. This is what I mean by his beats being prime for hip hop. I love the depth of this, and his voice almost reminds me of one of my all-time favorite rappers, Slug.
Yes, this is a review a few hours after this was released. I haven’t done a review in awhile and figured this would be fun to do after the first listen. I’d like to big up Ben Samples for being the way I found out within the hour. Thanks.
I watched that scroll bar fill up and my heart was pounding hoping that some how he could match or even top House of Balloons. As the top list made by everyone start crawling in for 2011 it’s obvious House of Balloons was one of the biggest releases of the year. If you haven’t heard about The Weeknd yet… GO DO IT. We’ve been two releases deep and this one is the third.
Opening track is something I didn’t expect at all but classy. Montreal begins and it seems like he’s just warming up. The lyrics are on point as usual. He’s definitely putting himself out there. There’s going to be a theme it feels like it. Shits blown up and he knows things are different. It’s pretty gangster and fresh R&B styles. It’s not so much on that grind stuff but it’s got its feel. We continue… Outside. Alright this is starting to warm up real nice. We might have a monster brewing with this guy. Everyone is talking Drake but there’s no question my response is The Weeknd whenever he comes up. I’ve been so bitter at where music has been going in the electronic scene and I’ll proudly wave The Weeknd as the hero of 2011 not Skrillex. You want to know what people say how EDM is on the map now because of everything has happened. Sorry dude the person you should be thanking is The Weeknd. That’s how I feel, straight up. XO / The Host is solid but still waiting for my Wicked Games baby making hit. This is great but not perfect. I know I’m going to jam them because hell House of Balloons becomes something you just hear in your head and want to freshen it up sometimes. The transition of XO / The Host is interesting. It’s pretty extreme. I’m going to chop this track up is what’s on my mind. The tracks starts winding down and ohh boy this is it…. This is what I wanted. Thank you for that massive crossover.
Initiation starts off and you think the whole album is going to go somewhere else. It does but not what you might of expected. I’m started to get a bit worried and questioning myself. This isn’t going as well as I hoped but it’s not bad. Not bad at all but just not hitting the spot for my personal taste. Same Old Song seems like a title I’d lean towards to be what I’m search for on this listen. BINGO. Same Old Song has hit the spot and man it’s perfect for how I’m feeling. Sold. This is the one tune I’d bump. The end of the track is hilarious. It’s Christmas!!! hahaha. The Fall sweeps in as your finish laughing to yourself. Another bump n grind tune?! It resembles a lot of what made us all fall in love with this guys style for. The track is almost over but it shoots off into next level business as it hits half way point. The emotion and rawness is there. This one is another instant classic. What sets this one apart is the closing. Damn. Chop that up son. Man, this one is going to be fun to play live. Makes me want to setup my gear to mess with it. Could he deliver another one? Please keep this vibe. Next delivers. All my doubts have vanished. This release has approval written all over it after this streak of fire. Next is going to be an anthem. Lots of babies will be made to this one. Echoes Of Silence closes this one off this release perfect. This is the sort of music I’m in love with right now. Expect this sorta thing from me when you hear something… beautiful piano work.
The Weeknd you’ve officially done it again. Thank You.
I don’t care what anyone says this is the energy I’ve been waiting for.
The reason I’m so critical and harsh with a lot of things I hear is because there’s music like this being made. Drake’s new release was alright but nothing stood out. This release has a few that you can’t help but go back to and think damn that’s real. Thank you for one of the best Christmas presents sir.
Female vocals take tracks to a whole new level. My true passion is Trip-Hop mainly due to the fact that I melt when I hear solid vocals from a woman. I’ll even go as far as saying that some tracks would never live up to their full potential if wasn’t for the vocals.
Rayne, is one of the few female vocalist that I don’t think you might know about. Truth is the point of this post is specifically to put her on the radar because I was informed that she wasn’t getting credit for her vocals on an upcoming release by June Miller. The track is even the titled track for the release. The music industry has a way of forgetting to mention things in all the mess and decided to put this together.
As far as it goes as what I think I’ll keep quite and not raise my voice. I’ll just let the vocals on this one do the work. Rayne’s vocals are the closest thing I’ve heard to timeless trip-hop that I love on a drum and bass track. The track goes hand in hand with her voice on this one perfectly.
Rayne and I randomly became familiar with each other before I left Miami for Dallas. Over the past year we’ve become close friends and I have to say never have come across such a sweet girl with one of the most incredible personalities out there. She really does give me faith for humanity. Now that I’m back in Miami she shortly left for LA unfortunately. She’s one of those good people that you hate to see people take advantage of because their so nice. I couldn’t believe it when she told me they weren’t putting her name on the track and haven’t responded to any forms of contact. This one is for you. I don’t post much drum & bass but man this is one of those few tracks that just hit the soul and majority of it is because of her stunning vocals.
Sounduo, is the greatest act I know in the Florida region. I can say that with tremendous confidence. I was lucky enough to interview them a few months ago when I lived in Dallas and thrilled to hear of such an act had finally appeared in the Miami area.
Now that I’ve moved back to Miami everyone has been asking me how things are out here. The truth is I knew I was signing my death note for my music career moving out here. The Miami bass scene targets more of the mainstream dubstep fans and not so much of the glitch-hop west coast scene. Don’t get me wrong Miami Dubstep is alive and thriving but it’s quite different from what I’d consider myself part of. The first week-end I was in town I heard about Archnemesis playing a show, which totally blew me away because I had never heard of anyone like Archnemesis coming into town since I left the city. Turns out that Sounduo was opening for them for a few dates in FL. I was thrilled to finally hear and see these guys play live.
WOW. These guys are incredible performers and have their own unique sound which mixes their dub, reggae, and bass roots together into a great package. Zach absolutely crushes it on drums live and Will is behind many controllers playing live keys during many of their songs. They play all originals and can expect them to glitch it up just how we all love and even some massive bass drops. Needless to say I was impressed and consider them one of the best live acts with a drummer in the game.
I’ve had the pleasure of being able to become friends with these guys and man they’re totally legit. They’ve got a lot ahead of them and have a great outlook on everything all around. I’m honored anytime they come over to jam out or play live on my Glitch.fm show. They truly give me hope for the Miami local scene in regards to what I’d consider myself part of. The Archnemesis show showed me some light for this city. There was a super chill crowd and even could pick out about 5-6 Grassroots California hats in the crowd which usually is a good sign.
Overall these are guys you want to keep your eye out for. Their debut release is due out on Made in Glitch which makes me really happy to hear. I assure you everyone who fancies most of the music we post on here will love their upcoming release. Now for the real treat. They contacted me recently that they were working on a tune specifically for the site. It has been awesome getting to know them and playing beside them in my studio and we’ve gotten to discuss what sort of sound I enjoy and am trying to accomplish. The track they send over totally took me by surprise. It’s EPIC. A 7min long tune that sends chills down my body just because after hanging out with them they’ve created something so perfect that fits exactly what I would want to represent Afromonk.com.
I’ll also be working on some new stuff with them in near future, which makes me scream with excitement.
Much love to Will and Zach!
Expect that Made in Glitch release soon!
So first things first – how can you not want to give a listen to a group that calls themselves Robotic Pirate Monkey? This fun trio from Boulder, CO brings the heat in their 4th release, Colors in Disguise. The nine-track album is upbeat, unique, and all-embracing; it provides an easy listening, soundtrack of your life kind of feel. Sprinkled with vibrant melody, tasteful samples, and resonant bass, the dynamic album leaves you with a feeling of bliss and exuberance. I have already been consistently listening to and really digging Rio de Fuego, which they released quite some time ago. The rest of the album is nothing short of brilliant! I love the deepness of Moon on the Man; the pulsating bass had me grooving in my chair at work. I think that Pantone Polygamy might be my favorite overall as I tend to lean towards synthy vivacious tunes.
I caught these guys at Lightning in a Bottle 2010 and have to say I really enjoyed their live set. They seem like the kind of guys you’d want to kick back and crack open a beer or light one up with. I’m also stoked to see them again at SnowGlobe on New Years Eve – if you’re at the festival (which you should be – the lineup is insane), make sure you don’t miss Robotic Pirate Monkey!
Grab Robotic Pirate Monkey’s free new release, Colors in Disguise, here.
I definitely want to pop some bottles while jamming to this new free More Champagne tune (New Years Eve, perhaps?)! If you haven’t heard of this collaboration, familiarize yourself. Close homies ChrisB. and Gladkill have teamed up to bring you this banger of a remix, Poppin Bottles by TI. I have known about the collab for quite a while and have been waiting to hear what they have in store for us – so far they did not disappoint. Burning Man attendees were lucky enough to catch More Champagne live, and now everyone has the opportunity to snag the outstanding bootleg that they remixed for BM.
At first I was slightly skeptical when I saw that the artist they chose to remix was TI – I tend to favor thought-provoking hip hop over top 40 artists. However, the production quality in itself is inspiring enough. The banger has nice texture; they incorporate the samples flawlessly and there’s a good balance of bouncy high notes and bass. I love the depth that they add around 1:05. I know that I’ll enjoy this track equally while chillin at home as while raging at a show. We can expect to hear much more material (an EP is in the works) from More Champagne in 2012, so stay tuned!
NastyNasty aka Jasper has finally put a release date to his highly anticipated new Poison Flavored EP! I’m not going to lie and say that this is probably the best thing he has put out since The Reef. Jasper has been touring heavily in 2011 and yet still has time to put together one of the best EPs of the year.
This release contains some of my favorite songs that he plays. I can’t tell you how excited I was when a copy of Sweaty Bodies was in my possession. Sweaty Bodies is one of those tracks that I kid you not I listen to at least 5x a day (it’s unhealthy). Another track that I absolutely love that finally has an official release is Jelly. Every single song on this EP is incredible and completely approve. The moment I got a promo copy of this I put it in my phone and listened to it non-stop since it was the only release on my cell phone at the time. This most likely be one of my top 3 releases for all of 2011. Flawless.
Over the few years I’ve been part of this community I can’t help but say that Jasper is one of the best in the game. His dynamic range, unique style, and overall personality are unmatched. He’s one of those few people that can actually drop house music or juke and actually have me grooving (that’s huge). There are so many people who try to dip into a bit of everything but NastyNasty takes 1st prize for creating the best overall sound with every genre he takes a stab at. The best part about him is the fact that he’s actually one of the best people to chill with. Overall the guy is living life up and has a smile on his face. If you ever watch him play you can see NastyNasty come alive and pour out this explosive side to him. He has openly admitted that almost all the music he writes is about women which shows quite well. Jasper is just another guy like us who happens to make incredible music that has introduced him to a culture and scene that is quite unique. He’s the guy everyone loves and knows how to please any crowd he is given. Even today someone asked me what I recommend since nothing seems to really satisfy them lately and in that list NastyNasty was on the top of it. Be on the look out for another stunning release from Quitter (NastyNasty + So What).
I can’t tell you how honored I am to call him a friend. This summer I had the luxury of seeing him a whole bunch and feels good to know he’s a friend. Never will forget that moment he found me at Emissions and just gave me a hug and had no idea who it was at first but soon realized who it was. That’s when I knew that I had to be doing something right to get this mans respect.
NastyNasty – Poison Flavored EP
01: Sweaty Bodies
02: Jelly
03: Hyda
04: Legionnaire
05: Ghost Down
Gravitas Records has just announced its second official release, Virtus in Sonus, for FREE on Addictech! The 24-track compilation is comprised of a diverse roster of producers that invite you on a gratifying musical rollercoaster ride. The album kicks off smooth and sexy for the first few tracks (my personal favorite of these being Rion King’s “Bliss”) and evolves into more funky and ethnic varieties found in Blunt Instrument’s and Govinda’s work – where the coaster is doing pleasing twists and turns. Then after enjoying the scenery for a moment comes the exhilarating peak, where you can sense a division between soul and body with One4All’s, Cryptex’s and Brede’s awe-inspiring tracks. Cryptex’s “Reset” is absolutely phenomenal; it’s drippy and melodic yet packs in some serious heat. After finding yourself again, you have a chance to reflect on the experience with some effervescent tunes including Jake Scarborough’s bouncy “Radar Junkie”, The Digital Connection’s lazerblappy “Starwalker”, and Bobby Tank’s 80’s-inspired “Good Girl Bad Girl”. The Virtus in Sonus coaster may have left you stunned, and that’s simply because it encompasses such an array of sounds that flow impeccably.
Given the fact that Gravitas Recordings has only been in the game since May 2011, the caliber of this release is exceptional. Jesse Brede, founder of Gravitas Recordings explained that he “reached out to guys that [he] knew would provide a certain type of sound so it wasn’t the same BPM or style the whole time. The compilation has just about every genre of electronic music on it – everything from downtempo to dubstep to house to electro to dnb to trip hop to glitch hop, so if you listen from start to finish you really don’t get bored.” I agree; the genre-encompassing album is brilliant for listening all the way through while on a road trip, at work, or chillin with friends. Grab it here from Addictech, give it a thorough listen, and gain the “Power of Sound”!
Freddy Todd has been experimenting with music since he could walk and is on a serious mission to emit some fresh resonations into your eardrums. Well, mission success. In his newest (and highly anticipated) release, Dopesauce, he collaborates with rhyme master Black Mic to produce five quality bangers that will please music enthusiasts across the spectrum. Having been a hip hop lover for years and more recently evolved into a bass aficionado, I am a huge fan of this work which seamlessly combines the two. The release is laced with heavy bass, drippy synth lines, and gripping hip hop; and also features rappers Fat Ray, Joe Mousepad, and Scorpion. The track “Dopesauce” has to be one of the fattest tracks I have heard in a while, I seriously can’t stop blasting it! Also a deserved shout to Ill.So.Naj for contributing the radical album art.
Drink up some of that “Swagger Syrup” – you won’t be disappointed.Cop the rap infused lazer-bass album here on Addictech via Daly City Records. Next I’m hoping to hear some SplaTTerboX, comprised of dynamic duo Freddy Todd and GRiZ.
Hailing from Austin, Texas, producer One4All (Augustine Verrengia) has tremendous passion for electronic music, the feelings it emotes, and its ability to bring people together. This is manifested in his latest album, History of Things to Come, which he released for free last week after reaching 1,111 Facebook likes. The album offers a diverse range of sounds that showcase his unique talent and ability to produce an array of electronic grooves. I particularly love the smooth, dubby feel of “Calling Out”.
Augustine also helped launch Gravitas Recordings, a creative collective involving an array of talent – the likes of Cryptex, Blunt Instrument, The Digital Connection, and Brede. Gravitas Recordings will be releasing a compilation album this week that will showcase the label.
Make sure to grab One4All’s album History of Things to Come. Don’t hesitate to chip in for his efforts so he can continue to bless your eardrums with audio delights! I am excited to hear more from One4All as he clearly has a lot of potential.
Also if you’re in the Austin area, he’ll be opening at 10:00pm on November 11 for Paper Diamond and Run DMT at The Parish; this is guaranteed to be a great show!
Afro Monk
December 23rd by Taradactyl 
Tags: Elephant Survival, Emancipator, Ilya Goldberg, SnowGlobe, The Bounce Festival
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