Huzzah! The self-proclaimed Dance Hall Queen, Robyn, is back! uh, letting some bits of info and new tracks from her upcoming albums out into the ether… Oh, yeah, that’s right –I wrote albums. According to Stereogum’s Progress Report, our girl, nay, lady (she just turned 30 –my, how far she’s come since her “Show Me Love” days!) will be releasing a few “mini-albums” throughout 2010. Could this be part of that silly “Six-Pak” idea AP brought to our attention last month? Sort of. Robyn explains:
But for me this is not an EP or a lesser version of an album. It’s an album, but it’s maybe not the normal length, so I can go back to the studio again and release these songs while they’re actually fresh, and go back to the studio and work on more stuff while touring.
So she’s saying less music more often, which I support. And it lends itself to the tracks being more current, not to mention more aligned with the hyper-speed of info and song leaks in the blogosphere.
Watch the clip and get a (somewhat guesstimated) preview of track names and producers, c/o YouTuber r8ght, after the cut. (more…)
Forest aka TRT’s resident Jason Derulo fanboy has been desperately trying to get me to jump on the bandwagon. All attempts have failed miserably. That is…until today… when I stumbled upon this remix of Derulo’s “In My Head.”
So why the sudden change of heart? Two words. Nicki Minaj. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again, is there anyone chick in the rap game who’s working harder than Nicki Minaj?! I think not. Now, Ms. Minaj has spit some crazy-ass-fire on the already “catchy” (by Forest’s definition) song “In My Head.”
But don’t take my word for it – listen for yourself below. Sickest verse? “Smash more clubs than Tiger Woods wifey/Ha! I am the biiitch…./Hit up JR and tell him to call Jason/Do a pop song and stack more Caucasians.”
Every band’s got a “thing” – Spoon has attitude, Grizzly Bear is pretty, Death Cab likes metaphors, but Beat Radio is just awesome. With every new song Brian Sendrowitz puts out, I am both amazed and ecstatic that someone is still releasing indie rock this catchy.
This isn’t new. We’ve expressed our love for Beat Radio before and, if you thought we were going to get all M. Night Shyamalan up in this B, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. If, however, you were hoping for new Beat Radio songs, then you are in luck, my friend!
While the two new tracks fit with what we’ve been hearing lately, they’re definitely unique in their own right.
“Golden Age” pairs a warped guitar and live drums against an ominous wall of sound, managing to sound both hopeful and slightly stormy. The second track, a cover of The Diggs “… and the end shoot back” continues with the dense and dark waves of sound, but mashes them with a beat loop straight out of Afrika Bambaataa’s “Looking for the Perfect Beat.”
Perfection, indeed.
Have a listen, and download, “Golden Age” and “… and in the end shoot back” after the jump.
Although we’re still early into 2010, I’d be lying if I didn’t say that I’ve been anxiously awaiting the latest release Lost Souls Like Us from Benjy Davis Project. With anticipation like that, I guess it’s fairly easy to be disappointed with the final outcome. Don’t get me wrong, Lost Souls Like Us isn’t a bad album, per se, it’s just not overall representative of what I was expecting from BDP after the well-rounded, emotionally stellar Dust. And it certainly doesn’t live up to the high bar set by lead single “Stay With Me” a mandolin-driven song about love with room for interpretation, whether in the moment or reflection, with intensely personal lyrics written by Benjy Davis himself.
The album opens with “Mississippi,” a pretty safe ode to the wandering road-life as only a young musician can paint. It’s followed up by the light-hearted “Get High” that the college kids are sure to eat up. While these tracks aren’t necessarily throwaways, they’re also not particularly memorable, which seems to be the issue with the album until the midway point where things start to come to life.
Aside from “Stay With Me,” which is one of our favorite songs hands down, “Slow Wind” is beautifully reflective where Davis shines both vocally as well as lyrically. “Check Your Pockets” brings some good ol’ sunny southern rock courtesy of the guys’ Louisiana roots, which is sure to have you singing along to.
It’s been almost 5 months since we first reported rumors of Robbie Williams reuniting with his ex-bandmates, Take That. Now, it’s being said that Robbie has recorded five songs with the boys who have their sight set on releasing a new album by end of year.
There are no plans to tour in support of the new album yet, but it’s pretty safe to say that the boys will look to capitalize on this reunion to the utmost extent. You can bet TRT’s very own Robbie Williams super-fan, Forest, will be first in line for tickets when the tour’s announced. Stay tuned for more details.
The ever-elusive duo that is jjhas (finally) released a video for their single “Let Go.” It’s visually stunning, though, have to admit my brain is absolutely fried right now so can’t even begin to think about the meaning behind it. Check it out below. jj’s album, nº 3, officially hits on March 9th, but if you’re slick on the internets, you can pretty much locate it now.
Nicki Minaj is sure making the rounds in the hip hop game as of late. She’s teamed up with everyone from Lil Wayne to Robin Thicke to Mariah Carey and now Ludacris for his latest song “My Chick Bad.” Now, I’m no Luda hater by any means, but have to say the only redeeming quality of this song is Nicki Minaj – problem is, you have to suffer through about 2 minutes of pointlessness to get to her. This just might be Ludacris’ worst song ever.
When all is said and done, you’re left wondering if you should’ve waited at all — but I guess it’s worth it to see Nicki’s best Lady Gaga impression. Check the video below.
By “popular” “demand” I’m continuing what I started with last month’s Ghostface Millah Mix Volume 1 by giving you, dear readers, whatever excellent new music I’ve acquired or gotten-into of late. I present to you the Ghostface Millah Mix Volume 2.
If I do say so myself, it’s better than the first. For starters, it’s longer which means more goodness for you, and, just like last time, it’s a decent combo of blogosphere well-knowns and some deeper cuts from recently released albums to which I just can’t stop listening.
1. “U + Me =” – Dan Black (off UN, released in the U.S. on 12/21/2009)
2. “VCR (Matthew Dear Remix)” – The xx (off unknown)
3. “Take It Easy” – Surfer Blood (off Astro Coast, released 1/19/2010)
4. “Backseat” – STAYGOLD feat. Damien Adore & Spank Rock (off unknown)
5. “You Must Be Out of Your Mind” – The Magnetic Fields (off Realism, released 1/26/2010)
6. “Answer to Yourself” – The Soft Pack (off The Soft Pack, released 2/2/2010)
7. “Good Intentions Paving Company” – Joanna Newsom (off Have One On Me, out 2/23/2010)
8. “Please Don’t” – Santigold (off Here Lies Love, out 2/23/2010)
9. “I Can Talk” – Two Door Cinema Club (off Tourist History, out 3/1/2010)
10. “In the Sun” – She & Him (off Volume Two, out 3/23/2010)
11. “Stylo” – Gorillaz feat. Mos Def & Bobby Womack (off Plastic Beach, out 3/9/2010)
12. “No Hassle” – Robyn feat. Diplo (off unknown)
If you’ve been a (semi) regular reader of TRT, you know by now that no country gets as much love from us as Sweden does. So, why change that now? Robyn, my favorite Swedish synth-pop singer, has re-surfaced with a new track, “No Hassle,” produced by Diplo. It’s a summery, tropical dance-hall track that you can be certain I’ll be blasting on loop for a while.
As Robyn so confidently points out “Until the music stop/You know I still run this thing like a dance-hall queen/I really don’t want no hassle.” Damn right, girl. We missed you.Have a listen below.
I’m pretty new to the British group Wild Beasts, but so far I really like what I’m hearing. Haunting, melodic and occasionally eerie – this is music for long, night drives. (Sorry Eve 6 …)
Check out the video for the Wild Beasts’ “We Still Got The Taste Dancin’ On Our Tongues,” below. If you like what you hear, All the King’s Men is out now on Domino Records.
We started as a three friends having conversations about music during lunches together at the office. Since then we have expanded to seven members, including a Chi-town native, and the conversations have gotten bigger and better. The Round Table has grown into a casual setting where music aficionados can gather to discuss all things music. Topics include (but not limited to) artists and bands, new music releases, concerts, recording industry news and concerns, and the occasional nugget of entertainment gossip. We have tastes that cover the entire music spectrum and love to share them (and our opinions) with each other. We are The Round Table! Come join the conversation!
Huzzah! The self-proclaimed Dance Hall Queen, Robyn, is 
