A.M. Transmissions by NyE (2012)

Kind of Like: Nujabes, Will Sessions, Flying Lotus
Genres: Electronica, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Ambient
Preview:

This kid from California is only 17 years old, but he is already starting to make some waves with this debut album.  I feel like it can get redundant at times, but that's the ambient influences bleeding through.  Overall, this creates some really chill soundscapes that I can get down with.  He also seems to be experimenting in other areas as well; "Cellular-17" is dangerously close to what I would call dubstep (womp, womp, womp, womp) but fortunately it still fits with the rest of the album.  It is only fitting that this young producer is still finding his comfort zone with the first release, but I think the real challenge will see how he grows and what he ends up making next.

Listen Here:

Blues Note Records

I don't think this album is on there, but I do own it and I just really like that picture.  What a badass.

Genres: Jazz, Blues
Preview/Listen: Spotify

I know this may be way off from some people, but if you have any interest in jazz at all, you should delve into Blue Note Records Spotify app.  The amount of streaming music to explore is overwhelming, which makes it both good and bad for studying/homework.  Good, in that you can just let the music go and put your head down and grind away.  Bad, in that I constantly want to go back and look for more stuff instead of focus on my work.  Guess which I am doing now.

Yeah, it's not really and album or a download, but it is a shitload of awesome music at your fingertips.  Enjoy?

This album is on there.

Ohnomite by Oh No (2012)

Kind of Like: Madlib, Black Milk, Raekown
Genres: Hip-hop, Funk, Soul
Buy/Preview: Stones Throw

Talk about a family of musicians.  Oh no's brother is Madlib, his father is Otis Jackson, and his uncle is Jon Faddis.  It's been a bit since I listened to some fresh hip-hop material and this is certainly quenching my thirst for that.

Like Madlib, he was cali-bred, but has since been infusing his west coast funk with east coast techniques; immersing himself into the underground NYC rap scene and working on projects out there.

This album is long and has a long list of quality names: MF Doom, Guilty Simpson, Frank Nitty, etc etc.  This is a good one, folks.

Listen Here:

BBNG2 by Badbadnotgood (2012)

Kind of Like: Modern jazz (NOT smooth jazz), awesomeness, The Beastie Boys, Danny Brown
Genres: Electronica, Experimental, Jazz, Hip-hop
Preview:

I featured this great Toronto band's first album last year, and it is something I still listen to quite a bit.  I just found out about this second album, so I am going through it right now.  My testes dropped when I saw this had dropped.  So far, it sounds even better than their first album.  I feel like after the success of their first album they really came into their own for this one.  I tend to throw around the "experimental" tag a big, but these guys are really it.  They did this in true jazz fashion as well; letting the listeners get a look into the jamming/improv process (like the Office, ya know?).

All I can say is "Flashing Lights" cover.  Fuckin' christ, so many good covers/jams on here.  Are these guys touring?  Goddamn, should've gone to Coachella.  They also appear to be coming to the UK, ya damn brits.

Listen Here:

StreamPad: Badbadnotgod - "Flashing Lights"

Self-titled EP: 3 by Mini Prophets (2012)

Kind of Like: Antarctic, Pretend, Giraffes? Giraffes!, The Mercury Program
Genres: Post-rock, Math rock, Experimental, Emo, Jazz
Preview:

Really digging these guys right off the bat from Florida.  They are a self-proclaimed "experimental/jazz/rock" band, but I am having a hard time hearing the jazz part of this.  I'm sure the use of improvisation and experimentation could be somewhat of a use of jazz, but without the syncopation, blues notes, and swing note it just doesn't really sound like jazz.  I feel like they are more of a "experimental/post-rock/math rock" band.  But what they want to call themselves isn't really important, right?

Jazz or no jazz, these guys are smart and do a lot of things right with their music.  They seem to flow/write really well together and the music is really catchy for me.  I could see that maybe they want to distance themselves from the crowded "math rock" genre, and I wouldn't blame them.  It's hard to set yourself apart from other bands in a fairly saturated genre, but if you do then more props to you.  These guys kept me interested right from the get go, and that's all I needed, and the use of different instruments (xylo, horns), effects along with what they already got going on is a big plus.

I'm having a really hard time trying to express what I want to say.  Hopefully you at least give it a listen and see for yourself.

Listen Here:

StreamPad: Mini Prophets - "The Lonely Book"

Opus at the End of Everything by The Flashbulb (2012)

Nerd alert.

Kind of Like: Cloudkicker, Library Tapes, Venetian Snares

Genres: Electronica, Experimental, Ambient, Breakcore, Jazz
Spotify: Yesh
Preview:


I featured Benn Jordan's last album under his alias, The Flashbulb back earlier last year.  That album, Love as a Cold, Dark Hallway, was heavily jazz influenced; more so than most of his other albums.  Most of his work still has a minimal jazz influence whether it be chords or what not, and this new album is no exception.  However, this album reminds me more of the ambiance of Cloudkicker's latest album, Let Yourself Be Huge.  There is very limited jazz and even very limited breakcore involved in this album which ends up being quite a deviation from what you usually hear from Benn Jordan.  That's probably the best part about this guy's music though is that he is always experimenting with himself and his equipment.

I actually found out this new album dropped last night, and it really helped me get through my studies.  It is simply massive as well.  He just came out with Love about a year ago, and then he drops this hour long 25 track album.  Granted, it isn't his most technical and impressive music I have heard, but I highly recommend all of Benn's work, he is a really great musician/composer.

Listen Here:

Streampad: The Flashbulb - It Never Ends

Quasimoto (2000, 2005)

Kind of Like: Madlib, J Dilla, MF DOOM
Genres: Hip-hop, Experimental, Jazz
Preview: Myspace
Spotify: Yes
Buy: Stone's Throw

Taking a quick study break.  Like the new Spotify thing?  I am hoping you guys have hopped onto the Spotify train, it will help you preview/download things a lot faster.

"One day in the studio, Madlib decided to rap to his own beats. He didn’t like the sound of his voice (his friends in Oxnard call him ‘Barry White’ in reference to his deep voice) so decided pitch the vocals up while recording to produce Quasimoto’s distinctive high pitched voice. The debut album was conceived and recorded by Madlib during a week long psilocybin mushroom binge."
-Last.fm

I admittedly, was not aware that Quasimoto was in reality Madlib until yesterday.  I just heard him pop in and out of J Dilla, MF DOOM and...Madlib tracks.  I never took the time to figure out who he was until now.  After I figured it out, I have been listening to his tow albums "The Unseen" and "The Further Adventures of Lord Quas".  The album that is a product of a shroom binge was not lost on mainstream critics when it came out.  SPIN put this release alongside Outkast and Madonna in their best of the year list for 2000.

If you played Tony Hawk Underground, you will probably recognize "Low Class Conspiracy".  Here is the video:

I also really like Jazz Cats Part 1, where Quas goes through all of his jazz artist influences.  And the kermit like voice that is in songs like "Greenery".  Pass it around.

Back to the books.

Listen Here:

Spiritual State by Nujabes (2011)

Tech Boner

Kind of Like: The Avalanches, A Tribe Called Quest, The Roots
Genres: Hip-hop, Jazz, Electronica

Preview: The Find Mag

"Jun Seba (瀬葉淳) (February 7, 1974-February 26, 2010) was a Japanese hip-hop music producer who recorded under the name Nujabes (new-jah-behz; which is simply his real name spelled backwards). His music is known for a strong cool jazz influence, frequently using samples from artists like Miles Davis and Yusef Lateef. 


He was also an owner of “tribe”, a record store in Shibuya, Tokyo, and led indie record label Hyde-Out Productions. He released two albums in Japan, Metaphorical Music in 2003 and Modal Soul in 2005. He was also a member of the production duo Urbanforest, an experimental collaboration with Nao Tokui (appearing on the Lady Brown 12”)."
-Last.fm

This artist was suggested to be played during our radio show last week, and after looking into him more I saw that this album was just released post-humously as his last album.  Apparently, he passed away in 2010 after being involved in a car accident.  He was only 36 years old.  His use of jazz is great, and I can already tell that he was and will be incredibly influential internationally as a hip-hop producer.  If you know someone or are someone that has a hard time finding beauty and talent in the hip-hop genre, turn off the radio and give this a listen instead.  As someone that loves jazz music and hip-hop, this is a great find.  But if you only enjoy one so far, this may get you into the other genre as well.

Fans of Nujabes were worried with this release.  It was announced shortly after his sudden death that there were still material in the vaults, but as the months turned into years before they were released people began to worry.  Was the material incomplete?  Would the next album be a shitty tribute album?  Were they waiting to find artists to rap over the material?  But most people are buzzing that although this isn't his best work, that even his lesser work puts most artist's best work to shame.  And that this album is getting great reviews helps as well, and has people on it that Nujabes collaborated with for years.

Listen Here:

BBNG by Badbadnotgood (2011)

Kind of Like: The Odd Trio, Death Grips, Colin Stetson
Genres: Jazz, Hip-hop, Experimental
Preview: Bandcamp

Now for something different...

Hip-hop is notorious for sampling jazz in its songs.  A Tribe Called Quest, J Dilla, The Roots, Madlib; the list goes on and on and on.  These guys, Badbadnotgood, are a jazz band from Toronto that have switched things around.  They are reworking classic hip-hop songs into jazz songs, and the results are some seriously awesome jams and improvisations.  There is some great musicianship shown here.

Listen Here:

Finest Hour by Submotion Orchestra

Kind of Like: Lamb, Eleven Tigers
Genres: Jazz, Electronica, Dubstep
Preview:

Super tired and I have a long day tomorrow, but I wanted to post this nonetheless. Beautiful female vocals accompanied by piano and sparse deep and full bass tones and electronic drums. Submotion Orchestra blends jazzy progressions and atmosphere with Dubstep tendencies and arrangements in a very mellow and soft way. I've been on a very interesting kick lately involving unique electronica music, and this comes highly recommended; specially when listening loudly though a quality set of speakers, or a good pair of headphones. Turn the lights down low, smoke down, and throw this on for an amazing and relaxing experience.

Listen Here

(Classic) Journey to Love by Stanley Clarke (1975)

Kind of Like: Earth Wind and Fire, Return to Forever, Miles Davis
Genres: Funk, Jazz, Rock
Preview: 

It may not seem it, but I am actually a fan of funk and jazz music as well as all the noodly hipster shit.  I even have a whole plethora of classical vinyl that I put on from time to time (Holst's Planets really can pump a guy up).  Anyways, I found this album when I was first going through my dad's record collection trying to separate shit from THE shit. I popped this...on, and I was greeted with a low rumbling bass line that burst into porno-esque funk music.  I had been hooked on the song "Silly Putty" by Stanley Clarke.  This record would become a mainstay for the ladies, it is the perfect music for that sort of activity anyways.  I would find out that Stanley Clarke is a renowned jazz funk fusion bass player.  I also found out that this album featured Jeff Beck on "Hello Jeff" and the guitar solo for Journey to Love.  Also featured on this album is George Duke on the keys (organ, synth, bells, piano) who also did work with Frank Zappa.  I am going to try and put more funk, jazz, and classical from time to time, those genres have a lot to offer even if you mainly like math rock, emo, and other more popular genres.

Listen Here

Beileid by Bohren & Der Club of Gore (2011)

Kind of Like: Earth, The Kiliminjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, Heroin and Your Veins
Genres: Jazz, Doom, Drone, Ambient
Preview: Myspace

Ready for something pretty different?  How about a fusion of doom and jazz to put you in a state of catharsis?  Three songs, one is 7 minutes the next 13 and the last is 14.  These guys are from Germany, as you may have guessed.This album is a trip, enjoy the ride.

"They play a crossover of jazz and ambient, which they self described as an “unholy ambient mixture of slow jazz ballads, Black Sabbath doom and down tuned Autopsy sounds”. Over the years they have continously reduced and compressed their music to extremes. Originally, the members of Bohren, who were school friends, started out playing in various hardcore bands such as 7 Inch Boots and Chronical Diarrhoea in 1988. Driven by the idea of a more unique style of music, they formed Bohren (German word for drilling) in 1992 to play, as they called it, “doom ridden jazz music”.  "
-Last.fm

Trip Out Here