“You are the music while the music lasts.” -T.S. Eliot
Angel Haze – “Cleaning Out My Closet”
“This might get a little personal…or a lot, actually,” CoSigned rapper Angel Haze warns on her version of Eminem’s “Cleaning Out My Closet”, eventually delving into the psychological trauma of sexual abuse in her childhood. After explaining some of the particulars, she shows the perfect grasp of exactly how effective this difficult, powerful material is: “disgusting, right, now let that feeling ring through your guts.” The track comes Haze’s new mixtape, Classick, which you can download here. -Adam Kivel
Chromatics – “Looking for Love”
It’s hard to believe that these five minutes of “Looking for Love” is less than a third of the finished product. The final version of the new track from Chromatics is said to be 17 minutes, and it’ll be a classic if they can keep up this sort of new wave intensity for the entirety. Ruth Radelet’s washed-out coo remains the constant amidst the swirl of competing layers of electronics. Add a swaggering rhythm at the base, and you’ve got a song that keeps you wrapped in its drama despite extremely minimal lyrics. The long take will be featured on Italians Do It Better’s yet release date-less compilation, After Dark 2, alongside a bunch of other Johnny Jewel related cuts. -Adam Kivel
Deerhoof – “Sexy, But Sparkly”
Deerhoof’s 11 studio albums (including the recent/excellent Breakup Song) rarely come out of studios and never have a producer. So, one had to wonder what introducing producer Chris Shaw into the mix for the single “Sexy, But Sparkly” would do to the “tangle of problems” that drummer Greg Saunier admits lies within the band’s music. The yelping and multi-part guitar whirls are still present, but there’s a little bit more of an electro-pop sheen in the overblown bass and the reverb on Satomi Matsuzaki’s repeated note that “I wanted to remember you.” Sales of the 7″ benefit the Ariel Panero Memorial Fund at VH1′s Save the Music, and you can order your copy here. -Adam Kivel
Guided by Voices – “She Lives in an Airport”
It seems that Guided By Voices will never cease. With hundreds of songs to its name, the band will add 19 more with the release of The Bears for Lunch — the third Guided by Voices LP of 2012 — on November 13th. The first track to come from the album, “She Lives in an Airport”, is a standard GBV romp, but a satisfying one nonetheless. Propulsive power chords carry Robert Pollard’s melodic deadpan: “She lives in an airport/ she gives little bottles to me.” Despite the lack of a chorus, Pollard’s shifty vocals dig into your ear and emerge later as stuck-in-your-head hummables. He leaves you with a memorable melody even when you might not initially realize it. -Jon Hadusek
Harouki Zombi – “Vacated Hunters”
Harouki Zombi is Azure Ray’s Orenda Fink and of Montreal’s Nina Barnes dressed up as geishas and DJing as a “hedonistic celebration for the fallen empire.” Weird, but what else would you expect from these electro-glam starlets? “Vacated Hunters” was written by Barnes’ husband and bandmate, Kevin Barnes, and has his signature all over it: oscillating synths, silky vocals, and a beat that you can dance to. The track comes from Harouki Zombi’s debut EP, Object Petit A, which came out on Tuesday. -Jon Hadusek
Steve Hauschildt – “Interconnected”
Electronic mastermind Steve Hauschildt spends much of his time as one third of the always epic Emeralds, but he’s never too busy to drop some solo material on the side. The first track from his upcoming album Sequitur (due November 12th via Kranky), “Interconnected” continues that trend, diving into weightless, watery beauty. The tune shifts back and forth from distilled ambient awe to bubbly frenetic complexity, leading the listener through several different fluid, neon worlds. -Adam Kivel
Kendrick Lamar – “The Heart Pt. 3 (Will You Let It Die?)”
Well, Kendrick Lamar just dropped the best hip-hop album of 2012. And he sugarcoated the release with a brand new, non-album track called “The Heart Pt. 3 (Will You Let It Die?)”. It serves as a preview of sorts, illustrating Lamar’s career leading up good kid, m.A.A.d. city and the concept and motivations for the album. “Will you let hip-hop die on October 22nd?” he rhetorically asks as the song fades out. Apparently recorded this past weekend in Las Vegas, “The Heart Pt. 3” comes at a time when Lamar’s music is at its highest demand, and the track itself explains (and exemplifies) why his music has been met with such overwhelming acclaim. This man is thinking like an artist, turning his life experiences into rhymes and beats. Hip-hop didn’t die on October 22nd; it was resurrected. -Jon Hadusek
Major Lazer feat. Flux Pavilion – “Jah No Partial”
I’ll admit to being the opposite of the target audience for a crushing electro song like “Jah No Partial”. I wince at wubs and detest the drop. However, this collaboration between Major Lazer and Flux Pavilion is just too darn exciting. Noises big and small uncontrollably flood out of the speakers. A reggae rhythm tries to restrain all these sounds and maintain structure, but it can only tempt and coerce the song into a certain direction; the wubs will wub and the drop will drop. Major Lazer’s sophomore LP, Free The Universe, hits stores on February 19th via Mad Decent/Downtown Records. -Jon Hadusek
The Pass – “Alone Again”
Lonesomeness can be refreshing, liberating, and meditative — time to think without the distractions of others. But too much loneliness isn’t healthy. One becomes inward, reclusive, and dour. The Pass have found the perfect balance with “Alone Again”, a celebration of those times when one can exist in their own world — no boyfriends/girlfriends, no roommates, no obtrusive emails or text messages. “Let’s take a minute and find ourselves,” frontman Kyle Peters sings. He is embracing solitude, and an inspiring wash of synthesizers and cheery guitar riffs echo his jubilation. “Alone Again” is the latest single from the The Pass’ upcoming LP, Melt, which is out on November 6th via SonaBlast! Records. -Jon Hadusek
Sharon Van Etten – “Tell Me” (Demo)
Didn’t get enough of Sharon Van Etten’s smoky croon on Tramp? Besides being entirely not alone, you’re in luck, as the singer-songwriter will release an expanded deluxe edition of the LP, including demos of each track and a demo of the unreleased “Tell Me”. While the album’s added instrumentation perfectly buttressed her rich vocals, the return to a lone acoustic guitar on “Tell Me” is a refreshing look at how hauntingly emotive Van Etten’s tracks are at their purest form. Lyrics about how “sometimes I don’t think about you” are the heartbreaking realities of honesty that few songwriters can get this right, making for an amazing track even at the barebones demo level. -Adam Kivel
