1. Gil-Scott Heron’s “New York Is Killing Me.”
I’m New Here
On par with Richard Pryor and The Last Poets as ultimate urban griots whose tales, style and intellect transcend eras, the heavily politicized poetic honesty espoused with harmony of Gil-Scott Heron returns to the music scene with his February 9th release on XL Recordings I’m New Here. The first single off of this album, “New York is Killing Me” may easily be the most graphic discussion of urban and social blight released in the last decade. Heron, who is believed to have lived with HIV for possibly the last decade, and who has done time for cocaine possession still maintains a now wearied baritone that carries forth the sledgehammer of urban honesty like few others.
Need historic proof? 1974′s legendary The Revolution Will Not Be Ttelevised. Get familiar!
2. Major Lazer feat. MIA and Busy Signal – Sound of Siren
So, we finally get the news that our favorite militaristic, Rastafarian, space age and dancehall champion sound is releasing a new EP in April. Many wondered where Diplo’s most famous collaborator was on Guns Don’t Kill People, Lazers Do. Well, she’s apparently on the EP now with massive dancehall toaster Busy Signal on a track that includes all of the telltale signatures of Diplo and Switch’s production on the Major Lazer project, namely snare drums and outer space noises. It goes without saying once again that the respect and decency Diplo and Switch pay to traditional dancehall sounds while at the same time advancing the genre is certainly a wonderful and appreciated sight.
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3. Mickey Avalon is in the studio with Dr. Luke (and Travis Barker, too).
Pop producer Dr. Luke produced some of the most popular and iconic number one singles of the last half of the previous decade, including “Since You’ve Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson, “I Kissed A Girl” by Katy Perry, Flo Rida’s “Right Round,” and current target for mainstream angst, Ke$ha’s “Tik Tok.” It would appear that Dr. Luke has decided upon Ke$ha’s success to look in the filthy corners of bottle service clubs to dredge up filthy looking, foul mouthed hipster partiers with non-threatening suburban upbringings and smut tinged hearts of gold. He didn’t have to look far to find Mickey Avalon, the MySpace Music signee whose track “My Dick” is an instant underground classic and set a new standard for hilarious and insipid, potty mouthed, drug an sex fueled jocularity. The above track, “Stroke Me,” a flip on the hip hop sampler beloved Billy Squier’s “The Stroke” is lewd, crude but has a well known hook and catchy production, the new look for any artist associated with the pop maestro. No date has been set for Avalon’s release, but Dr. Luke being involved with Avalon, Shwayze, Dirt Nasty, Cisco Adler, Andre Legacy, Beardo and their Dyslexic Speedreaders crew ABSOLUTELY means that the basement electro hipster pop deluge has ONLY JUST BEGUN.
