First thing's first, one of my most anticipated albums of the year finally came out, and it does not disappoint! Danny Brown is probably tied with Kanye as my favorite rapper currently active. As with XXX, DAnny splits his album into two halves, one part bangers, one part introspective pieces. The bangers on this album can at times get a little too intense, but the introspective songs are much better here than on XXX. I am actually not a fan of the track ordering on here, and I think it creates a tedious listening experience. Danny frontloads the album with his introspective stuff, and maybe I have been bred my whole life to hear albums with bangers up front, and chill outs on the backside. So I created my own tracklist that breaks up the album into a better flow and I think the album is better for it. Regardless, the songs on here speak for themselves. Danny's humor and flow really make this album unmistakably "Danny", and the beats are really awesome. One minute it's spastic electro, the next it's an eastern-inspired beat that may as well come off an Enya album.
Danny Brown - Lonely
Continuing in the hip-hop world, Pusha T released his debut(?) solo album My Name Is My Name. I say debut(?) because I think I have read that somewhere, but he has had multiple mixtapes and plenty of other solo work put out since the end of Clipse. Hell Hath No Fury is my favorite hip-hop album of all time, so I was excited to hear Pusha's solo work. Kanye is all over this album ,which is definitely a good sign, but Neptunes producer Pharrell Williams is behind my favorite track, "Suicide". Why Pusha doesn't just stick with Neptunes for all his work (as he did on Hell Hath No Fury) is beyond me. Somebody call Pusha and tell him Kyle wants Hell Still Hath No Fury. All in all, the album has a handful of tracks that are amazing, and a good bunch that are... not.
Pusha T - Suicide
Blue Sky Black Death - Glacier. This album is the aural equivalent of spooning in zero gravity while watching the sun rise on Earth's curved horizon. This album has a post-rock structure with a hip-hop heart, think m83 plus Purity Ring. The sounds on this album envelop you; I find myself turning my stereo up to 35 when listening (my stereo's equivalent of "turning it up to 11"). I would recommend you listen to the song below as soon as possible, and do yourself a favor and turn it up so you can hear every shimmering detail.
Blu Sky Black Death - II
Darkside - Psychic. I heard a ton of buzz about this album before it was released, people saying it was incredibly unique, unlike anything else, etc. Now that I've heard it, I can say it is definitely not typical, but it's not unlike anything I've ever heard before, either. It sounds to me like My Morning Jacket's Z mixed with Shlomo, or someother chilled out electronic act. I am still making up my mind on this one, at times it's really great, and at others it just feels like it's meandering because someone told them that "good songs should be 11 minutes long". I also feel like this album would be 10 times better if the singer would just sing. He's got this restrained-singing thing going and it kind of gets annoying.
Darkside - Golden Arrow
The Field - Cupid's Head. I couldn't tell you with 100% certainty why I like The Field. Yes, he makes lush, hypnotic minimal techno music, perfect for playing in the background while you work. But sometimes his music feels so simple that I feel like The Field's first album was reviewed extremely positively, and since then he is able to release the same album over and over again and he's not called out on it because he makes "minimal techno". I still listen to each album, and I still like each one, but I am not 100% sure I couldn't be making this music if I dedicated the time. Still, be sure to check it out and zone out to the grooves.
Daniel Avery - Drone Logic. This techno album is really excellent. I've only listened to it maybe twice through, but it's really great. I believe what sets this album apart from other electronic dance albums (aside from awesome sampling and bitchin cover art) is illustrated in the song "All I Need". Like many other techno songs, it slowly adds elements to the song and gets more and more intense up to a boiling point, and when you expect the beat to drop at 4:53, he instead strips it down to the bass drum and staccatoed bass synth. It's a moment that elevates the intensity from "hooray dancing!" to a cool "I got this" sneer. Get your glowsticks.
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