Oakland, California artist Pacific Yew has come through with a new project titled Son Of Rene. Known primarily for his lo-fi instrumental projects such as (​(​(​( T r e e s )​)​)​) (2017) and (​(​(​( Maidenhair )​)​)​) (2019), among many others, this new project is, to my knowledge and memory, the first one I’ve heard him rap.…

Post Moves is Sam Wenc, a composer and multi-instrumentalist working with sound, text, and objects. This is my first introduction to the artist, who just released an album along with The Sound Memory Ensemble titled Recall the Dream Breath. Featuring Sam Wenc on pedal steel guitar, guitar, drums, banjo, vibraphone, percussion and field recordings, Kyle…

DC producer / emcee Oddisee has released his first album in 6 years titled To What End. He’s been one of the most consistent hip-hop artists making music since he released his debut 101 back in 2008. His production over the years has been lively and full of heavy, hard-hitting beats and seamless flows and…

AJ Suede kicks this year off in style with a fantastic new project titled Indica Music. Having been introduced to him fairly late, last year with the release of Hundred Year Darkness, I’ve swiftly made my homework on his previous work, and am happy to have this as my first review of the year. The…

Of course MIKE was gonna drop an album on the winter solstice, having dropped projects in the past on the shortest and longest days of the year. As one of the most respected artists within the US independent hip-hop scene, he’s just gone from strength to strength, improving both his textured, soulful production, and his…

Hey again, now that we’ve done our Top 30 albums of 2022, I wanted to share some of my favourite songs of the year. Though playlists are a good way to get a sample of different tracks and artists, I recommend you check out the albums these tracks were released from. There have been quite…

New-York emcee AKAI SOLO has been prolific with pretty outstanding albums over the past few years. Black Sand with Pink Siifu, MAD SPACE with iblss, True Sky with Navy Blue on production… the list goes on. He’s finally back with his first release via Backwoodz Studioz titled Spirit Roaming, and it may be one of…

In the space of just a few years, Goya Gumbani and Kiina have become one of my favourite music duos making music. Their 2020 masterpiece The Lesser-Known made me a fan of Kiina’s smooth, soulful production, and Goya’s silky smooth flow and introspections always makes for a rewarding listening experience. So when I learnt that…

South London pianist and composer Duval Timothy has released a short but incredibly beautiful new EP titled Meeting with a Judas Tree. There is a striking beauty in the way he’s able to convey emotion, anger and anxiety in his music. His solo releases such as Sen Am and Help capture the power in his…

The Polaris prize-winning Montreal-based artist Backxwash is back to shock and completely overwhelm, with her first project since I LIE HERE BURIED WITH MY RINGS AND MY DRESSES. The hip-hop artist is known for her abrasive, industrial and horrorcore sound and delivery, and with this new album, titled HIS HAPPINESS SHALL COME FIRST EVEN THOUGH…

Tom Skinner’s first project under his own name comes in the form of a 6-track EP titled Voices of Bishara, displaying a meditative, meandering jazzy sound, perfectly captured by his own drumming and the members of his band. Speaking of which, recognition needs to be given to Kareem Dayes on cello, Nubya Garcia on tenor…

I thought Halloween may be the perfect time to post something about this album. Fatboi Sharif has been one of the more unique voices to come out of the underground hip-hop scene in the States. Through his collaborative album with Roper Williams titled Gandhi Loves Children, the New Jersey emcee has really fascinated me. His…

let the sun talk introduced the then 20-year-old poetic prodigy MAVI to the world of music. It was one of the highlights of that year, showcasing his talents as an emcee, taking from his experiences as a Black man in the States and painting pictures of trauma, heartbreak, depression and aspirations for the future. END…

“For a long time I didn’t even know Black composers existed. It’s not just an absence, it’s erasure – it feels as though there was effort made to leave him out.” This is from Loraine James’ Guardian piece on the making of her incredible new album Building Something Beautiful For Me. She’s talking about Julius…

Over the last few years, South Carolina-based artist Contour has been growing into one of the most exciting new voices in R&B. With his incredibly soothing and mesmeric voice, often complemented by delicate, moody and serene production, he’s able to evoke deeply emotive and soulful tone to his music, often a reflection of his own…

It’s been a week since billy woods surprised us with Church, his second full-length album of 2022, and I’m still not sure how to feel about it exactly. With each and every billy woods release, you really need full, uninterrupted attention. His rhymes read like historical theses, intricately painting pictures of his own observations and…

PINTY is now a household name in the South London hip-hop / dance scene. His witty, intricate wordplay is usually complemented by jazzy and electronic production, with dance-centric rhythms that perfectly represent the engaging and ever-evolving London music scene. Pinty’s House is his new project, a 9-track album featuring some of the most hypnotic tracks…

From his 2018 debut album Shiroi up until now, South London’s Mansur Brown has been delivering consistently hypnotic and textured music. His ability to marry incredible guitar-led rhythms with hip-hop and drill-influenced instrumentals makes his music pulsating, entrancing and beautiful. NAQI, Vol. 1 is his new project, a short 6-track EP that contains some of…

Makaya McCraven has, over the past few years, released some of the grooviest, rhythmic and drum-heavy jazz music I’ve listened to in recent years. 2018’s Where We Come from (a stunning mixtape featuring some of London’s finest jazz artists) and Universal Beings are standouts in his discography, incredible bodies of work that highlight not only…

Oscar Jerome’s music over the years, at least to me, has represented a warmth and relatability to his poetry that few artists are able to convey through music. The incredibly dense and groovy melodies on his debut album Breathe Deep was a highlight for me when it came out. The delicate instrumentation, led by his…

Brooklyn emcee AKAI SOLO has been consistently releasing exceptional music over the past few years. 2019’s MAD SPACE with iblss and Black Sand with Pink Siifu are highlights for me over his pretty prolific career, and with this new release, Body Feeling, he turns a new chapter, having signed to Backwoodz Studioz, with an official…

At this point, I might write to the man himself. Hey Pink Siifu, I hope you and the family are blessed. Your new album, REAL BAD FLIGHTS may be my favourite of yours to date. I don’t know if it’s just my preference in style of beats or your rapping, which has improved an awful…

Collaborating with the likes of talented artists Tirzah, Klein, Babyfather, Kwes and Nadeem Din-Gabisi, to name a few, and that’s no exaggeration. The Lewisham musician, vocalist and DJ has been an important part of the South London music scene, crafting eclectic, ambient and fascinating sounds that are both hypnotizing and utterly beautiful. Conduit is the artist’s…

London-based singer, songwriter and all-around incredible artist George Riley is back with a new 8-track project titled Running In Waves, produced by Vegyn and with additional bass by Ben Reed. A smooth and meditative listen, George Riley’s hypnotic and sweet vocals are perfectly complemented by Vegyn’s textured and dynamic production that give the album so…

New York emcee Elijah Bank$y has been quietly becoming one of the exciting new faces in hip-hop. He’s built a strong-knit community that spans well beyond the borders not only of his city but his country. Spending some time in the UK and collaborating with quite a few talented artists here, his reach is global,…

Since his incredible 2017 debut ज़ितम सिहँ, Jitwam has expanded his musical influences and styles to new heights. Raw, experimental and infectious in every possible way, that album has remained one of my favourites in recent years. Born in India, raised in Australia and living in between New York and London, his music really has…

Shrapknel consists of Curly Castro and Prem Rock, two of exceptionally talented hip-hop artists that are no stranger to the blog, having released some exceptional albums over the years – Shrapknel’s self-titled album is definitely something I recommend you check out first, and as solo artists (Curly Castro’s Little Robert Hutton and Prem Rock’s Load…

LA-based emcee YUNGMORPHEUS has been releasing consistently great albums for the past few years, and it’s great seeing him continue to develop his artistry. Together with New-York based producer and emcee THERAVADA, he has released a concise body of work titled Up Against The Wall; A Degree Of Lunacy, meandering between crisp, soulful samples and…

London-born & basedd visual artist, filmmaker and poet Nadeem Din-Gabisi has established himself as one of the most promising independent artists the vastly diverse and eclectic city has to offer. Through various collaborations over time with the Touching Bass crew and Sampa The Great to name a few, he has carved his own unique sound…