After about a year of heightened anticipation, Rakim Mayers – better known as A$AP Rocky – has unveiled his debut album, Long.Live.A$AP. Released on January 15 by A$AP Worldwide, Polo Grounds Music, and RCA Records, the album has made a rather big splash in the urban world and has earned the artist a multi-million dollar record deal, the likes of which have not been seen since 50 Cent began his successful career about a decade ago.

Quickly rising through the cracks of the underground rap world, A$AP Rocky’s debut album has earned him a seat the top at the top of the charts. Long.Live.A$AP features two promoted singles – “Goldie,“ which is the lead single off the album, and “Fuckin’ Problems,” which features guest appearances from rappers Drake, 2 Chainz, and Kendrick Lamar. The two tracks are quite different from each other in terms of style, energy, flow, and lyrical content, but are both very well produced. In fact, the entire album is well structured with heavy emphasis on production value. A$AP’s beats are unique to that of many other rappers, which is perhaps why many have flocked to his music; it’s a new sound.

Unfortunately, guest artists and featured producers aside, A$AP Rocky’s material is perhaps the weakest aspect of the album. A$AP offers next to no lyrical inventiveness, nor is there any actual substance to his lines. He spends most of his verses re-hashing well-worn hip-hop tropes – bragging about his high-fashion tastes, his glamorous life, and supposed street cred, the latter a frequent source of controversy.

Continue reading ‘Review: A$AP Rocky’s ‘Long.Live.A$AP’’

There’s nothing like a little UK rock to get your blood pumping midweek. Hailing from Belfast, Ireland and extending their reach as far as London and Rome, Unquiet Nights have been gaining notoriety since their 2011 release, 21st Century Redemption Songs. Taking ’90s influenced rock and roll to the next level with radio friendly riffs and gritty vocals, it’s no surprise that they’ve seen exposure through radio play on BBC and G3 and provided the soundtrack for several television and Internet broadcasts, including ESPN.

If that weren’t enough, the band has also broken into the OurStage Top 40 for Indie Rock with their song, “Someone’s Love On Drugs.” The charm of that single was enticement enough to check out the rest of the band’s catalog. 21st Century Redemption Songs may come in at only 35 minutes, but these guys make every second count. Where “Someone’s Love On Drugs” captures a softer side of the band, “We Were The Ones” charges ahead full force with unrestrained vigor, setting the tone for high energy, catchy tunes throughout, and making for an album that is simply bursting with ambition and potential.

Check out “Someone’s Love On Drugs” below.

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February is surely the shortest month of the year for a reason. Lucky for you, there’s a whole new slew of great albums to help you through the winter doldrums. Check out this week’s new releases.

The Bronx – The Bronx (IV)

It’s business as usual for these LA punks on their fourth album. Though The Bronx have spent time in their mariachi alter-ego Mariachi El Bronx, the band is back to full rock form on this release with brash, abrasive vocals that ride on jagged waves of distorted guitar. Read a full review here. Continue reading ‘New Releases 2/5/13: The Bronx, Jim James, Coheed And Cambria, Matt Pond, Frightened Rabbit’

It’s that time of the year again: gearing up for the inevitable onslaught that is the South by Southwest schedule. Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. To make it a little easier to pick through the massive amount of events going on, we’ve highlighted the five best music-related films for you to check out, along with a handy “when to watch” guide to enhance your viewing experience.

Broadway Idiot & ¡Cuatro!

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It’s a two-for-one deal for Green Day this year, so we’re grouping the dual documentaries on the band into a single punktastic category. Broadway Idiot focuses on Billie Joe Armstrong’s transition to the Broadway stage for the theatrical rendition of the band’s 2004 rock opus American Idiot, while ¡Cuatro! focuses on the making of the band’s recent trilogy of albums.

Watch it after: Missing your favorite punk band’s set in favor of that “awesome new shoegaze, EDM meets post-punk” act that your friend misguidedly recommended. Continue reading ’5 Most Anticipated Music Films Of SXSW’

Rise Records has carved a unique niche in the modern alternative world as the go-to label for all things heavy. Their entire roster reads like a who’s who of breakdown bands, and we could not be most excited to present an exclusive Q&A with one of their biggest acts, The Plot In You.

Having just released a new album in January of this year, we had plenty to talk about with the members of The Plot In You. Click below to find out the story behind their album titles, their plans for 2013, and much more. Continue reading ‘Exclusive Q&A: The Plot In You’

The Super Bowl Halftime Show has become an overblown spectacle of such proportions and delusionary grasping at the straws of musical-artistic relevancy that it quite simply may never be good again. Yet there have been some standout performances – mostly those that concentrate on actually performing. There were some very dark years here and there that were not very focused on the artists and their music as much as the pageantry (I’m looking at you Disney), and I didn’t even count those. There were also a lot of ‘meh’ moments that are not really worth getting into.

Worst

2000: PHIL COLLINS, CHRISTINA AGUILERA, ENRIQUE IGLESIAS, TONI BRAXTON

I don’t remember this and I’m not going to watch it, but it’s awful. It’s literally the worst thing I’ve never seen.

Continue reading ‘EditoriaList: 10 Best And Worst Super Bowl Halftime Performances’

Before you settle back into your La-Z-Boy this Sunday to watch the big game, let’s take a moment to recap some of the best and worst music-related Super Bowl commercials ever to grace your TV screen. Let’s just hope that The Flaming Lips don’t embarrass themselves in their much-hyped Hyundai ad this year.

THE GOOD

Who better to talk about the gritty determination that defines Detroit than the poster bad boy of the Motor City, Eminem? This brooding car ad actually instilled a spot of Motown pride amid the general goofiness that usually defines Super Bowl commercials. Good job, Rabbit. Continue reading ‘The 5 Best and Worst Music-Related Super Bowl Commercials Of All Time’

Deriving their name from an old Celtic myth referencing the Three Noble Strains of music, this week’s featured artist is Nashville’s Noble Three. The duo bring a healthy mix of influential ’90s alternative and ’60s pop to the table, fueled by an intense passion for the music and art of both eras.

Patrick Rickelton and Tres Crow set forth with Noble Three, taking advantage of some YouTube notoriety gained from their previous band, Greenland, simply creating music they believe in. As the band themselves describe, “music that is both beautiful and honest is a worthwhile venture in an art world dominated by clichés and the preening of the Hollywood glitterati.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

You can check out the April 2012 Indie Pop winner, “Shipwrecked” below.

So you’ve spent hours in the studio tracking your epic debut concept double album. Now what? If you’re thinking of making your first music video as the next step in your career, don’t get all flustered yet. You don’t have to be OK Go to make an awesome budget-friendly video but you do need some good ideas, a healthy amount of pre-planning, and some serious dedication. With that in mind, here are a few things to strive for and to avoid when shooting your first silver screen masterpiece.

Do: Stage a live performance

The live performance video is a classic for a reason. It’s simple, easy to set up, and doesn’t require your awkward bassist to pretend that he knows how to act. Perfect. Just remember to have adequate lighting – even workman’s halogen lights will do – and a tripod so that you can capture at least one full steady take of the band in addition to your cameraman’s love of zoom-in close-ups. Just remember to synchronize your playing with what’s actually happening in the song. You don’t want to look like this:

Continue reading ’8 Do’s and Don’ts Of Making Your First Video’

The Dear Hunter mainman Casey Crescenzo has announced the April 2 release of a new album, Migrant. The announcement was accompanied by the debut of an album trailer, which you can view here. The Dear Hunter is known for defying the traditional norms of album releases, notably having released his first three albums as a three act narrative of sorts, which was followed by a nine-EP concept collection called The Color Spectrum.

Crescenzo says he tried a new approach this time around: “When I started writing this record, I made sure to limit myself to an instrument and my voice…” As you’ll glean from the trailer, the songs clearly grew into something much greater.

We had the opportunity to hear what Casey sounds like with just voice and guitar when he stopped into our studio to perform for our exclusive Songs of the Revolution series. View those performances after the jump:

Continue reading ‘New Album Trailer, Exclusive Performance From The Dear Hunter’