Jordan Rakei - "Mind's Eye"

There are certain names I see in my inbox that are immediate click-to-listens. Jordan Rakei has been featured on RR three separate times before and I have a feeling there's more to come. He just dropped a brand new single via Ninja Tune and unsurprisingly it is GREAT.

There's a nice ebb and flow to this track but my enjoyment doesn't wane.

narou & James Chatburn - "Oblivious"

Vienna / Berlin producer narou wasn't on my radar before this morning, but I'm about to follow him like a hawk because his collaborator James Chatburn just shared this impeccable slice of neo-soul. The piano line leading into the finger-snap percussion, the bass kick beneath the smooth vocals. THIS IS MY TYPE OF JAM.

Cannot wait to hear more of what these two come up with.

AKUA - "Heaven"

It's been a HALF DECADE since AKUA first came on my radar, but she hasn't dropped off the map, simply moved to the edge of it, relocating to Los Angeles to work on her songcraft.

"Heaven" is the second track to come out from a forthcoming LP, Them Spirits, that's already getting some Polaris buzz from folks who've had the opportunity to hear the whole thing. I have yet to, but eagerly await the chance.

Wovoka Gentle - "Sin Is Crouching At Your Door"

Kinda feel like if the Incredible String Band and Nick Cave were expecting and Mercury Rev was the doula, Wovoka Gentle would be the baby born from this trio of participants.

"Sin Is Crouching At Your Door" is from the forthcoming album Start Clanging Cymbals which is available for pre-order here.

RIP Darryl Weeks

Just found out that Darryl Weeks passed away on Sunday. He ran StageFright Publicity and handled a ton of great clients including the Paper Bag Records roster. A litany of StageFright artists have found their way to this blog, to my radio show and a place on my year-end lists thanks to Darryl over the years.

I never got the chance to meet him in person but we were "Facebook friends" and emailed regularly to set up interviews, stay up-to-date on records he was working and discuss our  shared affinity for music by the likes of Louise Burns and Helena Deland.

We were in touch as recently as last week discussing a pair of Luminelle Recordings releases that are already on my 2019 longlist: MUNYA and Anemone. In a strange coincidence, the physical copy of the Anemone just showed up at UMFM in today's mail.

My sincerest condolences to all affected by his loss, most particularly to his young family. 

Dead Obies - "Doo Wop"

This Friday, February 15th, marks the release of Quebec quartet Dead Obies' third album, DEAD. The follow-up to 2016's Polaris longlisted Montreal $ud, is due out on longtime label (and frequent RR subject) Bonsound.

I was a little lukewarm on the two previous singles dropped in advance of DEAD, but "Doo Wop" - despite not being that thing - is a jam. The bilingual hook, sung by MC Ogee Rodman takes me back to 1990s MC Solaar cuts with their Franglish blend and the beat on this cut is subtle but propulsive.

Hania Rani - "Glass"

Heads-up Jean-Michel Blais fans. If you dug dans ma main, put Polish artist Hania Rani on your listen list. There's only one song from Esja posted in advance of the album's April 5 release on Gondwana Records, but "Glass" certainly suggests what the tags at the bottom of the Bandcamp denote - this is for fans of "ambient," "classical," "electronic," and "modern classical" music.

It is meditative, beautiful music and on a particularly cold Winnipeg afternoon, I can think of nothing better to warm my soul.

Kassa Overall - "La Casa Azul ft. Roy Hargrove"

It's been a minute since I listened to a Roy Hargrove record, but with his The RH Factor project, the jazz trumpeter has been bridging genres for ages and ages. Hard Groove is nearly a decade-and-a-half old at this point. So I'm not surprised - but I was excited - to see his name pop up on this project from New York rapper / drummer / producer Kassa Overall. The intersection of jazz / neo-soul / hip-hop is something Hargrove has already explored and quite likely inspired Overall's Go Get Ice Cream and Listen To Jazz record.

I'm in on the whole record and have already bookmarked it for my year-end longlist, but I was particularly taken with "La Casa Azul," the track featuring Hargrove's muted horn alternating between smooth and staccato, providing as much bounce as the bass line and as crisp a snap as the snare drum.

Dexter Story - "Shuruba Song ft. Hamelmal Abate"

Here's the guest list (beyond Hamelmal Abate featured on this first single):

Kibrom Birhane
Sudan Archives
Haile Supreme
Jimetta Rose
Marie Daulne
Endeguena Mulu
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson
Josef Leimberg

Here are Dexter Story's credits:
multi-instrumentalist for Sa-Ra Creative Parners
manager for Snoop Dogg
producer for Dayme Arocena's Cubafonia
worked with Kamasi Washington on his most recent single, "Wejene Aola"

Here's the label Story's album Bahir is coming out on:
SOUNDWAY

If all of this doesn't get you exited for the May 15th release of the sophomore release from this LA. musician, take a liten to "Shuruba Song" below and put the date in your calendar.