Hillary Kaylor
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Cory Stier from Cults has a new band called Mrs. Magician and they’ve recently put a record out on Swami. Want to hear some of it? Yeah you do! “Hours Of The Night” is a prime example of the band’s killer San Diego sunburnt rock mentality. There’s a still a bit of the ‘60s structure you might expect from Stier’s nimble drumming, but the sing-song f-bomb-dropping vox, reverb silt and rickety riffs are firmly situated in the now. Also, maybe the ‘90s. But the ‘90s are now again, so we’ll stick with now. Whatever, it’s good and you should buy the rest.
To start your summer off right, it’s reggae/dancehall mainstay and sand-stomper Mr. Vegas with some balmy breeze via the “Sweet Jamaica” island sampler, mixed and airhorned appropriately by San Francisco’s DJ I-Vier (AKA champion selector for Jah Warrior Shelter Hi-Fi). Varying from proper dubplates to saxophone covers of classic hits and full of lasering intermissions, this one's sure to make you want to put on an ill-fitting tank top and drink a few ill-fated Hurricanes. The reggae mix is just one preview to Mr. Vegas' double disc (the other side, more on the dancehall end, has a bashment rerub by London’s The Heatwave, available here). Feeling it? Pre-order starts now on Amazon, kids.
Money makin’! Booty shakin’! Dancefloor breakin’! It’s A-Trak, and as a matter of fact, Dillon Francis and seminal rapper Greg Nice making a case for blango cuts everywhere with the spit-polished, bounce-in-every-ounce “Money Makin’” single, out as of now on Fool’s Gold and so very deserving of your hard-earned coin. This is the kind of absurdist music that mascots twerk to on the weekends, for real.
I’m not a betting man but I’m fairly sure a Kush Arora-presented joint remixed by his own disco alias China White is gonna be pretty druggy. And, you know, it really is! This version of “Shake Sitten,” featuring the vocals of dancehall lord Mega Banton, is a witch doctor brew of dub, barefoot club pop and otherworldly tropical sunrise-appropriate electronica. Drink it in below, bathe in the other half of the Spanish Street Riddim remixes with Lady Chann over here.
(Photo: Mathieu Tonetti)
Sebastien Tellier as Jesus? Why not. The always outrageous disco indulger is a commander of joie de vivre. Whether it’s his porno guitar licks, lush synths, or vocals ever teetering on the edge of ecstasy, the dude has a cult-like quality where you can honestly believe he’d die for your sins, as long as he got to watch first. On The Magician’s revise of “Cochon Ville,” the thrusting bass and beat repeat go full throttle as Tellier’s enticing chant of 'come to us/come to us/be with us' lulls listeners into dance bacchanalia. Buy the rest of the EP on Beatport before his new album drops on Record Makers. And do not miss the best and most NSFW video we’ve ever seen for a track, right here.
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You know Hortlax Cobra. He puts the John in Peter Bjorn & John. He’s also a wild composer whose alter ego work is so blithe and dark and dancey and vintage, it could inspire a Drive sequel for the soundtrack alone. “Berlin” reads like a night in the city for which it’s named: it’s a walk down an alley, past peeling street art and into a refurbished hospital-cum-club. It’s where tall blondes smoke cigarettes under chandeliers and grind to gloriously disco-dipped synthpop. And it’s all yours on Night Shift come June 4, dropping on INGRID, the artist collective launched by Lykke Li, Miike Snow, Teddybears, John himself and of course, Peter and Bjorn.
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(Photo: Patrick O'Dell)
No rest for weary ears when best buds and former tour mates Sleigh Bells and Diplo have their assault sights set on you. Death metal pop, water bubbles, slasher synths and big bass artillery ahead on this remix of “Demons” from current album Reign Of Terror. Put on a helmet and get on in there.
Are they even kidding with this? Cypress Hill and Rusko are putting out an EP? This is dangerous, man. I don’t know if the world can handle this kind of Chernobyl-grade mind-melting. Old school psychotic hip-hop and dubstep landmines make for some raw, scratchy, scary stuff. Especially on this Mustard Pimp refit of “Lez Go,” which is guaranteed to drop a few IQ points with each listen (something’s gotta give between all the shaking beats and tweaks and dance torture porn). We say, so worth it. June 4 is when you can get the rest, though the lead video (complete with footage from the team's 2012 SmokeOut performance with Travis Barker on the drums) is already available here.
