New #Content Alert: The 'di-SKOA-ver weekly' Playlist

"Play it! Don't you wanna hear what's next?!"

I've noticed that a lot of my friends who use Spotify have developed a new habit. Every Monday morning without fail I watch in my friend feed as they all pour over their Discover Weekly playlists throughout the course of the day. This is all well and good. I'm actually happy to see that my friends in and out of the music business are anxious to find new music to bring them joy. 

In terms of what happens post-playlist, though. I'm never really sure. I only really hear about when the magical Spotify-powered algorithm "fails" someone during any given week. I never hear the celebratory "THIS IS MY NEW FAVORITE BAND!! THANKS ALGORITHM!!" or "GOING TO SEE MY NEW FAVORITE BAND TONIGHT THANKS TO A PLAYLIST!" 

How does one communicate with a playlist/algorithm exactly? 

This is where yours truly comes in to play. 

Starting today, I'm launching what I will playfully be referring to as the di-SKOA-ver weekly playlist. (You know me and my love of puns! I couldn't help myself.)

This is how I intend to run such a playlist: 

• Just like Spotify, once a week the dedicated playlist below will be updated with a fresh crop of songs. 
• Just like Spotify's playlist, some will be old, some will be new. 
• I will mostly be sourcing the music on my own, but will occasionally be taking recommendations from Sprout, Shey, and Fam Like You! 
• Unlike the Spotify playlist, should you find yourself in love with a song/band, upon adding that music to your own collection YOU'LL HAVE A HUMAN TO TALK TO ABOUT IT.
• Another important thing! All the artists in said playlist I will learn things about before updating the playlist for the week so when we talk it'll actually be a stimulating conversation! 
• More importantly, if I notice that a ton of people are interested in the same artist, I'll make it a priority on the site to do more coverage for them in the form of tour updates, interviews, etc. 

Obviously you are encouraged to follow this playlist from your Spotify account, but I'll also make sure the playlist is sitting pretty on the homepage for your convenience. 

BTW we can be friends on Spotify too if you're into that. I love stalking my friend feed for new music and getting inboxed things to try! 

ALRIGHT LESS TALK MORE ROCK ENJOY THESE JAMS, FAM! 

[Night Out] Wrabel @ Rockwood Music Hall (Stage 2) 9/10/2014

Personal update: I'm trying to get back into the groove of going to at least two shows a week. I'm also I really exhausted from all the emails we get about bands I've never heard of and will most likely will never hear of because they're just "okay". To combat this, I've mostly been ignoring the majority of the emails that I get and just digging around the internet to find things on my own. Back in the day, I used to wander around record stores looking at album artwork and taking chances on art that I felt the most connected to and either give them a listen if they were at the listening bar or just straight up buy the album and take a chance. I found a lot of great music this way (VHS or Beta, Josh Rouse, Junior Jack, etc.). 

I started doing this again fairly recently on Rdio and Spotify for every New Music Tuesday. I just scroll around and look for things that are interesting and give them a try. It's less sexy than the thrill of buying an album and being like, "God I hope this is good," but whatever. This is how I stumbled across Wrabel (pronounnced RAY-bell, at first I thought it was rabble, lol) about a month ago. Purely judging a book by its cover, his EP, Sideways, felt familiar. I think it's because he looks like an American version of Mr. Hudson to me. Familiarity has continued to be an ongoing theme for me with Wrabel. His voice, subject matter, etc. all sounds and feels very familiar. Kind of like I've always known him. Obviously since you are reading this post he clearly was able to tick all the boxes I require to decide to keep tabs on him. 

After adding him to my extensive Twitter list to keep an eye on him, I noticed he was playing a show at Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2. We should get one thing clear: I love Bowery Ballroom more than anything in this world, but there's something about Rockwood Music Hall (both original and stage 2) that holds a special place in my heart. A chance to experience any artist at Rockwood is a thing you should always do, so I decided to venture solo to see how an intimate performance from this newcomer would pan out. 

First things first, this guy's voice is nothing short of solid. Dude has a very strong set of pipes that probably need little to no pitch correction in the studio or anything like that, so much respect in that sense. I soaked in every last second of him pounding away on the piano and serenading a disappointly semi-empty room sipping some white wine, a true "This Is Why I Love Rockwood" kind of moment. It must have been a weird juxtaposition for him though considering he casually mentioned at one point between songs that the night prior he performed "10 Feet Tall" alongside Afrojack at Fashion Rocks over at the Barclays Center, but he never made it feel that way in terms of his performance. Between songs he was very friendly and laid back. At one point he even joked, "My mom keeps telling me to write happy songs and I was like, 'I wrote one!'" It's refreshing for me to know that although he was fairly recently signed to Island that it hasn't gone to his head. It's a shame that that's an exception and not the standard. 

Wrabel performing at Fashion Rocks at Barclays Center, September 8, 2014. Source: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images North America 

As I headed home last night, I put on Sideways to refresh myself on the recorded version of what I had just heard. I started feeling the parallel with him and Mr. Hudson again like the day that I first stumbled across him. Remember before his Kayne moment with Straight No Chaser when he was Mr. Hudson and The Library and had a sound of his own that he could really dig into (a la A Tale Of Two Cities)? I worry that the direction in terms of sound that they're nudging him into is going to get him lost into the Flavor of the Week pile. It's both a blessing and a curse that his voice has moments of Chris Martin, Sam Smith, and Landon Pigg, with hints of Mat Kearney peppered throughout. It's my hope for him that Island didn't just go, "Oh crap, we need a Sam Smith! Ooo! This guy seems nice. *SIGNS*" I don't mind the synthy bits in "Sideways". I get that bassy EDM + pretty vocals on top = Ca$h Money Hoe$ right now. I guess my hope is that as he assumingly starts working on his debut full length that he doesn't allow himself to get overwhelmed by people trying to tell him to be trendy for the sake of moving units this moment. Or that if he does that he knows exactly what he's doing and plans to be in the spotlight for 4 seconds and then when he has a pile of money he just runs off and does whatever the heck he wants. 

Fact of the matter is, Wrabel is a voice your ears need to hear and I think if he plays his cards right that he will be staying around with us for awhile. 

Wrabel is on the internet in various places like Facebook, Twitter, and Soundcloud. Follow/like/add as you will. His debut EPSideways is available for purchase on iTunes if you're into that as well. 

[News] Kanye West & Jay-Z's Collaborative Album 'Watch The Throne' Tracklisting

I've been extremely hesitant about posting anything involving Ye' and Jay's upcoming collaborative album Watch The Throne until a majority of the information has surfaced. Last month, we received the revealing of the album's artwork along with the pre-order website and today we've received the full tracklisting as confirmed by Jay-Z’s Life and Times website.

Take a look at the album's full 12 tracklisting and deluxe bonus tracks after the jump which guest features Odd Future's (OFWGKTA) Frank Ocean, Jay-Z wifey Beyoncé, G.O.O.D. Music's Mr. Hudson and the legendary late Otis Redding. The album's first official preview "H.A.M." will appear as a bonus track on the deluxe version of the album, alongside the Curtis Mayfield sampled G.O.O.D. Friday's track "The Joy" and the previously leaked track "That's My Bitch" which featured La Roux's Elly Jackson.

The highly anticipated, long awaited, collaborative album is rumored to drop on August 5th but as of right now no official announcement has been made. Preorder the album here.

Watch The Throne Tracklisting:

01 No Church In The Wild f. Frank Ocean
02 Lift Off f. Beyoncé
03 Ni66as In Paris
04 Otis f. Otis Redding
05 Gotta Have It
06 New Day
07 Who Gon’ Stop Me
08 Murder To Excellence
09 Welcome To The Jungle
10 Sweet Baby Jesus f. Frank Ocean
11 Love You So f. Mr. Hudson

Deluxe Edition:

 
12 Illest Motherfucker Alive [Bonus]
13 H.A.M. [Bonus]
14 That’s My Bitch [Bonus]
15 The Joy f. Curtis Mayfield [Bonus]

[Watch] Mr. Hudson - "Anyone But Him" Feat. Kanye West (Video)

Check out the long awaited video for Mr. Hudson's track "Anyone But Him" featuring Kanye West. Straight No Chaser now in stores for both UK and US.

[Download] Perajok & Kanye West Presents: G.O.O.D. Ass Mixtape

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Happy Music Monday! What better way to start out the day than checking out the G.O.O.D. Music mixtape G.O.O.D. Ass Mixtape presented by Perajok & Kanye West. Check the track listing after the jump.

[Download] Perajok & Kanye West Presents: G.O.O.D. Ass Mixtape

[Watch] Caspa x Mr. Hudson - "Love Never Dies (Back For The First Time)"

Still loving this awesome summer jam. Caspa's Mr Hudson assisted single "Love Never Dies (Back For The First Time)" drops next week, August 16th.

Mr. Hudson FINALLY Gets US Release Date For 'Straight No Chaser'

Mr Hudson iTunes USA Trailer from MrHudson on Vimeo.

Good grief, it took you long enough, Mercury/IDJ!!!

I am happy to announce that our favorite British crooner, Mr. Hudson will finally be able to let his latest album, Straight No Chaser see the light of day in the United States of America. 

SNC has been out in the UK since 10/19/2009 and those of us hankering to legally be able to support him in the United States have been anxiously/patiently waiting for the date where it too can be our very own. 

Well you guys the wait is almost over! We only have 2 more weeks now!!

Straight No Chaser will be available on iTunes June 15th! 

No word yet if there will be any bonus tracks or anything of that nature available with the release, but just the fact that they're taking him stateside is a good sign for his career. 

Have no idea who I'm talking about? Peep the album trailer above!!

[Watch] Jay-Z Performs 8 Minute Medley and Young Forever with Mr Hudson on SNL

You know as big as Jay-Z is, his live performances never get tiring as he always finds some element to step his game up. Last Saturday's SNL performance was no difference, as he performed a sweet 8 minute medley of some classic hits starting off with The Black Album's P.S.A. (which is even more awesome to hear with a live band backing) then a short play of "On to the Next One", then rocked the house with the album version and mixing in  Linkin Park's Point's of Authority off the LP/JZ mashup version of "99 Problems", then a random intro of "'03 Bonnie and Clyde" and finishing it off with the NY Anthem of the year "Empire State of Mind."

After, Jay returned to the stage with SKoA favorite Mr. Hudson to finish the show off with his recent hit "Young Forever." Definitely nice to see Mr. Hudson getting some spotlight on national TV. Bigups to him! Check out the video for the Medley above and Forever Young below.