New Music: Nas feat. Amy Winehouse ' 'Cherry Wine'

Back in 2008, Nas and Amy Winehouse collaborated together on a number of tracks, which have only recently begun to see the light of day. Last December, 'Like Smoke' surfaced on Winehouse's posthumous release, Lioness: Hidden Treasures, and now, Nas has unearthed 'Cherry Wine' for the release of his 10th LP, Life is Good. As Hypetrak points out, the soulful 'Cherry Wine' was premiered on Friday night by BBC Radio 1, and you can listen to the replay here.

Life Is Good hits stores July 17th via Def Jam Records.

New Music: Curren$y feat. Young Jeezy & Lil Wayne ' 'Jet Life' (Remix)

Curren$y has been noticeably quiet since the release of last month's The Stoned Immaculate, but today, he's back with a remix for the Big K.R.I.T.-produced anthem, 'Jet Life', featuring Lil Wayne and Young Jeezy in place of Wiz Khalifa. Stream it below.

Curren$y feat. Young Jeezy & Lil' Wayne ' 'Jet Life' (Remix)

Download: Childish Gambino ' Royalty mixtape

Childish Gambino's prolific last few months has come to a culmination today with the release of his new mixtape, Royalty. The 18-track effort includes a number of previously released solo cuts like 'We Ain't Them' and 'Shoulda Known', as well as collaborations wit Nipsey Hussle, ScHoolboy Q and Ab-Soul, Steve G Love, and Beck, who provides production for 'Bronchitis' in addition to his contributions to 'Silk Pillow'. Though Gambino's track with Dac Racist's Heems is absent, a slew of other names also make appearances, such as Bun B, RZA, Ghostface Killah, Danny Brown, and the coup de maître, Tina Fey. Check out the tracklist below, and grab yourself a download here.

Royalty Tracklist:
01. Royalty
02. We Ain't Them (prod. Ludwig and Childish Gambino)
03. One Up (feat. Steve G Lover)
04. Black Faces (feat. Nipsey Hussle) (prod. Boy-Ida)
05. Unnecessary (feat. ScHoolboy Q and Ab-Soul)
06. Shoulda Known
07. R.I.P (feat. Bun B)
08. American Royalty (feat. RZA and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
09. It May Be Glamour Life (feat. Ghostface Killah) (prod. Myke Murda)
10. Toxic (feat. Danny Brown) (prod. SKYWLKR)
11. Silk Pillow (feat. Beck) (prod. Beck and Childish Gambino)
12. They Don't Like Me (feat. Chance the Rapper) (prod. SKYWLKR)
13. Arrangement (feat. Conage)
14. Won't Stop (feat. Danielle Haim of Haim) (prod. Ludwig and Childish Gambino)
15. Bronchitis (prod. Beck)
16. Wonderful (feat. Josh Osho) (prod. Boy-Ida)
17. Make It Go Right (feat. Kilo Kish)
18. Real Estate (feat. Alley Boy, Swank, and Tina Fey)

Live Review: Black Breath, Burning Love, Martyrdod at Atlanta's 529 (7/1)

There are few labels  that consistently churn out heavy albums of the high calibre we've come to know from Southern Lord Records. As such, a tour featuring a handful of the label's favored charges posed the potential for a night of exceptionally good heavy music.

Headlined by what may be the only current band with the sonic clout capable of restoring the fire in the belly of even the most jaded of metal fans, Seattle's Black Breath, the Southern Lord Tour shook the the intimate 529 Bar in Atlanta's hip east village right to its very foundation. The first of Southern Lord's purveyors of bombast to take the stage on Sunday night was Atlanta locals, Dead in the Dirt. The trio played a set of bone shaking, grindcore infused punk that, between the unbridled beast of feedback they allowed to roam free between songs and the band's incredible volume itself, felt like a war of sonic attrition.

Milwaukee-based hardcore metal hybrid Enabler took the stage next. I was initially vexed by how familiar the drummer looked, yet I failed to place the face with a name before the band unleashed their set of slack-stringed fury. Enabler forced the growing coven of metal fans into a unison involuntary head-bang. Their final song, 'They Live, We Sleep', ended with a riff that will swim around the memory banks for ages; some gargantuan sounding chunk not too far removed from something Disembodied might have written, though the band's sound was refreshingly original. And, it turns out the familiar face behind the kit was Fall Out Boy's Andy Hurley, who showed he still had his heavy chops from his days in Racetraitor.

Some classic Samhain played over the PA for Canada's Burning Love set up their gear, without a doubt the perfect way to prime the room for the most rock 'n' roll oriented group of the night. Burning Love's frontman is Chris Colohan, formerly of the mighty Cursed. Colohan is potentially the most underrated lyricist, vocalist, and frontman in the world of heavy music. The band thundered through their set with the calamity of Motörhead, the riffs of Black Sabbath, and the rage of Black Flag, to make for a final product that is as purely rock 'n' roll as anything available today.

Colohan climbed the building's exposed plumbing as he screamed his way through love songs, songs about serial killers, and the odd Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds cover. The cover was a rare live performance of the song, 'Jack The Ripper', that the band recorded and released as a B-side to the 'Don't Ever Change' 7'. As they introduced the Cave classic, the room split in two with a volley of beer cans flying about overhead and the room pulsated in unison as Colohan continued to climb around in the venue's glowing red bowels.

Next up to play was Swedish band, Martyrdöd. The band's sound is a mix of black metal, death metal, and d-beat crust, and they look exactly like you would hope a Swedish metal band would: long hair, mutton chops, bullet lined belts, and few shirts in sight. The band's set started with a sound that could only be described as musical retching with a Swedish accent, and the band continued through a breakneck series d-beat fueled metal that sounded both heavy and distinctly Scandinavian.

Closing out the night, Black Breath took the stage. As lead singer Neil McAdams checked his mic, the stage was absolutely cluttered with amplifiers, bass drums, black Les Pauls, and hair. The fervor of impending metal domination was palpable in the room as the band's frontman continued with his mic check.

Finally, the band let loose with the opening track from the critically-sound Sentenced to Life, and the snugly packed room swayed under the release from both audience and band. As McAdams stalked the area in front of the stage, the group's twin guitar assault chugged away and the crowd vied for the opportunity to share the microphone. The audience was one with the band for the entire duration of the performance as the small room chanted along with McAdam's demonic howl and. drummer, Jamie Byrum, hit every single fill from the albums with absolute accuracy. Though songs like 'Razor to Oblivion' from the band's first EP of the same name enjoyed great reactions, the new songs were received by a small sea of raised fists and banging heads.

The show was a relatively small affair that sort of belied the success Black Breath appears to be enjoying via the hype machine. However, a Sunday night crowd at a small bar made for a night of headbanging, earsplitting and completely enthralling heavy metal, courtesy of a band that will most likely find themselves free of the burdens of such intimate club performances sooner than later, and a label that appears to have found one hell of a stride.

Photography by Joshua Shomburg.

Album Review: Mike Patton ' Laborintus II

Mike Patton is the ultimate musical chameleon. Nothing in the musical world is beyond his grasp. He's worked with artists from wildly different sides of the music spectrum ' from Merzbow to Rahzel, Dillenger Escape Plan to John Zorn, The X-Ecutioners to Björk. Whatever his setting, Patton blends in; his voice is a unique tool that he can shape into whatever he needs it to be. With the X-Ecutioners, he's a rapper. With Peeping Tom, he's a crooner. With Faith No More, he's the prototypical rock singer. With John Zorn, he uses his voice as another instrument. Put him in any situation, and he'll find a way to use his voice to full effect.

With so many diverse entries in his massive discography, it should come as no surprise that his latest project is a re-imagining of an obscure 1965 classical piece by Italian composer Luciano Berio that was created to commemorate the 700^th anniversary of the poet Dante's birth. Considered a masterpiece in some circles, the piece was played at the Holland Festival in 1973. In 2010, Patton and the Brussels-based Ictus Ensemble recreated the piece at the very same festival, which led to this recording.

Laborintus II may come as a shock to listeners who know Patton through his other bands. But those who have been following his previous solo work might know what to expect ' a very abstract work that runs the gauntlet from quiet, jazzy atmospherics to brazen, unsettling primal noise. At first glance, it's easy to brush off Laborintus II as half an hour of experimental drivel, but those that stick with it and let it soak will be rewarded. The jazzy breaks and sonic freak-outs of the 15-minute centerpiece 'Part Two' are especially satisfying. It may be unlike anything else you've ever heard, but give it a chance (or two), and you may end up with a better appreciation for not only Mike Patton, but Luciano Berio as well.

Essential Track: 'Part Two'

André 3000 covers The Beatles, Muddy Waters for Jimi Hendrix biopic

With the estate of Jimi Hendrix refusing to grant rights for his music, the upcoming biopic about the legendary rocker will instead see André 3000 covering The Beatles, Muddy Waters, and more, according to Rolling Stone.

As previously reported, All Is By My Side documents Hendrix's period in England from 1966-1967 while he was gearing up for the release of his debut album. André 3000, who plays in Hendrix in the film, recorded covers that the musician performed during this time, including 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', 'Wild Thing', 'Hound Dog', Muddy Waters' 'Mannish Boy', and Elmore James' 'Bleeding Heart'. For these new recordings,  André 3000 teamed up with guitarist Waddy Wachtel (Keith Richards, Stevie Nicks), bassist Leland Sklar (Jackson Browne, Phil Collins), and drummer Kenny Aronoff (John Mellencamp) in Los Angeles.

Because the film focuses on Hendrix's 'pre-fame era,' producers did not feel it was necessary to approach the musician's estate. 'This is the story of Jimi being discovered as a backup musician and how he went to London and became Jimi Hendrix,' producer Sean McKittrick told Rolling Stone.

Principal photography for the film is expected to wrap this week, and producers then hope to take the film to Sundance in early 2013 for possible release next year. A soundtrack album featuring the André 3000-sung covers is also in discussion, reports Rolling Stone.

Video: Florence and the Machine ' 'Breaking Down'

By Alex Young on July 2nd, 2012 in Music Videos, News