Lav's Music Corner

Review by Lav: KAYTRANADA is a Canadian DJ and electronic music producer that I've been a fan of for a long time. It really got started with his 2016 debut 99.9%  which was a car-radio staple of mine for years. The record had strong roots in dance music but expanded into the worlds of jazz and funk with a variety of excellent performances from special guests. His sophomore album BUBBA  was a much more straightforward embrace of dance music that still featured some stand-out moments, but didn't quite live up to the extremely high expectations I had for it.  His third album TIMELESS  lands somewhere in the middle. I want to get it right out of the way, Kaytranada's production and beats on this album are consistently very solid. The drums in particular, which are the key to my heart, pop off on most of the songs on this album. His knack for compelling grooves and interesting textures is as strong as ever. But this album is also much more willing to wander off course tha...

KAYTRAMINE is a new collaborative project from producer KAYTRANADA who garnered massive critical acclaim for his electronica meets psychedelic debut album 99.9%  in 2016. and Amine a Portland rapper whose smooth flows and charismatic delivery have been charming fans since around the same time.  Review by Lav: To me, this album was a slam dunk. On top of loving the lead single, it also set me up with expectations that KAYTRAMINE  would be a collection of endlessly summery hip-house bops from Kay and Amine. While the actual album itself certainly isn't bad, it doesn't achieve the measure of consistency I was hoping for nor the specific style I anticipated.  In the album's defense, it does get off to a pretty strong start. Alongside the lead single 4EVA  is a strong opening song in Who He Iz  and a harder-hitting banger than I was anticipating in Westside . letstalkaboutit  is pretty much exactly what I was hoping for from the album with a glistening sunn...

Late again, sorry I was on vacation, take some deep breaths and enjoy. 5.  Weedkiller  - Ashnikko I think Ashnikko might have out-Dorian Electra'd Dorian themselves this week. In what is easily my favorite single from this new Ashnikko era so far they're getting cutthroat and living up to the song's aggressive title. While it's mostly the strong hook that wins me over I also have to say some of the clever vocalizations and stretching of their range as a singer pay off big time.  Listen 4.  Fallin'  - Joey Bada$$ If you had Joey trying his R&B side out on your 2023 bingo card, you're probably well on your way to winning. You'd be in even better shape if you correctly predicted that the results would actually be kind of good. As is often the case with crossovers like these, the hook suffers with singing that is sufficient but needs a bit more to help sell it.  Ultimately, I'm kind of surprised the sound and sentiment of the song are pulled off so well ...

The Extended Play is either a dying breed with too few songs to rack up meaningful streams or it's the only place where you can discover authentically good indie music anymore. Depending on who you ask. The reality of it is while the EP is mostly dead in popular music save for a few artists who could release literally anything and their fans would listen, it is a thriving medium in the underground. Part of me hates doing this list because 10 years from now we will know about some great EPs from artists who will break out in the next few years and this list will look completely different. But for now lets indulge with artists we know are good right now and count down the top 10 EPs of 2021.  10. Lil Mariko  - Lil Mariko Lil Mariko garnered quite a bit of attention with her appearance on Dorian Electra's My Agenda  last year, but she was really just getting started. Her debut EP is a hyperpop meets hip hop meets metal fusion sort of like Poppy but with more rapped verses. A...

Time for a good old EP review. Aside from Clarence Clarity there hasn't been a ton of great EPs coming out recently but some artists I really enjoy have put their names beside short form projects and I'm excited to break them down.  Intimidated EP - Kaytranada I love Kaytranada. His debut album is still a major highlight of electronica in the 2010's and I'm planning on talking about the follow up in a video at some point in the next few weeks. Even some of the one off singles and collaborations he's dropped in the past two years have really connected with me so I was really excited to jump into this EP which features H.E.R, Thundercat and Mach-Hommy of all people. The first track is a warm blend of R&B and house that is easy on the ears, thought I can't help but wish a more capable vocalist than H.E.R was handling the song but that's a mostly minor issue. The next track is a big improvement starting with a killer instrumental that hangs all kinds of spac...