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Well the time has finally come, Alex B, better known as Paper Diamond has finally released his long awaited Paragon EP. As we watched the release get delayed on this album multiple times the hype began to build and we all knew we were waiting on something special. Teaming up with everyone from Cherub to Protohype, Paper Diamond took it to the next level with this full 11 track EP that is an absolute amazing listen from start to finish. As Paper Diamond has branched out from his beginnings as a member of the Pretty Lights family he has maintained some of the PLM sound while really creating a specific set of his own sounds that seem more refined with each new release. A few of my favorites from the new EP are XIX feat the beautiful voice of Angela McCluskey, and of course Jus Like Clockwork a collabo with the LA breakout duo Cherub. Be sure to check out the whole EP below and show Paper Diamond and Elm and Oak some love for once again hooking it all up for free!
Yesterday Paper Diamond gave fans a treat with his track “Sleight of Hand”. What was originally supposed to be the day when Mr. Diamond (Alex Botwin) dropped his new EP Paragon, April 16th instead turned into a day when he released a B-Side Instrumental. “Sleight of Hand” was written in 2012 while creating Paragon and features something his old-school fans will be sure to vibe with. This track fuses Paper Diamond’s signature bouncy electronic beats with hip-hop elements for a fresh roll-your-windows-down banger. I know if I had heard this song without knowing who it was by, my guess would be Paper Diamond or someone in the Pretty Lights Music family – it just has that feel.
The Paragon EP will be available for free download next Tuesday, April 23rd. Make sure you grab it!
Speaking of Pretty Lights Music: it may have slipped under your radar, but Derek Vincent Smith released his latest track on Sunday the 14th. Called “Around the Block”, the soulful track features the vocals of Talib Kweli, who is hands-down one of my favorite lyricists past or present. While the beginning of the song rides on piano rolls and sounds that cause me to picture images of the sun setting, the 2:30 mark features a shift that heads towards a Dubstep-esque groove. This mood-boosting breakdown returns to the song’s original elements to wrap up the cut and to seal the deal on yet another awesome Pretty Lights track.
You can head HERE to download the track and other work by Pretty Lights’ artists.
Everything is perfect Everything just fine We keepin’ everything movin’ While the sun is shinin’
I was quite intrigued when I went on to my SoundCloud stream yesterday and saw a free release from Wick-It The Instigator and Eliot Lipp. While Wick-It operates out of his own independent camp and Lipp comes from the Pretty Lights Music family, both have a similar sound and style of downtempo Electronic music sprinkled with Hip-Hop influences (although both producers have material that spans the Electronic spectrum). Wick-It is especially rooted in Hip-Hop if you’ve ever heard any of his remixes or even his mash-up album of Big Boi and the Black Keys. With opening lyrics of “All my city dwellers from the Bay to the Bean”, this one really makes me yearn for the Summer as I plan to put my snapback real low, my windows even lower, and my volume extremely high. These guys consistently release music for free so make sure you show them some love in return for their awesome beats.
In case you missed Volume 1, here’s a little info about our newest segment Shuffle Sundays: So bhanna came up with this concept a little while ago but of course waited way too long to get it started. The idea behind Shuffle Sunday is this: whoever is running the post any given week will simply go through their iTunes on shuffle, sorting through all sorts of tracks spanning genres, older and newer, and find stuff we’ve never posted before or that we haven’t posted in a long time. We sift through a lot of music on a weekly basis and a lot of it ends up falling through the cracks. So the point here is to introduce you (and us) to some tracks that may have slipped under the radar and reintroduce us to some old classics. Sound off on our Facebook page if you really like it!
Back during my senior year of college (2010) I was just starting to really get into Electronic and Dance Music, but I didn’t necessarily have a favorite artist or know what direction to go in with my downloading and listening choices. When I was in Australia the year before, I had downloaded compilations such as Ministry of Sound Sessions and Clubbers Guide which proved to be great resources for all kinds of new music, mostly in the House realm. In a similar fashion, I had stumbled across the NYC-based Designer Drugs who are a prevalent force in the Dance Music world, but if you only pay attention to the mainstream you may not have heard of them. Their sound is grimy and unique and I’d probably most closely relate it to sounds of the Jack Beats. They released a remix compilation in 2010 and this week I rediscovered their remix of Treasure Fingers‘ “Cross the Dancefloor”. The original is a funky Nu-Disco tune and the Designer Drugs remix keeps some of that funk and adds a layer of grime to it. Check it.
In a complete musical 180, the next song I shuffled to was edIT’s “Laundry”. For those new to the program, edIT is a member of the Glitch Mob but he has released some of his own solo material. I had no idea who the Glitch Mob were until my first year at Electric Zoo in 2010. In an effort to become more familiar with them I had downloaded a discography of the group and each of their members. “Laundry” comes from the album Crying Over Pros for no Reason which was released in 2004 – a time at which I referred to all dance music as “Techno”, as most casual listeners do. The tune is very chilled-out and stays true to edIT’s Glitch-style roots. This is certainly nothing you’ll hear on the dance floor but it is a beautiful piece of work that you can tell had a lot of work put into it.
A huge lineup has been assembled to help celebrate the release of the newest Pretty Lights artist, Eliot Lipp, at Cervantes Masterpiece in Denver this Thursday. The show is also acting as a pre-party for that weekends’ River Beats festival at State Bridge. Also, performing will be a collaboration between members of the Motet, Big Gigantic, and Juno What!? (pretty amazing lineup for $15, if you ask me)! The show will be a double venue event featuring music for over five straight hours. For your chance to win FREE tickets, Like MMIBTY on Facebook and fill out the form – winner will be selected at random night before show!
Headliner Eliot Lipp has had a tremendously successful summer since signing with PLM label. He just played for a packed crowd at Camp Bisco this past weekend and has gigs lined up at Red Rocks in August (with Pretty Lights) and shares the stage with acts like Diplo and Zeds Dead at Electric Zoo in September. His album, Shark Wolf Rabbit Snake was released in May and has received rave reviews. This current tour is most definitely his coming out party!
Ever since I got to see Griz throw down when he opened up for the Colorado leg of Big Gigantic’s tour, I’ve been convinced that this guy has nowhere to go but up. When I first discovered him late last year, I referred to him as the “best PLM (Pretty Lights Music) artist not signed to PLM.” Since then, he has really adapted and evolved with “You Got To Change” and now his latest single “The Future Is Yours”. He has mixed his sample-laden glitch-hop style with a heavy dose of electro-soul and funk, bringing a truly inspired sound to the table. Once Griz joins the festival circuit, he’ll be unstoppable.
