Jas Walton: Face the Facts

The candid wisdom of British philosopher (and Zen author) Alan Watts, preserved through his son Mark’s dedicated recordings, has now been set to music by New York-based musician Jas Walton—who’s played on tour with EMEFE, The Roots, Kronos Quartet and most recently performed at Luaka Bop’s William Onyeabor tribute shows at BAM. The resulting four-track EP Face the Facts: Words By Alan Watts (the first …

Kehlani: How That Taste

At just 19 years old, Bay Area singer/songwriter Kehlani evidently has had plenty of life experience, because her new track “How That Taste” is a perfectly balanced and wise song for the haters. With smooth vocals and some spacey vibes, Kehlani proves that the best revenge is success: “I’m way too real to stoop low / I’m too busy on the road / I’m too …

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A stunning guitar duet at TED 2015, Kendrick Lamar's powerful new record and more of what was in our headphones this week

Kendrick Lamar: To Pimp A Butterfly Kendrick Lamar’s new album has been hotly anticipated ever since he closed out the final episode of the Colbert Report with the anthemic line, “We don’t die, we multiply.” The wait is over a week earlier than expected, with Lamar dropping To Pimp a Butterfly late Sunday night. Spitting hyper-aware lyrics with his signature acrobatic flow, Lamar brings in …