Gang Starr: Bad Name

Unlike many posthumous releases—particularly those within the hip-hop genre—Gang Starr’s One of the Best Yet neither stretches the late Guru’s raps too thinly, nor gives in to sentimentality. The duo (Guru aka Keith Elam, and DJ Premier aka Christopher Martin) was founded in the late ’80s and is widely considered one of the most influential rap groups ever (despite lack of broad commercial success). From the record, “Bad Name” blends Premier’s signature style (using short samples and plenty of boom-bap) with Guru’s effortless vocals. Premier started working on the album (apparently with Guru’s urn in the studio) in 2017, some 14 years after the duo disbanded and seven years after the rapper passed away. The 16-track album is officially released tomorrow.

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Thom Yorke: Last I Heard (…He Was Circling The Drain)

Composed of more than 3000 hand-illustrated frames, the otherworldly black-and-white video for Thom Yorke’s “Last I Heard (…He Was Circling The Drain)” employs various animation techniques (including 16mm and 3D) to set a song of isolation to life. Director Saad Moosajee and Brooklyn-based experimental studio Art Camp looked to Yorke’s lyrics and the visuals of frequent Radiohead artistic collaborator Stanley Donwood for inspiration. As Art Camp …

Toro y Moi: drip bounce _ 7_24_18

From Toro y Moi’s lo-fi mixtape Soul Trash (which initially debuted as raw files on Dropbox), “drip bounce _ 7_24_18” fuses bluesy guitar with textural drums and vulnerable vocals. While clearly recognizable as Tor y Moi (aka Chaz Bear), the song feels like the beginning of something—the title perhaps offering insight into future tracks or versions. While the tune and Bear’s vocals are laidback and …