Murder By Death is my latest discovery. Well, not really discovery, people have been telling me to check them out for years. But being the stubborn music elitist I am, I never listened to any of their records. But this week, I noticed that my rotation was pretty hip hop heavy. And that some diversity was much needed. Enter: Murder By Death.

Wikipedia describes their sound as, “punk rock…alt country…southern american…gothic.” On their website, they call themselves, “Americana noir and dramatic post-punk.” Honestly, I can’t describe their sound and would hate to try and label something so unapologetically beautiful.

Murder by Death is a quartet comprised of a vocalist/guitarist, cellist/keyboardist, percussionsist, and bassist. This makes for a totally unique sound. I am a huge fan of the cello, especially in contemporary music. And here it is epic, sweeping. Listening to any of one of their 4 albums is like watching a great piece of cinema.

Their lyrics are intelligent and thoughtful. Commenting on the ideas of good and evil, using religious imagery and drawing upon Dante’s Divine Comedy for inspiration, keeps you thinking and focused on the album.

There is nothing I like more than an intelligent, musically accomplished band. And Murder by Death is just that. They are slowly becoming my latest obsession. Please give them a listen, you will not be disappointed.

I usually try to make an album recommendation, but I really can’t in this case. Each album is great in it’s own way. The first one I heard was, Who Will Survive, And What Will Be Left of Them. And recently I’ve been really into, Like The Exorcist, But More Breakdancing. Here is their discography:

2002: Like The Exorcist, But With More Breakdancing

2003: Who WIll Survive, And What Will Be Left Of Them

2006: In Bocca Al Lupo

2008: Red of Tooth and Claw

And here is one of my favorite songs/videos, Until Morale Improves, The Beatings Will Continue, off their 2002 release.

This is another Adult Swim/Cartoon Network release. I first heard about this album during an episode of The Boondocks. At first, it sounds like southern rap at its best; superchill, smooth beats and laid back rhymes. It’s much in the vein of Outkast’s classic, Southernplayalisticcadillacmuzik. But as you delve deeper into the album, Witchdoctor’s skill becomes more evident. The Diary of an American Witchdoctor is more than just a filler, a stop-gap for one of Dungeon Family’s less commercially succesful members. It’s an incredibly intelligent album, one that reminds us of the true essence of hip hop. It’s just a shame artists like Witchdoctor, don’t get the same love as inferior southern hip hop “artists” like Flo Rida (I fucking hate that guy. It’s FLORIDA, you illiterate FUCK.)

This is my favorite track on the album, The Barrel (featuring The Wheeler Boys).

The Mouse and The Mask is what you get when you combine MF Doom, DJ Dangermouse and the Cartoon Network.

I’ve been a big fan of DJ Dangermouse for a while now. His critically acclaimed Grey Album, is criminally overrated (Check out The White Album, by Kno of Cunninglynguists, for the best Jay-Z Black Album remix of all time. It seriously puts Dangermouse to shame), but still a decent album. Overall, Dangermouse is a solid producer, up there with DJ Green Lantern as the best in the game. I especially liked his colabo with Jemini on Ghetto Pop Life (Great album that really flew under the radar, check it out if you haven’t heard it.)

I hadn’t listened to Petey Pablo’s debut album since college. But for some reason, I had the strange urge to hear Raise Up this week. As soon as I threw the album on, I remembered why this was THE riding record back in the day. We used to blast this out of the 87 Mustang all the time. Petey rides Timbaland’s beats better than anyone. The hooks are infectious and his flow is hot. If you haven’t heard this, it’s a must listen. If you remember it from your youth, redisocver it; it’s timeless.

I saw this movie a few days ago and was immediately impressed by the soundtrack. I’d never really listened to British Hip-Hop, except for The Streets. But everything I heard in Kidulthood was fucking raw and I’ve been bumping the soundtrack all week. Be sure to check out the movie and its sequel Adulthood as well.

Zoe Keating - One Cell x 16: Natoma

I heard about Zoe Keating through Twitter, from@bcompton. It’s an amazing album. If you’re into Neo-Classical music at all, definitely check her out. By the way, I’m slowly learning that Twitter is a great way to hear about new music or anything else for that matter. You can follow me on here.

DJ Shadow - Endtroducing…

This is probably the best album from one of best DJs and Trip Hop pioneers of all time. It’s hard to believe its been twelve years since this album dropped. If you haven’t heard it; stop reading. Leave your home. Buy it now.

Wu-Tang Clan - Soundtracks From The Shaolin Temple

Great compilation album from the Wu-Tang Family, featuring Jedi Mind Tricks and many others.

DJ Muggs/GZA - Grandmasters

Arguably the best lyricist to come outta Shaolin and DJ Muggs from Cypress Hill team up for Grandmasters. Muggs and GZA both bring their unique and immediately identifiable styles to this record. If you’re a fan of either of these guys, you’ll love it. It reminds me of DJ Muggs’ 1997 release, Soul Assassins Chapter 1, one of my favorite mixtapes.

Gravediggaz - 6 Feet Deep

Yet another Wu-Tang affiliate on my list this week. I love their dark lyrics and aggressive delivery. It’s like rap for metal fans.

p class=”paragraph_style_2”>brooklyn academy - bored of education

i read about these guys on a hip hop forum earlier this week. and was really surprised they managed to fly under the radar for so long. slick production and hard ass lyrics make bored of education a fucking banger. please check these guys out and show them some love. 

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p class=”paragraph_style_2”>bayside - the walking wounded

still trying to get the bad taste of shudder out of my mouth. this is a great album

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p class=”paragraph_style_2”>the airborne toxic event - the airborne toxic event

recommended to me by our film editor, the great white gypsy. it blows. really. really. really. bad. but i’m trying to find some redeeming qualities in this album. so far—no luck.

by far the best bone thugs album of all time. i decided to take it back this week.

So, who is Raine Maida?

Raine Maida is the lead singer of Our Lady Peace, a once great Canadian Alt-Rock band. Their 1997 release, Clumsy, is a perfect album in my eyes. Every track on that album could have been a single. In the 11 years since it’s release, it hasn’t once lost its place in my rotation. As for the rest of their work—it’s forgettable.

When I heard Maida was releasing a solo album, I was expecting old school Our Lady Peace style rock—big guitars, edgy vocals and great hooks. I was wrong.

From the first beat, The Hunters Lullaby grabbed my attention. Nothing was what I expected. The sound was fresh, different, something I hadn’t really heard before. Acoustic guitar, piano, strings, Hip Hop drum beats, exquisite harmonies. It seriously blew my mind. 30 seconds into the first song I stopped, grabbed my headphones and did nothing but listen to the album in its entirety.

Maida’s music is so creative and his vocals so unique, it is impossible to describe. But I shall try:

It’s almost what it would sound like if Leonard Cohen had started making music in 2008 instead of 1968 (Coehn is referenced in the opening track, Careful What You Wish For). Beautiful instrumentation and impeccable production with vocals that aren’t quite spoken word, not really Hip Hop, and just shy of rock—yet totally lyrically driven.

He’s obviously heavily influenced by spoken word poetry and Hip Hop throughout The Hunters Lullaby. (He even gives Saul Williams, one of my favorite poets of all time, a shout out.) Most of the tracks have a distinct Hip Hop beat to it. And contrasted against his acoustic sound, they evoke a kind of Roots feel to it, yet so much more interesting.

In all sincerity, this album is AMAZING. It is exactly the type of music sexy gypsy was meant to bring to your attention. I cannot put into words the feel of this album and how truly special it is. You have to listen to it. So I’ll end with this:

In Macbeth, Shakespeare says this about life …

“It is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.”

Raine Maida’s The Hunters Lullaby embodies this sentiment. It’s an album full of sound, full of fury that examines the futility of life through poetry.

I go through weird music phases. I’ll get into a genre for a couple weeks and try to get as many albums as I can. If you look at my ever-growing and obese iTunes library, arranged auto-biographically a-la High Fidelity, you’ll see blocks of 70’s R&B, Trip-Hop, Euro-Death Metal, Ambient Post-Rock, 90’s Hip Hop, Free Jazz and just about everything in between.

A few days ago, I was wandering about my collection and ran across a chunk of female singer/songwriters. Stuff like: St. Vincent, A Fine Frenzy, Regina Spektor, Fiona Apple and Patti Smith (if you haven’t heard Pissing in a River, it’s amazing, discover it.)

And with artists like these in mind, I set off to find a new artist to add to the collection. Scouring random blogs, YouTube and Pandora, I heard about Laura Marling.

An 18-year old English prodigy, known for her lyrics, Marling had a nice little buzz growing around her. Yet, her first band was Noah And The Whale, a boring, carbon-copy indie clone, who’s mediocre at best. So I wasn’t expecting much.

But somehow, Alas, I Cannot Swim manages to be an impressive solo debut. Incorporating soft, acoustic instrumentation and quality production (from Noah And The Whale lead singer, Charlie Fink), the album showcases her vocals and sets her apart in a familiar setting.

Musically, she generally limits herself to piano, guitar and the occasional string arrangement. Each track is distinct in style, if not overly developed. You’re No God hints toward to the slightest of country influences. While Night Terror starts with a standard three chord progression, and grows with a hypnotic guitar riff that’s almost drone rock in style. Though simplistic, it’s this minimalist approach that allows her to shine lyrically.

And it is with her lyrics that Marling really makes her mark. She speaks of loss and love, of death and of God. And she does so without any trace of the sophomoric poetry that discredits the entire Emo genre. And she accomplishes this at only 18.

That isn’t to say Alas, I Cannot Swim is without flaws. There are some filler tracks that just seem to fade into the background. The country-esque, You’re No God is dwarfed by the anthemic Night Terror and thoughtful My Manic and I. Musically there is a fine line between minimalist and overly simple. Throughout the album, Marling toes that line. It feels like some of her best work was left off the album. Her EP, My Manic and I, includes two songs—New Romantic and Typical—that are far better than most of what make the cut on Alas, I Cannot Swim.

All things considered, Alas, I Cannot Swim is a solid debut record. I highly recommend checking out the My Manic and I EP, as that is a condensed sample of her best work without the filler. I cannot wait to see what comes of Laura Marling’s career. At only 18, she has the potential to be great, once her musicianship catches up with her already mature songwriting.

Some of my favorite tracks:

p class=”paragraph_style_2”>one day as a lion - one day as a lion

zach de la rocha from rage and the ex-drummer from the mars volta. that alone warrants a listen. the opening track makes me want to hit things. 

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p class=”paragraph_style_2”>the mountain goats - get lonely

this is what it would sound like if the decemberists met ben folds and then had a super-imaginative kid who got fucked over by all womankind..yeah, that shit blows your mind. 

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p class=”paragraph_style_2”>charles mingus - epitaph

my favorite jazz composer and the best bassist ever to live. not as cool as the black saint and the sinner lady, but damn good in it’s own right. 

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p class=”paragraph_style_2”>slipknot - all hope is gone

haven’t given it a thorough listen, but so far it seems like their best since their groundbreaking self-titled debut. much better than the shit they’ve been putting out.