A group that eats together, stays together — and it is clear that Radiohead are eating together, and their food is music. This live performance is perfect; to the point of not even sounding like a live performance but one that is orchestrated on a CD after months and months of practice, tweaking, and labour. Flawless.

The live footage below was recently filmed for a BBC special called From the Basement by producer Nigel Godrich, which originally started out as a podcast and was later to turned into a television series of in-studio performances featuring artists such as The White Stripes, Beck, and Gnarls Barkley, to name a few. Radiohead perform “Staircase,” doubling up on the rhythm with Portishead drummer Clive Deamer.

How often do we come across artists and think, “Why haven’t they blown up yet?!” What is it? Is it that Tawiah is a musical puritan not wanting to compromise her true self and her art? Or are the masses simply, but tragically deaf? After hearing Tawiah sanging in this live performance video, you will understand what I’m saying. No stranger to the business, she was part of Mark Ronson‘s touring live band, a backing vocalist for Corinne Bailey Rae, and has collaborated with a host of underground producers such as Maddslinky aka Zed Bias on his Make a Change album — a track entitled “Further Away” and then earlier this year, Maddslinky made 10 versions of the said track (if you missed that, you can check it out here). She also released an EP last year In Jodi’s Bedroom, (available on iTunes) which brought in traditional soul, funk, and alternative UK sounds, with gorgeous vocals laid over each track. On this live video below Tawiah shows off her power. Check it out.

Tawiah is giving away a free download on her website. So go pick up the single “Sweet Me.”

Back in January, we were put onto On-Point Records, based in Belgium, where we introduced these young guys by the name of Uphigh Collective which consists of Title and Delvis (if you missed it, you can check them out here). Now another duo comes from the label by the name of Jazz Neversleeps and JtotheC, with their 12″ single “Take Care of You.” This track has all the elements of a sleepy dubstep tune, but then these mellow vocals enter, turning it into an incredible vibe, making me miss D’Angelo even more. I wish I had more to tell you about these guys, but sometimes, you just have to let the music speak for itself. Check it out, then purchase from iTunes.

Jazz Neversleeps / JtotheC – Take Care Of You from On-Point TV on Vimeo.

Nikka Costa is no stranger to the music business, and did not enter mainstream consciousness until the release of her Everybody Got Their Something album back in 2001 — an album that was produced by UK producer Mark Ronson and her husband, Australian producer Justin Stanley. The title track and “Like a Feather” were hits in the US and were featured on soundtracks and ad campaigns. She hasn’t stopped working since then and released can’tneverdidnothin’ in 2005 and Pebble to a Pearl in 2008 to critical acclaim. Now with Pro*Whoa!, her 8th independent release, which is the first of a series of EP’s to expect from the funky soul singer. Pro*Whoa! delves into a more indi pop sound but keeping her signature Nikka Costa vocals in tact. Check out the “Nylons in a Rip,” which is available for free download on Facebook. Pro*Whoa! hit the stores today, and is available on iTunes.

“Nylons in a Rip”

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Check tour dates below to find out when she’ll be in your town!

Tour Dates
June
22- San Francisco, CA- The Independent
23- West Hollywood- The Roxy
24- San Diego, CA- Anthology
25- Hermosa Beach, CA- Saint Rocke

July
13- Philadelphia, PA- World Café Live
14- New York, NY- Highline Ballroom
15- Cambridge, MA- Middle East Upstairs
16- Baltimore, MD- Artscape Festival
17- Vienna, VA- Jammin Java

August
10- Bethlehem, PA- Musikfest Café
12- Portsmouth, VA- Ntelos Pavillion
13- North Myrtle Beach, SC- House of Blues
14- Atlanta, GA- Chastain Park Ampitheatre
18- Minneapolis, MN- Varsity Theater
20- Davenport, IA- River Roots Live
21- Chicago, IL- Lincoln Hall

Tanya Auclair is one of those quintessential artists, a non-conformist pushing themselves through boundaries to move out of comfort-zones. With the release of her debut EP last July, Thrum, which brought in sounds of the doowop and electronica with raw drum and guitar melodies, it was no surprise that she ended up collaborating with Tomatom the French aka Yult, with The Animal Inside back in February of this year. Now with the release of her second EP, Origami, where the themes take from the Ancient art form of the triptych, which is three-part panels of pictures or carvings placed together — in the instance of Origami — it is the stories about making (Origami), change, (Sverige) and chance (Fluke), basically describing Tanya‘s musical journey. Her use of the ukulele, a microkorg, bass, the mbira, and her voice, give us these uncanny sounds that are refreshing to hear during these times of over production. Check out “Fluke” short video below, which is directed by Eleni Savvidou, then head over to her Bandcamp page to get a free download. First 1000 downloads are free; so act now!

Tanya Auclair – Origami EP Trailer from Tanya Auclair on Vimeo.

Wow! When I see talent like this, makes me wish I had the ability to “make” music! Taking the Roy Davis Jr. soulful house all-time classic, “Gabriel” featuring Peven Everett on vocals, Tanya Auclair strips it down and builds it back up, turning it into a lullaby. In the video, directed by Will Hank, you get to see Tanya play the various musical elements as the track builds. I love the Radiohead-esque airiness towards the end.

Tanya Auclair will be releasing her new EP Origami on June 13th. Will keep you posted! In the meantime, check out her remix of “Gabriel.”

“I’m a recovering, undercover, over lover. Recovering from a love I can’t get over.” Such a revealing and vulnerable song on how the mind turns things around in ones head, till there’s no other way to describe the condition than it be an addiction one needs to kick. Donning a tattered nightdress and wild hair, Ms. Badu goes back to her contemporary dance roots in an abstract dance, as a form of recovery.  This woman would pop, break, and make it from scratch for him. As I always seem to end my posts on Erykah… I love this woman!

At first, hearing about Elzhi doing a tribute of Nas‘s Illmatic, I was dubious about the project. How can one do a reworking of what was, and still is, a perfect album? Illmatic was released the spring of 1994, when Nas was only twenty years old. 1994 was the year we received Notorious B.I.G.‘s Ready to Die, Gang Starr‘s Hard to Earn, Pete Rock & CL Smooth‘s Main Ingredient, Jeru the Damaja‘s The Sun Rises in the East, Digable Planet‘s Blowout Comb, Keith Murray‘s The Most Beautifullest Thing in the World, Craig Mack‘s Flavor in Ya Ear, Lords of the Underground, Organized Konfusion, to name a few. East Coast rap was alive and thriving. It hadn’t started drinking gin ‘n juice nor partying hard with Puffy and friends, as Jeru the Damaja rapped on “One Day.”

Elzhi has breathed more life into Illmatic with his tribute Elmatic, and in doing so, he has pushed himself lyrically and sonically, translating Nas‘s storytelling into stories of now, confined to Detroit streets and realism. Not taking anything away from the original, but magnifying musical arrangements by bringing live instrumentation. Elmatic is pure labour of love, produced entirely by funk fusion band Will Sessions, who have worked with Black Milk, Mayer Hawthorne, Slum Village, and Guilty Simpson.  The album has appearances by MC Royce da 5’9, Stokely Williams from Mint Condition, and also Pete Rock, who was one of the original producers of Illmatic alongside DJ Premier, Large Professor, Q-Tip, and L.E.S. All I can say, ”It’s Elmatic, shout outs to the homey, nah son, words from the wise one, make both your eyes run.” I often revisit Illmatic, and now I can include Elmatic to extend my Illmatic-isms. Get your Free Download right now! You’ll have it on heavy rotation!

“Genesis”

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“One Love”

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And check out the video for “Half Time.”

Here’s a little visual treat from our favourite New Zealand band, Electric Wire Hustle. The band’s longtime friend Vibol Moeung of Foxtree Studio in Wellington, ceased the opportunity to follow the band during their New York tour last fall. I was fortunate enough to see them live at the Sugar Cuts event at Haven in Brooklyn, which is also featured in the video vignette. The guys rocked, jammed, funked, jazzed it out! Everywhere they performed, the audience were left on a musical high. Electric Wire Hustle are a force; looking forward to their next project and for their next visit to NYC!

Electric Wire Hustle European Tour Dates
5 June – Coldpro Fest, Co Clare, Ireland
16 June – OTB Block Party 2011, Paris, France
17 June – The Red Bull Music Academy stage @ Sonar, Barcelona, Spain
23 June – The Pussy Parlure, Glastonbury, UK
24 June – Magic Bubble, Glastonbury, UK
26 June – Wow! Stage, Glastonbury, UK
10 July – The Garden Festival, Zadar, Croatia
15 July – The Melkweg, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
16 July – Dour Festival, Belgium
17 July – Colours Of Ostrava, Ostrava, Czech Republic
22 July – Boogie Brain Festival, Szczecin, Poland
31 July – Applesap Festival, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
4 August – Stadtmusik Festival, Basel, Switzerland
5 August – The Big Chill, UK
6 August – Fasching Jazz Club, Stockholm, Sweden

Back in March, we put you on to the sounds of Mar and his variations, with “Variations 1 + 2“, which were a combination of smooth new soul fused with jazz, and the grit of dubstep. The third variation is provided by DC producer Oddisee, a track of the same title taken from his West Coast Beat album. Though the music remains in its original form, the addition of Mar‘s vocals turn it into something deliciously sexy, as he dedicates the song to “the hard working girls” out in the world. Check out the equally sexy and suggestive video below and get your free download of the track HERE!

If you need to let off steam, then a Game Rebellion show is where you should go. These guys are never short on energy — it comes through in their music and even more in their live performance. Hitting us with their latest video, “Blood” which is directed by visual artist and clothing designer, Artful Dodger, whose visual concepts pull the audience into New York’s Ghetto Metal life. Kind of cool seeing a few familiar faces sprinkled about. Check it out!

Got to give it to J*DaVey on this video!! “Raincheck” being one of my favourite tracks off the The Evil Christian Cop mixtape, due to its staple J*DaVey dose of sexy. Although Brianna sings about wanting a rain check, the visuals, directed by John Mazyck, is quite to the contrary. Let’s just put it this way, it looks like a successful “leg over”; no preceding walk of shame. Love these guys!

The Afro-European princesses Hélène and Célia Faussart of Les Nubians have returned with their highly anticipated third album, Nü Revolution which is deeply rooted in their ancestral sounds of love, liberation, and expressions of freedom. They call this album a celebration of life where the focus of the songs are to spread joy during our times of uncertainty. And this album does just that. It is their most sexiest and most danceable album to date, touching on themes of love, life and freedom, yet staying true to their original Afrobeat sounds. In fact, the collaborations on Nü Revolution are most impressive, including African music legend Manu Dibango on the remake of “Makossa,” calling it “Nü Soul Makossa“; indie soul icon Eric Roberson on “Déjà vu“; Ghanian-American MC Blitz The Ambassador on “Les Gens“; South African pop stars Freshly Ground on “Africa For The Future“; and Polish MC John Banzaï on “Veuillez Veiller Sur Vos Rêves.” What is so striking about Les Nubians is, while they sing mostly in French, it doesn’t hinder appreciation — the music and vocals translate into emotive and delicious feelings. From start to finish Nü Revolution is a celebration of life and living, and more importantly, Africa. Below is a medley of some of the songs from the album, which can be purchased on iTunes, Amazon, or any online retailer of your choice.

Les Nubians – Nü Revolution Snippets

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And watch the ladies do their “Afrodance” in their new video below!

Les Nubians have a pretty tight schedule next month, with a date in New York, next week. Go and see them, if they’re in your city!

Tour Dates:
April 29 – New York, NY @ BB Kings
May 11 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
May 12 – Minneapolis, MN @ Dakota Jazz Club
May 13 – Minneapolis, MN @ Dakota Jazz Club
May 14 – Chicago, IL @ The Shrine
May 17 – Seattle, WA @ The Triple Door
May 18 – Seattle, WA @ The Triple Door
May 19 – San Francisco, CA @ Yoshi’s (2 shows)
May 20 – San Francisco, CA @ Yoshi’s (2 shows)
May 21 – Los Angeles, CA @ Conga Room
May 22 – San Diego, CA @ Anthology
May 24 – Santa Cruz, CA @ Kuumbwa Jazz Center (2 shows)

One of the strongest songs on the Airtight’s Revenge album, “Little One“, which afforded Bilal his first Grammy nomination for the said song, which is a tribute to his son, who is diagnosed with Autism – a developmental disorder that affects the brain and can make communicating and interacting with other people difficult. When one sings from the heart, the rewards can be nothing but great. A beautiful song that is rooted in pure love. Check it out below.

“Dancing” instantaneously has gotten me geared up for London Carnival. This song will be played on every corner by every sound system, and everybody will be forced to whine their waists up. It’s that tune! Omar has been doing quite a few collaborations, and we’re all waiting in anticipation for a new album from the brother — his last solo release was in 2006! It’s time! Omar and Zed Bias (a.k.a Maddslinky) are a great combination together. Last summer they brought us “Special” and with “Dancing” they go deeper in the afro-Caribbean beats, bringing in elements of danceable grime. “Dancing” will be available on Tru Thoughts Records as part of a limited run on vinyl on May 9th, and then digitally from June 27th, 2011 – the summer kick off tune! Additionally, Tru Thoughts Records will be releasing Omar‘s classic album Sing (If You Want It), which features the legendary Stevie Wonder, Angie Stone, Common, and Estelle, with “Dancing” as the bonus track. So if you don’t own it, you’ve got a special treat!