"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

11/of montreal/white is relic/irrealis mood

he fell in love and he got woke. he got "very inspired by the extended dance mixes that people used to make for pop singles back in the ‘80s". the "really intricate and interesting longer versions that wouldn't get played on the radio and could only be heard in the clubs". he was "inspired by James Baldwin’s writings regarding the creation and propagation of a toxic American White identity"; became fascinated with irrealis moods, "the linguistic indicator that something isn't yet reality but does have the potential to become so". and then he returned to the lab. and he cooked. and then he delivered. he came thru with them grooves; sparked a personality flair. he let his newfound wokeness and lust for life, as well as his beating heart, stretch out his slick indie disco and inform his melodies, "breeding a style nobody would wear". he let the songs exceed five and a half plus minutes, with three of them exceeding seven, each pulsating with life throughout, begging you to get up off that thang. he maintained his charm and kept his wit while letting himself become a slave to the rhythms. he spun this dj set and got the party started cause a release is often needed in such trying times, and what better place than the dancefloor to escape and get away? so he came thru with them grooves, woke and in love. no anger, not as fragile as before, with a newfound lust for life, white is relic/irrelais mood is kevin barnes at his finest, with a spring in his step and so many grooves in his heart.


KEY TRACKS:

paranoiac intervals/body dysmorphia



writing the circles/orgone tropics




sophie calle private game/every person is a pussy, every pussy is a star!



12/drinks/hippo lite

13/kanye west/ye

14/blood orange/negro swan

15/rosalía/el mal querer

16/mountain man/magic ship

17/anderson .paak/oxnard

18/jack white/boarding house reach

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar

23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

11/mariah carey/gtfo



12/childish gambino/this is america

13/kanye west, ty dolla sign, & ant clemons/all mine

14/lizzo/boys

15/dirty projectors/break-thru

16/of montreal/paranoiac intervals/body dysmorphia

17/st. vincent/savior (piano version)

18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz

19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

12/drinks/hippo lite

on their second album together, cate lebon and tim presley take us away to an intimate art rock wonderland. a place where jaunty, and often times chaotic and ramshackle ditties bump up against sparse and gorgeous bare bones instrumental compositions that play like mood pieces. with hippo lite, the post punk duo create a beautiful wall of sounds, treating each song like a collage whose separate parts come together to form a finished product that plays like it was created to soundtrack some far off fantastical land in the great beyond. for little more than a half hour, cate and tim take us to the inner depths of their creative and whimsical abilities, leaving us in a state of wonder and atmospheric bliss at this trip's end. an all around fantastic voyage.

KEY TRACKS: 

real outside



greasing up



you could be better



13/kanye west/ye

14/blood orange/negro swan

15/rosalía/el mal querer

16/mountain man/magic ship

17/anderson .paak/oxnard

18/jack white/boarding house reach

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar

23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

12/childish gambino/this is america



13/kanye west, ty dolla sign, & ant clemons/all mine

14/lizzo/boys

15/dirty projectors/break-thru

16/of montreal/paranoiac intervals/body dysmorphia

17/st. vincent/savior (piano version)

18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz

19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

13/kanye west/ye

“I think this is the part where i am supposed to say something good to compensate it...”

the free form spoken word thought experiment that is “i thought about killing you".

the auto tuned church moans.

that "PRRT-PUM-PUM-PUM!" 

the club banging paranoia of ”yikes”.

his delivery of “just a different type of leader we could be in north korea i could smoke with wiz khalifa”.

the jokes and the one-liners.

"CALM DOWN YOU LIGHT SKINNED----"

all two and a half minutes of  "all mine" 

the controlled chaos, and how the album has a no fucks given attitude while also being deadly serious at the same damn time.

the late in the game home run that is “ghost town”.

how, even with only 25 minutes and 7 songs, he still made sure it was anchored by an opening track and a closing track that feel like opening and closing tracks;

and, that the project feels whole despite its short running time.

this year kanye talked like he drank all the wine, and was on that 1-2–3–4-5. he wore some things and said some things that gave many of us something to frown or make a face at as his most beautiful thoughts resided beside the darkest. and since "my beautiful dark twisted fantasy" was taken, he let everything coalesce here, with ye. 

ye is a few minutes of that crisp, booming sonic wizardry behind the boards and in front of the mic (mixed with a strong assemblage of collaborators) that we’ve come to know and love from mr. west (with a lot less lyrical activism, okay. sure).

a shot of ye, still testing you, still ridiculous, still giving you a reason to tilt ya head back and vibe with him when you press play.

and in kanye's two thousand eighteen, it was a reminder that was much needed. 

KEY TRACKS:

i thought about killing you

yikes

all mine

14/blood orange/negro swan

15/rosalía/el mal querer

16/mountain man/magic ship

17/anderson .paak/oxnard

18/jack white/boarding house reach

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar

23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

13/kanye west, ty dolla sign, & ant clemons/all mine



14/lizzo/boys

15/dirty projectors/break-thru

16/of montreal/paranoiac intervals/body dysmorphia

17/st. vincent/savior (piano version)

18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz

19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

14/blood orange/negro swan

bring hope when you come around.
still smile when you come around.

i feel seen.
am given a reminder that I belong.

with you, i feel this and we reconnect again.
brotha to brotha, man to man.
as we are.

no one wants to be the odd man out at times, so we just be.

you just be.

negro swan, breaking the act.

(“relax your hair. tuck your shirt. put your glasses on...”)

 as you are.
 here in your field, all the way up.

devonte.
dev.
nappy wonder.

blood orange.

your skin’s a flag that shines for us all.
the charcoal babies,
the niggas feelin’ themselves,
those whose internal resolution is to do too much, because,

“why would you want to do the least?...”

so you don’t.
and you break the act. armed once again with those dreamy, top of the line grooves and that crushed velvet, funk laced down-tempo r&b that is your trademark.
swathed in black excellence, lifting every voice to sing and be seen;
be reminded that you belong.

devonte.

nappy wonder.

negro swan. 

KEY TRACKS:

jewelry



charcoal baby



holy will



15/rosalía/el mal querer

16/mountain man/magic ship

17/anderson .paak/oxnard

18/jack white/boarding house reach

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar
 
23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

14/lizzo/boys



15/dirty projectors/break-thru

16/of montreal/paranoiac intervals/body dysmorphia

17/st. vincent/savior (piano version)

18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz

19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

15/rosalía/el mal querer

on el mal querer, the 25 year old creative spanish force that is rosalía provides us with a thrillingly masterful pop record that is rooted in flamenco with slight touches of r&b. presented in vibrant technicolor with our heroine standing proudly (as she should) at the center of it all, el mal querer is a captivating showcase of the tour de force vocal presence and ingenuity of ms. rosalía. throughout the album's run she, as a student and lover of flamenco, bends the genre to her will, mashing it with other musical flavors while staying true to flamenco's essence and dramatic flair (and the rumors are true : “de aqui no sales (cap 4 : disputa)” is straight flames & exemplifies this blend beautifully, as does “bagdad (cap.7 : liturgia)” with its gorgeous “cry me a river” call out and flip). el mal querer, like the woman behind it, is larger than life, and dances with the past while innovating and moving forward through the here and now.

KEY TRACKS:

malamente (cap.1: augurio)



de aqui no sales (cap 4: disputa)



bagdad (cap.7: liturgia)



16/mountain man/magic ship

17/anderson .paak/oxnard

18/jack white/boarding house reach

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar
 
23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

15/dirty projectors/break-thru



16/of montreal/paranoiac intervals/body dysmorphia

17/st. vincent/savior (piano version)

18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz

19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

16/mountain man/magic ship

mountain man’s magic ship is a thirty five minute long player that finds beauty and comfort in its simplicity and the joy of the little things. with magic ship, the ladies of mountain man offer up a quiet, radiant collection consisting of nothing more than the majestic vocal harmonies of the ladies who make up the trio, a guitar, or an occasional toe tap along beat that lets a little more light in. it's slow burning folk from amelia meath, molly erin sarlé, and alexandra sauser-monnig, comprised of a vocal and acoustic warmth that calls to mind linda, lucinda, and emmylou. brimming with life, it's a soothing voyage that moves your spirit while warming your soul.

KEY TRACKS:

baby where you are



rang tan ring toon



boat



17/anderson .paak/oxnard

18/jack white/boarding house reach

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar
 
23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

16/of montreal/paranoiac intervals/body dysmorphia



17/st. vincent/savior (piano version)

18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz

19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

17/anderson .paak/oxnard

i remember hearing "the bird" from his previous album while cooking and listening to kcrw and going "oh?" ("...what's this?..."), taking a few moments to let it all soak in before eventually catching the beat and being like "okay. i see/feel you" with my words and my body.

i remember seeing him live for the first time a few years back outdoors at the fyf festival, watching him bounce effortlessly from leading behind a drum kit to mic stand to rapping and soul singing messiah, the entire field in the palm of his hands, and going "oh? okay. i see/feel you" with my words and my body.

and i remember playing oxnard for the first time and slowly getting swept away in the perfect recreation of that west coast sound and attitude that ruled my airwaves and formative years as a young black kid in 1990s south central, l.a. and going "oh? okay. that's what's up."

with each encounter i find myself further in awe of the fully formed stage presence, craft, and studio output of anderson .paak. and with oxnard my marvel game does not let up. oxnard is the sound of an artist in his lane and in the zone. it's a relaxed and assured set that likes to ride out and coast, settling into its grooves comfortably, particularly in the latter half of the album which vibes and plays like a loose live set featuring the finest funk and jazz session players. it nods its head and takes its cues from dre & snoop, quik & pac, "coltrane with the cobain", parliament, & curtis "super fly" mayfield.  it's that "crack music!" "top tier!" "this shit (that) gon bang at least six summers." and when you press play and take a stroll through anderson's oxnard you can't help but sit back, marvel, and go "oh. okay. i see you", and agree.

KEY TRACKS: 

headlow



6 summers



smile/petty




18/jack white/boarding house reach

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar
 
23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

17/st. vincent/savior (piano version)



18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz

19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

18/jack white/boarding house reach

we were in that wherehouse record store on third and la cienga (i think), browsing and carousing, getting our high fidelity on when all of a sudden a joyful noise burst through the speakers. an employee was bumping a newish release on shuffle, in the mix for the whole store to hear. the vocals were warbled, and the track sounded like it was recorded underwater, but it worked. stopped me in my tracks. of the past, but now; and, above all else, delightfully weird. it was the white stripes. white blood cells, to be exact. track twelve : "aluminum". that brief moment of wonder would go on to start a still ongoing love affair with the delightful weirdness and craftsman like musicianship of mr. jack white. like the best white stripes joints, boarding house reach is a journey into the inner depths of jack white's musical neuroses and vast vaudevillian and bluesy record collection. it's proggy and adventurous, nodding to the arena rock bombast of the 70s, while also sliding in a little room to get funky and bombastic a la a james brown or queen (see that stunner of an opening three tracks: "connected by love" + "why walk a dog?" + "corporation"). of the past, but now. and above all else, delightfully weird while making you stomp your feet. make it funky? don't mind if he does.

KEY TRACKS:

why walk a dog?



corporation



over and over and over



19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar
 
23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

18/nicki minaj/barbie tingz



19/robyn/honey

20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

19/sons of kemet/your queen is a reptile

their queen is not your rhythms or melodies. she is not your monarchy or statutes of limitations. their queen is mother africa, music from the islands, that jazz, and the afrobeats. she is the joyful noise released from the creative minds of these british immigrants, still here, still grinding, hustling and striving (enemies eat the cake!). their queen is defiant and confrontational. she is ada. she is angela. she is nanny of the maroons. and her strength, poise, and black sense of self is the underlying force behind these urgent and dizzying jazz compositions. she is “not here for the racist claptrap” and is here “to take the country forward”, one groove at time, united in these wordless statements. she is headstrong and stands tall, still here in these minds like a diamond, all gas and all fury.

your queen?

a reptile, who has no choice but to stay low and bow before greatness as they go high. 

KEY TRACKS: 

my queen is ada eastman




my queen is harriet tubman





my queen is nanny of the maroons



20/the carters/everything is love

21/christine and the queens/chris

22/young fathers/cocoa sugar
 
23/pusha t/daytona

24/kurt vile/bottle it in

25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

19/robyn/honey



20/jack white/corporation

21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know

"...got me in my feelings." : the albums, 2018.

20/the carters/everything is love

he good on any MLK BLVD. and her? she’s good everywhere she go. J & B, happily in love. and this? this that luxury trap hop & R&B. that luxuriate in the riches and joy that is us and this here boss ass life of being unbothered. he good. she good. the family good; for now, and well into the future (“that’s a lot of brown children on your forbes list!”). everything is love. and the comfort that comes with such a declaration colors every avenue of this brief and breezy surprise set from she & him sitting at the mountaintop where everything is in the pocket, and can’t nobody tell you nuthin or stop your shine. it's hova & beezus and the sweet sounds of success. watch the throne.

KEY TRACKS:
 
apeshit 



boss



nice





21/christine and the queens/chris


22/young fathers/cocoa sugar

 
23/pusha t/daytona


24/kurt vile/bottle it in


25/serpentwithfeet/soil

"...got me in my feelings." : the songs, 2018.

20/jack white/corporation



21/mountain man/rang tang ring toon

22/drake/nice for what

23/the voidz/pyramid of bones

24/azealia banks/anna wintour

25/pusha t/if you know you know