Horace Andy & Ashley Beedle
Inspiration Information
Strut
Release Date: Out Now

Just released today is the second installment of Strut’s Inspiration Information collaborative series (the first saw Amp Fiddler paired with rhythm masters Sly & Robbie). This time, Studio One legend Horace Andy teamed up with producer Ashley Beedle, for a rhythm-heavy roots-meets-club reggae collection of tracks.

Inspiration Information
01 “When the Rain Falls”
02 “Watch We”
03 “Seek It”
04 “Rasta Don’t”
05 “Hypocrites”
06 “The Light”
07 “Angie”
08 “2 Way Traffic”
09 “Babylon You Lose”
10 “Hot Hot Hot”
11 “Festival Song”

MP3: “Babylon You Lose”

DJ Hell
Teufelswerk
Gigolo
Release Date: April 28

Generally intrigued by all things from the Netherworld, Gigolo Records boss DJ Hell has unveiled his latest album, and its title, Teufelswerk is German for “devil’s work.” So, naturally, the release is a brooding mass of angry electronics and ominously building compositions that dart between dark and light (as evidenced by the title of each disc) and channel moods fit for dreary Berlin winters.

Teufelswerk
Disc One – Night
01 “U Can Dance Feat. Bryan Ferry”
02 “Electronic Germany”
03 “The DJ” (Featuring P. Diddy)
04 “The Disaster”
05 “Bodyfarm2”
06 “Hellracer”
07 “Wonderland”
08 “Friday, Saturday, Sunday”

Disc Two – Day
01 “Germania”
02 “The Angst” & “The Angst Pt. 2”
03 “Carte Blanche”
04 “Nightclubbing”
05 “I Prefer Women To Men Anyway”
06 “Action (Interlude)”
07 “Hell’s Kitchen”
08 “Silver Machine” (Hawkwind Cover)

MP3: “The Angst Pt. 1”

Tim Hecker
An Imaginary Country
kranky
Release Date: March 9

Next week, we’ll get another offering from Montreal-based producer Tim Hecker, and if Hell’s the authority on sinister, Hecker is most definitely one of the masters of drone-ambient tunes. As with Hecker’s previous efforts (which span nearly a decade), An Imaginary Country combines lush electronics with abstract sound art and further lives up to the “cathedral ambience” label his work often garners.

An Imaginary Country
01 “100 Years Ago”
02 “Sea Of Pulses”
03 “The Inner Shore”
04 “Pond Life”
05 “Borderlands”
06 “A Stop At The Chord Cascades”
07 “Utropics”
08 “Paragon Point”
09 “Her Black Horizon”
10 “Currents Of Electrostasy”
11 “Where Shadows Make Shadows”
12 “200 Years Ago”

MP3: “Sea of Pulses”

K’NAAN
Troubadour
A&M/Octone
Release Date: Out Now

Putting many a gangster rapper to shame is Somalian-born K’NAAN, whose lyrical tales—which naturally concern his experience growing up in a civil war-torn country—border on heartbreaking at times. Troubadour is his sophomore release and sees guest appearances by Damian Marley, Mos Def, and Chali 2na.

Troubadour
01 “T.I.A.”
02 “ABC’s”
03 “Dreamer”
04 “I Come Prepared”
05 “Bang Bang”
06 “If Rap Gets Jealous”
07 “Wavin’ Flag”
08 “Somalia”
09 “America”
10 “Fatima”
11 “Fire In Freetown”
12 “Take A Minute”
13 “15 Minutes Away”
14 “People Like Me”
15 “Biscuit”

Video: “ABCs”

Featured Artist
Odd Nosdam
T.I.M.E. Soundtrack
anticon.
Release Date: Out Now

Under his Odd Nosdam guise, David P. Masdon has crafted yet-another album for the anticon. catalog. He’s also used the release to share his love of skate culture, as T.I.M.E. is both his latest full-length and the soundtrack to Element Skateboards’ This is My Element film. Madson tailored each track on the new album to fit the style of its respective skateboarder, and subsequently dabbled in all manner of styles, boom-bap, rock, and folk among them.

Masdon recently gave us some words on the process of scoring the film:

“The T.I.M.E. tunes were tailored to fit by watching the raw footage of each skateboarder. Kirk Dianda, the film’s director/editor, would give me basic notes on the style of music he wanted, stuff like “folksy & flowing boom bap” (for what became “Fly Mode”) or “fast and fun rock n roll” (“We Bad Apples”). While watching the raw footage, I [would] get a feel for the skater’s style and how to match it.

Tempo and melody were really important, and I was determined to keep everything sonically cohesive by strictly using the SP1200 sampler. Once I got the basics of a track down, I’d pass it on to Kirk, who loosely edited the raw footage to my music. I’d further tweak and embellish my tracks based on his edits. We went back and forth quite a bit, until I felt my tunes could stand on their own.”

Additionally, he laced us with a few clips from the film:

“Wig Smasher” with Tony Tave

“Top Rank” with Nyjah Huston

T.I.M.E.
01 “Zone Coaster”
02 “T.I.M.E. In”
03 “Cop Crush”
04 “We Bad Apples”
05 “Trunk Bomb”
06 “Top Rank”
07 “Fly Mode”
08 “Ethereal Slap”
09 “Root Bark”
10 “One for Dallas”
11 “Root Loop”
12 “Wig Smasher”
13 “T.I.M.E. Out”

Pictured: Tim Hecker.

MP3: “Fly Mode”