Sleeper Behind Every Mask

Sleeper (a.k.a. Carlos Ransom) began his career behind the turntables about a decade ago and has since added a range of bent, DIY instruments to his repertoire. On his second full-length album, Behind Every Mask, the one-man-band supports his lo-fi, fuzz-saturated musical space with a backbone of traditional hip-hop beats. The album is run-through with strange, but not necessarily out-of-place, samples of dialogue ranging from a woman ironically lamenting the invention of the drum machine on “Condition or Effect” to the distorted mumblings of a man over psychedelic shimmers on the complicated “Mr. Megatron.” The strongest track, “Witch Hunt,” places clinical dialogue over a compelling syncopated beat and layers of beautiful, speaker-melting reverb.

XLR8R’s Top 20 MP3s of March

February found XLR8R readers enthusiastic over melodic techno and electro, but the top 20 MP3 downloads for March were a little more varied in style, with leftfield hip-hop making a strong showing alongside ambient tracks, minimal ones, and beats made especially for XLR8R.

As always, keep up to date with XLR8R’s daily MP3s by subscribing to our MP3 RSS Feed, or bookmark our MP3 page.

Behold, the top 20 MP3s of March on XLR8R.com:

20 Andreas Tilliander – “Caught in a Riot Feat. New Moscow”
19 subtractiveLAD – “Through the Trees”
18 Circlesquare – “Hey You Guys”
17 Loer Velocity – “Seasonal”
16 dEbruit – “Look 22”
15 DJ Vadim – “Soldier”
14 Jesse Rose – “Toca Pra Mim Feat. Deize Tigrona (Radio Edit)”
13 SelfSays – “Partin Gifts”
12 DJ Koze – “The Spitzer Group”
11 Buraka Som Sistema – “Yah! Feat. Petty (The Count & Sinden Remix)”
10 Black Dice – “Glazin”
9 Kid606 – “Mr. Wobble’s Nightmare”
8 Kissogram – “Deserter (Shir Khan Remx)”
7 14KT – “Hihatspectations”
6 The Juan MacLean – “One Day (James Curd Remix)”
5 Fever Ray – “When I Grow Up (Lissvik Remix)”
4 Larytta – “The City Walls (Hrdvsion Remix)”
3 Machinedrum – “Late Night Operation Feat. Theophilus London”
2 The Presets – “If I Know You (Tania & Jori Version)”
1 Jel and Odd Nosdam – “Tune in an Afternoon”

Pictured: Kid606

Mexican Institute of Sound “Alocatel (Ad Rock Remix)”

With just a few days to go before his latest album, Soy Sauce, is released, Camilo Lara (a.k.a. Mexican Institute of Sound) hands over this track off the new release. Here, vintage Latin and modern electronics meet, often on playful middle ground.

Soy Sauce is out April 7.

Mexican Institute of Sound – Alocatel (Add Rock Remix)

School of Seven Bells Plots Tour

“Our music is so personal, I can’t believe anyone actually likes it,” ex-Secret Machines member Benjamin Curtis recently said of the music he—alongside the Deheza twins—makes as School of Seven Bells.

Curtis will have to get used to folks (particularly those in England, it seems) liking his music, as the band has been in high demand ever since the release of its Ghostly debut, Alpinisms. A world tour kept the three members occupied for a hefty chunk of 2008, and they’ll dart between the U.K. and Australia throughout April and May. No R&R looks to be on the horizon though, as further U.S. dates are scheduled post-Europe, where SSB will share the stage with psych-rock weirdoes Black Moth Super Rainbow.

Dates
04/07 Manchester, England – The Ritz *
04/08 Glasgow, Scotland – Queen Margaret *
04/09 Newcastle, England – Stage 2 @ Northumbria University *
04/11 Leeds, England – Metropolitan University *
04/12 Birmingham, England – Birmingham Town Hall *
04/13 Oxford, England – The Regal *
04/15 Bristol, England – Anson Rooms *
04/16 Brighton, England – Brighton Corn Exchange *
04/17 London, England – Sheperds Bush Empire *
04/23 Sydney, Australia – The Gaelic
04/24 Brisbane, Australia – The Zoo
04/25 Melbourne, Australia – The Corner
05/03 Leeds, England – Leeds Metropolitan University
05/04 Glasgow, Scotland – Queen Margaret
05/07 London, England – Heaven
05/08 London, England – Heaven
05/10 Minehead, England – All Tomorrow’s Parties
05/12 Norwich, England – Arts Centre
05/13 Sheffield, England – Harley
05/14 London, England ULU
05/15 Birmingham, England – The Rainbow
05/20 Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge ^
05/21 Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon ^
05/22 Minneapolis, MN – Triple Rock Social Club ^
05/25 Seattle, WA – Sasquatch Festival ^
05/26 Portland, OR – Holocene ^
05/28 San Francisco, CA – Bottom of the Hill ^
05/29 Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour ^
05/30 Costa Mesa, CA – Detroit Bar ^
05/31 Tucson, AZ – Rhythm Room ^
06/02 Austin, TX – Mohawk ^
06/03 Denton, TX – Hailey’s ^
06/04 Little Rock, AR – Sticky Fingerz ^
06/05 Nashville, TN – Exit In ^
06/06 Columbus, OH – Circus ^
06/12 New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom

* = w/ Bat for Lashes
^ = w/ Black Moth Super Rainbow

Photo by Elle Muliarchyk.

Daedelus “Off to the Races (Meanest Man Contest Remix Feat. Cuzzo)”

Onetime XLR8R cover star Daedelus produced the first release in the brand-new Friends of Friends series, and as part of the package, the L.A.-based lover of all things Victorian commissioned remixes from the likes of Michna, Eliot Lipp, Nosaj Thing, and others. Here’s Meanest Man Contest’s dance-meets-hip-hop take on the track “Off to the Races.”

Daedelus – Off to the Races (Meanest Man Contest Remix Feat. Cuzzo)

Douster “Ladinian (Ruff Mix)”

“It’s basically dinosaur music, the kind of music the first human beings would have done if they had an 808,” says Douster of the music on his upcoming EP. With that in mind, cumbia powerhouse Zizek’s most recent signee brings music inspired by images of Jesus, John Locke, tribal chants, and a few hand-bells.

Catch the entire crew on the Zizek North American tour, which kicks off in April.

Douster – Ladinian _ruff mix_

DOOM Born Like This

DOOM is an MF, no question. A self-described “supervillain,” his megalomania knows no bounds—luckily, neither do his rhyme skills. On Born Like This, the latest installment in the (now just) DOOM saga unfolds through alliterative lines laced with obscure in-jokes and superlative boasts. DOOM’s legionnaires include Raekwon, Tony Starks, Empress Starhh, and Kurious, and it’s a testament to the MC’s dopeness that every verse is damn near a hip-hop quotable, like this couplet from “Ballskin”: “He wears a mask so when he dons his face/Each and every race could absorb the bass.” As sublime as DOOM’s lyrics are, the music is equally unpredictable, whether referencing ESG’s “UFO” or new-school Dilla instros. Madvillainy, indeed.

Detroit Grand Puhbahs The Detroit Connection Pt. 4

The auto industry may be dying, but at least Detroit still has techno. The Pubahs are known for their weirdness, but they keep this mix album tight, moving quickly through 22 tracks in just over an hour. The compilation is actually an “enhanced DJ set” that includes live elements such as sax, vocals, and other music made during the mixing process. The song selection is a bit of a grab bag, as veterans like UR and 4Hero rub elbows with the barely-booze-age Benga and the Pubahs themselves, who contribute the previously unreleased “Blacula’s Drack.” Powered by a careening, driving energy, The Detroit Connection Pt.4 shows that Motor City isn’t done quite yet.

DVD Review: Colorfield Variations

The Color Field movement, defined by abstract canvases featuring broad fields of solid color, flourished in the post-war era of the 1940s and ’50s. Inspired by European modernism and closely mirroring the works of artists like Mark Rothko, Clyfford Still, and Barnett Newman, the Color Field movement was born when artists began to break away from the gesture and angst of abstract expressionism, opting instead to examine the subtleties of clear surfaces and pure color.

Fast-forward about 50 years to a new DVD released by Taylor Deupree’s minimalist label Line. The limited-to-1000 Colorfield Variations (Line; $22) takes Color Field’s central ideas and reinterprets them with stunning audio-visual mood pieces created by a host of critically acclaimed artists from all across the globe. Wonderfully assembled by curator and sound artist Richard Chartier, the DVD is an excellent way for viewers to absorb the Color Field movement from all spectrums—from the warm and milky deluge of vibrant oranges and reds bleeding into one another in Steve Roden’s 13-minute “Dark Over Light Earth” to the three-dimensional world of skittering neon blocks in Tina Frank and General Magic’s “Chronomops.”

The music accompanying each of the pieces comes from a wide array of experimental sounds, from drone and ambient to the clicks, gurgles, and pops of borderline-IDM. Ryoichi Kurokawa’s masterpiece “Scorch” blends blurred, origami-like geometry in pinks, pastels, and carnation colors to a fuzzy, ambient soundscape. Crinkly shapes multiply like bacteria on a microscope lens, crunching and fizzling as new transparent bodies dissolve and reappear over them.

“Chronomanic Redux,” by Throbbing Gristle members Chris Carter and Cosey Fanni Tutti, is another beauty, both aurally and visually. During the piece, a giant block of rich red inches down the screen to what sounds like an orchestra conducted by ghosts. As more classical-sounding instrumentation makes its way into the thick blanket of drone and whir, the red block becomes textured and flows like debris slithering across an ocean floor.

In college, I used to enjoy sitting in my dorm room on acid, staring at a blue TV screen while Roni Size or the Pi soundtrack boomed in the background. Colorfield Variations reminds me of those days, as it’s a great (non-narcotic) way to get lost in beautiful sights and sounds.

Buraka Som Sistema Hosts Dance Contest

Does the sound of kuduro make you want to move something? Well, Buraka Som Sistema is inviting you to shake what your mama gave you with your mama, along with the rest of your crew, for their “Sound of Your Community Dance Contest.” The contest intends to celebrate the music, dance and culture of Angola, in combination with other local cultures, by asking participants to create and submit videos showcasing their own community’s flavor to the tune of the group’s single, “Sound of Kuduro.”

To get involved, download the track here, flaunt your style in front of the camera with your friends, and then upload the finished product to Buraka Som Sistema’s YouTube group, where you can also find a more detailed description of the contest rules.

The winner will get to see his or her vid played on stage during the band’s North American tour. The runner-up will get a customized Buraka Som Sistema skateboard deck and autographed copy of the band’s debut album, Black Diamond.

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