Monday, May 10, 2010 at 5:25PM 
June 21st – London Forum, London UK
June 23rd – Manchester Academy, Manchester UK
Can’t miss them this time round. NaS & Damian the month after too.
Expensive Summer ahead.
Uncategorized in Aside Friday, May 7, 2010 at 10:15PM If you have spoken to me in the past month, then I am sure you already how excited I have been to hear and write about this album in full - so when it arrived in my Inbox today; it’s safe to say that it made my day, week, month and year. It was a slightly strange feeling listening to the album as a whole for the first time, because it feels as though I have had some of the songs for years now. However; saying that - I truly believe that this is one of the most enjoyable first listens I have experienced in a very long time.
When I first heard about the project last year, I made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t judge/compare any of this album on material that they have both released throughout their solo careers. If you are going into this expecting an ‘Illmatic Part 2’ sprinkled with some choruses from Damian, or a ‘Halfway Tree Vol. 2’ featuring a couple of verses from NaS then you will be extremely disappointed - this is SO much more. It is important that you have an open mind when you click play for the first time, because they have both created a quite spectacular new sound that has never been done before.
Opening with the thumping 1st single ‘As We Enter’; you automatically forget that you’ve actually had half of the album in your iTunes for the past 3 months. The timeless element is evident throughout, making each and every song feel just as special as the first time you listened to them. Most of the time it is possible to pick a couple of stand-out tracks; however that’s an impossible task for an album of this quality. Every time I heard a new leak from the album, I thought I must have heard the best song on the album; I was VERY wrong - in fact, I personally think the two best songs on the album are part of the 4 that most people are still yet to hear.
2010 is starting to become a ridiculous year for Music and I am starting to worry about how hard it’s going to be compile my Top 10/20 of the year. There are 3 albums that have stood out for me so far, and they have been: Special Kind of Fool, New Amerykah, Pt. 2 and Plastic Beach - however; Distant Relatives is genuinely one of the best albums I have heard from the last 10 years. It wouldn’t surprise me if it is an album that I look back on in 40 years time and call it one of the best ever. It’s a revolutionary piece of art and touches on matters that people have never dared to before. Perfect is a word that I very rarely use, but I believe that this album is more than perfect. I genuinely couldn’t have wished for anything more.
Below is ‘In His Own Words’, which features Damian’s brother Stephen - personally my favourite song on the album (absolutely stunning). Distant Relatives is released on May 18th and you can Pre-Order HERE from Amazon - all the other links you need are on the Official Site.
If you don’t usually buy Music, then I think you should change your ways and support an album that is going to change many peoples’ lives.
Friday, May 7, 2010 at 5:59PM Deepest Cuba, is taken from UK producer Diesler’s upcoming album Tie Breakers, which is coming out as a joint release from Dutch label Social Beats and German label Unique Records on 4th June.
Imagine the infectious instrumentation of recent Quantic material and the dancefloor stylings of Mr Scruff - this is what you can expect from Diesler’s latest effort. Ultimately the album is extremely tight and combines fantastic layers of brass, keys and electronic elements with solid beats. Fantastically constructed tracks that would be just at home on your headphones as they would in a club.
Something that excites me massively is the fact that he has got Laura Vane and Linda Bloemhard on board who have provided vocals for the likes of The Streets, MJ Cole and Kraak & Smaak. If nothing else; this will be the perfect Summer Soundtrack.
FUNKATHON!
Uncategorized in Aside Friday, May 7, 2010 at 2:22PM First of all; here is the cover for the new album and the final tracklist that you have all been waiting for:
1. From Space
2. Won’t Go Quietly
3. Watch The Sun Come Up
4. Time Machine
5. Something In The Water
6. Last Ones Standing
7. Millionaires
8. Two Lives
9. Kickstarts
10. Sick Note
11. Dirty Face
12. Hooligans (VIP MIX)
13. See The Sea
14. Won’t Believe The Fools
You can pre-order NOW at play.com or you can wait till next week, when it will be available to pre-order from HMV or iTunes.
There’ll be a Bonus Disc on the HMV release which will feature ‘LOUD!’ as a bonus track and 6 exclusive remixes. iTunes will have a Bonus Edition of the album which will include the long overdue release of ‘Girl Can’t Dance’.
For now, you can download a free new song, called ‘All Over Again’ HERE.
Massive 2 months.
Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 9:01PM To say that I have been eagerly anticipating this album would quite possibly be the understatement of the century. Since getting my copy of ‘Blackstar’ in 2005, I have become a HUGE fan of Yahzarah and followed her journey to where we find ourselves today - The Ballad of Purple St. James is the next step in a rather understated, yet quite incredible career. I have to admit that I do love an over-exaggeration every now and again, but I don’t think anyone can deny the fact that this woman has one of the most pure and unique voices in Music today. If you don’t believe me, then you clearly haven’t listened to this album yet.
For me; The Ballad of Purple St. James is the Female equivelent of Maxwell’s 2009 release ‘BLACKsummers’night’ - granted their stories are incomparable, but from the outset it is clear that they are both special albums for a genre that has had more downs than ups throughout the last 3-4 years. Outstanding vocals, flawless production and exceptional lyrics are something that are rare to find in all types of Music; however Modern R&B/Soul is a genre that has been heavily criticised by many for lacking in all 3 areas. Thank God we have The Foreign Exchange.
Along with FE’s 2nd album ‘Leave It All Behind’, Nicolay has given us ‘City Lights Vol. 2: Shibuya’ and this album could be seen as the 3rd part of a spectacular trilogy, which has made people stand up and realise the importance of creating Music that comes from the heart and soul. I think the 1st single ‘Why Dontcha Call Me No More’ was a slightly strange choice, as it wasn’t one of the stand out tracks for me. However; there isn’t a song on the album that I didn’t enjoy, and as a whole it gives you a sense of warmth and happiness inside when listened to from start to finish. The two features (Phonte & Darien Brockington) add something special to the album, without taking the emphasis away from Yahzarah’s extraordinary vocal talents, which is something that made me very happy. Too many people overload albums with unnecessary features and you lose track of who’s album you are actually listening to - The Foreign Exchange have a knack of getting it absolutely spot on.
I am by no means saying this is the best album you will ever listen to, but it’s definitely got the timeless factor, which could well make it one of the best albums I have listened to by a female artist in the last 10 years. Yahzarah and Erykah Badu are two artists I think very highly of and I am so thankful that they have provided us with two masterpieces this year. Below is the link to buy the album from iTunes and a stream of the incredible duet with Darien Brockington called ‘All My Days’. If you want real music, then you need look no further than here. Next is Zo!’s album, followed by The Foreign Exchange in October. H’exciting!
P.S. the cover is RIDICULOUS!
Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 6:20PM Here’s the video for Travie’s latest single ‘Billionaire’, which is on the upcoming album ‘Lazarus’ (dropping June 8th) - not the most inspiring video ever, but it does the job.
Also; a new track from Bruno Mars’ new EP for you (DOWNLOAD), which features Cee-Lo Green and B.O.B.
Gotta say - I really like this Bruno Mars fella and this song sounds like his LP could be one to look out for in the next year or so.
Massive Summer vibes.
Uncategorized in Aside Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 5:47PM 
1. NaS & Damian Marley - Friends
2. Curtis Young - Musik
3. Yahzarah - Cry Over You (Feat. Phonte)
4. Eminem - Not Afraid
5. NaS & Damian Marley - My Generation (Feat. Lil Wayne & Joss Stone)
6. Gorillaz - Superfast Jellyfish (Toddla T Remix)
7. Beckers & Gabe - Hell’s U (Original Mix)
8. Cee-Lo - I Want You
9. NaS & Damian Marley - Africa Must Wake Up (Feat. K’naan)
10. Jay-Z & Ritchcraft - U Don’t Know
As you can probably tell; I think the NaS & Damian Marley is gonna be something special.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 4:27PM Uncategorized, Video Tuesday, May 4, 2010 at 12:01AM Today is the birth date of the Soul Godfather himself, James Brown, and with Summer fast approaching; I have tried to encapsulate the funk legacy he left behind with the vibe that Summer gives me in a 45 minute mix.
Cover is courtesy of FUERTESKNIGHT. Granted that a couple of the tracks aren’t ‘tech-house’, but it seems as though all Electronic genres are merging into one at the moment.
Anyway; I hope you all enjoy.
Mix, iamcoxhead in Aside Sunday, May 2, 2010 at 12:16AM Official promo video for Lupe’s Steppin’ Laser Tour.
HAVE to see him when he’s over this year or next.
LOASERS!
Uncategorized, Video 