New Album Release Friday: Nubiyan Twist (feat. Soweto Kinch & Nick Richards) – “Buckle Up”

March 12, 2021 — Leave a comment

You may stop to ask, how many people does it take to make one song. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Art for “Freedom Fables” (Released on March 12th, 2021) (via Strut Records)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke and, you guessed it, it’s time for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, since it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Here we are again. New release day. This week’s offerings include a new solo LP from Cypress Hill’s DJ Muggs The Black Goat, a live album from North London’s Sorry and the return of German indie pop duo Haerts – who have had their music featured in numerous film & TV productions like ‘Carrie’, ’13 Reasons Why’ and ‘Love, Simon’. Tom Grennan is paving the way for the mainstream crowd, and Grouplove are back with a surprise new album. However, the record that’s earned the spotlight from me for this week comes from Nubiyan Twist. Born out of Leeds and currently based in London, they are a 10-piece Afro-Jazz collective comprised of a 4-piece Horn section, two vocalists and an electronics rhythms section. Orchestrated by guitarist/producer Tom Excell, the band have released their second album, ‘Freedom Fables’, today via Strut Records. The guest list includes CHERISE, KOG, Ria Moran and more – each of which “explores their own memoirs, a freedom of expression underpinning our belief that music is the ultimate narrative for unity” on the record. The group have seen rotational airplay from BBC Radio 6Music in recent weeks, among frequent performances on Jamie Cullum’s show on BBC Radio 2, with an appearance on ‘Later… With Jools Holland’ set to follow this month. So – let’s hit the gas pedal (Ya get it?…) on ‘Buckle Up’ below.

‘Buckle Up’ sees the London-based collective enlisting the help of saxophonist Soweto Kinch for a melodic solo, and a further call for help from vocalist Nick Richards, who sings about the mundanity of an unfulfilling life cycle. With Latin Jazz, Afrobeat and Trip-Hop callbacks, the single was an effective teaser for a record where “You can hear touches of broken beat, blunted hip hop, highlife, Latin, jazz and UK Soul running through the tracks” according to Tom Excell in a press statement for the album’s announcement. Although seeing a few Covid-related delays along the way, it’s here in the end. Predominantly, I feel that ‘Buckle Up’ references the sounds that the ensemble grew up becoming attached to, with a vintage tinge of Roy Hargrove-esque Brass melodies and undulating Organ polyrhythms blending with the more modern production allocated by the synth-inflected backing of the grooves and the bright horn lines which permeate the mostly Soulful qualities of the sound. The vocal section of “Sometimes I lean back in my chair, look up at the sky, Past these clouds and stars/To find new perspectives to loosen up my life” pads out the first half, while the second portion of the track goes for a more Hip Hop-inflicted beat. A speedy vocal delivery from Richards lowers the melodicism a tad, and the chorus allows the splashings of Trumpet melodies to shine with a more summery, energising mood, with vocal lines like “A journey to find a sense of peace and not desire” and “If I could catch a glimpse, Maybe this time find a door to the peace of my mind” feel much more self-reflective and self-developed. The Latin Jazz style feels at ease with the more melodic Hip-Hop influences though, with a little Dubplate and Reggae bursting through the Spoken Word outro. Overall, while the results are not a groundbreaking record, they are deeply satisfying and quite likeable. It feels relaxed, although not too restrained, and it feels nicely accessible – I’m glad that I could come along for the ride.

Pictured: Tom Excell (Lead Vocals/Producer), Nick Richards (Saxophone), Pilo Adami (Percussion), Oli Cadman (Keyboard), Denis Scully (Baritone Saxophone), Joe Henwood (Drum Machine), Finn Booth (Bass Guitar), Luke Wynter (Synths) and Jonny Enser (Horns/Woodwinds) (in 2021) (Photo via PR)

Thank you for reading my latest blog post! I’ll be rather busy making the trip back to my university term-time accommodation tomorrow, and so my entry tomorrow will probably be a little shorter and sweeter than usual. I can’t let the team down though, so I will be back with an in-depth look at the final track in my pre-Christmas backlog, at last. Tomorrow’s band emerged from a promising wave of early-2010’s British Hardcore Punk groups, with the line-up being a 5-piece super-group of musicians from bands like Arms Race, Vile Spirit and Gutter Knife. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Way Back Wednesdays: Roy Davis Jr. & Peven Everett – “Gabriel (1997 Live Garage Mix)”

March 10, 2021 — Leave a comment

There’s as many mixers for Rum, as there are mixes for this classic. Let’s go Way Back!

Pictured: Cover Art for “Gabriel” (Need For Mirrors Bootleg Mix) (Released in 1997 & Reissued 2020)

Top ‘O’ The Morning to you, I’m Jacob Braybrooke and it’s that time of day again where I get typing up for your daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! In terms of the sounds of the past that influenced the present, ‘Gabriel’ might seem like an obvious choice as an instantly recognizable and pretty memorable era-defining classic of the House and Garage scenes of the late-1990’s. It is important to remind ourselves sometimes, however, that a certain tune had got so popular that it crossed over to mainstream success. Originally conceived by Roy Davis Jr of the Chicago House scene, XL Recordings re-released the track in the UK with Peven Everett as a featured artist, since the Garage icon put together the Trumpet and Vocal sections of the track. A classic was born, and numerous different mixes were released of the track – like the ‘Need For Mirrors Bootleg Mix’ and the ‘Scroll Mix’ which crossed the borders between 00’s ‘Chillout’ compilations and live DJ set closers with a diverse appeal to audiences. Artists such as Basement Jaxx, R.I.P. Productions and M-Beat got themselves in on the action with remixes and covers too. The ‘Live Garage Mix’, however, is the version of the track which seemed to gain the widest attention across Europe. In fact, the single reached the #22 position in the UK Singles Chart in 1997. Let’s take a listen to it below.

While hardly a rarity by any major press of the imagination, the ‘Live Garage Mix’ of ‘Gabriel’ arguably found it’s largest attention when the single peaked at #5 on the UK Dance Singles Chart, where it remained in the charts for five weeks running. It’s influence on the Deep House and Electronic Jazz genres still seems to continue through to this day, where the Large Records label released a 12″ vinyl reissue of the single, including four of the different versions, back in 2015 – almost 20 years after the original track was unleashed to the world in 1996. With a deep bassline formed by a bass-heavy two step drum beat and a mid-tempo synth beat, the familiar vocals of Peven Everett riffs on love and spirituality with a smooth tone, singing lines like “Once, love was the focus of the true message” and “He had good news, for those dedicating their lives, to the spirit” with a sultry and soulful mood. The next verse feels a little more interactive, with Everett instructing: “Those that stand aside and watch, The soul moving, grooving” and “Clap your hands, be the one to show your love overflowing” as he continually references the mission of the archangel Gabriel. He also makes the music itself part of the involvement, with lyrics like “If you love music, deep in your soul” and “Just release your soul to the love that’s holding you, that’s consoling you” going for more of a straight-up Chicago house root for the track. A set of sweeping Horn parts litter the rest of the instrumentation, with a sparse Jazz influence that also briefly touches on melodic Rapcore and Neo-Soul in places as well. I’ve never really noticed before, in this record, how the religious connotations feel like a natural commentary on the social impacts of music, and how the experience of being in a club with a diverse group of people can nourish your soul. Meanwhile, the track certainly has a clear cross appeal to lots of different groups of people. It’s up-tempo enough to feel like a Dance record, but the instrumentals also feel relatively stripped back and suited for home listening too, with a deeply Soul-oriented style that also feels a little ethereal. Overall, it’s a 90’s hit that manages to hold up, as it feels developed musically and has a clear message to boot. Gabriel Play!

Pictured: Roy Davis Jr. performing a DJ Set in Chicago, Illinois (Date n/a) (Photo by Sean Delahay)

That’s all for now! Thank you for checking out my latest bog post! I’ll be back tomorrow, as always, as I attempt to clear up some of my backlog with an older, but still pretty recent by all means, track which I perhaps wish that I’d got around to covering a little bit sooner, here on the web. It comes from an infectious Nu-Disco trio who began making music in the sleepy Peak District town of Matlock, and since then, the group have received praise from publications like The Guardian, performed live at the Isle Of Wight Bestival in 2018. They are set to release their debut album, “Power Up”, on March 26th. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Noga Erez – “End Of The Road”

March 2, 2021 — Leave a comment

A potential landmark in the journey of an emerging singer-songwriter. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Art for “KIDS” (LP) (Released on March 26th, 2021) (via City Slang Records)

Good Morning to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time once again for me to get typing up for your daily track on the blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of new music every day! A fresh talent born in Isreal, Noga Erez is an eclectic singer, songwriter and producer based in Tel-Aviv who has established a solid creative relationship with her partner, Ori Rousso. We previously covered her Lockdown single, “NO News On TV” a long while ago on the blog, and I liked what I heard back then. The chances are that, even if you may not know who Erez is, you may have heard her music anyway. That’s because her single, “Dance While You Shoot”, was used in a TV advertising campaign for Apple Music following it’s release in 2017. That year, she also released her debut album, “Off The Radar”, to a good critical reception. Four years later, and it’s time for the follow-up. Her sophomore LP, “Kids”, is set to release at the end of the month, on March 26th, via City Slang Records. The announcement was paired with the release of a new single, “End Of The Road”, which reflects on human mortality in the face of a rugged, stylish hip-hop beat and some comically meaningful commentary on modern life. The new LP features collaborations with Blimes and Reo Cragun, and previous singles such as “NO News on TV”. Let’s see her perform her latest track for Succulent Sessions below.

Noga Erez describes her upcoming long-player release as “These are songs about what we inherit from past generations, how we pass things on. How this game of evolution of our culture and humanity is very much in our hands. We were all somewhat at a blank page at some point”, before concluding that, “KIDS talks about humanity’s potential for both beauty and destruction”, in her press release – and now completed with a full backing band, it’s shaping up to be one of her most polished offerings yet. The music influences on “End Of The Road” feel as diverse as they come, with shades of Gorillaz, Fiona Apple and M.I.A. being thrown in a Jazz-oriented production package, and a little bit of Billie Eilish tossed in with the darker pop melodies too. Another striking touch in this single is the Hip-Hop stylings, with Erez rapping lines like “I got celings but I burn in the sun, Never miss one shot, I’m sick as a gun, I got mortal friends, I’m dead as they come” and “Right hand, chop it/Like a pickpocket, You had the mic, Now you can’t drop it” at a quick pace where they can be challenging to keep up with – over the top of a muted backing track with a Jazz-inflicted sheen. The chorus builds on these quiet hip-hop deliveries with a wider scope, as the words and the images work in tandem to craft a more aggressive and fiery character. She sings, “I don’t know what really, really happens at the end of the road” with a sharp edge, as the driving Power-Pop structure and the half-spoken vocals of the hook really drills it’s way into your ears, singing “But, my trip is mad, I ain’t finished, I got loads” to imply that despite having no answers to the reasons for living, we enjoy the growth of our experiences regardless. The third verse plays out as an unbridled torrent of wordplay, with an almost Pseudo-Scat delivery working up a sweat over the top of more playful Alt-Pop instrumentation. Bizarre to a certain extent and eclectic down a tee, it’s a solid single that manages to really show off Erez’s skills of incorporating an edgy personality into her lyricism, and it’s another signifier that superstardom may possibly be on the way for her with it’s wider appeal to audiences.

Pictured: Noga Erez performing an “Off The Radar” session (2017) (Photo by Greg Barnes/RedBull.com)

As I just mentioned beforehand, we previously took an in-depth look at Noga Erez’s Lockdown-themed 2020 anthem, “NO News On TV”, on the blog. With lyrics that anybody could very easily relate to, check it out and see what you make of it here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/09/19/todays-track-noga-erez-no-news-on-tv/

Pictured: Cover Art for “NO News On TV” (Single) (Released on June 23rd, 2020) (via City Slang Records)

That’s the End Of The Road for my music reviews today – I’ve got work to be getting on with, after all. I can’t believe it’s already been a whole week since we cast our mind back to the late-1980’s Jason Donovan last week, but it’s time for another “Way Back Wednesdays” post tomorrow. This week’s pick is different to what’s come before, as we’re going to pay tribute to a Rock-and-Roll Hall Of Fame-inducted US doo-wop vocal group from the mid-to-late 1950’s, as we remind ourselves of their 1959 cover version of “I Only Have Eyes For You” on the blog tomorrow. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Common (feat. Black Thought) – “Say Peace”

January 16, 2021 — Leave a comment

Here’s a chum who wants to sleep with the Common people, like you. New post time!

Pictured: Cover Art for “A Beautifal Revolution” (Pt. 1) (LP) (Released on Oct 30, 2020) (via Loma Vista)

Good morning to you – my name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s now time for me to, yet again, get typing up about your daily track on the blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to get writing up about a different piece of music every day! Lately, I’ve been continuing to work through my backlog of 2020 releases, and one of the most high-profile names who were left in the pile was the surprise release of “A Beautifal Revolution (Pt. 1)” from the 90’s rap icon Common. You’ll probably know Common from his following through the 1990’s, after he gained mainstream success from his work with The Soulquarians. Since that point, he’s appeared in Hollywood blockbuster films including “Wanted”, “Date Night”, “John Wick: Chapter 2”, “Suicide Squad” and…erm…that crap “New Year’s Eve” film. Nevertheless, he’s done loads of work in the media. Common announced his latest album, which he’s considered to be the first entry of two-part project, just a few days before it was released on October 30th, via Loma Vista Recordings. The lead single was “Say Peace”, a track which saw the Chicago native working with PJ and The Roots’ Black Thought. Check it out below.

Common said he wanted the LP collection to “uplift, heal and inspire listeners dealing with racial injustices as well as other social injustices”, before deducing, “A Beautifal Revolution, Pt. 1 is affirmation. It’s recognition. It’s elevation. It’s music to go with a movement. Because the truth is, there is still so much work to do”, when the album was given a full-fledged physical release to celebrate Black History Month in the United States. This track captures your attention with it’s funky, snare-like rhythm, which feels as unusual as it is upbeat. Paired with a Dub-esque instrumental backing track, Common and his collaborators in PJ & Black Thought manage to flex the different meanings behind Peace, as well as the altering pathways to it. The repeating, earthly guitar sounds have an almost African world feel to them, while bars like “And some find their peace through praisin and shouting/and some find their peace through pulling the shades like Malcom/I found my peace through making these albums” and “If you concentrate/You could find your faith, where the higher conscious takes you, That’s peace” come thick and fast above the African-supported instrumentation. The vocal delivery is at a breakneck pace, and it’s almost difficult to follow the lyrics because of the speedy wordplay. Meanwhile, PJ’s sample of “Say peace, we don’t really want no trouble” and “All they really wanna do is cuff you/They don’t love you” continues to permeate through the tracks, reminding us about the discussions of police brutality and righteous serenity that caused a media storm over the summer, in particular. The vocals of this track are taking these commentaries up to another notch, with Common rapping about the importance that Hip-Hop, as an art form, holds in maintaining a positive Black identity – a genre that can be perceived as reliant of the old cultural stereotypes of Black culture. The bars are characteristically motivational though, with shuffling drums and fragmented Bhangra basslines making for unconventional production work. The sitar interlude off the end. Overall, I really like the activist themes on the record, and it’s a rare example of music set on the purpose to teach. Certainly not stuff of the lowest “Common” denominator.

Pictured: Common at a “Let Love Have The Last Word” book signing (2019) (Photo via Getty Images)

Thank you for checking out my latest blog post – High praise for this track. Don’t forget that we’re taking a turn, for better or worse, with a new entry into our long-running Scuzz Sundays series tomorrow, where we revisit a childhood classic from the Emo-Rock/Pop-Punk era of the late 90’s until the mid 00’s. Tomorrow’s post comes from another pretty big name – a Sacramento-formed Heavy Metal band who have been referred to, by some journalists, as “The Radiohead Of Metal”, for their experimentation. They’ve since gone on to sell over ten million albums worldwide. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Way Back Wednesdays: Digable Planets – “Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat)”

January 6, 2021 — Leave a comment

As Booker T would have said around that time – Can you dig it, Sucka? New Post time!

Pictured: Ishmael Butler, Ladybug Mecca and Craig Irving (2005) (Photo Credit: LasVegasWeekly.com)

Good Morning to you, I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and I’m here to – you guessed it! – get typing up your daily track on the blog, since it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day. Never mind the “Rebirth Of Slick” – it’s the “Birth of a New Era” here on the blog today – because this is my first entry in a brand new weekly feature. “Way Back Wednesdays” (…See what I did there?) is a new weekly entry where, each Wednesday, we take an in-depth look back at an influential cut or a rarity, that was released pre-2000. I feel this is just a decent way to get more broader, classic music thrown into the mix, to go along with all of my new release-based output that runs on the blog throughout a typical week. Digable Planets was the brainchild of Ishmael Butler, Craig Irving and “Ladybug Mecca” Marianna during the 1980’s and 90’s, a trio of Hip-Hop chic who you could label under the umbrella of “Boom Bap” Hip-Hop artists like A Tribe Called Quest, Public Enemy and Nas, who were emerging in contemporary rap culture of the time. Interestingly, they never set out to be a “Jazz-Rap” group – they simply made use of Jazz-infused samples and using the resources that were available for them to use, being as creative as their composition practices would allow by experimenting with the tools at their disposal. “Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat)” was their first single, and it became the lead single of their debut LP, “Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space)”, released in 1993 via Pendulum. The track got to #15 in the US Billboard Hot 100 charts, and it was certified as Gold by the RIAA shortly after, with the sales figure of 500,000 units. Thanks to today’s tech – You can still check out the music video below.

Although the track was never intended to be a “Hit” – It still earned the group the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 1994. Sadly, it seems that it was not really meant to last for Digable Planets. Their second album, “Blowout Comb” – released in 1994 – failed to match the success of their original LP effort, leaving the group to follow their own paths and begin their own seperate projects, although there have been a few notable reunions in the decades since. Nonetheless, “Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat)” would have been an impossible development in Experimental Hip-Hop and Sample-Delia at the time, even if Ishmael Butler likes to now record his own left-field Funk music under the alias of “Shabazz Palaces” in these trying times. It was anchored from a sample of the 1979 track “Stretching” by Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers, whereby the trio interlace fragmented Trumpet breaks and smart, catchy Acid Synth rhythms. Butler raps about childhood and the political awareness of underground hip-hop records in the first verse, while Marianna raps about the feel of unity that it encourages in the second verse, and Irving jumps in with a verse on the expression of ethnicity through hip-hop culture at the end. The “Cool Like Dat” refrain changes to “Chill Like Dat” and “I’m Peace Like Dat” throughout the process, and the combined “We Jazz Like Dat/We Freak Like That” hook at the end sets a table for the trio’s lofty musical ambitions. The sound is confident and polished – with vintage Saxophone riffs and light-hearted dribbles of Acid Synths crafting a satisfying, mid-tempo Jazz-Aura aesthetic, which has been created uniquely through sampled materials. The “Boom Bap” production feels less aggressive on this release, in juxtaposition with their peers of the time. However, it creates an atmosphere of “Slickness” and “Cool” that makes it an enjoyable listen – due to a relaxing Lounge-Jazz vibe, and it still remains to be the chemistry of the three musicians that makes it work – and so it jostles happily through the spectrum of Hip-Hop self-aggrandization.

Pictured: Cover Art for “Reachin’ (A New Refutation Of Time and Space)” (1993) (via Pendulum Records)

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my exciting, new post! As always – you can join me for more of the same tomorrow, where we’ll be taking an in-depth look at a more recent release that you may have missed throughout the last year. We’re going into Electronic/IDM territory tomorrow, with a single from a San Francisco-based producer who is often compared to the likes of Boards Of Canada and Ulrich Schnauss in the ways that he merges natural sounds with synth beats. You may also know him as ISO50 for his graphic design and photography work. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

New Year’s Day Special: Cee Lo Green & The Muppets – “All I Need Is Love”

January 1, 2021 — Leave a comment

To have any dislike for The Muppets would be a big crime to Kermit. Happy New Year!

Pictured: Cover Art for “Cee Lo’s Magic Moment” (LP) (Released on October 29, 2012) (via WB Records)

Let’s add in an extra HOOTENANNNNNY!!!!! Good Morning to you, it is the first day of January, and I’ll tell you what, this is the best that I have felt all year… I’m Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get writing up about your special New Year’s Day post on the blog – because it’s my day-to-day pleasure to write about a different piece of music every day! If you know me, I’m not really one to celebrate Novelty tracks or commercial tie-in’s here on the blog – but I would be lying if I said that I didn’t have a soft spot for The Muppets, the most famous TV creation of Jim Henson… or, rather depressingly, Disney’s The Muppets now. Nevertheless, here’s an odd little Festive track that was released around this time of Christmas and New Year’s a whopping eight years ago now. “All I Need Is Love” is the handiwork of Cee Lo Green, a pop culture icon and coach of The Voice in the US, who is also known for being one half of the Southwestern Alternative Hip-Hop duo Gnarls Barkley, who had an enormously huge international chart hit with “Crazy” back in 2006. In 2012, it seemed that Sufjan Stevens wasn’t the only artist to be overjoyed with the thought of the festive season. “Cee Lo’s Magic Moment” was a full-length Christmas album which came from Green in October 2012, and the album managed to sell a total of 181,000 copies in the US at the time. Interestingly enough, it was also Green’s first album release not to feature one of those Parental Advisory stickers that you used to get on physical records – on a CD. Without further ado, let’s watch Green perform the track with The Muppets below.

Come to think of it… That last fact may suprise you, but it turns out that if you search for the “Explicit” version of Cee Lo Green’s international chart hit, “Forget You”, on the internet, then you will get what’s recognizably a completely different meaning to the old track. Nevertheless, The Muppets collaboration of “All I Need Is Love” is still a perfectly safe tune for the little ones to tune into today. As you can tell – and as you would have likely predicted – the style of the track borrows heavily from the “Mah Nà Mah Nà” theme tune which The Muppets have popularized over the years. Not many people probably know, however, that according to my research, it was borrowed from Piero Umiliani, an Italian composer of film scores. The Muppets get in on the action with a comedic sample of the old theme, and a selection mini-narratives in the music video. Green’s voice isn’t bad at all, and he soulfully croons the likes of “Watches, car, the agent sent me/A sixty inch in every room/But all I wanna see is you” and “Santa don’t know what to get me, I just want to see my baby” along to the beat of The Muppets giving him interruptions and an upbeat, soaring set of Brass-based arrangements. The second verse sees Green perform duelling vocals with Miss Piggy and pals, before we get to the hook-led chorus where the gang come together for a cheerful, festive sing-a-long, on top of a Motown style of Jazz instrumentation. Sleigh bell melodies and little guitar licks evoke a happy, jovial feeling. I feel the use of The Muppets adds a good bit of character to the track, although the mash-up also lends to some very uneven cohesion, and I think the tune struggles to really flow together in some areas of the track. Yet, it’s an engaging mix of mismatch pudding and the assembling of the weird, gibberish voices just adds a sense of quirk and humor that would have made it a bit flat and forgettable otherwise, and it simply wouldn’t be as much fun without the bizzare collaboration of The Muppets being involved. Overall, I can’t deny that it’s a bit of a train-wreck and it’s probably more suited to Christmas than New Year’s to my error, but I still think it’s superbly good fun and entertaining to listen to. If The Muppets are getting some work, what’s not to like? All I’ve left to do is wish you a Happy New Year – and thank you so much for supporting me throughout the year. Here’s to an excellent 2021 – and let’s try our best to give this virus the boot!

Pictured: Cee Lo Green at the premiere of Marriage Boot Camp (2020) (via Jemal Countess/Getty)

Thank you for ringing in the New Year with me on the blog today. As with every day, duty will continue across the new year, and that starts off tomorrow with our first regular post of the New Year. This single was a collaboration between a Japanese electronic dance producer who has a love affair with Funk, Latin and Jazz – and a Barbadian-born singer-songwriter who is now based in Los Angeles, and she was mentored by Patrice Rushen. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Christmas Eve Special: Run-D.M.C. – “Christmas In Hollis”

December 24, 2020 — Leave a comment

The 80’s Hip-Hop carol that put the ‘W-Rapping’ on the presents! It’s Christmas Eve…

Pictured: Daryll McDaniels, Jason Mizell and Joseph Simmons (1987) (Photo by Michael Ochs/Getty)

Y’all feeling festive yet? Good Morning to you, my name is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for me to get typing up on the blog all about your latest track on the daily blog, because it is always my day-to-day pleasure to get writing up about a different piece of music every day! We’re heading across to the States today – for an in-depth look back at “Christmas In Hollis”, released by the illustrious hip-hop trio Run DMC, back in 1987, in the hopes of getting you warmed up for a very different Christmas tomorrow. Hip-Hop isn’t really a genre that’s commonly associated with Christmas music, so let’s make it different – right? The track was released as the lead single of a compilation album of Christmas-themed Hip-Hop music, “A Very Special Christmas”, which hit shop shelves in October of 1987, before it was made available as a standalone single release in November, as the popularity and demand of the track was much higher than expected. You can also find it as a bonus track on the deluxe edition of their 1988 LP, “Tougher Than Leather”, and on the “Christmas Rap” compilation LP. It was produced by the trio, along with Rick Rubin, to benefit the Special Olympics as a charity single, and it takes influence from the trio’s childhood, of which they grew up with in Hollis – a neighborhood in New York City known as Queens, which is notable for having a particularly large community of African-Americans. Let’s stream it below.

Run DMC always strike me as the influential group to be the first who really highlighted the significance of the relationship between the MC and the DJ partnership commonly associated with Hip-Hop music, as well as the first to break barriers in the ways that African-American artists were treated on-screen and behind-the-scenes in the music industry, and this must be a great implication as to why they were voted as The Greatest Hip-Hop group of all-time by MTV in 2007 – as well as becoming the second Hip-Hop group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 2009. “Christmas In Hollis” is no different – with the trio spitting some smooth bars to emphasize their cultural, historical and artistic significance, despite it being condensed into a festive format which feels commercially viable, yet fun and – dare I say – cheesy. A smoky Jazz-infused trumpet opening leads to a fast verse, where Mitzel raps: “I picked the Wallet up, then I took a pause/Took out the license and it cold said Santa Claus” to tell a narrative of a Santa mishap. It’s adorned with fun Seasonal samples of traditional Christmas carols and festive Sleigh Bell melodies, before Daniels chips in for the next verse, by rapping: “It’s Christmas time in Hollis, queens” and “The rhymes you hear, are the rhymes of Daryl/But each and every year we bust Christmas carols” before short and snappy samples that layer traditional Carol sounds together as we build back to the Jazz-influenced rhythms of Run DMC’s rap sounds. The three come together for a final, hook-led chorus, as they exclaim: “So, open your ears and lend us an ear/We want to say/Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year” over the top of a proud, explosive Saxophone melody. The vocals are confident, and the short duration of the track allows for a decent amount of depth to be spreaded across the course of the three minutes of running time. Overall, this is a track that’s gone down as a modern classic of alternative Christmas tunes, and I think the fun sample work and the thick Jazz interludes both hold up nicely to this day. I think the reason why it works for both the mainstream and the more music-obsessed is because Run DMC manage to reflect their personality as artists throughout the quirky track, as well as expressing a good affinity for the Festive track format that are attractive to the more casual ears. Unique and cheesy – both in the best way possible.

Pictured: Cover Art for “Christmas In Hollis” (Single) (Released on Nov 25th, 1987) (via A&M Records)

Thank you for checking out my Christmas Eve special for this year! Hopefully, you enjoyed seeing me seek out the track, and you’ll be willing to come back for some more festive cheer tomorrow, and the second part of my unique and different trilogy of seasonal songs over the period. Tomorrow’s track comes from a style which I wouldn’t typically roll with – here on the blog. It comes from an artist who… You know, I’ve been working on it for a weekend or so now, and so I just won’t spoil anything for you. Come back tomorrow and you’ll find out where this is going. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Potatohead People & De La Soul (feat. Posdnuos & Kapok) – “Baby Got Work”

November 23, 2020 — Leave a comment

An anthem for the MA students out there. Boy – do I have work to do! New Post Time!

Pictured: Cover Art for “Mellow Fantasy” (LP) (Released on 30th October, 2020) (via Bastard Jazz)

Good Morning, Afternoon or Evening to you! My name is Jacob Braybrooke, and we have reached the part of the day where it’s time for me to get typing up about your daily track on the blog, since it’s my day-to-day pleasure to do so! One name that really makes me laugh is Potatohead People, who seem to know that if a band has a good name and some decent artwork to them, I will probably check it out because it shows they have made an effort. A duo from Vancouver, Canada – Potatohead People are currently signed up to the Bastard Jazz record label, and are made up of hip-hop/electronic producers Nick Wisdom and Astrological, who met at a community baseball league at high school and began working together in 2008, with their sounds gaining support from the likes of Kaytranada, Nightmares On Wax and Phife Dawg. “Mellow Fantasy” is their new album record – which sees the duo explore instrumental beats and 70’s funk influences in an effort to “widen the frame of their progressive musical vision and deliver a far-reaching yet approachable set of moods and grooves”, according to their press notes. The second single was “Baby Got Work”, a track that sees them connect with De La Soul’s Posdnous, and the fellow Vancouver-based MC/songwriter Kapok. Let’s get motivated by the track “Baby Got Work” below.

Wisdom and AstroLogical bonded over their shared love for Madlib and J Dilla, before releasing a string of EP’s to kickstart their career as a duo after working within the Elekwent Folk hip-hop collective, eventually releasing their debut LP, “Nick & Astro’s Guide To The Galaxy”, in 2018. Going back to a very old-school sound of 90’s Conscious Hip-Hop and 70’s R&B/Soul fusion, “Baby Got Work” is a simple Jazz-based tune that is really about getting your head down and your thinking caps on. It’s accessible on the surface, but it’s also hiding more immediate themes and cultural connotations underneath, as you may also read it as a mellow call for political or activist change. The production from Wisdom and Astrological is wistful and mid-tempo, with a sequenced set of mellow keyboard lines and brief brass interludes, paving a way for Posdnous to deliver bars like: “We need to try to get past games, You do it for those with your face and your last name” and “No time to stay in bed/Stay in bed with the hustle instead” over the top of a vintage-sounding bassline and an acutely measured drum beat, with a few guitar licks to add a slick 70’s polish on top. The chorus is more anthemic, but still laid back in it’s melodic pattern, with Kapok singing: “We don’t have too much time/In this life/Can’t rewind” above a groovy soundscape of 70’s Funk and brushes of Saxophone beats, before delivering the killer line of “Yeah, baby got work to do” on top of the over-arching Jazz melodies. The sound of the track leans very closely into the tropes of 60’s Motown and conventional 70’s Funk/Soul song structures, but I think that it does this really well because this makes the track sound very old-school and not hugely contemporary, capturing the Horn-driven timelessness of the era quite nicely. It’s relaxed and laid back, but still genuinely catchy and fun. It’s time to roll up your sleeves – and get down to business!

Pictured: Potatohead People (Nick Wisdom & Astrological) (2020) (Photo by 88Nine Radio Milwaukee)

Thank you for reading my latest blog post! As always, I’ll be back for more again tomorrow! Join me then – when we’ll be looking at another new track. This time around – I think it must be one of the most random christmas singles to be released in recent memory. It comes from a Jamaican Hip-Hop producer who won the BRIT Award for Best International Male Solo Artist in 2002, and, in 2007, he was awarded the Jamaican Order of Distinction with the rank of Commander. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Loyle Carner – “Yesterday”

November 16, 2020 — Leave a comment

Ay! You might say that the world is his. That scribble of a boy! It’s time for a new post!

Pictured: Loyle Carner in a press shoot to promote “Not Waving, But Drowning” (in 2019) (via PR)

Good Morning to you, my name is Jacob Braybrooke and we’ve reached the time for me to write all about your daily track on the blog today, because it’s still my day-to-day pleasure to get typing up about a different piece of music every day! I can’t believe how quickly the typical two-years-per-album turn-around has flown by for Loyle Carner, but over the last week, he finally released his first brand new music since 2019’s “Not Waving, But Drowning”. Carner is a Lambeth-born UK Hip Hop rapper, songwriter and poet who has two full-length albums to his name, including 2017’s BRIT Award-nominated debut “Yesterday’s Gone”, and the aforementioned follow-up LP from 2019, both of which were distributed by Virgin/EMI Records. Along with appearing on several episodes of Channel 4’s Celebrity Gogglebox with his mother, Jean Coyle-Larner, the promising rapper has been directing music videos with his brother and performing on The Other Stage at last year’s Glastonbury Festival over the last two years. There’s no details on a third full-length album yet, but I wouldn’t put it past Carner to roll it out in the early goings of 2021… That camera pan at the end is definitely seeming to tease something big. I’m quite a big fan of Carner because his style feels more laidback than most of his contemporary peer UK rappers, and he does seem like a very likeable person within his music, and outside of it. The use of his stage name is a spoonerism of his double-barreled actual surname and a reference to his ADHD and Dyslexia diagnoses. Produced by the famed figure Madlib, let’s listen to the big comeback single, “Yesterday”, with his self-directed video below.

Well… Loyle Carner is back, and he’s had a Baby? He has crossed over into the mainstream rather nicely over the last few years, and that’s especially true given how the track got it’s first play on BBC Radio 1 last Wednesday as the Hottest Record In The World on Annie Mac’s show. The most noticeable change in sound on “Yesterday” compared to most of his prior work is the production from Madlib, which is signaling towards a more Classic Hip-Hop element that calls back to acts like De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest. The style we typically hear from Carner is more mellow and gently textured, but “Yesterday” feels more immediate. It feels more melodic and bombastic. He raps: “Twenty four/Mixed race/Living twelve years a slave” and “I been in and out, to drag the pain out the house/Being brave, something proud, say my name I’m about” over the top of skewed, quickly cut-up samples and the dissonant, punchy Brass samples with a good flow and a light-hearted ease. It also feels slightly less personal lyrically, and more alternatively touching on the themes of black community and current affairs, as he raps: “Black and White, watching money leading men astray” and “We expand, like a grand in another hand” in the uncompromising verses. However, I think that the hallmarks of an established Carner sound are still enveloped wisely in here, as Carner raps: “There comes a time, In everyone’s life/When you have to fall in love, Once or twice” in the bridge, touching on a more intimate and retrospective sound. We’re also getting the humble voice from him, and the feelings come across that are confessional. Overall, the balance of the tones is well-weighted and it makes the collaboration feel very even. It’s certainly pointing towards a more observational and mature sound for Carner, with the lyrics playing on Carner making a big transition between Young Adult and Man as he grows up to understand the world around him more fully, yet it’s also imbued with the Jazz rhythms of Hip-Hop’s golden age to place a larger emphasis on adulthood and maturity, conceptually. It’s a clever departure in style which feels well-executed. He does like to say “Ay” a lot though – maybe he could say “Cor Blimey” to mix things up.

Pictured: Loyle Carner in a shot for Primary Talent International (2017) (Photo via primarytalent.com)

Don’t forget that you can also still check out my write-up on the track, “Ice Water”, from his previous LP record. I’m sure that he’s capturing plenty of Summer vibes on that track. Check it out here: https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/03/25/todays-track-loyle-carner-ice-water/

Pictured: Track list for “Not Waving, But Drowning” (Released in April 2019) (via Virgin/EMI Records)

That’s it for another day! Thanks for reading my latest post, and please join me again tomorrow, as we vary things up a bit with an in-depth listen to the recent-ish new 80’s-inspired Dance-Pop single from a London-based singer-songwriter who has performed DJ Sets for an extensive list of prestigious clients – like Chanel, Paul Smith, The VA, and even the Cannes Film Festival. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/

Today’s Track: Public Enemy (feat. George Clinton) – “When The Grid Go Down…”

November 4, 2020 — Leave a comment

If you don’t like this one…You may be a rap fan’s Public Enemy #1! It’s new post time!

Pictured: Flavor Flav and Chuck D at a festival (2014) (Photo Credit: Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images)

Well…vhere we are again! Good Morning to you, I’m Jacob Braybrooke and I’m typing up your daily post on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to get writing to you about a different piece of music every day! If you’ve not heard of Public Enemy, then you must have been living under a rock for the past few decades! They’ve been going ever since the late-1980’s, and they have been known for their very political, hard-edged styles of hip-hop experiments, with critic Stephen Thomas Erwleine of AllMusic naming them “the most influential and radical band of their time”. With the current US election, it’s intriguing to see them making a return to the public eye. It’s down to the current lineup of Chuck D and Flavor Flav – along with Bassist Davy DMX and a few more who were not part of the group’s original lineup, to put their unique spin on contemporary themes and socio-economic ideas. “What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down” is their latest album, and it saw the classic act go old-school with the release dropping on Def Jam. It’s their fifteenth studio album, and their first under the “Public Enemy” name since 2017 (as they released “Loud Is Not Enough” as ‘Public Enemy Radio’ earlier in 2020). The new album features a star-studded guest list including DJ Premier, Run-DMC, Nas, Mark Jenkins and more. The album had a quick turnaround from it’s announcement and it’s release, and there seems to be a fairly mixed reception to Public Enemy’s latest, although it skews positive. The opening track is “When The Grid Go Down..”, which brings together the rap icons with the bona-fide Funk legend George Clinton. Let’s take a listen below.

With lyrics like “All around/Without the sound/Uncle Jam’s army” and “We are here/What you gonna do when the grid go down?” bursting through a distorting stock radio effect, “When The Grid Go Down” is a short and sweet introduction just shy of 2 minutes long that signals the return of the beloved Hip-Hop group as we lead into “GRID”, the first full-length track on the new album. The vocals play on themes of Public Enemy being “heroes” in a time of distress, further teasing ideas of mature rebellion and social activism to be consistently explored throughout the sound of the record. Some of these lyrics stick out to me, like “Socially Engineered Anarchy Induced Chaos” and “One against the other, Him against his brother” that are recited under a smoky, washing backing vocal from Clinton. These themes of standing up to authority as a group and repelling political degrades as a union feel rather reflective of the Funk music that Clinton used to make with Funkadelic and Parliament in the late-1970’s, with a light guitar brushing that sounds neo-psychedelic and punk-driven enough to bat a few eyelids, for me, anyways. The subtle hip-hop breakbeat comes into the fray at the midway mark, with a heavy melody being teased by the gradually increasing tempo and raising intensity on the harsh, abrasive drum beats that skitter along to the hip-hop instrumental beats at a speedy and prevalent pace. Although this is clearly more of a skit or interlude rather than a fully fleshed-out track, it manages to fulfill it’s role of establishing a few key themes for the album in a melodic and nicely thought-out way. Although the ideas of rebellion in unity are the ideas that Public Enemy have been playing around with for years, they are still relevant, if a little generic at this point. It’s a little bit dis-spiriting to see that most of the original line-up hasn’t come back for this outing, but Flavor Flav and Chuck D have done a good job in working with the resources they still have access to. Overall, I’d like to see the classic rap act bring a couple of fresher ideas to the table, but the hazy production of this teaser/intro is a solid affair that feels drawing and expansive. Although I know exactly what to expect from the record, it still makes me intrigued to see where it will go. The psychedelic vibes point towards a Gorillaz-esque colour of hip-hop experimentation. All in all, the concepts may feel tired, but this sounds like it’s going to be a good thing.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for "What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down?" (Album/LP) (Released on September 25th, 2020) (via Def Jam Recordings) — Pictured: Cover Artwork for “What You Gonna Do When The Grid Goes Down?” (Album/LP) (Released on September 25th, 2020) (via Def Jam Recordings)

Thank you very much for reading my new post! Always one to celebrate an eclectic mix of playlist selections, I am going to be switching up styles again tomorrow – as we take a look at the recent solo project of a female producer and composer who is best known for being one-half of the influential indie rock duo The XX. If you really liked what you just read, why not follow the blog to get notified when every new daily post is up and why not like the Facebook page here?: https://www.facebook.com/OneTrackAtATime/