Hip-Hop

Album Reviews: Claude Cooper & Brain Fog – More Myriad Sounds : Raucous rhymes and blistering jazz breaks make for one rebellious reworking.
Ah yes, the mysterious Claude Cooper – one person or many, illusive or illusion, prankster or producer, rumoured from Bristol but maybe not…still one thing is for certain, last year the Claude Cooper nameplate fronted the extraordinary ‘Myriad Sounds’ album, a riotous explosion of wild jazz and breaks that rightly slayed the critics and fired …

PREMIERE: hurt season wants you to ‘feel sum’n’
If we could have your attention for exactly 54 seconds – here’s a brief new song from the pseudonymous hurt season. He doesn’t waste time – all bar one of his singles since relaunching the project in July have been under two minutes in length. Of his especially brief new song ‘feel sum’n’, which has …

PREMIERE: Berlin-based Nigerian Isis Salam is ‘Westcoast Chillin’ on swaggering new track
Isis Salam is going places. She’s been plenty, too – born in Nigeria, she was raised in Toronto, had stints in school on both sides of the Atlantic (New York and London), and is now based in Berlin. She’s got previous in THUNDERHEIST, and has been quiet for a little bit since late 2019’s Last …

EP Review: Matt Ó – MESSER
One half of the acclaimed Irish breakout duo Tebi Rex, Matt Ó is no stranger to success. Now taking his first dive into a full solo release, the hip-hop-come-RnB artist has today released the 7 track stunner MESSER – a brilliant representation of Ó’s soulful soundscapes and ability to move flawlessly between moments of witty …

NEWS: Pitch Scotland 2022 – With PRS Foundation support showcase applications open, new outdoor venue announced and conference programme additions
Pitch, Scotland’s international, multi-venue conference of hip hop and underground culture takes place on Saturday 27 August across four venues in the East End of Glasgow. Applications are now open for two artists to perform at Pitch’s live evening showcase at Saint Luke’s alongside Aberdeen’s rising star AiiTee, Dundee’s MC Salum, pioneering Edinburgh MC LOTOS and Cardiff rapper/Triskel Award …

Live Review: Teddy Swims / Saibh Skelly – The Academy, Dublin 29.05.2022
Atlanta singer songwriter Teddy Swims stopped off in Dublin on his ‘Tough Love’ world tour, and it was powerful!

PREMIERE: Philadelphian Lushlife streams deluxe ‘Redamancy’ remixes ahead of vinyl release tomorrow
If you haven’t listened to Raj Haldar before, now’s as good a time as ever to get on board. He’s been making music as Lushlife for the better part of 15 years; with the odd detour into (bestselling!) children’s literature, which in turn led to a TV development deal and (separately) an India-set TV series. …

Track: Sampa The Great as her higher self shares new single + video for ‘Lane’ feat. Denzel Curry
After absolutely smashing her set last weekend in the Gobi tent at Coachella, poet/rapper extraordinaire Sampa The Great continues to collect more career milestones with the release of new track Lane featuring US rapper Denzel Curry. ‘Lane’ is the artist’s first single release via Loma Vista and her first offering since 2019’s ARIA Award and …

Album review: The Allergies – ‘Promised Land’: on a hot streak with huge melodies
IN THESE days, months, or years even, when everything has been dominated by viruses, or at least one in particular, there have been many earnest releases focusing on the despair, isolation and loneliness that these have caused us all. There’s nothing wrong with that at all; after all art reflects life (or near enough anyway) …