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Aaron Carnes on February 19, 2020
Back in the late ’90s, a trio of San Jose indie rockers released two full-length records and a handful of EPs, to little attention. Duster played dingy basement shows and never drove their tour van beyond the West Coast. Instead of recruiting a bass player, they dragged an old organ to shows…
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Metro Staff on February 12, 2020
With gently warbling organ, warm tube amps, The Band-esque vocal harmonies and the kind of resonant, straight-to-tape tom-toms that would make Levon Helm swell with pride, these Philadelphia indie-rock veterans prove it’s possible to teach an old pooch new tricks. After tracking Abandoned Mansion in 2014 only to shelve it until 2017,…
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Metro Staff on February 4, 2020
Nearly 25 years into the game and it’s clear that Atmosphere will go down as one of the best hip-hop groups ever. The Minnesota duo’s early albums feature a quick-witted Slug using his silver tongue to couple glib remarks with intricate and braggadocious rhymes, all while producer Ant drops some seriously dope…
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Matei Predescu on January 30, 2020
Sacramento-born chillwave producer Scott Hansen, also known as Tycho, received a Grammy nomination for Epoch, his 2016 album of ambient electronic instrumentals that seamlessly blends live instrumentation with drum machines and DAW production. Backed by a live band for most of his performances, Tycho finds a middle ground between live instrumentalists, sampling…
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Nick Veronin on January 22, 2020
Though their moniker was likely adopted with tongue planted firmly in cheek, Conrad Keely and Jason Reece—the core duo behind …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead—have secured a permanent seat in the indie rock pantheon. Their 2003 album, Source, Tags & Codes, was as sweeping and orchestral as…
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Nick Veronin on November 20, 2019
Somewhere, on an alternate plane of existence, Kevin Gates is the universe’s greatest late-night host. There he is, trading witticisms with his guests, seamlessly dropping into outrageous and uproarious non-sequiturs, and waxing philosophically about the merits of Blink-182, Miley Cyrus and the health benefits of a bootylicious diet. In this timeline, however,…
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C.J. Prusi on April 4, 2019
This L.A.-based emcee has dropped eight albums since his 1997 debut, F’Real—including classics like Murs for President (2008) and Have a Nice Life (2015). The man is unstoppable, and still melancholy as hell. His last release, A Strange Journey into the Unimaginable (2018), runs the gamut from heartbreaking to hilarious, as he…
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Mike Huguenor on January 30, 2019
Swaggering and cool, RJD2’s production work is known to many more than probably realize it. He penned the tune used in the opening credits of AMC’s hit period drama, Mad Men. First emerging on El-P’s Def Jux label in the early 2000s, his beats have always been at once forward-thinking and classic…
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Tad Malone on January 9, 2019
Originally hailing from Cleveland, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony found success through a mix of raw talent and a heavy-hitting West Coast connection—Eazy-E. The founding member of N.W.A. put them on his own Ruthless Records, releasing their Creepin on ah Come Up EP in 1994. That was followed by the iconic E. 1999 Eternal, which…
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Aaron Carnes on December 19, 2018
The world is waking up to the genius that is Thundercat. Fans of prog-rock, funk, R&B and smooth pop have always had overlapping tastes, but few modern musicians have blurred these lines quite as well as he has. The bass virtuoso has worked with everyone from Kendrick Lamar to Kenny Loggins—who, along…
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