(Rubbish)

‘Golden Diva’ – Flying Lotus (download)
‘Parisian Goldfish’ – Flying Lotus (download)

It’s no secret that over the last few years, American rap and hip-hop acts have embraced a minimal and bare-bones aesthetic that strikes the discerning audiophile as lazy and bland. However, while the mainstream sound nets these artists idolation and ire alike, there has been a second renaissance rising up from underground and independent acts, turning away from the template in favor of a greater sonic exploration of the hip-hop aesthetic. Producers like RjD2‘s RJ Krohn and Danger Mouse’s Brian Joseph Burton have been experimenting for some time, and have recently begun to see a large measure of mainstream exposure in the last few years, taking on a variety of different styles throughout their careers. Their explorations have been very strong and impressive efforts, and have opened the way for a new level of innovation.

Enter Steven Ellison. While he is by no means a newcomer to the genre, his music is astonishingly fresh, marking a nigh quantum leap beyond the accepted norm. His beats are erratic and glitchy, he makes regular use of unconventional samples and loops, and brings virtually everything into a wash of effects-laden psychedelia. Flying Lotus‘ tracks are infectious, sexy, and deceptively danceable. If you have any interest at all in electronic music, the Los Angeles album comes very highly recommended. There will also be another album this april, Cosmogramma, that surely will not fail to impress.

Shogun Kunitoki – Holvikirkko (download)
Shogun Kunitoki – Nebulus (download)

Speaking of electronic music, I’d also like to drop a mention of Shogun Kunitoki, a Helsinki quartet on “a mission to help electronic music regress back to a more human state, the time of the tube organ and the ring modulator, the spring reverb and the test oscillator.” While a strong departure from what electronic music has become, Shogun Kunitoki truly embodies the haunting, yet strangely familiar union of analog and digital in music. There is a strong influence from all areas of the musical spectrum here, the minimalism and tonal simplicity from drone, the arresting and disorienting time-signature displacement of psychedelia, implemented with the heart and sheer emotive power of a classical suite. Their songs are warm and inviting, and if you close your eyes when you listen to them, you can almost feel the room spinning around you. Shogun Kunitoki may not be your favorite band, but their force and ability are undeniable. They truly have captured the human element of electronic music, and you owe it to yourself to give their most recent contribution, Vinonaamakasio, a long, honest listen.

Buy/Listen to more of Flying Lotus’ Los Angeles:

MySpace // Lala // iTunes

Buy/Listen to more of Shogun Kunitoki’s Vinonaamakasio:

Official Site // Lala // iTunes