The New Hotness Vol. 11

The New Hotness YouTube playlist is looking pretty damn good these days...


1. Indian Agent - "Life Keeps On Spinning" 2017  These people amaze me (Silver Jackson, OCnotes, + Zak Dylan Wass). I don't write sentences as grand as the following so I'll let Jonathan Zwickel of City Arts Magazine etc. speak about the album...
It's a dreamy, wavy montage of broken, downtempo beats, Galanin's relaxed, distorted vocals, hypnotizing guitar and ambient electronics, ghostly in its sound and urgent in its themes.  (told you it was good)




2. Princess Nokia - "Bart Simpson + Green Line" 2017  Princess Nokia is no stranger to The New Hotness; she puts out so much high quality material that it is hard to take your eyes off her.




3. Stop Biting Beatmakers Vol. 2  SEATTLE MUSIC  The Stop Biting crew has done more for me than they could ever know and I love them all. Standing at LoFi nodding my head to their music will always be one of my happy places. These days Stop Biting is the last Tuesday of every month, you should definitely go.



They released this documentary with Volume 1 back in 2012...




4. Kari Faux feat. Jerry Paper - "Gotta Know" 2017  Kari Faux had me hooked with "Fantasy" off her 2016 album Lost En Los Angeles. I posted "Fantasy" on Ten Artsy Weirdos You Should Know back in December 2016 alongside 9 other artists who just happen to be women; look at it, the list rules. I have yet to listen to her latest album, Primary, but it is patiently waiting for me to stop listening to Rapsody, Wiki, and Princess Nokia.




5. Mahalia - "Sober" 2017  This went directly to currently overplaying status in my world; still not sick of it. The version she did for A COLORS SHOW is flame emoji too. Mahalia is now officially on my radar with this track I found via YouTube algorithms.




6. The Flavr Blue - "Fetti + Spaghetti" 2017  SEATTLE MUSIC  The Flavr Blue's perspective on life and commendable grind has helped them to far surpass being labeled Seattle artists even though they happen to be Seattle peeps. This song premiered on Complex today with a some back story on the visuals and the announcement of their upcoming album, Blue Dream, due out October 27.




7. Sudan Archives - "Water" 2017  STONES THROW   Did you know Sudan Archives traveled to Ghana to teach children music production? Me neither, til I read this... #superheroshit




8. 316 (Oneohtrix Point Never + Ishmael Butler) - "The Rapture" 2017  We actually do live on the same planet as these people, they've just transcended to another plane unreachable to those who have yet to visualize their maximum creative potential. Adult Swim has been killing it with their single collection; even if some of them have gone missing.




9. RVN - "GREYNEON" 2017  SEATTLE MUSIC  Thanks for being 100% you RVN (formerly Raven Matthews), the universe needs your weirdness. One of Seattle's most interesting people has just released a new album and it's just as unique as we knew it could be. Keep it up RVN!




10. Billy Blaze - "Here + There" 2016  SEATTLE MUSIC  I can't believe I missed this when it came out; this is the Rainwater Conglomerate jam I love the most on their EP I posted on The New Hotness Vol. 9. Here's hoping we get to see more visuals from this crew; I'd love to see them pull together a full album and launch it with gusto via social media... here's hoping.




11. The Mouse Outfit feat. IAMDDB + Fox - "I Wonder" 2017  UK HIP HOP  I love pairing "local" artists from all over the world together; in theory, it will help them to link up so they can do shows together and share a planet-wide fanbase. Lofty goals can be exhausting and I'll never know for sure if I finished said bridge but I'll have a great time building it. Pretty sure this crew has yet to tour the US but I'd prefer to see them overseas anyway.



In case you were wondering, this is what's going on with The Mouse Outfit...




12. Lizzo - "Truth Hurts" 2017  I can't say enough good things about this woman and all that she represents. Lizzo is a hero amongst humans and has inspired more people to love themselves than most; I love her.

Ten Music Videos With Kissing

10 Kissing Music Videos Playlist is here.

1. Disclosure feat. Eliza Doolittle - "You And Me" (Flume Remix) 2014  I actually think they went a little overboard with the kissing on this one but the song is awesome. It was one of the many songs I knew I loved in the first 1 minute and 4 seconds. My intro to Disclosure was "White Noise" featuring AlunaGeorge and I've been on board ever since. For Flume, the song that caught me was "Left Alone" featuring Chet Faker.




2. Bjork - "Mutual Core" 2012   Bjork is Queen of the Keep Iceland Weird committee in the best possible way. The almost unlistenable song and creepy visuals in this single from her Biophilia album make it an all around uncomfortable video to watch. Don't get me wrong, I have loved Bjork since before I Mod Podged the Post album art on my journal in 1995; but, her new music is a little hard to digest. A+ for effort and for staying true to her inner weirdo.




3. The Weeknd - "Often" 2014  Even though all of The Weeknd songs sound the same to me, there are only 3 songs that I have overplayed as of yet. "Can't Feel My Face," "The Zone," and "The Morning." He's just meh to me in general, but I would love to see other artists work as hard as he has for a sustainable music career.




4. Shura - "Touch" 2014  Love the song but the video makes me feel like a Peeping Tom. Shura has a Shuraverse on her website that is so high tech that it doesn't load half the time. Have yet to find any other Shura songs that I like.



The final product of Talib Kweli's remix is pretty weak. It feels like a concocted label collaboration to me, but maybe Kweli simply liked the song as much as I did?




5. BADBADNOTGOOD + Ghostface Killah feat. DOOM - "Ray Gun" 2015  This is a truly epic trio of artists. Masks, robots, spaceships, subtitles, cars, fur, birds, special effects, food, lasers, cops; this video has everything. I love that Left Brain is the lead actor in this; he doesn't tip his bartenders though so he'll never be that classy.




6. Odesza feat Zyra - "Say My Name" 2014  I'm down with Odesza but I have yet to feel the urge to spend time with their music. The duo met at WWU and quickly made Bellingham, WA a new hub of the Electronic music scene. Pretty sweet trick actually.




7. Prof - "Motel" 2015  Best dimples, promo, and socks in the game. He's been working his ass off under the guise of almost constant shenanigans for over a decade. With the priceless backing of Rhymesayers, he's making a huge mark on the music community.



My former ReignCity team had the pleasure of hosting Prof's "Liability Tour" at Nectar Lounge November 17, 2015 with Nacho Picasso and Slow Dance. Here's a few of the photos I found on my phone the next day.

8. The Flavr Blue - "Hearts Racing" 2014  SEATTLE MUSIC  All three members of The Flavr Blue are pushing themselves to be the best humans they can be. Mad respect to Hollis, Parker, and Lace for their commitment to their craft and for being all around awesome people.




9.  Snakehips feat. Tinashe + Chance The Rapper - "All My Friends" 2015  We never actually see what these people are waiting in line for which is actually perfect for the song. This video for my first exposure to Snakehips would have been perfect in the short Rotating Cameras list. I've listened to this song too much but I'm coo with it.




10. Kwamie Liv - "Higher" 2015  This video documents the course of a relationship, The Cure's Wild Mood Swings album did that too. I first heard Kwamie Liv in the single "5 AM" a few years back but haven't seen her in Seattle yet.

Ten More Great Live Performance Videos

1. AlunaGeorge - "Attracting Flies (LIVE Billboard Studio Session)" 2013  *AlunaGeorge is playing Sasquatch, but, I would have loved to have seen them at The Crocodile.

2. Mary Jane Girls - "All Night Long" 1983  *This is from their 1983 Top Of The Pops performance, @1:45 we are treated to a between the legs of a male go-go dancer shot.




3. Quadron - "Favorite Star" 2013  *This song is great in regular and acoustic form.




4. Binkbeats - "The Healer" 2013 *This is a f**king awesome Madlib/Erykah Badu cover.

5. CHVRCHES - "Tightrope" 2014  *This is a Janelle Monae-approved cover of Janelle's breakout hit.

6. Glass Animals - "Love Lockdown" (Kanye West Cover) 2014  *I had never heard of Glass Animals when I saw this, they killed it.




7. Allen Stone - "Million" Live At The Cabin 2014  *He's got skillz.




8. The Flavr Blue - "Remedy" 2013  (SEATTLE MUSIC) *I'm definitely looking forward to seeing the trajectory of this band.




9. Binkbeats - "Beats Unraveled #6: J Dilla Live Mixtape" 2013  *This is one of the greatest things I've ever seen. I love that he made this one with four different Dilla songs, as it is hard to choose one great Dilla song.




10. Kingdom Crumbs - "A Freedom Song" (Live on KEXP) 2013  *This is my new favorite Tay Sean verse, he is still one of my favorite producers anywhere.

Ten Music Videos featuring Outer Space

1. Ladi6 - "Shine On" 2013  *This New Zealand artist will be performing Monday, March 3rd at The Crocodile Back Bar, you should probably go.




2. Air - "Astronomic Club" 2012  *This is one of the best tracks off of their Le Voyage Dans La Lune album.




3. The Flavr Blue - "In My Dream" 2013 (SEATTLE MUSIC)  *I'm definitely excited to see what this trio will do this year. They are playing a SXSW Sendoff Show at Neumos on Friday, March 7 with Shaprece and James Apollo.




4. 10cc - "I'm Not In Love" 1975  *Seventies slow jams are the best.



5. Dave B - "Galaxy Defenders" 2013  (SEATTLE MUSIC)  *Dave B will be at Nectar Lounge on March 20 for a "Special Announcement" show with Key Nyata, Sidewalk Chalk (Chicago, IL), B Durazzo (Oakland, CA), and will be hosted by Gifted Gab.




6. Chance The Rapper - "Everybody's Something" 2013  *He's pretty awesome. I love the way he used the Slum Village "Fall In Love" sample.




7. Locksmith - "House Of Games" 2014  *I mostly just love when the beat drops @ 0:54.




8. The Souljazz Orchestra - "Celestial Blues" 2014  *This was a Wax Poetics find.




9. Broken Bells - "Holding On For Life" 2013  *Broken Bells are killing it at being an interesting band right now. They will be at one of my favorite days of the Sasquatch Festival, July 5th. I call it Double-D day because two of my favorite music producers, Danger Mouse (of Broken Bells) and Dan the Automator (with Deltron 3030) will be performing. That same day Kraftwerk, Rhye, Sol, and many other great artists will also be at The Gorge.




10. Kireek - "Return Of The Golden Age" 2013  *Kireek is a 5 time DMC World Team Champion (2007-2011).