It’s impossible to cover each bit of new music that comes out during the week, so every Friday, we’ll be doing an end of the week music roundup. It’s called Final Track, and we’ll count off a few songs released during the week that are worth giving a listen to.
Today, we’ve got Kanye West with Jay-Z, the Joy Formidable, Ben Folds Five, and more
“Clique” by Kanye West, Jay-Z, and Big Sean
Read about how Kanye stole VMA night, even though he wasn’t actually at the VMAs, at the Smoking Section.
“Cheap Beer” by FIDLAR
Distorted L.A. punk band with the lyric of this year, ever year: “I! DRINK! CHEAP! BEER! SO! WHAT! F*CK! YOU!”
“Erase Me” by Ben Folds Five
A welcome comeback for THE nerd rockers. In the 1990s, you listened to Ben Folds Five for the wry, funny lyrics; in the 2010s, you listen to Ben Folds Five for how impeccably tight of a genre-spanning band they were/are. And the wry, funny lyrics.
“Cholla” by the Joy Formidable
The U.K.’s answer to the Foo Fighters, if the Foo Fighters were fronted by a female.
Paul’s Boutique remade
A little baffling, but cool:
Caught In The Middle Of A 3-Way Mix (named after a Boutique B-side) is the end result of three years of work by DJs Food, Cheeba, and Moneyshot. According to the trio, they spent all that time creating an album from scratch (pun definitely intended) using “all the original samples plus acappellas, period interviews and the Beasties’ own audio commentary from the reissued release.” (Via)
“The Hard” by Freddie Gibbs and Dana Williams
The closest thing 2012 has to a rapper with flow and delivery like 2Pac.
“Kill Screen” by Jean Grae
Here’s Jean’s inspiration for “Kill Screen”:
I watched The King of Kong and thoroughly both respected and understood [Donkey Kong master] Steve Wiebe’s drive and passion. I like rooting for the underdog. I understand being the underdog. (Via)
It doesn’t rest solely on its novelty, either; it’s got a great beat, and more songs should be inspired by documentaries about video games.