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kendrick Lamar CaN DO No WRong
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When making a summer playlist, it’s tempting to pack it with obvious heat; “Slide” by Calvin Harris is a clear candidate, as is that song DJ Khaled’s kid made with Justin Bieber. Consider this a digression. This playlist opens with pop-punk icon Jeff Rosenstock, and then meanders its way through lo-fi garage rock, indie, and jazz-inspired hip-hop. With a unified condemnation of solipsism, twenty-one very different songs come together to make a true, alternative summer playlist.
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1. nAUSEA / JEFF ROSENSTOCK 2. In the aeroplane over the sea / neutral milk hotel 3. BUTTONS / THE WEEKS 4. LET MY BABY STAY / MAC DEMARCO 5. DRUNK DRIVERS/ KILLER WHALES / CAR SEAT HEADREST 6. trouble / cage the elephant 7. YOUR BEST AMERICAN GIRL / MITSKI 8. LUST. / KENDRICK LAMAR 9. WEIRD FISHES/ ARPEGGI / RADIOHEAD 10. XO TOUR LLIF3 / LIL UZI VERT 11. KIDS WITH GUNS / GORILLAZ 12. SOUR SOUL / GHOSTFACE KILLAH 13. OLD FRIENDS / PINEGROVE 14. LAY ME BACK DOWN / PORTUGAL. THE MAN 15. WE’VE BEEN HAD / THE WALKMEN 16. TEENAGE ICON / THE VACCINES 17. GLORIOUS YOU / FRANK TURNER 18. ART SCHOOL / REMO DRIVE 19. OMAHA / TORO Y MOI 20. MARQUEE MOON / TELEVISION access to Spotify playlist 21. TRUTH / KAMASI WASHINGTON
kamasi washington returns with new track + SHORT FILM
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Last month, contemporary jazz saxophonist, composer, and Kendrick Lamar collaborator Kamasi Washington released a new song “Truth,” from his upcoming EP “Harmony of Difference.” Washington also released an ephemeral short film to accompany the six-movement suite. The captivating film blends multiple vignettes, including a young boy washing his face in the living room and two men wrestling on a bed of flower petals.
CLAY VOYTEK, editor-in-chief
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endrick Lamar has nothing to prove. No artist today has bridged the gap between critical acclaim and commercial success in the same way, and he is a messianic figure in modern hip-hop. With an artist as intentional and prolific as Lamar, it’s important to view his work in the context of his recent discography. Good kid, m.A.A.d city is a west coast revival album with a narrative arc that cemented Kendrick’s status. To Pimp A Butterfly is a sonically-challenging album about the black experience, inspired by preceding black genres. DAMN. is different, and it can’t be captured in a sentence. Kendrick’s fourth studio album is fluid, and his penchant for repetition and juxtaposition make it even harder to pin down. Brazen trap beats are made to be perfectly wonky and unique on “HUMBLE.” and “DNA.” Contrasted with trade-mark introspective Kenny on tracks like “FEEL.,” the end result is a distillation of rap’s recent trend towards self-representation. Kendrick’s entire discography is layered and allegorical, but with DAMN., his storytelling abilities are used in the context of contradiction. Kendrick has the unique gift of being able to verbalize poignant anxieties and experiences. He’s a storyteller above everything else, and his best work manifests in his vulnerability. Rap’s anointed savior isn’t a man without sin, yet he approaches his craft acutely self-aware. DAMN. is Kendrick Lamar’s reckoning. This is a platinum-certified album, but it’s also a candid conversation with God about his cursed people. Kendrick is an outlier in hip-hop’s current landscape in that he has no apparent philosophy; his spirituality drives his art. He doesn’t reckon with christianity, a man-made construct — he reckons with God and his attitudes as a self-proclaimed Israelite. The nebulous nature of DAMN. is fundamentally a result of his identity taking precedence over any ideology. Another man’s view of his own humanity and shortcomings isn’t inherently accessible, however, and, as such, no artist today demands rewinds the way Kendrick Lamar does. Even his most commercially viable track (“LOVE.”) is hypnotizing and nuanced. Every track is smooth like bourbon, while ON REPEAT maintaining the healthy burn invariably present in Kendrick’s pen. 1. PRIDE. As the album winds down, and well after P r o d u c e d B y : A n t h o n y “ T o p Kendrick has seemingly proved his point, D a w g ” T I f f i t h , S t e v e L a c y DAMN. culminates in “FEAR.,” a seven- S a m p l e s : E c h o e s / P i n k F l o y d minute triptych in the same vein as “Sing T h e H e a r t P a r t I V / K e n d r i c k About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst.” Still, L a m a r none of his work is innately intuitive. With it’s swirling soul samples, 9th Wonder 2 . L U S T . produced, “DUCKWORTH.” is the P r o d u c e d B y : B A D B A D N O T G O O D , Sounwave, DJ Dahi most important song on this album. The S a m p l e s : K n o c k K n o c k / R AT story of Tony, Ducky, and coincidence BOY encapsulates the circumstances that shape 3 . F E A R . Kendrick’s worldview: the wickedness P r o d u c e d B y : T h e A l c h e m i s t and weakness of life in Compton. With S a m p l e s : P o v e r t y ’ s P a r a d i s e / the final gunshot on “DUCKWORTH.,” T h e 2 4 - C a r a t B l a c k samples from the entire album accelerate T h e H e a r t P a r t I V / K e n d r i c k in reverse, almost prompting the listener to L a m a r rewind the album. Rewind the album. Interpolates: Die / Beanie Sigel