Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
2: Kanye West & Jay Z – Watch The Throne
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
3: Atlas Sound – Parallax
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
4. Thurston Moore – Demolished Thoughts
For those who don’t know Thurston Moore he’s the genius behind Sonic Youth. With his solo work he offers something very different from the raw material that characterizes his band. This album is very personal, folky and acoustic, oh and it’s produced by none other than Beck. Perfect on a rainy autumn day.
5. John Maus – We Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves
John Maus sometimes sounds so stereotypical that we might wonder if his music is just a big joke ! Everything is exaggerated and weird, from the way he inserts strange sounds when you least expect it, or his obvious nonstop mimicking of Ian Curtis. It’s a lot to handle, but somehow it works perfectly.
6. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
7. Cut Copy – Zonoscope
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
8. Nicolas Jaar – Space is Only Noise
Jaar is only 21, but he already released one of the most acclaimed and talked about album of the year. I think that says it all.
9. The Kills – Blood Pressures
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
10. Metronomy – The English Riviera
Made the Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2011 list here
With “Swag” seemingly chosen as the buzz word for 2011 it was appropriate that Jay-Z and KanyeWest‘s long rumored collaboration had tons of it. . Having set the bar very high with last year’s ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy‘ it seems anything Kanye touches turns to gold and Jay-Z also has the midas touch again reminding us how much better than everyone else he is. ‘Watch The Throne‘ gives the rap megastars an opportunity to make as many outlandish and likely true boasts as they possible can over a tight production.
Cougar scribe Olivia said: “Take Jay Z and Kanye West, you expect something epic, huge and over the top ( just like the massive promotion around the album ), a mix of Kanye‘s creativity and Jay‘s flow , so something perfect basically. Indeed it is a great album. Considering the amount of talent in this twosome have that’s not too surprising“.
When news started circulating that Jay-Z and Kanye West were uniting to release an album the reaction in Cougar HQ was combination of excitement and apprehension.
Over the past few years these two gentlemen have been responsible for some of my favourite releases but of course these collaborations can be hit and miss (anyone remember when Hov did ‘Best Of Both Worlds‘ with R. Kelly??).
‘Otis‘ sees the two superstars delivering sharp lines and their boastful approach is actually refreshing in contrast to some of their more serious output. My only critique is
The video sees them (seemingly) having a lot of fun suggesting ‘Watch The Throne‘ was as good to record as it has been to listen to so far.
It has been a while since we featured a good mashup and even longer since The White Panda graced these pages. In this time the boys have been keeping busy plugging their third album ‘Pandamonium‘ and filling dancefloors across North America.
I’ve argued before that in my mind what makes an ideal mashup is when I am familiar, and preferably love, the tracks involved. The Chicago based duo have a knack for doing just that.
For details on how to get their releases as well as live shows check The White Panda.
Another weekend and another Kanye West video for Cougar Microbes. ‘Monster‘ was recently banned by MTV due to its alleged misogynistic content and the objectification of women.
Whilst I can see where they are coming from with this one Kanye is hardly the worse than countless other videos, fashion shoots and tv programs. Besides, Nicki Minaj‘s presence on the song could be seen a strike back for girl power, especially considering her verse is the best thing about this song.
Regardless of all of the above this is a kick ass video for a kick ass song.
Somewhere in between starting his own “Yo, Ima let you finish BUT…” meme, endless twitter rants and outlandish extended music videos Kanye West found time to record his best album to date. Following the auto-tune obsessed meanderings of ‘808s & Heartbreak’ you would have been right to wonder if Mr West had relinquished his rapper ambitions. That claim is soon laid to rest.
The superstar had already begun hinting at what he was about to cook up with his ‘G.O.O.D Fridays’ project but when ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ dropped in late november so did a few jaws. Has Kanye finally released an album to match the size of his ego?
The album states its intentions early by kicking off proceedings with the track ‘Dark Fantasy’ with its outlandish faux BritishAlice In Wonderland-esque introduction. This is followed by a bombastic gospel choir and some head bang demanding verses which make this the perfect prologue to this album acting as a vindication of his state of mind.
Having kicked off in such impressive fashion he keeps delivering upon this stellar standard throughout. As can be expected there is a multitude of gueststars on display but it is interesting to note that only 5 tracks actually feature rappers. West has always been more of a producer than a rapper in my mind so it notable that two of my standout tracks, the bass lead and ego fueled ‘Power’ and ‘Hell Of A Life’, see him largely going it solo whilst delivering some of his most memorable lines.
Still, when you consider that tracks such as ‘Monster’ and ‘So Appalled’ feature an array superheroes including Jay-Z, Pusha T, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj, CyHi Da Prynce, Swizz Beatz & The RZA and that ‘All Of The Lights’ samples the voices of the likes of John Legend, La Roux, Alicia Keys, Rihanna and Elton John (!) and it starts to become clear that Kanye’s Blackberry is the ultimate musical wet dream.
Fortunately these inspired guest performances, with notable mention for Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj, don’t bloat the album but rather play another small part in the larger picture in Kanye’s vision. ‘Fantasy’ suggests total control over music and image and this album is intentionally, and somewhat surprisingly, light on skits and interludes. However it is not lightweight as a result of it. In fact its “meager” 13 tracks come in at 70 minutes without ever outliving its welcome guaranteeing value for money.
Few artists polarize opinion as much as Mr Kanye West. A few weeks ago I was at a house party where the conversation naturally turned to music and the best albums of 2010. My admission that I thought very highly of ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ was met with slight bewilderment. When I asked if my interrogator had actually heard the album he responded that he had no real interest because he disliked the artist. .
Think what you will of Kanye West the man but in ‘Fantasy’ he has not only released a timeless hip-hop album but possibly one of the best albums of the past ten years.
As part of his G.O.O.D. Fridays series Kanye West just unleashed another banger. ‘So Appalled’ features the skills of RZA, Jay-Z, Pusha T, Swiss Beatz and Cyhi The Prince in what is a tense and somewhat gloomy track.
Better still, it seems MC Hammer wants to make a comeback album purely to retaliate against the Jay-Z verse calling him out
TRACKS:
Kanye West – So Appalled (feat. RZA, Jay-Z, Pusha T, Swizz Beatz & Cyhi the Prynce)
Get the tracks from the G.O.O.D. Fridays series here.
The MashMaticians is the name Messrs DJ Zesty and Gudda Gallin have been going under since 2009. The Princeton students’ output is unequivocally on the pop side of things often taking rap vocals and mashing them with a dance or R&B foundations. When it clicks it works really well.
Their debut album is entitled ‘The MashoChist’. In their own words: “MashoChist is someone who enjoys mash ups, or who derives pleasure from listening to them”.
to feature an array of amazing releases and artists (past, present, old and new) with the goal of promoting them to anyone interested and anyone who stumbles across this site.
If you like any of the tracks, please go buy the albums and help finance the artists producing this great music.
If there are any issues with the tracks featured do not hesitate to contact: "team (AT) Cougar Microbes (DOT) com and we will happily oblige.
