This. is. so. SMOOTH.
I’m not quite sure how I stumbled upon Brooklyn’s soulful ANG LOW, but man are my ears happy. With only the minimalist track, “Life Goes Down,” on his lone Soundcloud page – I’m curious to hear where he takes us next. Be sure to keep this guy on your radar.
Right-click and enjoy.
I first came across the mysterious Blackedout when late one night, I found myself in the tinychat internet concert venue SPF420. After “sticking around” (or keeping my internet browser open / headphones on) for a couple of the other acts, the host announced Blackedout would be performing next. A quick switch of the webcam to wherever he was performing from, which for the most part, was in complete darkness and he was set to begin.
Almost immediately I was completely enthralled with the sounds I was hearing. As I’ve said before and through a lot of the music I share, I’m a huge fan of late night/R&B type sexy grooves and spacey sounds and beats. After the performance, I was excited to delve into some more tunes and was even more thrilled when I came across this brand new EP just released on April 30th.
This is a solid example of the sounds I love (think kind of the same vein as Supreme Cuts, The-Drum, Holy Other, etc). This is pure sex. Really nice sounding pianos, synths, drums, water sounds, [probably] some found sound samples in there, and nice use of Rihanna vocals and vox from the song ”Baby I’m For Real” (which was either taken from Michael McDonald or The Originals).
My only real complaint (if you can even call it that) is the brevity of the EP, spanning only about 15 minutes total. Anyway, hop on down below, turn the lights off, and hit play.
BONUS: for some non-EP tracks (that are just as chillin’) head on over to Blackedout’s soundcloud.
If you are surrounded by something for so long, after a period of time that something starts to have an effect on you. After growing up playing in backing bands and touring with people like Parliament and Raphael Saadiq and spending years listening to Saints (their words, not mine) like Luther Vandross, Prince, and D’Angelo, It’s no wonder you can hear the smooth soul, funk, and R&B influences on Inc‘s debut album, No World.
Although, there’s a sort of darker, more…or rather, differently intimate overarching emotion throughout these sounds. You don’t hear the brightness found in much of their influences; but the rhythm, grooves, and the low end are still there.
Wait till it starts getting dark and you’re alone, or if you happen to be boo luvin’ throw some of these jams on. They’re smooth.
The other day I mentioned Chicago production duo The-Drum as being “crazy busy.” The R&B supergroup, JODY, is further evidence of that statement. (I didn’t want to lump everything into one post; so I split em up). Jeremiah and Brandon (of The-Drum) are handling production duties for the group while David Robertson, Khallee Standberry-Lois, and James King are all on vocals.
The group continues The-Drum’s atmospheric/future-R&B/footwork/ production style and sound but, adding in the rappers and vocalists creates an even deeper level to their music. Don’t forget they’re no strangers to working with rappers as they also produced Haleek Maul’s “88.”
I’m already a fan of these guys and can’t wait to hear more. Be on the lookout for a Jody EP on March 1st followed by a video and more singles before full length mixtape drops. Also The-Drum is working on their debut LP, Contact (and a whole bunch of other stuff!)
Check their first two singles below:
Over the last several months Chicago’s The-Drum have been crazy busy. Working on a new album, collabo projects, solo work, re-mixes, side projects, and more.
Just a few days ago the duo dropped TWO new remixes on us; the first being a total rework of Maal A Goomba’s ”Ashley’s Intervention“. They take the original track, soak it down and infuse it with their smooth future R&B, footwork style production. Check that one out rye cheaah.
Ashley’s Intervention (The-DRUM Remix) – MAAL
The second is a remix of the already sexy late night boo lovin’ jam, “Under Attack,” by Shy Girls. For this one, the guys strip down and improve on pretty much all of the original instrumentation. Really slick and deep sounding synths, drum sounds, and improved sax section. Not to mention, the vocals are killer.
Allen Stone is the filler to my Aloe Blacc/Mayer Hawthorne/(and even a bit of Ray LaMontagne) void. His voice is soulful and lush, his range is impressive, but what I love most is that heavy use of the organ.
Hailing from the state of Washington, Stone refers to himself as “a hippie with soul.” And you know what? It undoubtedly works for him. With the release of his self-titled album last year, the singer-songwriter is embarking on an impressive world tour, finally landing back in America to perform at the Coachella music festival in April. Even though I feel he may get a late afternoon slot (when it’s still so god damn hot), I’m curious to see what he brings to the Coachella table.
Listen and grab your own copy of his single, “Sleep,” below and be sure to grab the free sampler he released via NoiseTrade.
Right-click and enjoy.
BONUS: oh, forgot this gem for all the K-Flay lovers in my life.
West Ghost (ft. Allen Stone) - K.Flay
I was waiting for a good time to put this up and after that Super Bowl halftime performance I think this is the PERFECT time.
Kind of an interesting little story about this song, or at least how I came about first hearing it. I was at a bar in Brooklyn and through the late-night chatter of the crowd I heard this song in the background. It was the perfect soundtrack for the setting I was in and had to find out who it was. I asked the bartender, who happened to have put the whole night’s playlist together and found out it was a remix from Cyril Hahn, a Switzerland born producer now living in Vancouver, British Columbia.
This track is pure gold. It completely flips the original Destiny’s Child track “Say My Name” upside-down and makes it a grooving late night atmospheric sex jam. Please listen to this at a pleasingly audible volume late at night and you’ll know exactly what I mean.
Say My Name (Cyril Hahn Remix) – Destiny’s Child
Fuuuuck, this is gorgeous.
Coming from Fake Shore Drive, Nylo‘s sound can be described as “The Weeknd meets Aaliyah.” I completely agree.
We here at What’s Protocol? have been fans of Chaz Van Queen for quite some time now. We’ve even had various opportunities to work with him as well as watch him work.
Since we’ve been following him, there have been various teases of the release of his second full length album, A 
4 U, but the date always seemed to get pushed back due to various complications. Chaz has finally cleared all of the hurdles and managed to release the album for the public, and we must thank God/Supreme Being/Random Chance for that.
I had heard about half of the tracks on the album previously so I was aware that he was sitting on a handful of extremely solid singles, but upon listening to the album in its entirety it is apparent that it is much more than a collection of singles. Chaz has managed to hone his voice and create a signature sound that, to me, is reminiscent of the feel good hip hop of the early to mid-90s. A perfect example of the 90′s feel is his track “Summer Girlfriends” which I previously described as perfect for a backyard bbq.
Chaz’ talents are not confined to simply rapping, either. On the back to back tracks “Bring Your Smile” and “Think Twice” he shows of his skills as a singer. I’ve loved “Bring Your Smile” since I first heard it last summer and I was immediately wowed today upon my first listening of “Think Twice.”
Despite the rapping and singing, the most impressive thing about this album may be that Chaz produced, composed, and arranged it all. He truly shows off his chops as a musician/producer on each track.
Overall this album can be taken as announcement of Chaz’ musical genius. It could be said that he is showing off here were it not for the fact that we benefit so much by him sharing his talents. This album was definitely worth the wait and I am glad he took his time with it. You can stream/download the album below. Enjoy!
BONUS:
Chaz also just got some press from Prefix Mag as he was featured on a track by Toothpaste. Listen to the track below and checkout the full Prefix Mag writeup.
For more info about Chaz Van Queen, please visit his website
This group is like a light. A sexy light. A “Beacon” of groovy sexy… groove light shining gently into your ears and making them happy.
I came across Beacon’s No Body EP just a few days ago and I’ve been getting into it quite a bit, and for good reason too. They are described as exploring a
“combination of deep south bass music and ambient pop melodies, with R&B tinged vocals that accompany warm arpeggiated synthesizers.”
I just use really descriptive words like “good” and “cool” and “sexygroovy,” but in the long run, it’s really about the sound isn’t it?
Check it out below! (my favorites are “See You Through” and “Exhale”)
