Claim dude, St. Louis!! Black Spade aka Vito Money, aka Stoney Rock!

St. Louis finally has something that is consistently pretty good. Black Spade is from St. Louis and, his career is pretty underrated (Charles Hamilton controversy excluded). He is a producer and lyricist with pretty good music that boarders soul, sampling, mixing, vocals and quite vivid stories.

Album Pick: Olivier Daysoul – “The Mr. Saint Louis EP” by Wheels

Olivier Daysoul – The Mr. Saint Louis EP (Oddisee Music 2010) Not often do you come across free EPs as quality as this one, from talented R&B vocalist Olivier Daysoul featuring production from Little Brother affiliate Oddisee. Olivier’s got a warm, emotive vocal style and Oddisee puts down a set of instrumentals that combine classic soul [...]

Album Pick: Flying Lotus – Cosmogramma by Wheels

Flying Lotus – Cosmogramma (Warp Records) Every article about young beatmaking phenom Flying Lotus (AKA Steve Ellison) seems to focus on his prodigious musical ancestry: his great aunt is the great pianist/harpist Alice Coltrane, wife of John Coltrane, who needs no introduction. While his music in the past has demonstrated subtle nods to that past [...]

Album Pick: José James – Blackmagic by Wheels

José James – Blackmagic (Brownswood Records) José James understands subtlety. Across the 14 hazy, relaxed tracks on his second LP, Blackmagic, he rarely strains but always gets his point across. Some might find José’s comfortable vibe a bit too restrained at times, but Blackmagic is without a doubt an album that reveals its little delights after [...]

Album Pick: Erykah Badu – New Amerykah Part 2 (Return of the Ankh) by Wheels

Erykah Badu – New Amerykah Part 2: Return of the Ankh (Universal Motown) In recent interviews, Erykah Badu has been calling the New Amerykah series her “magnum opus”, the defining music of her career. When Erykah Badu dropped New Amerykah Part 1: 4th World War back in 2008, people weren’t quite ready. Coming from the “queen [...]

Album Pick: Gorillaz – “Plastic Beach” by Wheels

Gorillaz – Plastic Beach (Parlophone and Virgin Records) I’ve been excited about this one for awhile now and let me get something out of the way: Damon Albarn has done it again. This album is another progression for Damon as an artist and the Gorillaz project (shoutout to brilliant artist Jamie Hewlett, the visual half [...]