Leif Knowles - Dinas Oleu (Album)

If it took this guy 10 years in the music business to finally

drop an album, that shit better be bonkers. Luckily, this 

deep house beauty is worth the wait. 

DJ/Producer Leif Knowles has crafted a lush majestic journey

with 'Dinas Oleu' out now via Fear of Flying. This

is house music littered with orchestral flourishes, 

natural sounds, reverb, oddly rooted in ambient

downtempo chillout.

The engineering/production through out is a marvel.

It's not every time a mix just breathes like this.

Jai Paul - Jai Paul (Album Stream)

While it was Drake that first drew my attention to Jai Paul with

his 'BTSTU' sampling 'Dreams Money Can Buy', the man's work 

speaks for itself. Finally after years of single-track-release dick teases,

we have a complete body of work to be moist over.

Whether this is his official album is unclear since XL Recordings

- his label - has not acknowledged this collection of songs. What is 

is clear is this guy is some kind of modern day blunted alternate
universe version of Prince. And don't let 'blunted' fool you into thinking that
he does not possess the most sublime of production touches.

Au contraire, mon cheri.

The Dream - IV Play

The Dream wears his R.Kelly influence loud and proud on this one. That is
R. Kelly, before he became your favorite thugged out nursery rhyme spewing
perv uncle. More like old school something for the jeeps R&B R.Kelly.
Well it's about time someone gave us some shit that sounds like this.

This thing reeks of the 90s. The bassline is reminiscent of the West Coast
G-Funk Dr. Dre and tha Dogg Pound popularized. When the bridge soars just
before the hook, you're half expecting Dru Hill to pop out and
sing back up for him.

Another genius element of the song is its structure. After the verse, the
bridge soars building up the tension and anticipation, layering his voice
on itself till a drum fill cuts through it and it falls back into the calm and
composure of the chorus.
A great inversion of the traditional expectations of song structure.

When the guitar solo rears its head (in a nod to Prince),
it's time you started reaching for that cigarette.

While the Dream has no time for foreplay, you might want to make
time for his upcoming album 'IV Play' (this being the second single)
out May 28th via Def Jam.