Hip-Hop Matters: The Best Hip-Hop Albums of August 2021
The ten best hip-hop albums of August 2021 reveal truths about our strange, alarming but often exciting contemporary socio-cultural landscape.
alternative hip-hop
Hip-Hop Matters: The Best New Hip-Hop of July 2021
These are the best hip-hop albums released this July, including new LPs from Dave, Tkay Maidza, Declaime x Madlib, Unknown T, and John Glacier.
Mike Ladd and Remi Rough Unite on ‘The Dead Can Rap’
Mike Ladd with producer Rough pulls up a wealth of succulent groove on The Dead Can Rap, nudging the think tank of his polemic poetry onto the dancefloor.
Hip-Hop Matters: The Best New Hip-Hop Albums of June 2021
Summer is the best time of year to listen to hip-hop. From the upbeat and bouncy to the weird and paranoid, hip-hop just sounds better in the sunshine. That makes now the perfect time for the first edition of “Hip-Hop Matters” – PopMatters’ new monthly hip-hop roundup.
‘Irresistible Bliss’ at 25: Personal Friction Couldn’t Dampen the Musical Chemistry of Soul Coughing
Soul Coughing’s success with Irresistible Bliss shows how the early ’90s grunge music explosion led to the more expansive alternative rock boom of the mid-’90s.
Mykki Blanco Sound Happy on ‘Broken Hearts and Beauty Sleep’
While not their most unique project, Mykki Blanco’s Broken Hearts and Beauty Sleep presents a steady, mellowed pathos that’s genuine and hard to deny.
Cautious Clay Offers a Sophisticated Take on Love with ‘Deadpan Love’
On Cautious Clay’s Deadpan Love, the music is always infectious and the subliminal message has an erotic aura.
Beck’s ‘Odelay’ Is Still a Potent Stew of Rock, Hip-Hop, Folk, and Soul 25 Years Later
Beck’s Odelay is 25 years old. It remains unique with the mighty combination of Beck and the Dust Brothers resulting in some fascinating music.
Mick Harris, Kool Keith, and Submerged Discuss Scorn’s “Distortion”
Scorn’s new LP adds to the foundation Mick Harris built 30 years ago. We spoke with Mick Harris, Kool Keith, and Submerged about how their universes collided.
Kool Keith Delivers Another Surreal Rap Odyssey on ‘Keith’s Salon’
Veteran rapper Kool Keith’s latest album, Keith’s Salon, finds his brand of dirty, absurdist hip-hop in especially sharp form.
IKOQWE’s ‘The Beginning, the Medium, the End and the Infinite’ Is a Sublime Debut
IKOQWE’s The Beginning is a compact yet and complete package, a fearless debut that promises to keep finding new and imaginative ways to assemble fascinating sonic stories with unique aplomb.