With millions of songs easily accessible from most any smartphone, it’s easy to forget how much power a single song can contain. When artists like Skepta use their lyricism to heal, all broken hearts find a moment of solidarity. On the flip side, Action Bronson and Joey Bada$$ allow us to celebrate our victories — while reminding us to all stay humble. Not all tracks need to arrive at some life lesson; transporting listeners to some calming headspace is also a triumph during the commotion of the digital era. And sometimes we just need to get hype to get through the day, so we turn to Martin $ky or Destruction Unit. What mix do you require today?
10. Destruction Unit – “If Death Ever Slept”
Much like others producing sludgy material, Destruction Unit sound like they just got baked on new single “Death Ever Slept” — except the Arizona outfit’s psych rock jam sound sun-baked, blistered and burnt. The first taste of Negative Feedback Resistor finds Ryan Rousseau howling from the middle of a sandstorm of gritty guitars and pummeling percussion, the furious track pausing to break down into a feedbacky mess, like the eye of the storm before the wind kicks back up. Negative Feedback Resistor will hit shelves on September 18th via Sacred Bones. –Adam Kivel
9. ATTLAS – “Boxed”
Despite all the trolling deadmau5 is known to do on social media, his numerous coffee runs, and the time spent developing his new live set-up, the dude is still an amazing A&R force behind his mau5trap imprint. At the lead of the label’s new compilation, We are Friends, Vol. 4, is the dark bigroom of enigmatic producer ATTLAS. It has finally been revealed that ATTLAS is in fact not a deadmau5 side project, but rather fellow Canadian producer Jeff Hartford. However, the brooding melodies, spiritual lyricism, and deep textures demand attention no matter the star-power of their creator. This is not for the fist-pumping, glove-show crowd; ATTLAS borrows from dank basement parties to bring a new flavor to the massive festival main stage. –Derek Staples
8. Statik Selektah feat. Action Bronson and Joey Bada$$ – “Beautiful Life”
I don’t necessarily believe in the power of lucky numbers, but Boston producer Statik Selektah clearly does: He’s named his 7th LP Lucky 7, and will release it on 7/7. In case that numerology didn’t work out for him, he enlisted the help of both Action Bronson and Joey Bada$$ on early cut “Beautiful Life”. The two New York rappers go over some jazzy keys, swank rhythm, and a trumpet solo, the lush production reinforcing the title’s claim. Action’s verse is full of his usual John Starks swagger, but Joey’s closer might take the whole thing: “No doubt we gettin’ cash now/ Used to be class clown/ Don’t worry about beef/ I’m feelin’ like a cash cow.” Lucky 7 will be available July 7th via Duck Down Records. –Adam Kivel
7. Czarface feat. MF DOOM – “Ka-Bang!”
Here are two hip-hop legends, Inspectah Deck and MF DOOM, and two lesser-known but long-proven veterans, rapper Esoteric and producer/DJ 7L. With the collective experience level at work here (not to mention the onomatopoeic title), “Ka-Bang!” could very well be defined by an earned brazenness. Instead, it’s relatively low-key, banking on the strength of the MCs’ bars to color the track. Over 7L’s serpentine, sample-heavy beat, Deck, DOOM, and Esoteric each deliver a knotty, unpredictable verse that doesn’t get caught up in its own cleverness. The song will appear on Czarface’s sophomore album, Every Hero Needs a Villain, out June 16th via Brick Records. –Michael Madden
