DOWNLOADS OF THE WEEK: Common, Gilbere Forte, David Lynch

Common - Blue Sky

It is easy to imagine Common recording this. Half smile, half snarl as he spits into the pop filter. It is his usual uplifting style but I get a sense that there is also a bit of ‘I told you so’ about it. Yes he has made a move into a successful acting career, and now even an authoring career but he never left rap behind. Here he is spitting with just as much enthusiasm as ever.

So what’s good? It all is. Big and full and powerful. The track is a ripper. No I.D. has woven together yet another musical masterpiece with a little help from the past in the form of Electric Light Orchestra. Common’s flow is as smooth as his golden head. Blue sky…who doesn’t like a nice sunny summers day? Well here is the aural equivalent.

Its 2 from 2 for Common. Both the singles released from the upcoming album The Dreamer, The Believer have been given thumbs up from both the mainstream media and underground blogs. The album is shaping up to be taken pretty damn seriously.

DOWNLOAD HERE

Gilbere Forte - Some Dreams Never Sleep EP

Dreaming is what Gilbere is all about. ‘Aspire to inspire’ is his motto. Probably tattooed on his stomach where you would expect ‘thug life’ to be. Or at a bare minimum engrained in his mind. This maxim is scattered around the EP but not in a preachy way or anything. Just in a humanistic kind of way. If you want it, go get it.

If you are into judging a rapper by who else takes a look at him then sit tight and have a look at this list. Asher Roth, Big K.R.I.T, Pusha T, Jim Jones, etc etc. And this is just an EP. Imagine what connections he is going to make for the full album. He has also received love from the inanimate as well. The EP is presented by clothing label sensation ‘The Hundreds’.

It could also be quite fitting to be sponsored by Nike – just do it! It is clear from the EP’s collection of energetic rants and eclectic styles that he is doing what he wants. He doesn’t fit directly into any real style of rap. And that is why I am loving it. He is not in anyone’s pocket. It is refreshing to hear hip hop being made without any rules. There is such a smooth set of tracks.  They can all stand alone as worthy and yet even though the differences are plentiful they do come together to give you an overall taste for exactly what Gilbere Forte is. The attention to detail is there in every song in terms of production and lyrics. Drum loops, vocal effects and more synths than the 80s. It is hard to pigeonhole but here is my idea of his genre - it’s ‘intelligent hip hop’. Any rapper who cites Sigur Ros as an influence is obviously paying attention to his craft.

I am sure there have been times when Gilbere has wanted to hit the whole ‘music’ thing on the head. It is not an easy thing to break out. When you look at artists from the outside it seems like the top 40 today have ‘made it’ in very little time and with little effort. For some of them that is true.  But most have carved out a spot with non-stop dedication. Forte is the type of artist we admire. The type that deserves so much because he works so hard. This EP was made at a cost of ‘sleepless nights, missed flights and food fights’. Tired, late and hungry, he has pieced it all together.

Only someone as prolific as Gilbere would call an 11 track project an EP. Most would be happy with 11 tracks on a full album. Either way you can get it all for free. Time to stop listening to dumbed down hip hop and get back to something with a purpose.

DOWNLOAD HERE

David Lynch - Crazy Clown Time

I’m kind of breaking my own rules with this one. On the first ever Downloads of the Week article I said I would not rate things because I would only write about stuff I thought was good. Well, to be straight up I’m not sure I like this. But it is definitely interesting. In the same way that Charles Manson is not someone I consider to have done great things but I am still fascinated by the monstrosity that is his mind. To be honest the song is terrifying. It really is like being in the mind of a paedophiliac serial killer. The textures cut your ears into seeping bloody ribbons. Like I said, interesting.

This is from THE David Lynch. As in the film and TV director. You know, Eraserhead, Elephant Man, Mullholland Drive, Twin Peaks. This isn’t actually his first venture into music land. He has worked on some soundtrack stuff and brought out a rock album – but now he is strictly an electro-pop man. Well, this track is made with electronic instruments but there is no way it really fits any genre, electro-pop or otherwise.

We have previously been informed that Karen O from Yeah Yeah Yeahs is to appear as guest vocalist on the album. There is a female voice on this track but it is mostly sex noises. Has anyone out there heard Karen O have an orgasm first hand? Is this her?

Venture into insanity by hitting the link.

DOWNLOAD HERE

If you are greedy and want a bigger slice of the free download music pie and frequent news on what’s new and good then get on twitter and follow @electricpuppet.

By Oli Holmes