Sound Check's Blog Posts Tagged 'Download' (83)

"Extreme Metal/Hardcore" in your face with Alekhine’s Gun, representing Brooklyn and the New York City metal scene (you may have caught them at Trash Bar in Brooklyn?). Alekhine’s Gun are AP member Jessica The Crusher Pimentel (vocals), Jeff Martinez (guitars), Daniel Martinez (bass) and Angel Cotte (drums). Check out their EP 'Meditations in Wrath' below, featuring hard-hitting music and lyrics about…

It's maybe weird to call yourself a fan of a band after only hearing one track, but that's how it went with American Fangs. The first time I heard “Le Kick” on the Afropunk Vol 2 comp I was hooked. I hunted for their album. But no luck. Since 2009 they've released a few singles and an EP and a WWE theme song because why the hell not?…

Bam! Pump up the volume and check out hip-hop artist/Def Poetry Jam alum Narubi Selah's new album 'Architect: Sacred Geometry'. The girl goes IN, speaking her mind about social issues, art and more in an explosive brand of slam.

Check out two hard-hitting cuts from the album below and click HERE to download it and listen to…

Toronto-based singer Melanie Durrant serves big voice and musical drama with her latest single 'Gone'. She basically tells it like it is to the "other woman": "he only wants you when I'm gone". Stream it below and let us know what you think. - L.…

Amongst a frenzy of court appearances, media headlines and blog posts, Lauryn Hill released new music this past Friday. On her Tumblr, she addressed her disliking for having to rush the release of new material, necessary in order to meet a legal…

Metal has always had a fixation on the mystical and magical. From the occult and demonic fixation of doom metal to the D&D Monster Manual of power metal. The fierce low guitar, thundering drums, and classical technicality convey something larger than life, something more epic than ordinary reality. So it makes perfect sense that UK based Vodun would base their music around West African Vodun rituals and Loa (Haitian elemental spirits).…

It's hard not to love pop music that you can get lost in. Far too often the artists get as far as a killer hook and declare “good enough.” More and more pop music just kind of coasts without bothering to flesh songs out with arrangements worthy of their hooks. So you have to respect a band like Meridian who pack their tracks with layers upon layers of texture and detail.…

Grab a free download of Punk pioneers Death's unrealeased 1974 demo of their classic track 'Politicians In My Eyes'. Also, as we've told you guys before, a documentary about the band, 'A Band Called Death', has been made and will hit theaters on June 28th. Free download + documentary trailer below.…

Kelis' track 'Jerk Ribs' that we told you about last week is now available as a free download. It was produced by Dave Sitek of TV on the Radio. Grab it, you know you want it! + her new album is coming out in September on Sitek's label Federal Prism.

Happy May Day! It's class warfare week at SoundCheck apparently (ok fine, it's always class warfare week). The appropriately named Rhetoric out of Springfield, MA are an explosion of political metalcore. Their songs are almost more anti-capitalist polemics than songs. (Polemic would also be a pretty rad band name. Just saying.) Brutal bursts of guitar and drums thunder and rattle beneath AP member …

What happens when Erykah Badu, her cousin Jah Born, DJ Big Texas, RC Williams, Symbolyc One, Rob Free, PicnicTyme, A1 + HeadCrack (on voice box) produce beats during a live jam session in Dallas, Texas? The Cannabinoids, 'The Beat Tape VOL.2'! 21 minutes of badass beats with additional production & arrangements by Mike Chav. Pump up the volume and check the mix below already! It's a free download. - Lou C-D…

Free Download! Check genre-defying Tricky's new track 'Tribal Drums' featuring Francesca Belmonte. This cut is from his upcoming album 'False Idols' (due out May 28). Last month we told you about the video for 'Does It', another track off the album also featuring Francesca Belmonte. + in case you missed it, get another free track download…

Botswana-based death/metal band Wrust released their new song 'Spiral of Torture'. You may remember their video we featured years ago and now they're back with a new album. Rock on! - L.

If you're a fan of retro soul and Motown sounds, Latasha Lee and her band The BlackTies got just what you need. A big admirer of Etta James, Aretha Franklin, Sam Cooke, Lee offers melodies, style and visuals celebrating the greats. Check out some of her videos below and let us know what you think. Latasha Lee & The Blackties' self-titled album is out now on …

There's something about a song that captures the feel of a house party. Many many have tried, but it's a tough balance. Too live and it feels amateurish. Too polished and it feels phony. But Young Fathers hit the right mix with their single “Deadline.” It's built around the most minimal of pieces, a distorted kick drum, a 4 note buzz-saw bassline, and an almost chanted melody. It's got the hand-made raw chaos of a Death Grips production, but with a kind of hypnotic vocal…

This is gonna be hot! UK funkateer-in-chief Omar Lye-Fook's new album is coming soon (June 2013? - there's an album release party in London on June 28). The tracklist and first single have surfaced. The record will feature collaborations with Caron Wheeler (Soul II Soul) and Pino Palladino.

You can stream the single 'The Man' below…

UK indie rapper Mikill Pane's main appeal has always been his endless cleverness and charm. He just seems like the kind of guy you'd like to get a beer with. Maybe go bowling. His lyrics are a tangled web of references, meta-references, and elaborate puns. They've always been deep from a writing perspective, but never exactly deep emotionally. On…

Get funky! The new Janelle Monae single 'Q.U.E.E.N.' featuring Erykah Badu that we told you about is out now. Stream/download it below to hear them sing (and rap!) their asses off while you wait for Janelle's Monae's new album 'The Electric Lady' + check out a spot on review from AFROPUNK contributor Justin…

Video + Free download: 'FACes', dope track by UK singer/songwriter/Mark Ronson & Cee Lo collaborator Tawiah. The video was shot in Accra, Ghana. "The track was released as a free download in support of International Day for Street Children and Street Child Africa." 'FACes', written and produced by Tawiah and Jodi Milliner, is from Tawiah's upcoming release 'FREEdom…

The White Mandingos sample Bad Brains on their new track 'Mandingo Rally'. Murs says: "Probably the hardest and realest I've ever rapped in my life...". The band, composed of Murs, Darryl Jenifer and Sacha Jenkins SHR, will release their debut album, 'The Ghetto Is Tryna Kill Me', on June 11. You can download one of their tracks on the latest Afropunk…