Hoping you're Friday is off to a good start. I know mine is with a great session from Cuco on MBE today. By the way, I'm thoroughly enjoying being on in the mornings. I could get use to this :) Speaking of being on in the mornings, a couple of the new releases I want to share with you are premieres you may have heard me play on MBE today!
Fat Freddy's Drop - Special Edition Part 1
Many of us at the station have been long time fans of dub/reggae/electronic outfit Fat Freddy's Drop, and are always in high anticipation of new music. Well, New Zealand's finest are back! 2015's "Bays" was the last time that we heard from the band until they surprised us with "Trickle Down" last summer. This past October they released a new single "Kamo Kamo," then two weeks ago they dropped Flashback (The Electric Drop) which features classics from their discography as well as a few new remixes. So we should have known something was brewing.
THAT something is Special Edition Part 1, which is out today and features 4 new tracks in addition to the aforementioned singles. In fact, if you were listening to KCRW, you may have heard me play the US radio debut of "OneFourteen."
Brainstory - Buck
Brainstory is a local trio that has captured our attention with their modern interpretations of classic 50s & 60s doo-wop and soul. Being born and raised in Los Angeles their sound is so familiar to me. It reminds me of so many days of my youth hearing songs by groups like The Delfonics, Blue Magic, The Chi-Lites and others. These sounds were blasted out of the homes and cars of the black and brown neighborhoods I called home. I spoke with the band about this and Latino brothers Tony & Kevin said I was describing their childhood.
These sonic memories of their youth gave birth to songs like "Breathe" and "Beautyful Beauti" (both of which were featured in a post by my man Jose Galvan back in September, which you may have read). After an EP and a slew of singles, today marks the release of their debut full length Buck. I lined up the world premiere of "Peter Pan" earlier on Morning Becomes Eclectic. It's one of my favorite tracks from the album, that's full of great songs. Here's another: