Latest news with #instrumental
CBC
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Kaytranada samples Barry White, TLC, the Neptunes and more on his new album
Kaytranada's fourth solo album, Ain't No Damn Way!, is a return to his roots. Before the Janet Jackson edits and hits with vocalists including Syd, H.E.R., Tinashe and Kali Uchis, Kaytranada was a crate-digging teen splicing up beats in his family's Montreal basement. And the new album is heavy on beats: it's mostly instrumental save a handful of chopped-up vocal samples, as he shared in an Instagram story: "Letting y'all know that this album is strictly for workouts, dancing and studying and for my people that love beats." Of course, the bedrock of any good Kaytranada tune is the production and his inspired use of samples, so even though there's no sing-along choruses à la 10% or You're the One on this record, the groove remains undeniable. Kaytranada's previous album, Timeless, was released last summer and included a whole host of guest appearances from Childish Gambino, Anderson .Paak, Charlotte Day Wilson, Rochelle Jordan, Tinashe, Kaytranada's brother, Lou Phelps, and more. The collaborators on Ain't No Damn Way! are less obvious: acclaimed jazz drummer Karriem Riggins is credited on Good Luck, and Alex Sowinski of Toronto experimental jazz band BadBadNotGood is credited on Home. On Ain't No Damn Way!, Kaytranada samples '70s soul icon Barry White, R&B-rap trio TLC, superproducer duo the Neptunes and many more — but it's hard to catch them all on first listen. Below we breakdown the exciting and unexpected samples on the Montreal producer's new album. Young, Fresh n' New, Kelis The album opener, Space Invader, samples this explosive 2001 Kelis track, produced by the Neptunes (Chad Hugo and Pharrell Williams). It was the lead single from the rapper's second album, Wanderland, but less known than her ubiquitous hit Milkshake, which came two years later. Kaytranada rarely samples an artist's most recognizable tunes, and it would be easy to not realize that breathy chant of "gotta get away sometimes" is Kelis's vocal. What's particularly interesting is that Kelis never says those words in that order in her song — Kaytranada broke down the vocal stems and rearranged the lyrics for his track. Love on a Real Train, Tangerine Dream On Championship, Kaytranada sampled this Tangerine Dream song, originally composed for the Risky Business soundtrack. Kaytranada borrows the German trio's spacey synths and gives them a soulful zhuzh on the atmospheric track. The members of Tangerine Dream have changed many times over the decades, but in 1984 when this song was released, the group consisted of founder Edgar Froese, Christophe Franke and Johannes Schmoelling. Things Fall Apart, Steve Monite Steve Monite's 1984 Afro-boogie song Things Fall Apart provides the bones for Kaytranada's vibey Things. The song starts off with an echo of Monite singing, "Things are getting so bad," before stabbing synths come in. Kaytranada takes a quick moment at the 2:20 mark of the original track and loops it repeatedly as the percussive core of his new creation. And this is not the first time the producer has sampled this particular song: older fans will recognize the bright synths at the 1:48 mark because he used them in the 2018 Lou Phelps and Jazz Cartier track, Come Inside. Black Boy, Cappadonna Shine Your Light For We is rooted by a vocal sample from Black Boy, the 1998 track from Cappadonna, a member of Wu-Tang Clan. Specifically, Kaytranada samples the chorus, sung by Tekitha Washington: "Black boy in the ghetto streets/ Black boy, no more suffering/ Black boy, shine your light for we." The track contains some sampling inception: Cappadonna, née Darryl Hill, samples his father, Barry White, on Black Boy, using White's 1976 song You, I Adore, and the celestial strings pop up in the melody of Shine Your Light For We. Let's Do it Again, TLC On the final track on the album, Kaytranada flips TLC's CrazySexyCool cut Let's Do it Again, produced by Babyface and Jon-John Robinson. Swinging drum kicks that have become the producer's signature ring out on Do It! (Again!) as T-Boz and Chilli's pitched-up and sped-up vocals accentuate the groove. The original 1994 song is a sultry R&B slow burn, but Kaytranada takes the pleading bridge and turns things up a notch for a dance-floor heater.
The Sun
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Internationally famous band cancel string of tour dates after drummer suffers ‘serious injury'
AMERICAN instrumental metal band Animals As Leaders have been forced to cancel a string of tour dates. The band were supposed to land in Australia in September but it's now been cancelled after drummer Matt Garstka suffered a serious injury. 3 Subsequently, tour dates in Mexico and South America have also been cancelled. The group took to their Instagram page to share the unfortunate news with their 245,000 followers. They began: 'To our fans in Mexico, South America and Australia. We have some unfortunate news. We're going to have to cancel our upcoming tour dates. 'Matt sustained a serious arm injury that requires surgery, and there's no way we can perform without him. 'Rather than leave things up in the air, we're calling it now and putting our full focus into writing the next Animals As Leaders album. 'New material is already in the works, and we'll have more to share soon. 'We know this news sucks – especially for those of you who've been waiting a long time to see us live. Cancelling isn't something we take lightly. 'Thank you for sticking with us. We'll make it back to your cities with new music and a set that hits even harder. Respect. Animals As Leaders,' they signed off. Their fans rushed to the comments section to share their thoughts as one said: 'This is how good AAL is. Someone gets hurt, nobody is capable of filling in. Get well soon Matt!' Another understanding fan penned: 'I just wish Matt a quick recovery and that you can play the full Joy Of Motion album whenever you can come around. Animals as Leaders official music video for CAFO 'I was really anticipating the chance to see if full but everyone's health is more important.' Somebody else expressed: 'Dude is so much of a legend, no one can fill in! Get well soon Matt. I know CMDX show will be worth the wait.' While a fourth added: 'Wishing Matt a safe recovery, hope surgery goes well! Hope you guys can be back on stage soon.' The tour would have marked the band's debut visit Down Under to support metal group Car Bomb. We wish our brother Matt a quick and full recovery and hope we'll be able to finally make it over to Australia soon.' Car Bomb Car Bomb said of the cancellation: 'Due to the unfortunate incident of Matt Garstka suffering an arm injury, our upcoming tour with Animals As Leaders has been cancelled. 'This would have been our first time playing Australia, so it pains us to say we will not be performing for y'all this September. 'We wish our brother Matt a quick and full recovery and hope we'll be able to finally make it over to Australia soon.' Aside from Matt, the group is also comprised of lead guitarist Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes on rhythm guitar, all hailing from Washington DC. They first formed in 2009, with the line-up seeing some changes, with past members including Chebon Littlefield, Matt Halpern and Navene Koperweis. Animals As Leaders released their self-titled debut album with Prosthetic Records in 2009. They have since released the albums Weightless (2011), The Joy of Motion (2014), The Madness of Many (2016) and Parrhesia (2022).
Washington Post
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
With their original guitarist back, rockers Pelican are making new music
When Pelican, an all-instrumental heavy-rock band, recently released its first album in six years, the record didn't simply signal the Chicago quartet's reactivation. 'Flickering Resonance' is a back-to-the-future move. The eight-song release marks the return of guitarist Laurent Schroeder-Lebec, who left the group from 2012 to 2022. Schroeder-Lebec departed in part because he wanted to start a family, and he decided that working in restaurants offered more financial stability than playing in a band. (He now has two children.) There were also some interpersonal issues that 'could have been handled with more conversation, more communication, more self-exploration,' the guitarist says in a phone interview.
The National
15-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Adele tribute review: Is the Candlelight Concert series worth the hype?
Why would anyone attend an instrumental Adele concert? It's a fair question, considering her voice is the whole deal. It carries the drama, pain and a raw, lived-in power that turns even a break-up into an anthem. So, attending a gig without it already feels like a stretch – sort of like watching a film with the dialogue on mute. And yet, as part of the successful Candlelight Concert series, it works. Well, kind of. Their idea of reworking big pop songs without vocals and placing them in moody, candle-lit settings has taken off. Since its debut in culture centres in Madrid in 2019, Candlelight Concerts has travelled to more than 100 cities and made its Dubai debut in 2022. These gigs are less about performance and more about atmosphere. By doing that, they invite listeners to hear the songs differently and maybe even more closely. In its debut in Ras Al Khaimah – one of four planned shows covering the varied works of Coldplay, Abba and Vivaldi – the event takes place indoors, in a small ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton Al Wadi Desert Resort. With the summer heat outside, this makes sense, and the atmosphere doesn't suffer. The organisers have worked with what they had. Candles are placed along the aisles and around the piano, even tucked into candelabras, while the audience sits all around in a circular set-up. It feels close and like everything is folding inward. By the time Italian pianist Aldo Dotto takes to the elevated stage, everyone has soaked up the mood. There's a stillness in the room. No phones up, no rustling, just quiet attention. At some points, it's hard to tell what to focus on more – the music itself or just the way it all feels in the room. It all blends, and that's part of the charm. Dotto takes on some of Adele's biggest songs and brings them down to size. Not in a lesser way, but in a more reflective one. Hello loses its weighty opening drama and instead comes off like a lullaby. The familiar piano hook is played so softly that it almost feels like it is being hummed under someone's breath. Skyfall makes the transition smoothly. It's a song already written with an orchestral framework, so hearing it solo doesn't strip it too bare. Instead, it gives a sense of hearing a rough sketch. Like something Adele might have worked with before the full production came in. The standout moment, though, is Make You Feel My Love. It's a Bob Dylan song, one Adele covered early in her career and kept mostly faithful. Dotto goes back to that simpler and original 2008 version. No frills, just the melody and a bit of restraint. The room gets even quieter, with a few audience members swaying along, some with eyes closed. That's the kind of communal moment Candlelight Concerts seems to aim for. Meryem Benkirane, senior project manager at Fever – the company behind the Candlelight series in the UAE and who has already staged concerts at Dubai's QE2 and Zabeel Theatre – says the idea isn't just about putting concerts in elegant spaces. It's about shifting the way people engage with live music. "At its core, Candlelight is about creating intimacy," she tells The National. "A lot of people feel a bit out of place at traditional classical concerts. The format, the venues, it can all feel too formal. So we asked – what happens if you take the same music and change how it's presented?" One of the answers was to keep things short. "Most of our shows are under an hour. You come in, you settle and you're done before it drags," she says. "It's also about offering a variety of programmes. We go from Vivaldi to Adele to Coldplay. That mix brings in a wider audience." As for bringing the concept to the UAE three years ago, Benkirane says the diversity of the population results in the kind of crowd ideal for such formats. "The audience here is curious. They want something different, not just the big arena shows. Ras Al Khaimah gives us space to try something a little different," she says. "Especially with a place like Al Wadi Desert Resort. It's not your usual venue, and that's what made it exciting." "People are looking for new ways to experience live music. We're not saying it has to replace anything else, but maybe this is just another way of doing it. Slower, more thoughtful. Something a little more human." Candlelight Concerts at the Ritz-Carlton, Wadi Desert continue with two tribute concerts: Antonio Vivaldi's Four Seasons and the music of Queen and Abba, both on September 27. A final concert dedicated to pianist Frederic Chopin takes place on December 20. Tickets start at Dh200, except for the Chopin concert, which is Dh150.
Forbes
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Andre 3000 Reaches Some Very Unexpected Charts
André 3000 charts for the first time on Billboard's jazz rankings with 7 Piano Sketches, a surprise ... More instrumental EP featuring solo piano compositions. NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 05: André 3000 attends the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 05, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images) Later this year, André 3000 will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He and his former OutKast bandmate Big Boi will then rank among the few names from hip-hop to make it into the hallowed hall, which was once reserved only for rock acts. While Big Boi has continued to deliver his signature style of rap music since the duo split, André 3000 has taken a different musical path. Last year, he shared New Blue Sun, an instrumental project – and one of the most unexpected returns to music in recent memory. Now, he's back on the Billboard charts with an EP that once again takes him in a new direction, and to rankings he's never seen before. On Monday (May 5), André 3000 released 7 Piano Sketches. The EP's name is a perfect fit, as the short collection features seven completely instrumental piano compositions by the Grammy winner. The project arrived with little to no warning, and while it is certainly not what most fans were expecting when they heard new music was on the way, the title has become a surprising commercial success, at least in some areas covered by Billboard. 7 Piano Sketches debuts on a pair of tallies this frame. It opens highest on the Traditional Jazz Albums chart, where it starts at No. 13. It also lands on the more all-encompassing Jazz Albums ranking, launching at No. 18. In both instances, André 3000 collects his first placement on Billboard's two jazz-focused lists. Despite his popularity, André 3000 does not score the top debut on either tally. On this frame's Traditional Jazz Albums chart, he comes in just behind the Count Basie Orchestra, which launches Basie Rocks at No. 12 — one spot ahead of the rapper. On the Jazz Albums tally, he earns the third-highest start, with Basie once again edging him out by a single position, while Animaru by Mei Semones comes in at No. 13. 7 Piano Sketches is the latest release by André 3000 to take him in an unexpected musical direction. In late 2023, he dropped his first solo album, New Blue Sun. That effort was completely instrumental and blended ambient music, new age styles, and flute performances from the rapper throughout. While it was not a major commercial success, New Blue Sun did earn André 3000 several Grammy nominations and showed that the music industry remains interested in whatever he has to share.
