Posts Tagged: The Very Best

Album Reviews / Music / Reviews — 17 Comments
2
Sep 09

The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa, Album Review

CD and LP giveaway, details at end of review

The Very Best Warm Heart of Africa, Album Review album reviews reviews 2 The Very Best
Warm Heart of Africa

Green Owl Records
out October 6th

86/100
[Rating Scale]
Buy it at Insound!

[rating:86/100]
A French producer and a Malawian singer walk into a thrift shop to haggle for a bicycle. Sounds like the beginning of a terrible joke, huh? Instead it’s the beginning of great music, with Esau Mwamwaya playing the singer role, and Johan Hugo and DJ Tron getting the producer credits. The collaboration, under the name “The Very Best,” caught the music world in a rare moment of unpreparedness as last year’s The Very Best Mixtape surprised even the most savvy heads. The tape built steam on word of mouth, leaving a path of excitement, dancing, and top ten lists in its wake. The Very Best Mixtape fused traditional African rhythms and vocal styles with Architecture in Helsinki, Vampire Weekend, M.I.A., Michael Jackson. It was a stunning cross section of popular music, a genre-defying collection of tunes that just made you feel real good.

Rumors of a full length album started to float around those unpredictable interwebs, tempting me like the saucy minx that rumors are. And then, on a rather unassuming Friday in June, it dropped into my lap. Continue reading →

Listen / MP3 / Music — 5 Comments
28
Aug 09

The Very Best – Rain Dance (feat. M.I.A.)

The Very Best Rain Dance (feat. M.I.A.) listen

M.I.A. fits in so well with The Very Best that it is hard to imagine her as a guest on “Rain Dance”, a song from their debut album Warm Hearts Of Africa (out digitally now!). The song begins with a few drops of rain until Esau Mwamwaya’s enticing voice kick in with an easy-going delivery. Claps, drums, and other various sounds fill up the background and then M.I.A. joins in.

On first listen I did not even mention to myself that M.I.A. had come in. She just fits in so well that it feels as if she belongs with this song. Her delivery adjacent to Esau’s have a wonderful way of playing off each other that creates a beautiful atmosphere on the song. Warm Hearts Of Africa is a must-listen for 2009 and all music fans should keep an eye out for more collaborations between these two.

Buy Warm Heart of Africa on iTunes now or wait for it on vinyl and CD (hitting stores Oct. 6th). Listen to “Rain Dance” here Continue reading →

Listen / Music — 26 Comments
19
Aug 09

CONTEST: The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa 7″

CONTEST: The Very Best Warm Heart of Africa 7 listen

Yesterday I told you guys that Green Owl had released The Very Best’s single, “Warm Heart of Africa” featuring Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig on a 7″ record.

Today we’re giving away three copies of the single. So if you want it, let me know. Just make sure you live in the US and are totally awesome.

Comment away, and make sure you sound awesome.

The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa (ft. Ezra Koenig)
from Warm Heart of Africa 7″ (2009)
The Very Best – Yalira
from Warm Heart of Africa 7″ (2009)

Listen / MP3 / Music — No Comments
18
Aug 09

The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa 7″

The Very Best Warm Heart of Africa 7 listen

The Very Best have released their ridiculously fantastic “Warm Heart of Africa” on a very limited 7″ run, spanning only 500 copies. Make sure to order yours as soon as possible over @ Green Owl. The song is backed by the previously unreleased track, “Yalira.”

“Warm Heart of Africa” is a tremendous single and I’m glad it has been released properly. Without a doubt, this song has been my number-one summer jam and a vicious contender for my favorite song of 2009. It’s been a while since a song this special had risen from the dust and mold of oppression and hardship.

Also, it has spawned some mouthwatering remixes. And best news for last, The Very Best’s label is also letting you download the single and b-side for free. Download them below Continue reading →

MP3 / Music / Remixes — 2 Comments
8
Aug 09

The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa (Architecture In Helsinki Remix) / (Metronomy Remix)

The Very Best Warm Heart of Africa (Architecture In Helsinki Remix) / (Metronomy Remix) mp3
The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa (Architecture In Helsinki Remix) | mp3
The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa (Metronomy Remix) | mp3

Listen / Music — 8 Comments
10
Jul 09

The Very Best – Rain Dance (ft. M.I.A.)

The Very Best Rain Dance (ft. M.I.A.) listen
The exceptionally talented Esau Mwamwaya & Radioclit (who record together under The Very Best moniker) are getting ready to release their full-length debut, Warm Heart of Africa this fall. I’ve been spinning the album for a few hours now and it’s astonishingly remarkable. I was surprised, not because I didn’t think the debut mixtape, The Very Best was any good, but because I thought it was fantastic and I wasn’t sure if Radioclit could recreate what he created on the mixtape.

The Very Best’s music is thoroughly enjoyable and demands multiple listens. On the debut LP, The Very Best have recruited friends Ezra Koenig (of Vampire Weekend) and M.I.A. to lend a helping hand on two album highlights. Ezra sang on titular track, “Warm Heart of Africa,” and M.I.A. on the knee-thumping “Rain Dance.”

Listen to “Rain Dance” here Continue reading →

Listen / Mixtapes / Music / Podcasts — 37 Comments
9
Jul 09

pmaCAST #16: For Summer Only

pmaCAST #16: For Summer Only listen
DOWNLOAD: MP3 / iTUNES

There are many reasons why I feel that summertime is the best time of the year, and most of them are here on this playlist. Spanning thirty-six songs (!!), this 16th pmaCAST — and our longest podcast ever, clocking in at over 2 hours and 10 minutes — is all about the tunes that make a perfect summertime listen. Download this here or on iTunes (via the links above), put it on your iPod, put it on a mixtape-shaped flash-drive (seriously, buy one) and give it to your friends, play it at a beach party — do something with it!

pmaCAST #16 The “For Summer Only” Episode Tracklist
Continue reading →

Listen / MP3 / Music / Remixes — 5 Comments
22
Jun 09

While I Was Gone

While I Was Gone listen
If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been slacking around here for almost a week now. Let’s just say I was gone — but I’m back now and I’m going to make it all up to you. Here I will post some of the more interesting new tracks that have surfaced while I was gone. Read on if you’re interested in any of these tracks:

Mickey Factz – Flying Balloon
3OH!3 – Don’t Trust Me (ft. Kid Cudi) (Benny Blanco Remix)
The Fiery Furnaces – Charmaine Champagne
The Very Best – Warm Heart of Africa (feat. Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend)
Continue reading →