LISTEN: Death Grips - "No Love" + No Love Deep Web

Yeah, this post is about a week late, but life rolls on.

Earlier this year, experimental Sacramento hip hop group Death Grips promised the release of two brand new full-length albums before the end of the year. The excellent The Money Store saw release back in April, but up until last week, there had yet to be a definitive date for the follow-up and companion piece. Apparently, the band's label, Epic, said that they would released this second album sometime in 2013. So, not surprisingly, Death Grips (MC Stefan Burnett, producer Andy Morin, and producer/drummer Zach Hill) released No Love Deep Web last Monday for free download through their official website. Shortly thereafter, their site was taken down, which Death Grips, like the rest of us, believed to be the work of Epic. Of course major labels aren't too big on their artists giving away new albums for free on the Internet, but, as it just so happens, it seems the site was taken down due to the explicit nature of the album's cover (an erect penis with the album title written on it).

Listen to the New Death Grips Album...If You Haven't Already

There isn't really anything you should be listening to outside of what you want to listen to, but I highly recommend listening to Death Grips' new album The Money Store right now. We've already heard "Get Got" and "Blackjack," and now we can hear the album in its entirety before its release. It's officially out April 24th via Epic, but if you're lucky enough you'll be able to snag it on Record Store Day, which just so happens to be this Saturday. This album is one of our most highly anticipated releases of 2012, at least for me. Death Grips' debut, Exmilitary, was my #3 album of 2011.

2 New Death Grips Albums On the Way, Hear 2 New Songs Now

One of my favorite releases of 2011 was Death Grips fantastic and refreshing mixtape/LP Exmilitary. It was aggressively raw and unlike any other thing out there, especially in the field of hip hop. And hot off the heels of such a stellar debut, Death Grips are gearing up to release not one but two new albums this year starting with The Money Store on April 24th. The group has also signed with Epic Records (I know, right? Didn't see that coming, but awesome), who will handle the release of the new albums. Hear two new songs from The Money Store below.

REVIEW: Oh Land - Oh Land

Oh Land - Oh Land
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When I interviewed Oh Land (Nanna Øland Fabricius) at tail end of last year, she said that she approached songwriting by envisioning a room that needed to be decorated, and that decorating the room was her songwriting process. Entering her own world, she said, allowed her to find her creative muse. On her self-titled U.S. debut and second full-length overall, Oh Land proves that she can create a different kind of pop music, one that is, in its own way, otherworldly. Each song on Oh Land sounds a bit like a self-contained world, possessing a different atmosphere and texture, like the blip-bleep symphony of busy electronica on “Voodoo” or the rolling mystique on “Wolf & I”.

Oh Land was quickly signed by Epic Records following her 2009 appearance at SXSW – and it’s hard not to see, or rather hear, why. Image seems to be everything these days in pop, but, for Oh Land, it’s a proper balance of aesthetic and sound. Not only is she creative in presentation, she’s more than just a decorator – she’s the one who raises the walls of her rooms, writing her own material. A listen through her self-titled reveals an authenticity in her stories, erasing any suspicion that she’s just the mouthpiece for someone else’s fabrications or experiences. And while pop music certainly has had its deep, moodier moments over the years, it’s a bit difficult to pinpoint one recent artist who has counterbalanced the seriousness of intent and artistic integrity with the fun, exuberant side of pop. Oh Land does just that, adding the right amount of whimsy to both her aesthetic (choir of singing balloon heads, anyone?) and music.

UNDER THE COVERS: Oh Land Takes on Fleet Foxes

Oh, Oh Land. It seems as though everything she touches becomes absolutely charming and entirely her own. Case in point: her cover of Fleet Foxes' breakthrough "White Winter Hymnal". Yes, the original oozes harmonizing magic and is hard to top, but Oh Land understands that. On her take, she wisely reimagines the song under the guise of her electro-meets-symphonic pop, adding that lovable dash of whimsy.

Watch a studio version and a live version of the Oh Land's cover below (both differ from one another, and the live version transitions into another song).

Hear the original "White Winter Hymnal" after the hop.