Albums

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Eryn Allen Kane — Aviary: Act II

  At the end of 2015, I praised Eryn Allen Kane’s debut EP, Aviary: Act I, as one of the best albums of the year, going so far as to say “she could sing ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star,’ and it would probably be one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever heard.” Not one to…

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J Dilla — Dillatronic

  J Dilla’s Dillatronic represents just one of many posthumous releases from an artist who left behind countless tracks. The producer, who died from Moschcowitz syndrome only three days after his 32nd birthday in 2006, went “through [four] production phases in his professional career,” according to no less than The Roots’ Questlove. “He was able…

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Wolf Eyes — I Am a Problem: Mind in Pieces

  “Cynthia Vortex aka Trip Memory Illness,” the final track on Wolf Eyes’ latest album, I Am a Problem: Mind in Pieces, is an eight-minute-long lysergic slide deep into a troubled psyche, punctuated with incomprehensible, garbled moans, droning subsonic bass frequencies, lurching guitar riffs, electronic slicing and dicing, and a forlorn flute solo. It’s a…

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Doughboyz Cashout — BYLUG World

  West Detroit supergroup Doughboyz Cashout self-released BYLUG World late last year as a free mixtape, and not — as many were hoping — a proper full-length from their home on Jeezy’s CTE World label (their last official output from the imprint was a 2013 remix of “Mob Life,” which had come out a year…

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Deadbeat Beat — Only Time Will Tell

  Just like the title of Deadbeat Beat’s latest tape makes clear, Only Time Will Tell, as fans have waited for new material from the beloved trio for over four years now. Since 2011’s When I Talk to You, the group have amassed a cult-like following by playing shows here and there, while each of…

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Tunde Olaniran — Transgressor

  Tunde Olaniran’s ascent as an artist parallels bigger trends both in music and society at large. He got his start collaborating with the Berlin-based duo Chris De Luca vs. Phon.o, who discovered a track of his on MySpace in 2008. A European tour followed, with stops in the cities Olaniran lived in as a…

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Double Winter — Double Winter

  Being from this great mitten-shaped piece of land has its ups and downs. On the plus side, you can impress non-Michiganders by using the palm of your hand to explain basic geography. Then of course there are the majestic Great Lakes, providing natives with beautiful beaches in the summer and horrendous lake effect snowstorms…

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D12 — The Devil’s Night Mixtape: Reloaded

  Bugz has been dead for 16 years. Proof has been dead for 9. Eminem hasn’t been interested in a full-fledged reunion, and it’s been 11 years since their last album. The group now consists of Eminem, Bizarre, Kuniva, Swifty McVay, Fuzz Scoota, and Kon Artis, yet many questioned if we would ever see another…

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Flint Eastwood — Small Victories

  You know those songs that make you want to turn your stereo all the way up, jump on your bed, and forget the rest of the world for a little bit? That’s pretty much Flint Eastwood’s new EP, Small Victories, in a nutshell. The album uses a larger-than-life, danceable sound to express significant loss….

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Moonwalks — Lunar Phases

  Though Lunar Phases is Moonwalks’ debut full-length, the band are far from a newcomer to the Detroit music scene. From playing regularly at PJ’s Lager House, UFO Factory, and nearly every other live music venue in the city, they have amassed an impressive group of dedicated fans. When you attend a Moonwalks show, you…