(Crocodile) Out of all the brazenly talented artists on Flying Lotus’s Brainfeeder label, Teebs (aka Mtendere Mandowa) might be the one who infuses the most beauty into his music. Known for its acute, mutational shifts of instrumental-hiphop paradigms, Brainfeeder has issued three full-lengths by Teebs: Ardour, Collections, and the new Estara. The latter release retains Teebs’s trademark oneiric, aquatic production style but toughens up the beats in places, although tempos continue to move at a languorous pace. (Teebs may be an ex-skateboarder, but he’s a deeply mellow and sensitive dude in the studio.) No exaggeration, he may be the closest thing America has to a Boards of Canada. London’s Jon Hopkins may be Coldplay’s favorite electronic musician, but I assure you he’s worth your time. He has a huge canon of finely wrought ambient, downtempo, and techno compositions, and in 2010 helped Brian Eno make one of his best late-era albums with Small Craft on a Milk Sea. A masterly arranger whose scope is cinematic, Hopkins creates elegant yet gritty tracks that sound at home in both the orchestra hall and the dance club. DAVE SEGAL
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(Neumos) New York hiphop icon Rakim was one of the most innovative rappers to come out of the genre's "golden age," and without his pushing of new styles and complex cadences, things may have never moved past the simplicity of '80s rhyme schemes. His career (which is also longer than the lives of most current-day rap fans) is full of accomplishments, from releasing multiple classic albums with Eric B. to continuing a long solo career afterward to allegedly ghostwriting the Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff's "Summertime." Pay tribute accordingly as the man rocks the mic and moves the crowd in legendary fashion. MIKE RAMOS
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(Barboza) How many goddamn heavy, metallic bands do you need in your life? What is the optimal number for a human in the 21st century? These important questions nag at one, even during a heatwave. Whatever the answer is, you should include Seattle trio Serial Hawk among the heavy, metallic bands you allow into your headspace. Their slow, domineering style draws on the lessons of exemplars like Melvins and Earth, with the bonus of a vocalist, Will Bassin, who goes from a whisper to a scream with finesse. Serial Hawk’s command of dynamics and tendency to let their hypnotizing riffs extend and decay lend their sound a glowering psychedelic frisson. Dig the tarry deepness. With Princess and Smooth Sailing. DAVE SEGAL
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And here's all our recommended music events—tonight, tomorrow, this weekend, and beyond!
