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French/Argentinean producer Douster tweaks the latest single track “Strange Touch” from prolific dance music maestros Sound Pellegrino Thermal Team into what he calls a “weird house remix” which basically transforms the spaced out sounds of the original into more swagged out and tribal vibes.

Sound Pellegrino Thermal Team – Strange Touch (Douster remix) (Mediafire)

Last night was a big one for El-P. After emerging from the kind of semi-exile that swallows lesser rappers whole following 2007's I'll Sleep When You're Dead, El released two of the year's best rap albums, in two consecutive weeks: the incendiary Killer Mike record R.A.P. Music, which he produced entirely, and his own majestically gloomy fourth album Cancer for Cure. He is in the giddy flush of a late-career resurgence, and at Santos Party House, he gathered everyone responsible for the moment together.

Inside Santos, the camaraderie was thick-- I overheard people claiming to have personally "known El" for a wildly varying number of years. In this crowd, it had never stopped being 2003, and I can think of no better litmus test of this hypothesis than the fervent reaction received by the opening set by Despot, a talented galoot whose career has been stalled in launch mode arguably since it began. "I have been working on an album for 47 years," Despot deadpanned. The guy over my right shoulder screamed, desperately, as if the mere mention of Despot's abortive classic was painful to him. He plowed through the few songs he had with demonic, short-guy-in-the-crew intensity, including some promising-sounding new songs produced by Ratatat. 

El-P and Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire

Despot then brought out Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire, and they tore through a woozy, blunted new song produced by Spaceghostpurrp that sounded fantastic. eXquire can really fucking rap live. His voice is forceful enough on record, but on stage, it was Rick Ross-huge. After a 20-minute set, he loped off, a grinning jackal in a NYU jacket and gold-rimmed shades. 

Next was El, who takes his live shows extremely seriously, in an effortful, James Murphy sorta way. This was evidenced by the longest, most studious set-up for a rap show I've ever seen in my life. El and his band had reportedly been drilling these new songs mercilessly all week in rehearsals, and the second the first, fearsomely huge synth noise on Cancer for Cure's opener "Request Denied" fired up, the results were obvious.

El-P: "The Full Retard"

"I think I'm gonna do the whole album front to back," he announced, and then did exactly that. The sound was enormous-- I felt the hairs at the top of my head lift like I had just walked barefoot across a shag carpet. El's records, for all their grim, misanthropic lyrical concerns, have always been joyfully noisy and physical, and you could see it in his loose-limbed, even goofy demeanor as he rocked along to his music. His band, a mix of drum programming, live synths, and guitars, was both rigidly tight and visibly delighted to be playing new material; El's eyes lit up as he tested out the call-and-response potential of "Drones Over BKLYN".

Killer Mike, El-P, and Das Racist's Heems

The only hiccup came from some unfortunate sound issues during "Tougher Colder Killer", which disoriented El, Despot, and Killer Mike, who rumbled out from backstage in all black, looking nine times the size of everyone else in the building. El was visibly angry: "We cannot hear the music in the monitors," he yelled. But Killer Mike did not come all the way to New York to have his  guest verse demolished by a faulty monitor. "Hold up now, I gotta do something right quick," he bellowed, when the song was over. He then he spit his verse flawlessly, a cappella, and left with this: "I gotta say this and then I'm off your stage. I love you; you've given me new life. Finally, the world is on your dick." El blushed. Everyone screamed.

A new UK trailer for Seeking a Friend for the End of the World has been released to celebrate the release date of 13th July. It's the directorial debut of Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist writer Lorene Scafaria, with the comedy drama starring Steve Carell and Keira Knightley. A 70-mile-wide asteroid is en route to Earth, and the last best attempt to counter it has failed. Also failing is the marriage of soft-spoken insurance salesman Dodge (Carell); the breaking news that the world will end in an estimated 21 days cues his wife to leave him on the spot. Dodge is a man who has always played by the rules of life, while his neighbor Penny (Knightley) is an extroverted woman who hasn't. From these opposite perspectives, both initially choose to navigate the impending end of the world with blinders on. Dodge declines joining his friends in increasingly reckless behavior, while Penny fixates on her relationship issues with a self-absorbed musician. The two misfits meet first when Penny has a rough night and then again when she belatedly delivers Dodge a lost letter. That letter could alter Dodge’s future; it's from his high-school sweetheart Olivia, the love of his life. When a riot breaks out around their apartment building, Dodge realizes that he must seek Olivia out before it's too late while Penny makes the decision to spend her last days with family in England. Seizing the moment, Dodge promises to help Penny reach her family if she will provide transport for the two of them in her car immediately. She agrees, and they escape. On the road together, the unlikely travelling companions' respective personal journeys accelerate, and their outlooks – if not the world's – brighten. We can't wait to see where the film goes. For now, enjoy the trailer below.

Android fans listen up!  Now when you use Shazam to tag a music track, a TV show or an advert – click the new +1 button on the tag result to give it your seal of approval. Then instantly share it, add a comment and send it to your circles on Google +. To find [...]

Jessie Ware has once again hooked up with Sampha - his vocals can be heard in the back - for a cover of the Bobby Coldwell classic 'What You Wont Do For Love'

Photo by Ari Marcopoulos

The latest tribute to the Beastie Boys' Adam "MCA" Yauch comes in the form of a petition from Brooklyn residents, Billboard reports. They're asking for Brooklyn Heights' Squibb Park to be renamed after Yauch, via a Facebook-launched petition.

Squibb is currently named in honor of inventor and pharmaceutical pioneer Dr. Edward Robinson Squibb. It's in the process of being transformed into a skatepark. 

But Kathleen Hanna, Bikini Kill/Le Tigre frontwoman and wife of Beastie Boy Adam Horovitz, writes on the Facebook wall for the petition that there's another Brooklyn park in consideration for renaming. She tells the petitioners:

I just wanted to let you know that Adam "Adrock" Horovitz has already begun working with the Parks Commissioner to fix up and rename State Street Park where Yauch actually played as a kid to 'Adam Yauch Park'. It would be great to get people behind THIS idea as it won't hurt the Squib family and it would be awesome to fix up the bball court there as a tribute....

The New York State Senate recently honored Yauch for his contributions to New York culture with a legislative resolution. 

Watch the video for "No Sleep Till Brooklyn":

Everyone loves a Google doodle, but this one released today on Google Japan is pretty hard to top—especially for gear nerds like ourselves. Today's doodle is a fully functional Minimoog replete with a Record function, so you can keep the silly noodling you're about to do forever.

Read more on Beatportal

Yeasayer are coming band with new album Fragrant World on 20th August 2012 ands are giving away the lead track for free.

Four new posters for The Dark Knight Rises have been unleashed upon the world today. First there was the ominous "A Fire Will Rise" one sheet, which wasn't that exciting as it was just the old poster turned flame orange with Batman photoshopped in front. Much better are the three bold character posters featuring Christian Bale's Batman, Tom Hardy's Bane and Anne Hathaway's Catwoman. The Dark Knight Rises is the third and final film in Christopher Nolan's astonishing Batman trilogy, and will be released on 20th July. Other cast members include the returning Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Nestor Carbonell, plus Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Juno Temple, Josh Stewart, Ben Mendelsohn, Brett Cullen and Chris Ellis. Character posters via Yahoo.

Brit punks Foals are the next in line to participate in !K7's Tapes compilation series. (Previous entries have included mixes by the Rapture and the Big Pink.) Foals Tapes will be out on July 2.

The series aims for "a selection made along the lines of an old school cassette mix tape," and Foals' entry is divided into two sides, one "more song-driven" and the other "more dance-oriented," according to a press release. It'll include tracks by Nicolas Jaar, Teengirl Fantasy, Sepalcure, Konono Nº1, Caribou, and others. 

Side A:

01 Nicolas Jaar: "Variations" 02 Clark: "Ted" (Bibio remix) 03 Dorian Concept: "Tropical Hands" 04 Condry Ziqubu "Confusion (Ma Afrika)" 05 The Invisible: "London Girl" 06 JR Seaton: "Way Savvy" (Gatto Fritto remix) 07 Blood Orange: "Dinner" 08 Tanner Ross: "B Side" 09 Teengirl Fantasy: "Cheaters" (John Talabot's Classic Vocal Refix) 10 Château Flight: "Superflight" [ft. Marie Daulne] (Maurice Fulton remix) 11 In Flagranti: "Effective Placebo Affect" 12 Tony Allen: "Kilode" (Carl Craig remix)

Side B

13 Art Department: "We Call Love" [ft. Soul Clap and Osunlade] 14 Cerrone - Give Me Love (Frankie Knuckles Remix) 15 Arnold Jarvis: "Take Some Time Out" 16 Oni Ayhun: "OAR003-B" 17 Sepalcure: "Every Day of My Life" (Jimmy Edgar remix) 18 Marshall Jefferson vs. Noosa Heads: "Mushrooms" (Justin Martin remix) 19 Julio Bashmore "Battle for Middle You" (Maurice Donovan remix) 20 Caribou: "Sun" (Midland Edit) 21 Konono Nº1: "Paradiso" 22 Gospel Comforters: "Yes God Is Real"

Watch the video for Foals' "Spanish Sahara":

The never-ending wellspring that is Fabric's monthly mix series has yet another stunner for the days to come: Digital Soundboy Soundsystem will be helming the 63rd installment of Fabriclive, out in the coming days on Beatport.

Watch this video on Beatportal

Back in February we reported on an intriguing project titled The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby. Jessica Chastain and Joel Edgerton were attached as a married couple in the double feature, with each film exploring an "emotional, life-altering experience" from both the husband and wife's perspectives. Sadly, Edgerton is no longer attached. A press release (via Collider) reveals his replacement is James McAvoy, and the two films will be titled The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Him (McAvoy's perspective) and The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Her (Chastain's side of things). Ned Benson (In Defiance of Gravity) wrote the two ambitious scripts and will direct both films, which will apparently work on their own. Cassandra Kulukundis (A Late Quartet, In Defiance of Gravity) is producing, and is also casting director (There Will Be Blood). The love story explores how a married couple in New York City deals with an emotional, life-altering experience, from the two different perspectives of the husband, Conor, (McAvoy), a restaurant owner, and of the wife, Eleanor, (Chastain), who goes back to college. Myriad Pictures CEO Kirk D’Amico said: "I am thrilled that we can share the excitement of James joining the cast with our buyers in Cannes, who have been so enthusiastic about the project from the beginning. James is one of the finest actors working today and I look forward to seeing Ned's rich, complex characters come alive." D'Amico added: "We have to make both films work on their own, both for the buyers but also for the audiences. Together these films will describe a fully, more complete look at these characters and their lives." Atonement and Last King of Scotland star McAvoy will next be seen in Eran Creevy's Welcome to the Punch and in Jon S. Baird's adaptation of Filth. There's also Danny Boyle film Trance and the follow-up to his hit X-Men: First Class on the way.

Natalie Portman is to star in the new film from Lynne Ramsay. The BAFTA-nominated director will take on Brian Duffield's hot screenplay Jane Got a Gun, reveal The Hollywood Reporter. Oscar-winning Black Swan actress Portman will both star and produce. Naturally, a bidding war has broken out in Cannes for the exciting project - Ramsay's stunning last film We Need to Talk About Kevin was one of the best of 2011. Jane Got a Gun follows a woman whose outlaw husband returns home shot to pieces and barely alive. She is forced to reach out to an ex-lover and ask if he will help defend her farm after a gang eventually track her husband down to finish the job. Not sure about Portman in a western, but have absolute faith in Ramsay, whose previous films include Ratcatcher and Morvern Callar. Following her Oscar win, Portman has starred in Your Highness and Thor, and will next be seen in Terrence Malick's new projects Lawless and Knight of Cups.

California’s Of Mice & Men have announced they’ll be back in the UK to tour later this year. Having already just completed a sold-out headline run, and with this weekend’s Slam Dunk festival still to come, fans are in for a treat when they return in October.

Hailed by Rock Sound as “the scene’s greatest hopes”, the band are set to relaunch their latest album, The Flood. The release date is set to be 16^th July 2012 in the UK, and will include brand new artwork as well as new bonus tracks.

Having undergone several line-up changes, Of Mice & Men are back stronger and heavier than before, ready to bring their brutal sound to a new audience. Support will be from their Rise Records label-mates Memphis May Fire and Secrets. Tickets are priced between £10 and £12.50, with all shows set to be 14+. The dates are as follows:

October Wednesday 10th – London, Electric Ballroom (www.kililive.com) Thursday 11 – Glasgow, Garage (www.triplegmusic.com) Friday 12^th – Manchester, Moho Live (www.ticketline.co.uk) Saturday 13^th – Birmingham, Asylum (www.theasylumvenue.co.uk) Sunday 14^th – Leeds, Cockpit (www.lunatickets.co.uk)

We were lucky enough to be invited to a sneak preview of THQ’s upcoming Company of Heroes 2 last week, and having sat through a live demonstration of the game in action, couldn’t be more ready to return to the tactical world of the RTS franchise. Changing the setting to the most bloody theatre of all – the Eastern front – the game is given a tone of genuine brutality and desperation. The Russian army’s struggles against the advancing Third Reich are recreated with no punches pulled, a task which is helped no end by the near shooter-quality characters which populate the landscape. There is of course a real focus on tactical warfare, with the Essence 3.0 engine introducing the intriguing gameplay feature of TrueSight, whereby each unit has a realistic cone of vision, which can be obscured by objects and effects such as trees, buildings or smoke. This sounds like a simple enough addition, but when put next to the classic “Fog of War” style RTS mechanic, gives a whole extra dimension to the gameplay. The emphasis is of course on tactical play, and the Russian and German armies could scarcely throw up a sharper contrast. The Russians are strong in numbers, but ill-equipped, with sheer determination and Stalin’s notorious “Order 227” (retreat and be shot) the central concepts of their side. Compare this with the highly-trained, technologically advanced Germans and the stage is set for some highly poised battle situations. The graphics here are commendable for an RTS, as we mentioned above, the characters models are near FPS standards, and this is an aesthetic which the developers have clearly taken on board, even performing live recordings of WW2 weaponry to give an extra layer of authenticity. The terrifying shred of a machine gun has to be heard to be believed, and when the tanks start rolling in, the attention to detail really does become apparent. It will be interesting to see how the game’s portrayal of the Eastern front compares to, most notably, Call of Duty: World at War (That trawl through Stalingrad with a Gary Oldman-voiced Reznov really is outstanding), but what is clear is that through sheer commitment to authenticity, and an intriguingly tactical game engine, Relic Entertainment have a hell of a prospect on their hands here. Company Of Heroes 2 is due for release on PC in 2013.

God Forgives, I Don't is the quite-amazing title of Rick Ross' fifth LP, which is set for release July 31. Last week, the Maybach Music Group boss released the radio-petting, Usher-featuring "Touch N' You," and now we get the street single "So Sophisticated." It's most definitely a crazed Rozay banger with gigantic drums, operatic hits and glitchy electronics that somehow go straight to the part of your brain where punching holes through walls seems like a great idea.

GQ's very long piece on the return of R&B deity D'Angelo is now available to read online. It contains his first interview in over a decade, in which he discusses everything from his childhood dreams of Marvin Gaye to the real meaning behind the legendary "Untitled" video to the passing of J Dilla.

It was, in fact, Dilla's 2006 death that catalyzed the comeback we're experiencing this year. Following a long battle with drugs, the collapse of his career, and a life-threatening car accident, D'Angelo learned of Dilla's passing and thought, "I felt like I was going to be next. I ain't bullshitting. I was scared then." On the day of Dilla's funeral, D'Angelo was "so fucked up" that he couldn't attend, he told GQ.

Since he began his slow climb back, D'Angelo's been throwing his energies into one thing in particular: the guitar. Questlove told GQ that "The one benefit of this eleven-year sabbatical was he used 10,000 Gladwellian hours to master the guitar. He can play the shit out of it, and I don't mean no Lil Wayne shit." Tour manager Alan Leeds hypothesized that the guitar has been a way to "take the attention away from that Chippendale's shit" that snowballed following the release of the steamy video for "Untitled (How Does It Feel?)". 

Still, while D'Angelo's been recording and touring-- and is planning to take the stage at Jay-Z's Budweiser Made in America festival in September-- he's still moving at a snail's pace. There are over 50 songs prepped, 12 of which could make it onto an album. It's tentatively planned for a September release, but nothing has been finalized.

Still: "My head is straight," he told GQ. 

Watch D'Angelo singing and playing his guitar in a video GQ made to accompany the piece:

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Apparently, there's a new Lana Del Rey track on the block. The previously unreleased track 'Never Let Me Go' has appeared online, just as the star announces details of her forthcoming single 'National Anthem', but you can have a listen to the leak of it below. Lana Del Rey will release 'National Anthem' on the 8th July through Polydor Records. The single will come complete with remix package including adaptations from the likes of Tensnake, Todd Terry, Afterlife and DC Breaks. The single will be released as digital download and 7” picture disc, also available is a digital remix EP. LDR will be making the following appearances around the UK. JUNE 17 Lovebox Festival 22 Isle Of Wight Festival 22 Radio 1’s Hackney Weekend JULY 12 Latitude Festival

Look outside, right now. Go on, do it. Seriously, look…. you looked yet? Thought you would. It’s pretty sunny, no? And what better way to celebrate the official arrival of summer (well, sort of) than a couple of fantastic new t-shirts from FLY53.

Check ‘em out on FLY53′s website now!

 

Essex, England group Morning Parade will release its self-titled debut album on June 19 via Astralwerks. The LP, produced by David Kosten (Bat For Lashes, Everything Everything), has been a long time coming as the group has built a fanbase touring (they will continue on the road this summer with Walk The Moon). Album track “Us & Ourselves" is an urgent indie rock number that veers in tempo and emotion. Be patient: the slow rise builds up to a burgeoning chorus.