Run the Jewels lets the cat out of the bag
Download: Organized around the goofiest concept of the year, Meow the Jewels, the new free remix album by hip-hop duo Run the Jewels, throws open the songs on last year’s RTJ 2 to a bunch of producers who do two things: one, reimagine the tracks; two, apply cat sounds to them.
So, for instance, Nick Hook takes “All My Life” and transforms it into “All Meow Life,” while “Lie, Cheat, Steal” gets remixed by Prince Paul as “Lie, Cheat, Meow.”
To be clear, the feline effects aren’t front and centre. These are legitimate remixes. It’s just that there’s also meowing.
Streaming: Though the newly minted tag of “mindie” — what the Fader defines as “a major artist with indie bona fides” — has been applied to everyone from Carly Rae Jepsen to aspiring hip-hop artist Kehlani, the act that earned that appellation before it even existed was surely Hanson.
It’s been 18 years since “MMMBop” united tweens and cynical critics alike in admiration, and the brothers will no doubt revisit that signature hit next week when they play the House of Blues in Chicago.
The Oct. 8 performance is one of a series of live concerts being streamed under the banner of Yahoo’s ongoing Screen series. The shows remain available for a short time after they’re over, and you can even set a reminder so you don’t miss the 10 p.m. start.
Vinyl: This Friday brings two highlights from Paul McCartney’s solo career back to vinyl. Tug of War and Pipes of Peace will each appear as two-LP sets. Deluxe CD sets of each album arrive the same day.
Next Friday (Oct. 9), is a big (and potentially expensive) one for vinyl reissues. The first four Peter Gabriel albums, each titled Peter Gabriel and spanning the years 1977 to 1982, will be reissued in Canada. All have been remastered specifically for vinyl and all are two-LP affairs. Due the same day are 11 Bob Marley records, released both individually and as part of The Island Years box. Included are all nine studio albums, from 1973’s Catch a Fire through 1983’s posthumous Confrontation, along with a pair of concert recordings: Live! and Babylon by Bus.
Finally, the next time someone dismisses talk about vinyl’s resurgence by saying it’s still just a tiny niche, consider this: the value of CDs shipped in the U.S. during the first half of 2015 was, according to the Recording Industry of America, $494.8 million. The corresponding value of vinyl shipments: $221.8 million. Those numbers are down 31.5 per cent and up 52 per cent, respectively.