It’s that time of year again when rain, shine and music collide to bring us the ultimate summer experience at Falls Music and Arts Festival. One of the largest events happening across the New Year period, Falls has been going strong for a quarter of a century and still never fails to amaze. The bill for the 2017/2018 tour included a bunch of stellar international names including Fleet Foxes, Run The Jewels, Vince Staples, Liam Gallagher, Foster The People, Glass Animals and The Kooks, as well as homegrown favourites like Flume, Angus and Julia Stone, Methyl Ethel, Allday, The Jungle Giants and Julia Jacklin. And that’s just a preview.
Of the four idyllic locations the festival plays, we made our annual pilgrimage to Byron Bay which delivered its usual medley of hot, balmy weather, rainy afternoons and… mud, lots of mud. Clearly it’s our favourite way to ring in the new year.
Day II saw sets from WAAX, Alex Lahey, Manu Crook$, Camp Cope, Julia Jacklin, Allday, Dune Rats, Glass Animals, Fleet Foxes and Run The Jewels.
Photos by Dani Hansen.
Check out our galleries for Day I and Day III!
WAAX
Alex Lahey
Manu Crook$
Camp Cope
Julia Jacklin
Allday
Dune Rats
Glass Animals
Fleet Foxes
Run The Jewels
Photos: Dani Hansen/Howl & Echoes
Run The Jewels 2018 Tour Dates
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6k7kk1lUnis
Image: Supplied
The ground is thawing and summer is finally coming. For Australian music industry, that only means one thing: festival lineups and summer tours are being announced by the bucketload. We’re especially excited to see a small but exciting list of hip-hop artists coming down under for festival appearances and headline tours, and to make life easier for you, we’ve placed them all in one big convenient list.
We’ll update this as the announcements keep rolling out. For now, here are our picks for a summer of hip-hop via festivals and live music.
Falls Festival
Our picks: Run The Jewels, D.R.A.M., Vince Staples
Run The Jewels haven’t visited Australia since Falls Festival 2014-2015, and though Vince Staples visited twice last year, he’s since released a whole new album, Big Fish Theory. D.R.A.M., meanwhile, cancelled his Groovin The Moo appearance earlier this year, so we’re hoping he makes his debut Australian appearance for New Years Eve.
Dates
28 Dec – 31 Dec: Lorne, VIC
29 Dec – 31 Dec: Marion Bay, TAS (All Ages)
31 Dec – Jan 2: Byron Bay, NSW
6 Jan – 7 Jan, Fremantle, WA
Beyond The Valley
Our picks: ScHoolboy Q, Stormzy, Sampa The Great
One of Victoria’s favourite newer festivals has had a hip-hop-loving presence across each of its three years so far, and this year is no different. Both ScHoolboy Q and Stormzy just chewed up and spat out Splendour in the Grass, and will be visiting again in just a few months’ time. ScHoolboy’s last album, Blank Face, was one of our favourite records of 2016, while Stormzy claimed the grime throne with this year’s Gang Signs & Prayer. Joining these will be our favourite local artist Sampa The Great, who always delivers one hell of a show.
Dates
Dec 28 – Jan 1: Lardner Park, Vic
Meredith Music Festival
Our picks: Noname
The eclectic Meredith Music Festival lineup isn’t particularly hip-hop heavy, but it does include the incredibly talented, soulful artist Noname, who will be visiting Australia for the very first time. Originally emerging as Noname Gypsy, the Chicago singer was largely noted for her association with Chance the Rapper, namely for her guest verse on the Acid Rap track Lost.
Since then she’s well and truly made a name for herself, releasing one of last year’s best albums, Telefone, and establishing herself as a beacon of honey in a world
Dates
Dec 8 – 10: Meredith Supernatural Amphitheatre, VIC
Laneway Festival
Our picks: Anderson Paak
The Laneway lineup hasn’t even been fully announced yet (we’ll update this when it is), but it’s already whet our whistles with the news that the amazing Anderson Paak will be on our shores once more in January and February 2018. The Malibu artist last toured for Listen Out 2016.
The Laneway lineup does traditionally feature a slew of great hip-hop acts, and we’re expecting a few more to join in – my guesses include Tyler, The Creator, if he’s actually allowed into the country this time, The Internet, Aminé (that’s just wishful thinking) and Frank Ocean (okay now I’m just fantasising, this guess has literally zero basis in fact).
Dates
Mon 29 Jan: Auckland
Fri 2 Feb: Adelaide
Sat 3 Feb: Melbourne
Sun 4 Feb: Sydney
Sat 10 Feb: Brisbane
Sun 11 Feb: Fremantle
Migos
6lack
LVRN upcomer 6lack (pronounced “black” ) will be supporting Migos at their shows, but he’s also making his debut headline appearances, and well worth a mention on his own. His debut album Free 6lack was a dark, smooth display of things to come, spawning huge singles Ex Calling and PRBLMS. There’s something about 6lack that really sets him apart from many of his contemporaries, and we have high hopes for his headline sets.
Dates
Wed 11 Oct: Metro Theatre, Sydney
Mon 16 Oct: 170 Russell, Melbourne
Khalid
Crooning R&B upstart Khalid has already had a killer 2017, delivering one of the year’s smoothest debuts with the amazingly earwormy American Teen. Following sellout tours in the USA and Europe, he’s just announced his debut shows in Australia, and it looks like fans can’t get enough – he’s already upgraded and sold out almost every show, so get in quick if you’re planning to catch the magic in action.
Dates
Tues Nov 7: Hordern Pavilion, Sydney (Sold out)
Wed Nov 8: Hordern Pavilion, Sydney
Thurs Nov 9: Festival Hall, Melbourne
Fri Nov 10: Eatons Hill Outdoor Stage, Brisbane
The Weeknd
Abel Tesfaye himself is finally, finally bringing his mammoth tour down under for the very first time. The ludicrously successful Canadian singer, who tiptoes the line between pop and R&B with more Max Martin-produced finesse than a Cirque du Soleil performer, is coming in hot with a full round of arena shows this November.
Joining Tesfaye will be French Montana and Nav, whose recent album with Metro Boomin was one of the shittiest records of 2017 so far, but hey, maybe his live show will be more fun. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Dates
Wed Nov 29: Spark Arena, Auckland
Sat Dec 2: Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney
Sun Dec 3: Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney
Wed Dec 6: Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Brisbane
Fri Dec 8: Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne
Sat Dec 9: Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne
Mon Dec 11: Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Adelaide
Thurs Dec 14: Perth Arena, Perth
GZA
Wu-Tang Clan’s brilliant GZA is returning to Australia once more for a solo tour, having last visited with (most of) the full Clan in 2016. His last solo tour was way back in 2012 (I was there and can personally guarantee this is not a show you’ll wanna miss), so this is set to be pretty damn exciting, especially given how small the venues are. It’s not often you get to see a living legend in such intimate settings.
Dates
Sat 11 Nov: The Studio, Auckland
Sun 12 Nov: San Fran, Wellington
Wed 15 Nov: Fowlers Live, Adelaide
Thurs 16 Nov: Woolly Mammoth, Brisbane
Fri 17 Nov: Manning Bar, Syd
Sat 18 Nov: Max Watt’s, Melbourne
Sat Nov 19: Rosemount Hotel, Perth
Danger Mouse has unleashed the first track for the soundtrack to upcoming film Baby Driver, directed by Edgar Wright. Chase Me not only features Danger Mouse’s consistently brilliant production talents, but the wicked combination of Run The Jewels and Outkast’s Big Boi.
The track is aggressive and punchy, with a heavy, spaced-out beat setting the scene, embellished by heavy guitars, a menacing bass and melodic breakdowns.
Each artist deliver heady, braggadocios verses, with some really fun alliteration and wordplay throughout (“I’m bagging a bag, then I’m backing out, better back off” / “Bad manners, the bad manor do bad things, a bad bitch gave me bomb head to Bad Brains”).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pi7UJHXtzs
The relationship between RTJ and Outkast goes way, way back – Killer Mike’s first ever recorded verse was on the Outkast album Stankonia. Though embroiled in a nasty little feud in the late 2000s, Big Boi and Killer Mike nevertheless made up, and have released numerous collaborations since. Notably, Big Boi also featured on Banana Clipper from RTJ’s self-titled debut album, and most recently, Killer Mike features on Big Boi’s newest single Kill Jill, also featuring Jeezy.
NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series has veered toward hip-hop and R&B lately, with recent performances from D.R.A.M, Gucci Mane and jazz-hop maestros Badbadnotgood among those to perform in the last couple months. Now, Run The Jewels are the latest to join in the fun, with Killer Mike and El-P stopping by to perform music from their tremendous new album Run The Jewels 3.
The new album, surprised released a few weeks early on Christmas Day 2016, is as pertinent and venomous as you could have hoped for. The pair have crafted their sound and vision to a chiseled tee, finding the perfect balance between hip-hop braggadocio and real, relevant, sobering lyrics that hone in on current sociopolitical turmoils, most pointedly aimed toward a certain man “who wore a bad toupee and a spray tan.”
The 12-minute video features Mike, El and DJ Trackstar delivering Talk To Me, Legend Has It and A Report To The Shareholders. Clearly in a pretty good mood about it all, they make no secret of how unusual the tiny setting is. They even break the fourth wall a few times, for example, standing back to back and noting, “This is the pose we do in this song,” raising arms to the sky for their imaginary audience of thousands. El-P later picks up a banana and uses it as a mic because it “feels more natural,” and later joking to the NPR staff watching, “You know why they do these things? Because for at least one week you cannot complain about your fucking job. One week! I’m guessing they schedule this shit before everyone has to do a lot of work.”
RTJ are currently on tour in support of their new album. Our fingers and toes are crossed thy’ll be returning to Australia soon, having last visited for Falls Festival 2014-2015.
Read our interview with Run The Jewels
Image: NPR
Run The Jewels have just kicked off their 2017 tour in Philadelphia, where they’ve performed songs from Run The Jewels 3 live for the very first time.
A few videos have surfaced on Youtube and across social media, giving us an idea of how exuberant and energetic the pair were for their opening night. One video in particular features El-P regaling the crowd with an amazingly funny story of the last time he performed at that venue, The Electric Factory, back in 1998 – 19 years ago – with his former group Company Flow. Co Flow has just come off a European tour, having broken up at the very start of the two month long run, and were invited to open for the Beastie Boys. At that time, it was by far the biggest room they had ever played in.
In this video, El-P began by saying, “I was like, ‘have I been here before?’ And I realised, 19 years ago I had been here before, it was with my old crew Company Flow.
“Now, Company Flow had just come off a two month long winter tour through wonderful, disturbing winter wonderlands like Germany.” At this point Killer Mike pipes up, repeating the word “Germany” a few times in an hilariously ominous tone.
“To add even more pain to that, Company Flow had broken up the day we left for the tour. So we went on the tour for two months…[“Germany”]… I was frazzled, I was fucked up, my whole crew was fucked up. Everything that I had been building was falling apart. But we got the call while we were on tour: ‘You guys are opening for the Beastie Boys in Philly when you get back.’
“True story. So we did it. We came here to Philadelphia, I think it was the Check Your Head tour for Beastie Boys [note: it was actually the Hello Nasty tour]. It was a very big thing for us, we had ever been in a room of this fucking size, we had never seen this many people in front of us before…. Meanwhile, we’re just wrecks, human wrecks of men. So the first couple songs come on, shit is going okay. Let’s just imagine you guys aren’t here for Run The Jewels, you’re here for the Beastie Boys, and you see… someone else. So, you’ll probably be a little bit polite but you’re not gonna be that excited. Fair enough, totally fair. At the time I was about 21, so I didn’t have that much experience.
“There was one person in the crowd one – how many thousands of people are here tonight?… There was one person in the crowd while I was doing a song, that one person was like, ‘Boo, fuck you, bring on the Beastie Boys.’ [Killer Mike puts on a high-pitched voice and repeats in the background, ‘Boo! Fuck you! Bring on the Beasties! Fuck you!’]
“So somehow, I managed to hear that one person, and the song is going, but I was like, ‘Cut the fucking sound off!’ And I look, and I’m just like, [now yelling], “I will jump down there, and I’ll beat the shit out of you, and I’ll strangle your fucking neck if you don’t stop yelling! I will come down there!’
“Needless to say, they booed the fuckin’ shit out of us, not just the guy, it started with the guy… They booed us so hard that we had to walk off stage after three songs. It was my fault.
“It’s 19 years later… and we’re here tonight with you guys, our name is on the headline of this fuckin’ bill, and I can’t tell you how amazed and thankful I am to be here tonight.”
Coming full circle never sounded so damn good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kr3BP9a0pOo
RTJ last visited Australia over the 2014-2015 new years period for Falls Festival. Our fingers and toes are crossed that they’ll be back super soon to perform material from their phenomenal new album.
Image: Red Bull
Following the surprise early release of their third album Run The Jewels 3, Run The Jewels have launched their 2017 tour, kicking things off at The Electric Factory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Not only was it a special night because it was the opening evening of their tour, but it’s the very first time they’ve performed many RTJ 3 songs live, including Call Ticketron, Legend Has It, Talk To Me and Panther Like A Panther among others.
The tag team of Killer Mike and El-P have long been praised for their incredibly engaging, high-energy shows, and have now performed several songs from the new album for the first time. There’s no official footage, but thanks to social media we’re able to get a taste of what it sounds like on stage, and what lucky ticket-holders can expect for any upcoming shows.
Here, El-P shares a hilarious story of the last time he visited the venue, opening for the Beastie Boys in the late 1990s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kr3BP9a0pOo
In the video below, an exuberant El-P addresses the crowd: “We’ve never done these songs before, you are the first fucking crowd in the world to hear Run The Jewels 3 live. Write that shit in your diary, like I did. This next jam, I’m scared to see what happens. Let’s go!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBBHXuPbzeQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1KbgFVgYIFE
Below, listen to El-P joking about quitting RTJ to become a spoken word poet, before launching into an acapella Panther Like A Panther:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNfhSagYiPk
Below, they play their DJ Shadow collaboration Nobody Speak, and new track Hey Kids (Burmaye)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWRfwkP5e-c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNWfTEGmUpk
Run The Jewels last visited Australia across New Years 2014-2015, when they played at Falls Festival alongside a headline tour. Fingers crossed they’ll announce a visit down under some time this year – RTJ for Splendour in the Grass, anyone?
Happy holidays Jewel Runners, Run The Jewels have unleashed their long-awaited third album Run The Jewels 3 three weeks earlier than planned. Their first full new record since 2014, it was initially projected for a January 13 release.
Stream the album below via Spotify or Apple Music, or you can download it for free right here while you wait for streaming to be made available.
The album was preceded by three singles – Talk To Me, Legend Has It and 2100, which was released unexpectedly after Donald Trump’s successful bid for the presidency. They also featured on one of the best tracks of the year, Nobody Speak by DJ Shadow.
The pair of Killer Mike and El-P released the following note along with the album:
For Our Jewel Runners Worldwide,
Fuck it. We couldn’t help ourselves. It just feels right. After a crazy fucking year and with a full tour about to set off we asked ourselves what we were waiting for… and we just couldn’t come up with a great answer. You’ve been with us since we started this thing and its made such a huge difference in our lives to have your energy and love. Thank you. So as a gift to all of you who have allowed us to continue to do what we love: RTJ3. We busted our asses on this one and we think we made something special this round. Grab it for free, buy it on any of the digital platforms you like or stream it. Physical copies will still be dropping in January as announced but until then: enjoy and we will see you on the road!
With our love,
Jaime and Mike.
The album was also teased by a hilarious promotional crossover video featuring the pair in a Portlandia sketch. In it, they consider new ways to create “the ultimate album drop”, including faking their own deaths, swallowing pills that contain the album on it and so on:
https://youtu.be/G5Da2ISBiEw
Listen here and check out the full track list below.
Read our interview with Run The Jewels: “Being raunchy and sexual is not offensive:” Talkin’ dirty with RTJ
14. Report to the Shareholders/Kill Your Masters
Run The Jewels have finally announced the official date for their third album RTJ3, along with the cover art, tracklist, a new single and more. Mercifully, we only have about six weeks to wait, with the album set to drop on January 13, 2017.
The news was revealed via social media:
https://www.facebook.com/therealrunthejewels/videos/1275285219195882/
Legend Has It is the third track we’ve heard from the record – we first heard Talk To Me via Adult Swim’s Singles series. Then, after the success of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, the pair shared 2100 ft. Boots earlier than planned. The relevance and vivacity of the themes felt more necessary than ever, and their words felt more necessary than ever.
The track opens on an eerie instrumental, with jarring tones and a stark rhythmic sparsity that immediately puts you on edge Mike and El reintroduce themselves to their hungry audience: “We are the murderous pair that went to jail and we murdered the murderers there,” spits Mike. “I don’t play chicken, you prick, I’m a fox,” says El. It’s another indicator that this album is going to be abso-fucking-lutely great, and we’re counting down the days already.
RTJ3 is now available for pre-order. Like RTJ1 and RTJ2, it’ll be available for free download, although you can choose purchase t-shirt and vinyl packs, some of which include stickers, posters, CDs, etc.
The cover art continues the same theme of the previous two albums – severed hands making the RTJ gun-and-fist hand symbols. Unlike the illustrations on the first two however, the third album cover features the symbols crafted into a hand-made chromed, gold-plated sculpture (which weighed 15 pounds). According to a press release these were photographed by Tim Saccenti for the cover, who explained:“For us, the RTJ1 hands were about ‘taking what’s yours’ – your world, your life, your attitude. The RTJ2 hands were wrapped in bandages, signifying injury and healing, which for us represented the growth in ideas and tone of that album. For RTJ3 the bandages are off, the chain is gone and the hands have been transformed into gold. For us this represents the idea that there is nothing to take that exists outside of yourself. You are the jewel.”
The pair also shared a note about the album and pre-orders: Holy Shit. We can’t believe we get to finally write this to you… RTJ3 IS READY!!!! After a straight year of work the next chapter in this madness is done. We’ll spare you too much talk but we will say this: thank you so much for making RUN THE JEWELS the most amazing experience either of us have had in our careers. We hope you feel the love and time we put in to this record and can’t wait to share it with you and see you out on the road. Whether you buy it, download it for free, steal it from your annoying cousin or hear it at a show, just know that we are eternally grateful for the love you’ve shown us. Thank you thank you thank you.
Love, Jaime and Mike
The tracklist and featured guests have also been revealed – we’ve got guest spots to look forward to from Danny Brown, Tunde Adebimpe of TV on the Radio and the amazing Kamasi Washington among others.
14. Report to the Shareholders/Kill Your Masters
Killer Mike and El-P have already announced a tour for the beginning of 2017, but we’re hoping that an Australian visit isn’t too far off. The last time Run The Jewels were down under was for Falls Festival across 2014-2015.
Image: Supplied
It’s now less than a month now until Christmas, a time where you grab all your rellies, whack on the Michael Bublé and enjoy a good Christmas feast. One of the blessings to come with the silly season is the ridiculous seasonal merch that musicians tend to release with glee each year. This year we’ve picked our favourite Christmas lines to share. From Beyoncé to 2 Chainz, get your credit cards at the ready!
Beyoncé
The queen herself has just announced her own Christmas collection, themed around her 2016 release Lemonade. From “Boy Bye” sweatpants, to an “I came to sleigh” jumper, this is one of the funniest collections yet. Checkout the images below and visit Beyoncé’s website for more.
Run The Jewels
Our favourite Brooklyn and Atlanta cohort, Killer Mike and El-P aka Run The Jewels is back again following up with their 2015 Christmas collection with another ‘Run The Yules’ sweater. Following the announcement of Run The Jewels 3, slated for release early next year, this is one sweater we can get behind.
Ed. note: I bought this last year and it’s still one of my most treasured possessions. Highly recommended.
Visit Run The Jewels’ Store Here
The Roots
It’s not Christmas time until the legendary Roots crew release their Christmas collection, and this year is no different. While they may be sitting in their day job as the band for Jimmy Fallon, the crew has made sure this year’s collection is unlike any other, with a “Merry Questmas” making an addition along with last year’s favourites, this is sure to turn heads.
2 Chainz
Arguably the most extensive hip-hop Christmas collection yet, 2 Chainz has released a huge collection full of dad caps, sweaters and tees galore. Building upon the ‘Dabbing Santa’ collection, there is now a whole bunch more designs, and best of all it goes directly to helping veterans, disabled children, supporting arts education and many more through the T.R.U. Foundation.
Image: Hip Hop Early