The Witzard

Even though I've been an avid Stones Throw record collector for about 10 or so years now, I still managed to learn a lot of interesting facts and tidbits from their Kickstarter -funded, Jonah Hill -approved documentary, Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton . For example: Aloe Blacc 's HBO -backed "I Need a Dollar" nearly saved the label, Peanut Butter Wolf was childhood friends with Stones Throw employees Jeff Jank and Steve Helmer (aka Baron Zen), Kanye and Roots bandleader ?uestlove are fervent supporters of the prolific label, the years following J Dilla 's untimely death are generally regarded as Stones Throw 's "post-Hip-Hop" phase, etc. It's funny because while I'm pretty familiar with Stones Throw 's ever-growing label roster, I noticed a few names through out Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton that even I didn't recognize; Royal Kush , extraterrestrial songstress Diva , and righteous Punk band The Cliftons in particular. This past Tues...

It's fairly safe to assume that by now, most of us have heard about D'Angelo 's well-received European "Comeback Tour" and impending, triumphant return after a 12-year self-imposed exile. This is your typical quick rise, great success... EPIC fall, drug problem, arrest(s), companion rumor mill, and long-awaited comeback story. I faintly can remember watching "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" on either MTV or The Box back in like 7-8th grade and not really knowing what to think. It was a suggestive music video which had potential to be pretty "scarring," but look how I turned out: Well-grounded and open-minded nonetheless ha. I can quite honestly say that D'Angelo was my first favourite R&B crooner ! Arguably the break-out "King of Dubstep" (2010-11), James Blake is roughly the same age as me and I bet he saw D'Angelo 's batch of Brown Sugar-Voodoo era music videos on British TV , too. Anyways, fast-forward to pre...

After 12 long years of "soul searching," The Soul Man is [FINALLY] back in the building! Following a successful Occupy Music Tour opener in Stockholm , Sweden, D'Angelo continues his quick, yet effective comeback jaunt across Europe . The place was Le Zénith, Paris, France - last night: D'Angelo & The Testimony proceeded to rip through a dusted off selection of his greatest hits... this including "Brown Sugar," "Untitled," "Devil's Pie," and "Chicken Grease." Later in the show's setlist, the band even treated the crowd to a number of Funked up new jams . Then, The D'Angelo -led Testimony kicked off a familiar acoustic-driven tune penned by yet another reclusive Rock "N" Roll legend, "Space Oddity" (1969). With such a spot-on cover in toe, it almost makes you wonder if a [slightly updated] David Bowie -assisted version of "Space Oddity" will appear on D'Angelo '...

So, it seems that D'Angelo is plotting one Hell of a Soulful comeback; After a self-imposed 12-year long [creative] exile, a new/old track has finally emerged - "Black Hole Sun." D'Angelo adds his signature honey-drenched vocal flourishes to the 90's Grunge Mega-Hit. There are minor audio send-ups to Michael Archer 's own go-to influences: Herbie Hancock , Jimi Hendrix , and Stevie Wonder . D'Angelo is no stranger to recorded covers... as he laid down a handful of soundtrack-appearing covers between his first sabbatical period (1996-2000): "Girl, You Need a Change of Mind," "She Always In My Hair," "Heaven Must Be Like This," and "Feel Like Makin' Love." This 2010 Soundgarden demo comes on the heels of the Occupy Music Tour (Europe) and nearly 97% complete album "announcement." ?uestlove recently said in an interview that "James River" is essentially the Funky , black step-brot...