5. Anderson .Paak – ‘Come Down’
Rising R&B rap star dropped an acclaimed album for the season
One of those artists whose name had been on the periphery of my listening until he dropped his Malibu album on Friday and his tunes starting appearing everywhere. Boosted by appearances on Dr. Dre’s Compton album last year, Anderson .Paak’s album sounds like the first 2016 album to be inspired by Kendrick’s To Pimp A Butterfly’s ambitious spirit. Featuring production from producer Hi-Tek, ‘Come Down’ is an immediate highlight from the album, swerving into gear with R&B, soul, blues and rap in the polychromatic style of Outkast and Kendrick.
6. The Gloaming – ‘Fáinleog (Wanderer)’
The trad supergroup are back with a new album on Peter Gabriel’s label.
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The Gloaming’s second album, simply titled The Gloaming 2 will be released on February 26th on Real World Records.
The contemporary trad supergroup, fiddlers Martin Hayes and Caoimhin Ó Raghallaigh, sean-nós singer Iarla Ó Lionáird, pianist Thomas Bartlett (Doveman), and Chicago-born guitarist Dennis Cahill, reconvened in December to record the album and ‘Fáinleog (Wanderer)’, the album’s first sound exemplifies the band’s beatific rich music that crosses the border between Irish trad, contemporary classical and modern spatial textures.
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.
