I like that the mixtape's implied critique of Last Train To Paris is that it's too chilled!
― Tim F, Monday, 21 February 2011 10:23 (thirteen years ago) link
also u&k - this track that apparently emerged last year but isn't on the mixtape
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEyIVWFVatk
prod. rob holladay, who was responsible for most of the production on the dirty money lovelove vs. hatelove mixtape
is this where danity kane get a critical re-evaluation too? their second album was SO good. dawn always seemed like something of a creative driving force with them too. and they took their name from her imaginary anime character.
― lex pretend, Monday, 21 February 2011 10:28 (thirteen years ago) link
this is my most played album of 2011
― mumflop & sons (dayo), Monday, 21 February 2011 12:48 (thirteen years ago) link
It's so good!
― Tim F, Monday, 21 February 2011 12:51 (thirteen years ago) link
the run from superhero (acapella) to the end is :O
― mumflop & sons (dayo), Monday, 21 February 2011 12:58 (thirteen years ago) link
actually...the whole run from intro (the fall) to the end is :O
― mumflop & sons (dayo), Monday, 21 February 2011 13:10 (thirteen years ago) link
^^^^
― Tim F, Monday, 21 February 2011 13:24 (thirteen years ago) link
finally sitting down with A Tell Tale Heart and damn yeah, this is great. very considerate of the Diddy-Dirty Money folks to already start turning Last Train To Paris into its own little genre with the release of this and the Valentine's Day mixtape just a couple months later.
funny that I was the first person to mention this record's existence on ILM but like the 30th to actually hear it.
― some dude, Monday, 21 February 2011 19:59 (thirteen years ago) link
finally hearing her voice in isolation for extended periods of time is nice, too; the slightly raspy grain is a bit like Brandy but not too much.
― some dude, Monday, 21 February 2011 20:01 (thirteen years ago) link
talking of the LTTP mini-genre, did everyone hear the lektro black mixtape diddy did with felix da housecat that was meant to precede it (well, it did precede it, just by a year rather than a few months)? one of the most banging hours of music i've ever heard. http://rcrdlbl.com/2009/08/14/exclusive_new_download_felix_da_housecat_x_diddy_lectro_black_last_train_to_paris_mixtape
― lex pretend, Monday, 21 February 2011 20:08 (thirteen years ago) link
digging the version of "I Know" on here, too, you could slot this right in place of the album version on LTTP and get closer to an ideal Chris Brown-less version of the album.
― some dude, Monday, 21 February 2011 20:11 (thirteen years ago) link
Brandy is a useful comparison point actually, in some ways this is like Full Moon if it was an album of straight bangers.
― Tim F, Monday, 21 February 2011 21:47 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah i love this mixtape. Have to listen more but i think "vibrate" is my favorite
― kl0p's son (k3vin k.), Monday, 21 February 2011 23:12 (thirteen years ago) link
i wonder what it is about dawn that made diddy keep her around after the dissolution of dannity kane
― pop the s1ock (J0rdan S.), Monday, 21 February 2011 23:17 (thirteen years ago) link
Wasn't she the best singer out of everyone in Danity Kane? I mean there is nothing about her that screams "super star" but I think the pop/r&b audience are so use to big personalities that a straight forward singer may seem boring. Dawn isn't boring per se but maybe Diddy needed a "real" singer around Bad Boy since Cassie was the only female for a little spell after Danity Kane split up.
― Okay Pet Shop Boys Aren't That Bad. (lilsoulbrother), Monday, 21 February 2011 23:32 (thirteen years ago) link
i really know nothing about danity kane or any of its members, but being the best singer makes sense
― pop the s1ock (J0rdan S.), Monday, 21 February 2011 23:33 (thirteen years ago) link
I never listen to a note of Danity Kane as I don't like the idea of 5 person singing group. I saw a video of her performing with Diddy doing "Last Night" waaayy back and assumed she was better than the other four.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGlhmDw7zhc
― Okay Pet Shop Boys Aren't That Bad. (lilsoulbrother), Monday, 21 February 2011 23:48 (thirteen years ago) link
Danity Kane, anyone?
prescience from brainwasher!
well at least we'll be getting a Dawn solo album I guess.
― Put A Ring On It (The Brainwasher), Wednesday, October 15, 2008 2:39 AM (2 years ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
― lex pretend, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 00:02 (thirteen years ago) link
i'd love to hear a version of a tell tale heart where several of the songs didn't sound like they were recorded underwater
― kl0p's son (k3vin k.), Tuesday, 22 February 2011 04:42 (thirteen years ago) link
does 'blackout'-era britney have much crossover w/ this stuff? i'm listening to "radar" (love love love) right now and i could see the drama being pitched up slightly in a way that would totally fit w/ the 'LTTP sound'
― pop the s1ock (J0rdan S.), Tuesday, 22 February 2011 06:42 (thirteen years ago) link
"vibrate" is nuts
― pop the s1ock (J0rdan S.), Tuesday, 22 February 2011 07:13 (thirteen years ago) link
YES (i mean, i assume this will be the actual album if and when it emerges)
blackout's a good comparison point, i mentioned it in my LTTP review from the "constant surprising sonic thrillz" standpoint, but re: dawn specifically there's also that impulse to get drunk and curse and act out sexually running through it (though obv she's coming at it from a more controlled persona...)
― lex pretend, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 08:08 (thirteen years ago) link
Yeah she's interesting in that she's a controlled singer doing "unhinged" R&B - there are aspects of this album that remind me of K Michelle and Fantasia and J Hudson and Brooke Valentine in parts but it's mostly sonic rather than vocal.
This works for me though I'll have to think about why, can't come up with a neat explanation for it yet.
― Tim F, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 10:03 (thirteen years ago) link
i'm still unbelievably pissed off that my chat w/dawn and kalenna has been lost to the vagaries of hard drive death - they said some really interesting things, esp re: their differing singing/songwriting styles, and both generally came across as totally smart and totally on it, and a bit like...necessary to keep diddy down to earth?
tim, you heard the last danity kane album right? if not, omg you need it. (i probably need their first one! never heard it)
― lex pretend, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 10:07 (thirteen years ago) link
I think I heard and liked the singles? I can't remember now if I checked out the album or not.
In my head I kind of just slot Danity Kane as halfway between Dream and Pussycat Dolls and keep forgetting that this is based purely on pop-cultural arithmetic rather than what they actually sound like.
― Tim F, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 10:11 (thirteen years ago) link
it's not entirely offbase w/r/t what they sound like either
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xd5lzwctwUk
that was probably one of my favourites off the album, which made a really great companion piece at the time to...blackout, as it happens - danja helmed a good chunk of it and most of the beats were rather great.
― lex pretend, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 10:14 (thirteen years ago) link
"bulletproof" is so immense, steel pistons grinding into motion
― lex pretend, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 12:20 (thirteen years ago) link
Love "Superhero"
― banjee trillness (The Reverend), Tuesday, 22 February 2011 20:46 (thirteen years ago) link
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/dawnangelique
― Wrong-Way Willy (Andy K), Tuesday, 22 February 2011 21:33 (thirteen years ago) link
any good?
― kl0p's son (k3vin k.), Tuesday, 22 February 2011 21:49 (thirteen years ago) link
booty in da pants
― pop the s1ock (J0rdan S.), Tuesday, 22 February 2011 21:50 (thirteen years ago) link
― pop the s1ock (J0rdan S.), Tuesday, February 22, 2011 1:42 AM (15 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink
um aside from multiple beats by Danja on both albums i don't really see any connection beyond urban-leaning pop and pop-leaning rap/R&B kinda meeting each other halfway. also lol @ blackout-era britney like that's some kind of defining touchstone of anything outside the ilx hivemind.
― some dude, Tuesday, 22 February 2011 21:57 (thirteen years ago) link
it's a defining touchstone of the pop genre, i think - almost certainly the most critically acclaimed of her albums
― lex pretend, Wednesday, 23 February 2011 00:02 (thirteen years ago) link
the popjustice crowd (and most top 40/pop fans I've talked to) generally consider it to be the best pop album of at least the second half of the decade, if that means anything
― prolego, Wednesday, 23 February 2011 00:23 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah i was exaggerating about it being a big deal only on ilm but calling it her most critically acclaimed album is i think pretty off -- on metacritic it's 3% lower than Circus, 5% lower than In The Zone, 11% lower than Oops -- it's only put on a pedestal in a very particular internet bubble.
― some dude, Wednesday, 23 February 2011 01:00 (thirteen years ago) link
Eh, Metacritic only analyzes initial reviews, not an album's long-term legacy.
― banjee trillness (The Reverend), Wednesday, 23 February 2011 01:24 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah obviously there's a lot of nuance that it doesn't accurately measure -- i'm just saying there's this kind of assumption that it's universally regarded as the high point of her career that i don't think really holds water
― some dude, Wednesday, 23 February 2011 01:36 (thirteen years ago) link
Realistically though Dawn Richard is highly unlikely to attain any success outside of that internet bubble (or an overlapping one) so it's not so misfounded or misleading a point of comparison.
If I say "maybe Dawn Richard's album is gonna be the 2011 equiv of Chain Letter" it's no more ridic, really.
― Tim F, Wednesday, 23 February 2011 03:29 (thirteen years ago) link
yeah who knows if DR has any commercial potential (although LTTP might have legs enough to set her up well, who knows), but Blackout being singled out as a comparison point over all the other dancey Danja-produced R&B/pop albums of the last few years seemed kinda arbitrary.
― some dude, Wednesday, 23 February 2011 03:36 (thirteen years ago) link
what other notable danja-produced R&B/pop albums are out there? (honest q)
― Neu! romancer (dayo), Wednesday, 23 February 2011 03:42 (thirteen years ago) link
i wanna know if the first 20 seconds to "let love in" are supposed to be part of the song or if it's part of another one - sounds absolutely heavenly
― kl0p's son (k3vin k.), Wednesday, 23 February 2011 03:48 (thirteen years ago) link
Really enjoying this but the shitty mixtape sound quality is really harshing my buzz. Why do these songs not sound louder?
― Matt DC, Wednesday, 23 February 2011 12:05 (thirteen years ago) link
'Sounds louder' is usually a bad thing imo.
― banjee trillness (The Reverend), Thursday, 24 February 2011 00:47 (thirteen years ago) link
i think he means the levels are quiet in an unmastered way that makes the whole thing sound less full/alive, which is a totally valid gripe and not at all an aesthetic thing.
"Hey" has not been singled out itt as a standout and that needs to be rectified.
― dayo technology (some dude), Friday, 1 April 2011 20:57 (thirteen years ago) link
― Neu! romancer (dayo), Tuesday, February 22, 2011 10:42 PM (1 month ago) Bookmark
if we're talking stuff from when Danja was Timbaland's right hand man (and those should probably count since Danja had a huge influence on the sound of those records), Timberlake's FutureSex and Furtado's Loose. but i was referring to stuff heavy on Danja solo productions like Diddy's LTTP and Press Play, Keri Hilson's 1st album, Danity Kane's 2nd album, Katharine McPhee's 1st album.
― dayo technology (some dude), Friday, 1 April 2011 21:02 (thirteen years ago) link
"hey" is amazing yes
― lex pretend, Saturday, 2 April 2011 08:27 (thirteen years ago) link
ship otm
"runway" & "vibrate" are also the joints off this
― J0rdan S., Saturday, 2 April 2011 08:39 (thirteen years ago) link
i like how the art for this album could double as a los campesinos cover
― J0rdan S., Saturday, 2 April 2011 08:46 (thirteen years ago) link
kmt
― lex pretend, Saturday, 2 April 2011 08:46 (thirteen years ago) link
:D
― J0rdan S., Saturday, 2 April 2011 08:47 (thirteen years ago) link
live show at BAM last night was overwhelming in the precision of stagecraft and choreography but WAY too much sound for a relatively small house like seeing an arena show in ballroom. there were numerous songs that took me ten seconds to go "oh yeah, i know this track" simply because they were so overwhelming. Dawn sounded great (though I could've done with less vocal effect work throughout. It was an efficient tsunami, done in 70 minutes, ran through maybe 18 songs like it was nothing. Glad I caught it but I'd really prefer to see her in a less vegas setting next time.
― i cannot help if you made yourself not funny (forksclovetofu), Thursday, 24 March 2022 15:47 (two years ago) link
this was the closerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybGtEMgdBwE
― i cannot help if you made yourself not funny (forksclovetofu), Thursday, 24 March 2022 15:48 (two years ago) link
new album with spencer zahn out in october https://dawnrichard.bandcamp.com/album/pigments
― maura, Tuesday, 30 August 2022 13:07 (two years ago) link
“New Orleans dynamo Dawn Richard and multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer Spencer Zahn announce Pigments, their debut collaborative album, out October 21st on Merge Records. Today, the pair presents the first movement: “Coral,” “Sandstone,” “Indigo,” and “Vantablack,” which is accompanied by an official video and marks Richard’s directorial debut. Pigments tells the story of finding one’s self through dance, self-expression, and community through the lens of New Orleans’ contemporary arts scene. Not strictly classical, jazz, or ambient electronica, but rather a body of “movements,” Pigments is one long composition guided by Richard’s stripped-down vocals. Following her acclaimed Merge debut, Second Line, Pigments reveals a new facet of Richard’s limitless talents and her entry into the contemporary classic world, and provides a fresh introduction to Zahn, whose intimate, sprawling soundscapes play with principles of open space and motion.”
― maura, Tuesday, 30 August 2022 13:09 (two years ago) link
wow the four released tracks are immensely beautiful, what a unique discography she's making
I don't know anything about Zahn though, is there a good project to check out first?
― rob, Tuesday, 30 August 2022 13:22 (two years ago) link
yes, this is beautiful stuff
― big movers, hot steppers + long shaker intros (breastcrawl), Tuesday, 30 August 2022 13:44 (two years ago) link
I mean, it’s so easy to take the beauty for granted when people consistently make great work over a long period of time, but this really is incredibly beautiful. “Vantablack”, wow…
― big movers, hot steppers + long shaker intros (breastcrawl), Tuesday, 30 August 2022 14:26 (two years ago) link
She was one of the Pitchfork Festival's highlights.
― Malevolent Arugula (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 30 August 2022 15:04 (two years ago) link
This is so cool. Not sure I know of anything similar?
― Indexed, Tuesday, 30 August 2022 19:16 (two years ago) link
Movement 2 came out this week, consisting of four more tracks.
― big movers, hot steppers + long shaker intros (breastcrawl), Friday, 30 September 2022 12:55 (one year ago) link
it's more of the same but that's welcome
― “Cheeky cheeky!” she trills, nearly demolishing a roadside post (forksclovetofu), Sunday, 2 October 2022 05:54 (one year ago) link
Wow, this is really great.
Zahn isn't an artist who's been on my radar before. I'm going to check out some of his earlier work - he did a record with Dave Harrington of Darkside guesting on guitar, which seems like a promising premise for a collab.
― The Ghost Club, Sunday, 2 October 2022 06:29 (one year ago) link
did a sort of panel with her last month, what an lovely person she is
― J Edgar Noothgrush (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Sunday, 2 October 2022 13:05 (one year ago) link
“Cerulean” is insane. Loving this so hard.
― Tim F, Sunday, 2 October 2022 21:56 (one year ago) link
wowwww
― ꙮ (map), Sunday, 2 October 2022 22:59 (one year ago) link
she has a nice feature on a softer garage house number from luuk van dijk called "love you". on beatport and junodownload but afaict nowhere else, maybe spotify idk.
― ꙮ (map), Thursday, 13 October 2022 20:34 (one year ago) link
Dang the layers of woodwinds/strings/vocals on "Saffron" -- this is rather majestic stuff, but not at all stuffy or overwrought.
― Indexed, Thursday, 13 October 2022 21:12 (one year ago) link
Just went back to 1 and "Vantablack" is stunning
― Indexed, Thursday, 13 October 2022 21:22 (one year ago) link
holy shit crimson
― diamonddave85 (diamonddave85), Friday, 21 October 2022 04:41 (one year ago) link
This is the post-ECM jazz art-pop record we need right now. Soooo fucking good.
Agree Crimson is incredible.
― The Ghost Club, Friday, 21 October 2022 05:36 (one year ago) link
for some reason this didn't interest me when the first few tracks were released but now i think they're fantastic?
― ufo, Friday, 21 October 2022 07:10 (one year ago) link
This gets really good in the second movement!
― imago, Friday, 21 October 2022 14:01 (one year ago) link
Yeah wow, excellent record. Pop and num-nummy froth-jazz pulling one another towards something v deep and charming
― imago, Friday, 21 October 2022 14:11 (one year ago) link
really love the cover art on this
― frogbs, Friday, 21 October 2022 14:27 (one year ago) link
where's it at?
― maf you one two (maffew12), Friday, 21 October 2022 14:27 (one year ago) link
https://dawnrichard.bandcamp.com/album/pigments
― Indexed, Friday, 21 October 2022 14:35 (one year ago) link
heh. the cover photo. none of the press seems to say.
― maf you one two (maffew12), Friday, 21 October 2022 15:37 (one year ago) link
https://i.imgur.com/RXMYy7F.jpg
― diamonddave85 (diamonddave85), Friday, 21 October 2022 15:47 (one year ago) link
just a spot of ice golf y'know
― imago, Friday, 21 October 2022 15:49 (one year ago) link
Totally magical album
― Tim F, Friday, 21 October 2022 21:11 (one year ago) link
It's currently leading my aotd (day) rankings, although the Dry Cleaning got off to a v promising start that I've had to curtail continuing until tomorrow
― imago, Friday, 21 October 2022 21:16 (one year ago) link
I think the most magical thing for me is that I listened to and mildly enjoyed the first movement a few weeks ago, but listening to the whole thing was a revelation - as ufo says above, it just opens out and deepens to an unbelievable degree for such a brief album
― imago, Friday, 21 October 2022 21:19 (one year ago) link
Agreed, I stopped listening to the first movement because I was anticipating the album so much. Glad I waited. It's best taken as a whole, and it's wonderful.
Made me check out Sunday Painter by Zahn, which is also exquisite.
― The Ghost Club, Friday, 21 October 2022 22:11 (one year ago) link
took me a few listens to notice how amazing Umber is
― rob, Wednesday, 26 October 2022 19:02 (one year ago) link
is it philistine to wish the vocals were a bit less treated
still this is very good
― your original display name is still visible (Left), Wednesday, 26 October 2022 19:48 (one year ago) link
I feel the same about the vocal treatments. On the other hand, a more naturalistic treatment would further expose some of the lyrical weaknesses.
The vocals are very much part of the wash of sound, as on the Cocteau's Victorialand (in particular).
― The Ghost Club, Wednesday, 26 October 2022 20:03 (one year ago) link
more background on the dozen things she's doing (a food truck?)https://thecreativeindependent.com/people/musician-and-multimedia-artist-dawn-richard-on-creating-opportunities-for-yourself-and-others/
― “Cheeky cheeky!” she trills, nearly demolishing a roadside post (forksclovetofu), Monday, 7 November 2022 15:08 (one year ago) link
new single/twerk anthem "Bubblegum"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWyTq_9GdUA
― rob, Wednesday, 12 April 2023 14:27 (one year ago) link
oh hellllll yeah
― ꙮ (map), Wednesday, 12 April 2023 14:43 (one year ago) link
I like those apparent "sell-outs" where the aloofness and left-field sounds keep the supposed hit song in its own elusive territory. Like creating a bridge and creating gaps at the same time. It's very credible. Retains her "aquatic" sound.Only critique is that it's a bit over in an instant.
― Nabozo, Wednesday, 12 April 2023 15:06 (one year ago) link
i am *really* enjoying this.
― Fizzles, Monday, 22 May 2023 17:24 (one year ago) link
Dawn was great at the PopCon keynote, BTW; had a chance to chat with her almost by accident beforehand. A personable soul.
― Ned Raggett, Monday, 22 May 2023 17:29 (one year ago) link
Uh...nobody posted this yet?
https://dawnrichard.bandcamp.com/album/the-architect
― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 18 October 2023 23:07 (eleven months ago) link
I'm listening to Goldenheart for the first time in a long time. Still holds up!
What else is worth hearing (and/or avoiding) in her discography? I haven't kept up with any releases since Goldenheart, including the jump to Merge Records.
― I can't tell if he's trolling or not (ilxor), Tuesday, 14 November 2023 01:03 (ten months ago) link
Goldenheart is the one I would tell people to avoid, so not sure how valuable this will be to you. But I would simply proceed chronologically from there: Blackheart, Redemption, new breed, Second Line. I wouldn't avoid any of them, though Blackheart is probably my favourite
― rob, Tuesday, 14 November 2023 16:53 (ten months ago) link
Haha I agree with all of that - Goldenheart is the one that feels most like a slog even though it has some fantastic individual moments. Blackheart is in many ways further out but it's better structured and sequenced. Then everything after that is a much easier listen though I don't think she has ever surprised as much again (at least until Pigments anyway) - this isn't really a criticism, there's very few artists who could maintain the kind of outward-expansion-trajectory which Dawn managed in the four years from early 2011 to early 2015.
― Tim F, Tuesday, 14 November 2023 23:42 (ten months ago) link
https://dawnrichard.bandcamp.com/album/quiet-in-a-world-full-of-noise
new album with spencer zahn out in october... preview track is gorgeous
― ivy., Tuesday, 9 July 2024 14:10 (two months ago) link
Yeah that's very nice. Would be happy for it to go on two or three times as long.
― Blitz Primary (tipsy mothra), Tuesday, 9 July 2024 15:14 (two months ago) link
A tour too!
― Indexed, Tuesday, 9 July 2024 17:58 (two months ago) link