On his sixth album, Kanye West leaps past the rap audience, across the tent of rappadelic psych-rumbles to unfurl 40 minutes of self-indulgent (even for West) sounds. Say hello to: Yeezus.

Something major happened during Game 5 of the NBA Finals. No, I’m not talking about that beatdown San Antonio handed to Miami. Jay-Z unveiled his new album, Magna Carta Holy Grail. It will arrive on July 4th, with production from Pharrell, Swizz Beatz, Timbaland and more. Jay has teamed up with SAMSUNG to give away free copies of the album.

• Watch the commercial here

Having just written about American pop metal band Cinderella for this site in relatively glowing terms (to a degree that even surprised me), I still find myself generally disgusted with the music that typically reaches mainstream rock critical mass. As I continue to discover more and more musical artists of the ’80s that toiled in baffling obscurity during their peak years, I find it hard to believe how many of them produced songs for which there is no good explanation why they didn’t top some chart or another.

This is certainly the case for the virtually unknown New Jersey guitar rock band Winter Hours, which produced two highly worthy but almost totally ignored albums during the second half of the ’80s. Unlike many of the band’s early alternative music and college rock contemporaries, Winter Hours embraced a throwback folk rock sound that served as the perfect backdrop for the edgy slow-burn vocals of frontman and primary songwriter Joseph Marques. “Broken Little Man” is a standout from 1989′s self-titled LP that is taken from a handful of outstanding tracks, all of which succeed in not sounding quite like anything else released during that era. Unfortunately, this distinctiveness apparently contributed to the band’s coming up utterly empty in terms of airplay or significant record label support. Nevertheless, the group’s moving lyricism is not that hard to find and champion given a bit of determined effort. As always, join me in spreading the word every chance you get. It all starts with one good listen.

• Sample or download “Broken Little Man” here.
• Compare prices on Winter Hours CDs here.
• Top Smithereens Songs of the ’80s
• Top Hoodoo Gurus Songs of the ’80s

Album Cover Image Courtesy of Chrysalis/Capitol

Kanye West and Jay-Z enjoyed plenty of ink for their ability to keep Watch the Throne from leaking early. Not so much for  Kanye’s latest, Yeezus. Ye’s sixth solo album has leaked onto the interwebs. Peep the tracklist below.

Yeezus Tracklist

1. “On Sight”
2. “Black Skinhead”
3. “I Am God feat. God”
4. “New Slaves” feat. Frank Ocean
5. “Hold My Liqour” feat. Chief Keef & Justin Vernon
6. “I’m in It”
7. “Blood on the Leaves”
8. “Guilt Trip” feat. Kid Cudi
9. “Send It Up” feat. King L
10. “Bound 2″ feat. Charlie Wilson

The rest is between you and Google.

You know, 40 isn’t so bad. With the average life span being what it is today, age 40 is actually pretty young. (Isn’t it the new 20? Or is that 30?) Then there’s the concept of the Top 40, which is the name of a music sales chart and a music genre. And then there were all those headmen that Traffic sang about. (Oh wait, that was 40 thousand. Never mind.)

Yes, we’re playing with numbers today, and for our purposes, the number 40 is significant because of all the classic rock albums that were released in 1973. Those were some pretty heady days for the still young genre that only years later would become known as classic rock. I’ve culled out 40 that had particular significance (historically, musically, or both) and that have stood the test of time in terms of how they are regarded today, 40 years after they were released.

Even after cherry-picking, 40 is a pretty good chunk, so we’re going to take it in two bites, organized alphabetically by album title. The list of 40 begins with the first 20 … READ MORE

Run the Jewels (El-P and Killer Mike) just revealed the tracklist for their self-titled album. To further whet your appetite, the pair also shared a free song, “36″ Chain,” from the set (download link below).

Run the Jewels Tracklist

1. Run The Jewels
2. Banana Clipper (feat. Big Boi)
3. 36″ Chain [Stream/Download]
4. DDFH
5. Sea Legs
6. Job Well Done (feat. Until The Ribbon Breaks)
7. No Come Down
8. Get It
9. Twin Hype Back (feat. Prince Paul as Chest Rockwell)
10. A Christmas Fucking Miracle

Run the Jewels arrives June 26th. You can pre-order the vinyl here.

Artwork © Fool’s Gold

I remember my exact reaction to J. Cole’s “Work Out.” I recall saying that his flow on that song was so bizarre it sounded like he was literally rapping at gun point. I know many other J. Cole fans who disliked the song. Cole’s childhood idol Nas wasn’t feeling it, either.

Cole raps about that single on Born Sinner highlight “Let Nas Down.” He also addressed it in a recent Fuse interview. “It was the worst response I’ve ever gotten on any song I’ve ever put out. It was a terrible response,” says Cole. “When I made that song, it was a triumph.”

J. Cole got the news from Nas collaborator No I.D. “I was in the studio with Nas and we was talking about you and he was like, ‘Yo, why did he do that? Why did he put out that song? Don’t he know he’s the one? He ain’t gotta do that,’” the producer told Cole at the time.

“Work Out” would go on to reach #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, further complicating Cole’s relationship with the single. It’s also certified 2x platinum in the U.S.

(Photo © Henry Adaso)

If you’re a fan of spiritual raps, superduos, and beatstrumentals, this month was made for you. Dive in for June’s Top 10.

Q-Tip sat down with Jeff “Chairman” Mao for the latest episode of Red Bull Music Academy. If you only watch one video about rap this week it should be this one. In the video, Tip gives us rare insight into his production process, deconstructing and reconstructing various pieces from his vast discography.

A real treat arrives around the 1 hour, 36 minute mark, when he plays “Mama’s Boyfriend,” a song he produced for Kanye West. Some of you will recognize the song — Kanye performed it at Facebook offices during his promo run for My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Fake versions of the song would later turn up on the web, but the original remained a mystery. Until now.

Peep game.

• Watch: Red Bull Music Academy with Q-Tip