SANTOGOLD...

Set to take the musical world by storm is Santogold with her self-titled debut solo release. Not one to be pigeonholed, her sound covers a range of styles including rock, electro, hip-hop, and pop. Check her video for "L.E.S. Artistes" below.

RISING DOWN...

This week is a big one for new releases. First up is The Roots with their 10th release Rising Down. The best live hip-hop band on the planet just keeps doing their thing.

C.R.A.C. - Collect.Respect.Anna.Check.

Blu (who has become quite the regular here on Stay Puft) is back again with C.R.A.C. (pronounced "crass"), his project with Detroit emcee/producer Ta'Raach on Tres. Produced entirely by Ta'Raach, The Piece Talks has a gritty yet soulful vibe that would make Dilla proud.

RISING UP...

Rik Cordero is on a mission to make a video for damn near every song from The Roots soon to be released new album Rising Down. Here's "Rising Up" featuring Wale & Chrisette Michele, a nice upbeat banger from The Legendary.

JUST BRIEFLY...

Another quick video strike. This is Daedelus with "Just Briefly" from his 2005 release Exquisite Corpse. I was bumping this record non-stop when it originally dropped and it still sounds great today.

$FREE.99: GHOSTLY SWIM

Those kooky kids at [Adult Swim] sure do have good taste in music. What's more, they like to give it away for FREE.

Ghostly Swim is a collabo with avant-pop purveyors Ghostly International and features tracks from a majority of their roster including Matthew Dear, Dabrye, and Tycho.

The album also features standout tracks from non-Ghostly artists Dark Party (Eliot Lipp & Leo123), School of Seven Bells, and FLYamSAM (Flying Lotus & SAMIYAM). Download all 19 tracks here.

HOTT 2 DEFF...

The illustrious Lyrics Born returns this week with his sophomore release Everywhere At Once. Ditching the drum machine, LB has assembled a crew of top notch musicians to bring his funk filled productions to life. Hott 2 Deff indeed.

ATLAS...

Quick video hit. Here's Battles with "Atlas". So fresh.

WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU LEMONS...

The Twin Cities duo of Slug & Ant, collectively known as Atmosphere return today with their new record When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold. Best album title of the year? Me thinks so.

SOMETIMES THINGS JUST FALL INTO PLACE...

A random conversation about Lupe Fiasco signing autographs down at Rasputin Records inspires a search on Craigslist for same-day tickets to see the "Glow in the Dark" tour at HP Pavilion. The show was bananas. Give it up for spontaneity.

NIKE AIR YEEZY...

The first good look at KanYe's signature shoe from Nike, the Air Yeezy. I must say, they've got some flavor. No word yet on when they might be released.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE UGLY...

Consequence hits you with the video for "The Good, The Bad, The Ugly" featuring KanYe West. Taken from his underrated 2007 solo jawn, Don't Quit Your Day Job.

EVAN HECOX...

Here's a stack of prints from one of my favorite artists, Evan Hecox. Taken from his series on Mexico City.

LITTLE BIT OF FEEL GOOD...

Jamie Lidell is back with another batch of soulful tunes for the masses. Here's the video for "Little Bit of Feel Good", the first single from his forthcoming LP Jim due April 29th on Warp.

PIECE OF ME, PIECE OF YOU...

Zombie puppets attack city residents and infect them with fancy footwork. Brought to you by Three Legged Legs.

DESIGNER GAS MASKS...

Conceptual art project from Diddo Velema. Project description below...

We are in a state of perpetual war – with ourselves and with the eco-system that sustains us. Perpetual war breeds perpetual fear. In the present context, this fear stems from our extreme desire for authenticity and manifests itself in our collectively insatiable culture of consumption.

Deep down, we are afraid we may never be satisfied. An expanding archive of branded myths and icons feeds this fear. Designer Gas Masks is an attempt to visualize this state of mind. Because it is only by first acknowledging and then challenging fear that we will all be able to breathe a little easier.

Sending this one out to the big homie Choo.

RUSSELL...

The Russell from Clae. Super clean. I had to swoop on these.

ACCORDION...

Taking it back to 2004, here's "Accordion" from Madvillain. Taken from the Stones Throw 102 DVD. Straight classic.

MEXICAN BLANKET...

I'm not much of an Air Max guy, but the "Mexican Blanket" concept is pretty clean. Swap meet style.

ELIOT LIPP...

I've pretty much got a musical man-crush on this dude. For instrumental electro hip-hop goodness, look no further than Eliot Lipp. His new record, The Outside is out today on Mush Records. I'm all over it.

$FREE.99: RAINYDAYZ REMIXES

Bay Area hip-hop producer Amp Live remixes Radiohead's In Rainbows and gives it away for the low-low price of $FREE.99! Featuring guest vocals from Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Del the Funky Homosapien, Too $hort, and more. Download all 8 tracks here. For a quick hit, preview "Video Tapez" featuring Del below.

NoDoz: FLYING LOTUS

New feature here on stay puft dot com. It's called NoDoz. NoDoz will profile up and coming musical acts who are destined to make a big splash on the scene. Put another way, "don't sleep" on these featured artists.



First up is LA hip-hop beatsmith Flying Lotus. FL burst on the scene in 2006 with his debut for Plug Research, 1983. '83 shines with spaced-out keyboards, fractured rhythms & bass-heavy beats. Later this year he drops his ode to the city of angels, Los Angeles on Warp Records. Fans of Dabrye, Dilla, and SA-RA, take notice.

WALKING BIKE...

The Walking Bike from Max Knight. This thing is bonkers.

I'M COMING HOME AGAIN...

CHI-City stand up! KanYe West pays homage to the windy city with "Homecoming", the fourth video off the uber-plantinum Graduation. Chris Martin of Coldplay provides the hook. Directed by none other than Hype Williams.

MO' BETTA BLU...

I blogged about this duo a few weeks back during my 'Best of 2007' video recap. Here's the latest video from Blu & Exile for the splendid track "Blu Collar Worker". Once again taken from their debut collabo Below the Heavens. This record is major, go out and get it.