Good trill hunting

"Autonomy," the Dears, from "Orchestral Pop Noir Romantique"
Speaking of racially confusing vocalists, I was surprised to find today that Murray Lightburn, lead singer of the Montreal band the Dears, is black. Surprised not just because of his Jewish name, but because he too sounds so very white: like Morrissey, or Damon Albarn, but a little more of a crooner than either of them. Apparently I'm alone in finding this noteworthy, because other than a short profile in the Guardian, I haven't found a single review or feature on the band that mentions Lightburn's surprising ethnicity. Intriguing racial dynamics aside, the Dears are an excellent, if unoriginal, band, with an aesthetic described perfectly by the title of their recent "Orchestral Pop Noir Romantique." That E.P. includes the Tindersticks-y "Autonomy," available for free download in the audio section of the Dears' Web site. Two free tracks are also available from the band's 2003 full-length "No Cities Left" (to be reissued next month on SpinART): the slow burning "We Can Have It" and the Blur-ish rocker "Lost in the Plot." Free download: "Autonomy"

"Savages," Shiffai, from "The Chosen One"
Over the last few years, with Jamaican dance-hallers embraced by the U.S. hip-hop mainstream, and Brit grimers like Dizzee and Wiley the favorites of the hip-hop literati, the globalization of hip-hop has become inevitable. But while France, the second largest hip-hop market in the world (and the coolest, as evidenced by the fact that break dancing is referred to as "le smurf"), is dominated by West African emcees, no African rapper has had any significant mainstream success in the U.S. Aside from a few compilations of African hip-hop, it's hard to even find it in the States, and nearly impossible to track it down on the Internet (no doubt this has something to do with the scarcity of high-speed connections in Africa). A rare exception is Shiffai, a Senegalese rapper who has been based in New York for the last four years. Half of his last record, "The Chosen One," is available for download here. Thanks to Fat Planet for pointing this one out. Free download: "Savages"

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