Genres

Gucci Mane became one of the south’s most prolific and influential rappers with the help of a deep bench of producers, and Xavier “Zaytoven” Dotson is first and foremost among them. A transplant from Oakland, California, who grew up playing church organ, Zaytoven brought a new set of textures and influences to the Atlanta trap sound with soulful keys, ornate piano runs, and squealing synths. That brighter array of tones helped Gucci stand out from his contemporaries on his early hits, and Zay soon began expanding his client base, working extensively with artists including Migos and Future. And after Gowop spent years in and out of prison, he linked up with his favorite beatmaker again to get back to work.

Veteran Scottish alt-popsters the Trashcan Sinatras recently celebrated their 30th anniversary, and to mark the occasion, theyre embarking on a special acoustic tour of intimate venues (like, house-show-intimate, in some cases) across North America this fall. To get into the mellow mood, theyve made us this playlist of unplugged classics by the likes of The Beatles, Paul Westerberg, Vashti Bunyan, and more.

Tremor have just issued the Ave Reina Mora EP, which finds the veteran trio continuing to fuse Argentian folk traditons and modern electronic production in fascinating new ways. For this playlist they created specially for The Dowsers, they salute the artists who’ve been at the frontlines of Latin American musical revolutions dating back to the 1940s up to today.“LatAm Gamechangers is a playlist of Latin American musicians that are of defining influence in our band’s opinion. Their approach to LatAm folklore music was daring for their time. They took risks and, in some particular cases, they experimented with elements, sounds, and arrangements that sometimes took decades for the audience and even other musicians to catch up with.“Take, for example, the song by Waldo De Los Rios that explores a ‘chacarera’ groove, but with synths and orchestral sounds. Keep in mind this is from Argentina, 1967! It took years for others to try anything similar."One of our favorite tracks of all time is "Juana Azurduy,” sung by Mercedes Sosa and backed by a band of true Argentinian folklore music legends. The mix of a European clavichord and timps playing next to charangos and bombos legueros is a powerful combination. (Check out Tremor’s ‘Huacal,’ which was definitely inspired by this track.) Then we have Los Jaivas and Arco Iris, mixing folklore sounds with rock influences for the first time in the southern part of the continent.“The oldest track on the playlist is from 1940s, by Alberto Ginastera, one of the pioneers in taking an orchestral approach to folkloric rhythms. From there, the playlist moves forward to the ’80s, ’90s, and even the beginning of the 2000s, and it includes different regions like Brazil, Bolivia, Mexico, and Chile too!”—Tremor

Whats This Playlist All About? The NIN mastermind cherry-picks from his own catalog to gift us with a soundtrack for soaking in the beautiful sadness of solitude. His only tip: "Darkness optional but recommended."What Do You Get? Reznors bleakest but most seductive instrumentals, mostly from his film scores with main collaborator Atticus Ross. Theres no shortage of minor keys, moaning drones, and endless black holes of white noise. The mood is not all nihilistic, though; in fact, the way the songs flow—patiently, almost placidly—allows for ample moments of blissful reflection. Darkest Moment: Theres something truly disorienting about the weirdly pitched drones weaving through Reznors soft piano jabs on "Soft Trees Break the Fall" from The Social Network. Its even more terrifying to think about listening to this while scrolling through Facebook.What Did He Forget? While a few tracks from the underrated Still are here, that releases glistening finale "Leaving Hope" would have been a fine addition. But perhaps that ones better with the lights on.Should You Dare Play This in the Presence of Others? We wouldnt. This stuff can take you to dark places you never knew existed.

As part of his excellent System Focus monthly column, Adam Harper looks at how global dance culture is using the tresillo rhythm, the fundamental triplet rhythm where two beats fit in the place of two. It becomes easy to spot once you look for it, and you can hear in much of Cuban and Latin music. Harper looks at how many underground producers have been using this in more non-traditional ways. He looks at its applications in grime, UK funky, experimental/collage, and reggaeton. The entire post is worth a read, and the playlist is really great, but the money quote:

A simple rhythm bounces back and forth over the once vast Atlantic ocean, ever faster. It begins in Sub-Saharan Africa, but Europeans brutally pull it up by the roots—slaves bring it with them on a long journey to the Caribbean. By the nineteenth century it has become the defining element in the Afro-Cuban dance habanera, which finds its way to New Orleans where it helps form ragtime, then to South America, where it contributes to tango, and to Europe, where it becomes the most famous section of one of the eras most popular operas, Carmen. It also spreads across the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa and back again, and its descendents meet and collaborate, now using recordings and drum machines. Soon it doesnt even need to touch the water. Ricocheting off satellites and barreling down cables, it permeates the information sphere, with space and place just an interesting footnote on a Soundcloud profile.

First off, what the hell is The Triangle? Technically speaking, it’s shorthand for Research Triangle Park, a massive slab of subtly rolling hills in the center of North Carolina that’s home to a whole mess of tech companies. Informally, however, it refers to the cities and college towns surrounding the RTP, namely Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill. Most fans of indie music are well aware of the area’s bona fides: It is (or at one time was) the home of Superchunk and the Merge Records empire, a young Ben Folds Five, cult faves Archers of Loaf, and John Darnielle, the super-learned tunesmith behind The Mountain Goats, who just dropped their latest album, the wonderfully idiosyncratic Goths.So yeah, The Triangle is highly respected as a place where important music is created. At the same time, the region is underrated because it doesn’t quite strike the same level of reverence and cool as the similarly sized Seattle, Austin, or Portland. Perhaps its greatest quality is the sheer breadth of music it has churned out: In addition to all that legendary indie music, it has been a home for genre-defining thrash (Corrosion of Conformity), punk blues (Flat Duo Jets), swing revivalism (Squirrel Nut Zippers), hip-hop (Lords of the Underground), electro-pop (Sylvan Esso), and experimental noise (Secret Boyfriend).Now, a good deal of this music exists because The Triangle overflows with creative kids and arty weirdos attending one of its gazillion universities. But that’s only half the story, amazingly enough: It’s also served as a major hub for Southern vernacular music, like blues, country, and folk, since the early 20th century. Indeed, these artists may actually outnumber the many indie and alternative bands in the area. In addition to the Carolina Chocolate Drops, one of the most lauded old-time revival outfits in the United States, there’s campfire folk troubadour Hiss Golden Messenger, absurdly soulful singer/songwriter Tift Merritt, and American Primitive banjoist Nathan Bowles.Outside of Austin, or perhaps Memphis, what other scene in the U.S. boasts such an amazing balance between the modern and cutting edge and the folksy and down-home? The Dowsers guarantee that this will be the only playlist you’ll hear all week with synths, atonal guitars, and banjos.Click here to follow this playlist on Spotify.

On Feb. 9, Icelandic experimental composer Jóhann Jóhannsson was found dead in his Berlin apartment. He was 48. Jóhannsson leaves behind a deep catalog of acclaimed solo albums and soundtracks (including his Academy Award-nominated scores for Sicario and The Theory of Everything). to help you navigate his vast musical universe, weve asked Glasgow-based composer Richard Luke to select 10 essential pieces. "These songs are all compelling but diverse in their ability to either sweep you away in a dream or zone you into something specific. Most of all for me, Jóhanns sense of melody had a lush darkness that I’m drawn to, particularly in The Sun’s Gone Dim and the Sky’s Turned Black. Music that can affect a grave sadness with a sense of hope, or give a happy sentiment a sense of melancholy and nostalgia——that, to me, is like life: bittersweet. These qualities came easily to Jóhann and he was comfortable and generous with his powers. This gave his scores the simple ability to make movies better, more effective, more intense, more of whatever it is they were trying to be——and then something of himself). His solo work is even more intriguing——see: ‘Part 1/ IBM 1401 Processing Unit’ and ‘Flight From the City’——in the way he pushed the form with analogue tape, signal processing, effects, noises... he could make the normal sound haunting and weird, and the weird sound perfectly normal. This playlist celebrates some of my favorites from an exceptional back-catalogue. I’m sorry he’s gone——not least because it felt like even more was just around the corner."——Richard Luke

Richard Lukes new album, Voz is out Feb. 23 on 1631 Recordings. To hear more of Richards work, visit richardluke.co.uk.

Tropical House isnt the type of music youd normally find here, but its the middle of summer and its hot, even in San Francisco. This is definitely an adjective micro-genre, meaning that the terms tropical suggests steel drums, relaxed beats and liberal horns, and the genres best producers (including the Norwegian Matoma) are all to happy to accommodate. And it works, for the most part. This was culled from EDM Charts, a service-agnostic microsite that serves as a home to the content farmers at @lastrecords, who are owned by Beatframe, a tech-focused campaign/career management company. I think I got that right. Anyway, its a cool model.

Turning Jewels Into Water embody the ultimate global experience. Indian-born drummer and producer Ravish Momin and Haitian electronic percussionist Val Jeanty don’t only dissolve borders; they transform the way dance music moves us—both physically and emotionally. Making use of chants, polyrhythms, turntables, synths, and innovative percussive tools and techniques, the duo have created a wild, futuristic world of sound on their 2019 full-length album, <<Map of Absences>>. To fit their worldly (and otherworldly) vision, they’ve created a “Beats and Rituals” playlist for us, a mesmerizing mix of unpredictable rhythms and hypnotizing sounds that defy genre—and maybe just gravity, too.Turning Jewels Into Water say this about their picks: “Diggin’ deep into the soul of the drum machine and channeling ancestral spirits."

Columbus, Ohio’s genre-bending Twenty One Pilots pack their high-powered tunes with myriad influences, filtering dynamic pop through head-nodding reggae grooves, breakneck hip-hop beats, and even skyscraping synth blasts. While this kitchen sink approach can create the sort of mess even a smash hit hook couldn’t clean up, the duo have managed to master combos that not only result in irresistible bangers, but also positions them as an original voice in pop music.They learned from the best. Their tendency toward catchy, key-heavy hip-hop recalls Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ team-up with Chance The Rapper, “Need To Know”; The Killers’ lit-up, synth-dipped chorus on “Spaceman” matches their rousing sing-along aesthetic; and they share the same penchant for sonic theatrics as groups like Panic! at the Disco and Fall Out Boy. By some magic, they all sound just right next to each other.