The Witzard

While it's title could easily be a reference to Toni Braxton 's similarly-titled 1996 smash-hit, M.I.A. 's latest [controlled] leak, "UNBREAK My Mixtape" almost seamlessly samples Blur , Carly Simon, Karen Dalton , and Fresh 4 in just under 5 minutes! After nearly a year of 2's-worth of delays and a single threatening Tweet , M.I.A. 's long-awaited fourth studio album Matangi is finally slated for a firm November 5th release. "UNBREAK My Mixtape" might just be The Internet 's fifth taste of Matangi , succeeded by "Only 1 U," "Come Walk with Me," "atTENTion," and possibly even "Bad Girls" (2012). M.I.A. effortlessly floats in-between the rapidly-changing beat(s); lamenting about a lost love and a broken mixtape, "Here's a mixtape that I made, let's take a break... While I get my life sorted, here's a mixtape... What did I do for you to call me crazy?" M.I.A. seems pretty ...

Once you're able to get past the semi-absurd notion that Jay-Z decided to employ former- N'sync er Justin Timberlake to re-sing some Nirvana lyrics, "And we all just / entertainers / and we're stupid / and contagious," "Holy Grail" is actually a pretty awesome album opener/lead single contender. While Jay-Z & Beyoncé were spotted at a Grizzly Bear show pre- Blueprint 3 and Empire of The Sun frontman Luke Steele actually sang back-up vocals on that very album, it seems as though Beyoncé 's 27-year-old Indie Rock -loving little sister Solange really has quite the influence on Jay-Z 's varied musical tastes; Not only does Magna Carta Holy Grail (MCHG) feature interpolated Nirvana & R.E.M. lyrics, but it also makes use of M.I.A. and Alternative Hip-Hop weirdo Gonjasufi samples, "Bad Girls" and "Nikels and Dimes" respectively. Thanks to Samsung Galaxies , MCHG has already "sold" 1 million+ cop...

Matangi is slowly but surely becoming the Chinese Democracy of Indie Hip-Hop ; Initially delayed from December 2012 to January to April 15th and then seemingly shelved due to what they're calling an excess of positivity ha. M.I.A. was supposedly told by her label, Interscope that "[she needed] to darken it up a bit" (Gold Coast). "Bring The Noize," sadly no relation to the similarly-named Public Enemy/Anthrax track, is M.I.A. 's first proper single since earning a Grammy nomination with "Bad Girls" (2012), which will most likely end up re-appearing on Matangi . It's companion music video casts M.I.A. as a slightly more ethnic-looking hot pink-haired "Barbie Girl" who anymore, I think sounds a lot like Die Antwoord 's sharp-tongued frontwoman, Yo-Landi Vi$$er . Based off it's opening scenes, "Bring The Noize" kinda looks like one of those now infamous early 2000's P. Diddy -orchestrated all-white-every...

While Philly DJ-producer Dilpo and his record label, Mad Decent have been an instrumental part of the ever-growing Electro House/Dubstep scene(s) since roughly, 2003... Most people really don't even realize how familiar they are with Diplo 's discography: "Paper Planes," Kid Cudi, "Run The World (Girls)," Usher, Die Antwoord , Wale, Chris Brown Busta Rhymes , and even an upcoming Reggae album with Snoop Dogg . Dilpo 's current passion project, Major Lazer was started out as a collaboration with Switch - who effectively jumped ship in Dec. 2011. Major Lazer is represented by a cartoon frontman who's basically a "bionic Jamaican super-commando and nightclub owner who fights zombies and vampires on a rocket-powered skateboard." Diplo is currently hoed up in Kingston, Jamaica earnestly working on the proper follow-up to Major Lazer 's well-received Indie Rock breakthrough, Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do (2009). T...

After a lengthy 4 year-long "hibernation," Indie Rock 's favourite Philly -bred wanderlust wonder child, Santigold has finally emerged with some new, buzz-worthy music in toe. Nearly out of the blue, "Big Mouth" was released for FREE download yesterday to wide-spread critical and fan acclaim alike. Santigold 's PR rep. later stated that the track is merely a promotional [teaser] single; But you would never know so from the looks of it's accompanying over-the-top, glammed up cartoon-ish music video. The high-ppofile audio/video talents of Switch , Buraka Som Sistema , and director Cody Critcheloe were brought in for back-up assistance in Round #1. Between albums, Santigold managed to work with a wide array of distinctive collaborators including: Christina Aguilera , Q-Tip, Jay-Z , Lily Allen , M.I.A. The Lonely Island , Pharrell, N.A.S.A. Beastie Boys, Julian Casablancas , and Karen O. Master of My Make-Believe was additionally out-fitted with the ...