Twenty years ago, Australian band The Avalanches emerged with their debut album, Since I Left You. Two decades later, The Avalanches and its remaining members, Robbie Chater and Tony Di Blasi, are returning with a 20th anniversary deluxe edition of the album, and they shared the news with a new remix of the project’s title track.
De La Soul’s de facto fourth member, Prince Paul, who has also reworked songs by the likes of Big Daddy Kane, Slick Rick, Queen Latifah, and more, is responsible for the exhilarating remix. The reissue of the band’s debut, which arrives on June 4, is jam-packed with bonus tracks and additional unreleased remixes that the band held in the vault over the years. It also includes appearances from Black Dice, Leon Vynehall, Sinkane, Carl Craig, and the late MF DOOM.
In a press release, Chater spoke about the original album. “I remember very clearly a few things,” he said. “We decided to not have any of our voices on it, which made it last because it’s a kind of transmission; nothing date-stamps it to that time.” He added, “Looking back, I’m proud of this record as a pure expression of joy and love, heart on its sleeve and is free from irony.”
The 20th anniversary edition of Since I Left You will be released in three formats — vinyl, CD, and digital — and will feature 33, 39, and 33 tracks respectively. The CD release also includes The Avalanches’ remixes of songs by Belle & Sebastian, Manic Street Preachers, Franz Ferdinand and more.
You can listen to “Since I Left You (Prince Paul Remix)” above.
The new voter laws enacted by Republicans in Georgia are so extreme — and so clearly intended to limit voters who may vote for Democrats — that even corporations came out against them. Coke, Delta, even the MLB, who moved this year’s All-Star game from Atlanta to Denver, have publicly condemned the changes. That’s led conservatives to condemn the condemnation, but when Mitch McConnell told those companies to stay out of politics — while still donating to campaigns, of course — his double standard got him roundly mocked.
Mitch McConnell wants corporations to stay the f**k out of politics…unless they’re donating, of course. pic.twitter.com/CWoAx3X6e0
Trevor Noah joined in on the dunking. On Wednesday’s The Daily Show, the host played the viral clip of the former Senate Majority Leader scolding companies. “Republicans buy stock, fly on planes, drink Coca-Cola. It is quite stupid to jump in the middle of a highly controversial issue,” he said. He then tried to clarify that politicians still need their money. “I’m not talking about political contributions. Most of them contribute to both sides, they have political action committees, that’s fine, it’s legal, it’s appropriate, I support it.”
Naoh boiled down what McConnell was really saying: “Keep your mouth shut and hand over the money!”, adding, “That’s literally what bank robbers say.”
The Daily Show host also pointed out that McConnell is to blame anyway. “It’s hilarious, since he helped create the situation where they are so dependent on campaign money that the corporations write the laws. The monster you created is coming after you!” he said. “By the way, I like how McConnell is upset they would take a position on a highly controversial issue. It would be weird if Coca-Cola came out and said, “It is nice to sleep in on the weekend!”
You can watch the segment in the tweet embedded above.
Demetrious Johnson is a legend in the world of mixed martial arts, having lorded over the UFC’s flyweight division for years before departing the company for ONE Championship in 2018 after a split decision loss to Henry Cejudo. Johnson won his first three fights in ONE, and finally had his long-awaited showdown with flyweight champ Adriano Moraes on Wednesday night in the main event of ONE on TNT 1.
In the second round of the fight, Johnson and many fans here in the states were introduced to one of the big differences in rules for ONE Championship compared to UFC and other MMA entities that mostly hold fights in the United States, as Moraes knocked Johnson out with a brutal knee to the side of the head while Johnson was grounded.
Finish of the DJ fight. Brutal knee. And yes, that knee is legal in ONE but not in the US when abiding by the Unified Rules. Moraes nailed that. What a moment for him. Shocking to see DJ get stopped. pic.twitter.com/eT5e7P4eqU
The fight was held in Singapore, which meant that type of move is allowed and Johnson caught the wrong end of an absolutely vicious knee from Moraes, going out cold. It was a wild finish, and that it came one fight after Eddie Alvarez was disqualified for punches to the back of the head had many fans a bit quizzical about what is and isn’t allowed in ONE.
In any case, Johnson was handed the first knockout loss of his career — he’d previously had three decision losses — and Moraes made quite the statement in ONE’s first TNT broadcast event.
On Wednesday, The Washington Post reported that a number of former Trump administration staffers — including Elaine Chao, former Secretary of Transportation and also wife to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell — are having trouble getting new jobs. The stink from the former president, made all the more rancid from the events of Jan. 6, is so pungent that the public sector wants nothing to do with them. But the same doesn’t apply to Trump’s number two. On the very same day as the Post‘s report, Mike Pence signed a seven-figure deal for not one but two books.
The first, scheduled to hit shelves in 2023, is, of course, a memoir. What will he leave in? What will leave out? What could he say about his former partner-in-crime, who three months ago left him at the mercy of his violent supporters, some of who wished to lynch him? Whatever he dishes, he’s receiving somewhere between $3 million and $4 million for the efforts.
It’s all but inevitable that everyone involved with the previous administration — not the least being Trump himself — will eventually sign some lucrative book deal. But seeing as the dust has still not settled from the chaotic final months of the last presidency, many on social media felt it was, for one thing, too soon.
Some wondered if Pence will deal with his many failures as a public servant, both as veep and as governor of Indiana.
Mike Pence was in charge of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, during a period in which 400,000-odd Americans died from the coronavirus. I hope that gets a chapter or two in the new books. https://t.co/Tt7rOFM9eT
I hope Mike Pence’s story of “his faith and public service” includes how his inhumane policies as IN governor drove one of the largest HIV epidemics in decades and fueled opioid deaths. And that was *before* he became VP and backed the Muslim ban and child separation…. https://t.co/etxilf4wga
Who — seriously, *who* — does Simon & Schuster imagine’s going to read a Mike Pence memoir? This really feels like a case of out-of-touch publishing unaware of the fact that Pence has almost zero base or love among conservatives.
Some suggested he do something more productive, like testify against the man who almost got him killed.
Since @Mike_Pence is feeling so chatty, maybe he’d like to testify in front of Congress about his efforts over-seeing the WH’s Coronavirus Task Force … https://t.co/YXFmrHcmvT
But others speculated it’s just a cynical cash grab.
Mike Pence doesn’t have a chance in hell in 2024, and he knows it. But his book sales will make him millions of dollars. And as long as he keeps hinting that he’ll run in 2024, the media will keep giving attention to his book, which means even more millions for him. It’s a sham.
Doja Cat‘s sophomore album Hot Pink may have been released 18 months ago yet it still remains extremely popular. But fans are still hungry for more. Though her third album, Planet Her, is still en route, she’s throwing them a bone: Its first
single, “Kiss Me More,” featuring SZA, will arrive at the end of the week — news she revealed on Twitter in a post also showcasing the single’s artwork.
During an interview with V Magazine last month, SZA spoke about the song during a conversation with Doja, who was also a part of the sit-down. “I know our little ditty ‘Kiss Me More’ is a different strut and I’m just excited,” SZA said. As for Planet Her, Doja confirmed that the project was complete during an interview with Fat Joe. “It’s all ready. I hate that I’m holding onto it right now,” she said. “I see everybody’s like, ‘Put it out’ … You have to plan things accordingly and there’s a lot going on.” She also revealed a possible list of guest features, including The Weeknd, Ariana Grande, SZA, French Montana, Megan Thee Stallion, ASAP Ferg, Saweetie, and Young Thug.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Back in June 2020, Alabama rapper Mooski released what became one of today’s most popular hip-hop songs, “Track Star.” The melodic bass-driven tune finds the rapper speaking about a love interest who can’t seem to keep things exclusive with him, always running away only to return a short time later. Nearly a year after the song’s release, Mooski drops a video for the track that gives images to his words.
The rapper’s on-and-off lover is played by Coi Leray, who has attained viral moments of her own thanks to tracks like “No More Parties.” After meeting at a party, Mooski is quick to pick up on Leray’s habit of running away. So he cozies up to another girl, played by there-time Grammy-winning songwriter Nija Charles.When Leray returns, she sees Mooski and Charles spending time together, which upsets her and causes her to runaway once again.
After the success of “Track Star,” Mooski kicked off 2021 with his latest single, “Game Of Love,” which has also racked up more than 475 million views on TikTok and over 42 million global streams. As for Leray, her track “No More Parties” was certified Gold by the RIAA.
You can watch the video for Mooski’s “Track Star” above.
Maybe it’s because I’m a writer, but I’m a bit of a pen snob. Even if I’m just making a list, I look for a pen that grips well, flows well, doesn’t put too much or too little ink into the paper, is responsive-but-not-too-responsive to pressure, and doesn’t suddenly stop working mid-stroke.
In other words, the average cheap ballpoint pen is out. (See? Snob.)
However, Oscar Ukono is making me reevaluate my pen snobbery. Because while I’m over here turning up my nose at the basic Bic, he’s using them to create things like this:
Um, yeah.
Ukonu is a self-taught artist from Lagos, Nigeria, who creates hyperrealistic portraits using just a Bic ballpoint pen. And not the fancy kind—the super simple clear ones with the pointy lids you buy in a 12-pack because you know you’re going to lose half of them around the house anyway.
His drawings look like blue-washed photographs, but they’re all hand-drawn with a Bic. (Or more accurately, with around 10 Bics, since the nubs start to wear down as he uses them.) How he makes the most average ballpoint pen strokes do what he does seems like nothing short of magic—even when you watch him do it in real-time.
The techniques he uses are pretty standard—hatching (parallel lines), crosshatching (perpendicular lines), and scribbling (basically what it sounds like). But he uses them on a minutely detailed level, working from multiple photos of the same subject, and the result is portraiture that looks so real it’s almost surreal.
Artist Draws Hyperrealistic Portraits Using Bic Ballpoint Pens
Ukonu began his journey with hyperrealism when he was in architecture school and fell in love with ballpoint after feeling unsatisfied with the ink pens he was using. “I spent a lot of time looking at different mediums and drawing tools,” he told Vsionvry. “But the first time I tried the ballpoint pen that was in 2014, and it just clicked…”
According to his website, Ukonu “explores black identity and pride in an increasingly globalized world, as well as ideas surrounding Afrorealism” in his art. (Afrorealism is a movement that straddles optimism and pessimism about Africa, with a genuine acknowledgment of the difficulties facing the continent and the placement of Africans in the central role of its development.)
Ukonu calls his work “a practice in time and patience” with an average piece taking him somewhere between 200 to 400 hours to complete. That time and patience pays off as prints of his work—not the originals, just prints—can sell for up to $600.
That braid he’s working on in the video? That was this. With a Bic ballpoint. How?
And the newspaper wrapped around the woman’s head? He has a whole series of pieces that feature that concept, which he calls “THE DISINFORMATION OF A REPUBLIC.”
If you’re new to hyperrealistic art, it’s similar to—and has its roots in—photorealism, a style in which someone draws exactly what they see in a photo. But instead of drawing a direct copy of a photograph, hyperreal artists use photos only as a reference. That’s why the video explained that Ukonu used around 20 photographs (out of hundreds taken) to draw one of his pieces. Rather than an exact replica of a single photograph, the final product is a wholly unique image, even though it looks like it could be a photograph.
It’s common for hyperrealists to evoke emotional, social, cultural, and political meanings in their works, which shows clearly in Ukonu’s art. And the fact that he can create such beautiful images with a cheap, disposable Bic ballpoint is proof that the talent of the artist is more important than the quality of the tools. (A truth that I will keep in mind when I reach for a pen for any purpose after seeing this.)
It was a stunning performance as they did to Gonzaga what the Zags typically did to their opponents, dominating every facet of the game early on and leaving the Bulldogs with a massive hole to climb out of, which they never were able to do. If it seemed as though Baylor entered the game more fired up than Gonzaga, there may be a reason for that. Baylor big man Mark Vital recently spoke with Sirius XM College about the title game and that furious start, and explained why the Bears had a little extra juice coming into the game after learning how Gonzaga was apparently already making preparations for a big celebration by ordering six cases of champagne.
— College Sports on SiriusXM (@SXMCollege) April 7, 2021
The Bulldogs were the favorites, but only by 4.5 points so if they were making such plans and overlooking the Bears, it was a foolish mistake. That said, it’s also very possible that someone told the Baylor players that Gonzaga had been ordering cases of champagne to give them a little added motivation, when that wasn’t actually the case. If that’s what happened, it certainly seems to have worked. You can see Vital still upset at the thought that Gonzaga felt they were going to cruise past Baylor, and whether it’s actually what went down or simply some well-placed bulletin board material, the Bears certainly had some extra fire in their bellies and made good on their plans to “destroy” the Zags as Vital put it.
In the longer-than-expected wait for Drake’sCertified Lover Boy album, the rapper has broke Billboard and Spotify records, appeared in a State Farm Super Bowl commercial, endured an unfortunately knee injury that’s delayed the project’s release, and more. Now, he can add being a victim of a social media prank to the list. Instagram user TravQue, who has pranked rappers like DreamDoll and Lil Mosey, caught up with Drake at a bar. With camera in hand, he made a large order — 2000 cases of Virigina Black whiskey, 400 cases of Bumbu rum, and three cases of tequila — then requested it all be put on the rapper’s tab. Drake was not having it.
Drake is far from the first person to be pranked as a part of TravQue’s “Put It On His Tab” series. Just last month, he attempted to place 10 bottles of Moet, 10 bottles of Casamigos, and 5 bottles of Hennessy on rapper Cam’ron’s tab. Dave East has also fallen victim to TravQue’s antics.
The wait continues for Drake’s upcoming Certified Lover Boy album, but in the meantime, fans can continue to enjoy his EP Scary Hours 2. Just a week after its release, the three songs from the project all debuted within the top three positions of the Billboard singles chart, making him the first artist to ever achieve this.
The snow is melting and the temperatures are rising. Sure, most of us are in for a rain-filled few months, but the time for lighter, more crushable beers has undoubtedly begun. To mark the full-on shift in beer seasons, we asked a handful of our favorite bartenders to tell us the best beers for early April.
I think more people should be drinking Kolsch-style beers heading into the spring. Sion Kölsch is one of my favorites. It is easy drinking but has enough of a hoppy flavor to warm you up a little on the last of the cold days.
There are some nice fruit flavors on the nose, and the beer has great malt and honey flavors to taste.
Chandra Richter, vice president of beverage development & chief mixologist at Drinkworks
For me, the transition from winter to full-on spring is the perfect time of year for a great Saison. There are so many good ones to choose from, but my favorite is Goose Island Sofie. From the bright citrus and spice notes to the refreshing effervescence, you can’t help but get excited for the warmer days ahead while sipping it. The extra bubbles and spiced citrus notes are the perfect reflection of early April.
Austin Zimmer, bartender at Le Privé in New York City
Rogue Dead Guy Ale is the perfect beer to bridge the gap as April gets kicking. It’s a great combination. Deep honey in color with a malty aroma and rich hearty flavors.
Living in tropical island weather like Puerto Rico helps me enjoy all year with a Crash Boat IPA from Boqueron Brewing Company. This English-style beer with a Caribbean twist with a perfect balance between bitter and malty with a mixture of three different hops.
Average Price: $5 for a pint.
Untitled Art Juicy IPA
Untitled Art
Maren Nazera Erickson, bartender in San Antonio, Texas
I’m currently obsessed with all the Untitled Art brewery products and their Juicy IPA is a great beer to get you ready for the spring thaw. Prominent citrus notes with a medium body that’s slightly creamy but rounded.
Great for IPA lovers but not overwhelmingly hoppy.
My pick is Lagunitas Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’. It’s a hoppy pale ale with a smoothness, yet it does have a strong ale finish perfectly suited for late winter/early spring drinking.
The best beer to drink to ease your way from winter to the crazy spring days in Charlotte, North Carolina is Middle James Carolina Sky Lime Lager. It has a gentle touch of yeast (or as I like to call yeast in my beer, “salty water crackers”), and a nice amount of lime, but it is well balanced.
This beer is refreshing and goes well with fresh raw seafood or crunchy spicy sushi.
Spring makes me think of Bock beers that were often brewed as sustenance during Lent. While I love the classic German ones, America does it well too but in its own unique way. Troegs Cultivator has those toasted bread and grassy notes that are true to the style with an American flare of hopping to add peach and citrus elements to round out the nose and swallow.
Joseph Fredrickson, bartender at Society Lounge in Cleveland
As spring rolls on, I love to get back into citrus IPAs, their crisp, and refreshing delivery is perfect for a sunny day yet bitter backbone keeps you grounding knowing that there are still some cool days to come. My go-to is Green Flash Tangerine Soul Style. Its tangerine zest and cascade hops give floral, crisp, and citrus notes that are a perfect reminder that better days are to come.
Early April is the perfect time of year for this hazy, Belgian-style white ale. It’s filled with the flavors of citrus zest and cloves and pairs well with the last cool days of the year.
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SHOCKS THE WORLD, becoming the first man to finish Demetrious Johnson! 
(@Amy_Siskind) 
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