Hot Takes: Danny Brown's great new album, William Onyeabor doco, and new Hip-Hop Evolution

LISTEN

The neighbours might be sick to death of it but I'm loving Danny Brown's new album U Know What I'm Sayin?
The follow-up to 2016's Atrocity Exhibition is not as dark or unhinged, with Brown appearing less angry and depressed and quite content on his fifth studio album, which was produced by Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest, and features guest spots from Run the Jewels, Obongjayar, JPEGMafia and Blood Orange.
That may be due to the fact that life is less of a struggle now for the Detroit-born rapper, who fronts his own celebrity talk show on Viceland and recently found the money to fix his chipped-tooth smile. Good for him.

FANTASTIC

Brighten up your world by watching Noisey's 2014 documentary on the late, great Nigerian synthesizer musician William Onyeabor.
Fantastic Man, directed by Jake Sumner, explores the fascinating story of Onyeabor's career, featuring interviews with Damon Albarn, Femi Kuti (son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti), Caribou's Dan Snaith, and others.
Little is known about Onyeabor apart from the legacy of the nine albums he released between 1977 and 1985, including how he managed to source all those synthesizers in small-town Nigeria.
Often life is stranger than rumour and the conclusion of Sumner's film will surprise, sadden and make you laugh, all at once.

CHEMICALS

It's a shame they aren't coming to New Zealand so I'm heading to Sydney this weekend to see The Chemical Brothers live in support of their new album No Geography.
I stopped watching their televised Glastonbury set a few months back to ensure I didn't spoil the surprise of what is sure to be an epic light show, to go with a setlist full of bangers new and old.
Aussie sample-masters The Avalanches are also on the bill, performing a DJ set that will surely include their yet-to-be-released remix of the Chemical Brothers track Out of Control, which I'm told will feature on a compilation album marking the 20th anniversary of the 1999 classic Surrender.

HISTORY

The third season of Hip-Hop Evolution is ready and waiting on Netflix, with host Canadian rapper and journalist Shad Kabango exploring the genre's growth from the late-80s into the mid-90s.
Across four episodes, the show delves into the origins of the infamous West Coast-East Coast rivalry that culminates in the deaths of Tupac and Biggie, Lil' Kim, Puff Daddy and Jay-Z's claims to the throne, alternative hip-hop, and the rise of Atlanta as a hip-hop hotbed.
The easy to digest series has found its groove three years in and is concise and entertaining while letting the true players tell their own tales.