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Win Free Vinyl Records!
It’s been a little bit since we’ve done a giveaway on the site, so I’m here to announce a giveaway that we’re actually running through Facebook! Details below!
Enter to Win:
One of three free vinyl records. Winners will be selected at random.
- Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
- Reptar – Body Faucet
- Oliver Tank – Dreams EP
How to Enter:
Click here and “like” the Facebook page, then enter your information and click submit
Dates of Eligibility:
Today – May 22, 2012
ENTER NOW
Interview: One Room + New Song
One Room is unlike any other group around today. Sunset has been supporting them since day one, and all the way up to now their releases have been nothing short of impressive. Their music is a unique blend of that dramatic Weeknd flare and the grounded, honest lyricism of someone like Kid Cudi. The group consists of Samuel (who released a solo track in March) and recent Indie-Pop signee Chris P. I had the pleasure of interviewing the duo earlier this year, and now you can read the full interview and listen to their brand new song “Tip Toe” in anticipation of their debut EP which will be released this June.
Arjun: How did One Room begin? Whose idea was it?
Chris: One Room came from a deep place inside both of us. It was kind of a mutual idea for us to do music together. Before you know it we had all these tracks we called ours.
Samuel: Yeah. We needed a new creative outlet that combined our individual strengths and talents into one big one. Watching all the awesome music happening around us and wanting to make something different… At first it was more experimentation than anything.
Arjun: What exactly is Heavy Roc‘s role in your music (production, distribution, etc.)?
Chris: The Roc is where it all goes down. Everyday pretty much we would go down to the studio and work. I was one of the engineers. Sam was always brewin’ something up as far as production, so by the time it was done I just had to cross the t’s and dot the i’s on it, ya know.
Samuel: The studio is our center, it’s really the way that we met and began to make music together and our friendship and the creative things began overlapping. We also knew that the HRM blog would be the first place we premiered our music. Everyone at Heavy Roc is really supportive, and we definitely owe them a huge thanks.
Arjun: I don’t think I get this whole set up yet. Who exactly does the production for One Room? And Samuel sings and Chris raps?
(Hit the jump to read the full interview, including who they’re both listening to right now and how Chris ended up being Lydia‘s Valentine this year.)
G-Eazy: On The iPod [Top 10 Songs]
Welcome to the 6th On The iPod feature. To refresh your memories, let me recap what this feature entails. We are asking people, be they artists, listeners, or fans, what they would do if they were stranded on an island with an iPod that held only 10 songs. Which songs would they pick and why? Up to bat: G-Eazy, one of Sunset’s favorite emerging hip-hop stars.
1. Nas – Halftime
Illmatic is probably one of my 3 favorite albums of all time. It’s hard for me to pick my favorite song off of it, because it’s really one of those I like to listen to top to bottom. But if i had to pick one song to have on my iPod, itd be halftime. He goes in so hard on this track, these verses never get old. His bar structures and rhyme schemes are so crazy.
2. Kanye West – Drive Slow
It’s really hard to pick a favorite Kanye song, but this one is a classic, it just never gets old. The story he tells is so vivid… And that beat, man… He flipped 2pacs “shorty wanna be a thug” and just made it sound so much better. It’s definitely one you can play over and over.
3. Outkast – Aquemini
4. Johnny Cash – Folsom Prison Blues
My grandpa and my mom both used to play Johnny Cash records all the time, so I heard them over and over again growing up, and I eventually got into his music on my own later on. He’s always been a staple on my iPod or iPhone or whatever.
5. Harry McClintock – Big Rock Candy Mountain
This is legitimately one of my favorite songs of all time. The story of a utopia told from the perspective of a hobo coming down the railroad tracks in those days is fuckin classic. Plus I’d need some of that to keep my spirits up.
6. 2Pac – Thugz Mansion
This is basically pac’s version of ‘big rock candy mountain’. If I was stranded on an island I would definitely need these records on my iPod, just so I could imagine being there.
7. The Beatles – Eleanor Rigby
8. The Beatles – Strawberry Fields Forever
9. Daft Punk – Something About Us
10. Lupe Fiasco – Day Dreamin’
I figure if I was stranded, I’d have plenty of time to lay around and kick it… this would be a perfect record. It’s also my favorite Lupe song.
[Straight Talk Sunday] Who I Am
I find myself starting these Straight Talk Sunday posts off with this often, and I’ve again got to say that I apologize for not making this “column” a very regular feature. I’m not sure if it’s because I haven’t felt like I’ve had enough time, or maybe it’s more that I haven’t been sitting down and thinking about an introspective piece for a little while. I’m going to go ahead and guess that it’s a mix of both. I got to thinking something today, though, and I think it’s worth sharing with all of you. It started with an e.e. cummings quote that I read today:
To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.
I think that as I’ve been flipping through the chapters of life, moving quickly from one to the next, I’ve forgotten to keep fighting at times. I’ve moved around a lot, met a ton of new people, and sometimes feel a bit like a chameleon, adjusting myself and my character to adapt to the atmosphere around me. Though I like to be able to say that I can fit into many different situations, I don’t ever want to pretend to be something or someone who I am not.
Though I typically am open to do so, today I don’t want to let my thoughts completely run free on the paper, partly because I’m not one hundred percent sure how to express them or what they really are. So instead, I thought I’d write a bit about who I am.
I am a sister.
I am a go-getter.
I am a writer.
I am a talker.
I am working every day on becoming a better listener.
I am a smiler.
I am a lover.
I am happy running.
I am happy sitting.
I am a home-body.
I am happy in your company.
I am happy by myself.
This is who I am. I don’t want to let you down. I wish I didn’t feel like I could.
Tape Tuesday: Hot Ass Summer Day
The weather is a lot warmer now. I like that. Just the other day I almost went to the beach, which really is a promising sign. But gosh darn it, I digress. This mix isn’t about summer the season. It’s about the people you spend time with during the summertime. It’s about friends. It’s about family. It’s even about those random strangers that you meet at the beach (not the rapey kind!). This is the mix that can soundtrack your entire summer vacation and hopefully stay relevant throughout.
Let me also say that HOT ASS SUMMER DAY is dedicated to Lydia, whose birthday is today. I love Lydia. I don’t know how many times I have to say it (I think that’s the first time). She’s taught me so much in such a short amount of time and has given me such an awesome opportunity to write for Sunset in the Rearview and do things that I never thought would be possible a year ago. I literally love every second of it, so swag on that.
Please take this time now to wish Lydia happy birthday softly in your mind or on Twitter.
While I was feeling such a mess, I thought you’d leave me behind,
While I was feeling so upset, I thought the sun never shine,
Then I found forever. Hey! Hey! Love!
We’ve been best friends forever darling,
That’s what’s up!
- Maverick Sabre – Let Me Go (Welcome to HASD)
- Dieter Schaaf – Biochemistry
- Oberhofer – Away Frm U
- Vacationer – Everyone Knows
- Of Monsters and Men – Mountain Sound
- Manicanparty – Rebels in the Light
- Swim Deep – King City
- Mouth’s Cradle – The Fever
- Dana Buoy – Call to Be
- The Preachers – Take a Card
- Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros – That’s What’s Up
- Teen Mom – You and me
- The Parlotones – Honey
- The Cast of Cheers – Animals
- Last Dinosaurs – Weekend
- Chance The Rapper – Prom Night
- Sunni Colón – Shrines
DOWNLOAD ‘HOT ASS SUMMER DAY’ HERE
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Best of April 2012
This was a wonderful month of music. Why? Kanye West. A month highlighted heavily with hip hop and rap songs. First time we’ve had that kind of month in a while with my recent sensation for indie, right? This was also a month where I had over 50 songs to choose from and I had to leave it at 31 because I couldn’t decide. Whoops. The more the merrier though. Had to separate them into two different parts to decrease file sizes. Hit the jump for the track list for each part. Enjoy!
DOWNLOAD BEST OF APRIL 2012 Part 1
DOWNLOAD BEST OF APRIL 2012 Part 2
Jordan’s Top 5:
Kanye West ft. Big Sean, Pusha T, & 2-Chainz – Mercy
From Big Sean to 2-Chainz I can listen to this song all day long. This is turning into my “go-to-song” when I just randomly start reciting lyrics out of nowhere. The previous song was Big Sean’s “Ass.” Dare I say one of the top songs of 2012? Swerve. 2 CHAIIINZZZZZZ.
Kanye explodes. Compared to his Mercy verse, Way Too Cold is straight fire. His shots at Wiz, his remarks on Kim K, the fact that he could of gotten Kris Humphries released from the Nets. You go, Glenn Coco Kanye.
Hoodie Allen – No Interruption
This tweet sums of how I feel about this track. I’ll let that do the talking. Thanks, Arjun. Oh, and grab All American on iTunes. It’s dope.
ASAP Rocky & Theophilus London – Big Spender
This beats out ASAP’s single, Goldie, because I’m a fan of Theophilus London as well, and this instrumental is insane in the membraaaaaane. Ya dig?
Danny Brown is a weird case. At first, I couldn’t stand his voice, but now things are a little different. I featured this song on our 4:20 mixtape, and his speciality is weed music. Surprisingly, this is the number one played song in the playlist for me, so it squeaked it’s way into my top five. Who would of thought?
Honorable Mention: Logic, 5 & A Dime, The Neighbourhood, Ghost Beach, Kendrick Lamar, Eddy B & Tim Gunter.
Hit the jump for the track list for each part.
Mikey Mike – Chainsaw Love EP [Free Download]
As promised here is the entire Chainsaw Love series from Sunset favorite Mikey Mike. Every song on this project takes a new angle on love and gives us a tiny glimpse into Mikey Mike’s most personal secrets. Lyrically it is purposefully raw, showing off Mikey’s greatest flaws in all their glory–not hiding behind any preconceptions of fakeness. Sonically his voice is emotionally powered–desperate at times, confident at others. And yeah, he talks at the end of most of these tracks, and that’s fucking awesome. The production on the EP features a completely unique synth-based sound (all self produced).
Are you sold yet? Stream/download the entire EP below. Let us know what you think!
DOWNLOAD CHAINSAW LOVE – EP HERE
DOWNLOAD CHAINSAW LOVE – EP HERE
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Tape Tuesday: This is Country
My life has recently changed. I have taken a liking to country, and it truly has changed my life. I’m not exactly sure how it happened–maybe from kids playing it at school, maybe from my sister playing it at home, but one day I just couldn’t stop listening to it and it’s been in heavy rotation ever since.
A lot of people hate country–trust me, I understand that. I couldn’t listen to it until about a week and a half ago, and I couldn’t understand what anyone saw in it. Now I’ve completely flip flopped. When people tell me they can’t listen to country now, it makes no sense to me.
Anyway, these are my favorite country songs right now, the songs that got me into country in the first place.
By all means, PLEASE help me grow my country collection. Let me know in the comments what else I should be listening to!
Josh Kelley – Georgia Clay
Benjy Davis Project – Mississippi
Jason Aldean – Dirt Road Anthem
Punch Brothers – This Girl
Jason Aldean – Church Pew or Barstool
Joe Nichols – Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off
Kenny Chesney – You and Tequila (feat. Grace Potter)
Zac Brown Band – Chicken Fried
Zac Brown Band – Different Kind of Fine
Old Crow Medicine Show – Wagon Wheel
Download “This is Country”
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Dream Big
Reptar – Body Faucet [Album Stream]
As we wait for the official release on May 1 (my birthday, woo!), Reptar is kind enough to let us stream the full album in its entirety via this adorable little YouTube video. From now until then, I’ll be listening to this, and then I’ll go find a local record store and buy this album on vinyl. That’s what a good person I am. And that’s how much I love Reptar, and this album.
Eat this shit up, you little brussel sprouts.
Related: Sunset Interview with Reptar
15 Songs For Summer!
You know the summer’s coming when you step outside and can smell the heat. The sun is out, people decide to eat lunch outside, your bathing suits start calling your name, and it’s pool time. Grab the margarita mix, grab the coozies, and grab your speakers — it’s time to party! Here are 20 songs perfect for your summertime playlist, compiled by all of the writers at Sunset in the Rearview. Get it.
(Right click and save file to download each song.)
- “Default” – Django Django
- “I Want It All” – Rich Kid Sound System
- “Closer Than This” (Viceroy Remix) – St. Lucia
- “Never Grow Up” ft. Loggy & Mike Stud – Timeflies
- “So Good” – B.o.B
- “Driving 90″ – August Coupe & The Interns
- “Summerlong” – Xylos
- “Ride With Us” ft. Cisco – Tayyib Ali
- “Work To Do” ft. Drake – Perfeck Strangers
- “City Lights” – Windoview
- “Pretty Lights vs Summertime” – Pretty Lights
- “Return of the Mack” (Viceroy “Jet Life” Remix) – Mark Morrison
- “Somebody” – Jukebox the Ghost
- “Payphone” (ft. Wiz Khalifa) – Maroon 5
- “All of Me” – Tanlines
Reptar Interview with Sunset in the Rearview
Reptar came across my radar last year when I got an email from a trusted source with their EP, Oblangle Fizz, Yall, which ended up being dubbed one of the best EPs of 2011 by Sunset, and hit single “Stuck In My Id” was named Best Song of 2011 by yours truly. Ever since then, I pretty much drool at the thought of Reptar. I probably dream of them nightly, particularly the gingers in the band. I’m actually dating all four of them. It’s an interesting relationship, and it might only exist in my head, but the fact is…it exists somewhere, and that’s what matters. So I sat down with one of my boyfriends, William, and asked him some really weird questions about Reptar. We talked about everything from their new album, video games, which Rugrats character he relates to the most, who he’s listening to right now, his choice of superpower, and what he thinks about having two gingers in his band.
Some of the audio quality is pretty poor and it’s pretty choppy in certain places, so I apologize for that…I’m still working on how to optimize these audio interviews that are done over the phone. For now, enjoy this Reptar interview. Oh and forgive me for lying when I said I had one question left. I wanted to keep talking to him! #Reptar4Life
Hoodie Allen – All American [Album Review]
Hoodie Allen has been giving away his music for years now, but today marks the first time Hoodie is kindly asking his fans to pay for his tunes. For sale today is All American, a collection of eight songs that all have one thing in common: they’re completely original material from Hoodie Allen and his producers. Thus far, Hoodie has made a name for himself by taking samples from popular songs, flipping them, and rhyming over them with catchy flows and clever mentions of current events in the pop-culture and sports worlds. The eight tracks on All American are Hoodie’s alone; there are not any samples, and there appears to only be one feature (Jhameel sings the hook on “No Faith In Brooklyn”).
A simple flip through Hoodie Allen’s profile pictures on Facebook will give you a glimpse into the progression that he has made in his musical career. He went through a major rebranding right around the time of Pep Rally‘s release, when he apparently decided it might limit his fanbase and future by sticking to what he had created: a personal image of being a nerdy white rapper. Instead, he decided to put away the lens-less glasses and pull out the Hoodie Allen we see today: a cleaned up, cooler, and sexier artist. Visually, the transformation is easily apparent. Sonically, there has certainly been growth as well. But the difference and growth that we saw between Pep Rally and Leap Year doesn’t seem to be quite as defined now with All American. That’s not to say that he didn’t take strides, because he did. But I think this album is more about the growth of Hoodie Allen as a person and a branded artist than the expansion of his sound to something we had never heard before.
Continue reading to get a track-by-track review of Hoodie Allen’s All American… Continue reading “Hoodie Allen – All American [Album Review]” »
