NEW RELEASES: JHENE AIKO - SOULED OUT; ORLANDO JULIUS WITH THE HELIOCENTRICS - JAIYEDE AFRO; THE SHAOLIN AFRONAUTS – FOLLOW THE PATH / OUTSIDE BEYOND

JHENE AIKO - SOULED OUT

Jhené Aiko’s much-anticipated debut album, Souled Out, is now available and features the singles "The Pressure" and "To Love & Die" (feat. Cocaine 80s).

The Los Angeles Times has crowned her hip-hop’s “new ‘it girl’,” while SPIN simply declares, “It’s Aiko’s moment.” And CNN echoes the sentiment: “the singer is serious about her craft and lays bare her soul with her lyrics. Her willingness to ‘go there’ is part of what is drawing in new fans.” Rolling Stone like-wise predicted great things for Souled Out: “Aiko's full-length debut will set the spotlight squarely on her powerhouse voice.” The 26-year old Los Angeles native is over a decade deep in the music game, having been featured on singles, albums and mixtapes by Urban A-listers Kendrick Lamar, Wale, Big Sean, Logic, J. Cole, Drake, and many more. Her debut EP, Sail Out, entered the charts in November 2013 and hit #1 on the Billboard R&B Albums chart, Top 3 iTunes and Top 10 Pop. To date, Sail Out has tallied over 300,000 sales, making it the biggest-selling EP in Def Jam history. Catch Jhené Aiko on the road for The Weeknd Tour starting September 19th at Barclays Center in Brooklyn with additional dates in Toronto, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. ~ Giant Step

ORLANDO JULIUS WITH THE HELIOCENTRICS - JAIYEDE AFRO

The first new music we've heard in years from Afro Funk giant Orlando Julius – wonderfully paired here with the always-great Heliocentrics! Orlando's definitely in the lead here – singing, playing tenor, and contributing percussion to the overall groove of the group – which leans a bit more towards a 70s African vibe than some of their other releases, yet still retains all their wonderful style of psychedelic funk! Some of the rhythms have an Ethiopian sense of slinkiness, while others hit more of a full-on Nigerian groove – and the whole thing's never forced, never gimmicky, and instead just the right sort of setting for Julius to re-emerge as a true giant of his generation. Titles include "Buje Buje", "Love Thy Neighbor", "Aseni", "Sangodele", "Jaiyede Afro", "Omo Oba Blues", "In The Middle", and "Be Counted".  ~ Dusty Groove

THE SHAOLIN AFRONAUTS – FOLLOW THE PATH / OUTSIDE BEYOND

The Shaolin Afronauts have definitely followed their own path in recent years – a musical journey that's taken them way past their Afro Funk roots, into rich, complicated territory that seems to span the globe with its sound! Core elements here echo classic Nigerian, Ethiopian, and West African modes – but there's also a very inventive approach to the way the instruments are inflected – especially the keyboards and guitars, which often develop these spacey chromes and tones that really make for some musical magic. There's no vocals at all – which means that the horns and other instruments really get to voice their presence strongly – and the 2CD version features even more haunting music on the Outside Beyond CD, appended to the main album in this package. Core titles include "Sissoko", "To The Water", "At The Shrine", "Lagos Chase", "Baie De Sangareya", "Ojo Abameta", and "Boogie Back Accra" – and Outside Beyond material includes "Interstellar Griot (parts 1 & 2)", "Abyssinian Suite", "Caravao To Tao Ceti", and "Outside Beyond/Three Ways Back (parts 1, 2, & 3)". ~ Dusty Groove