[Watch] Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - "Black" Feat. Norah Jones (Video)

Two days ago we saw Danger Mouse, Daniele Luppi and Norah Jones performing around a piano with acoustic guitar accompaniment to the Rome track, "Season's Trees". Today you can enjoy a full colour video for "Black" which once again features the sultry simple vocal work of Norah once more. Rome is out everywhere now so if you want more from this awesome sounding project go grab it. Sooner rather than later. 

We've more videos to look forward to also as Director of "Two Against One", Chris Milk, is working on an animated project for the entire album. More on that over here.

[Watch] Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - "Season's Trees" Feat. Norah Jones (Video)

It was only last week that we saw the beautifully animated video for the Jack White featuring "Two Against One" which we also found out would be part of a larger project from the director of the video, Chris Milk, in relation to Luppi and Danger Mouse's LP. Today we get some visuals for the Norah Jones featuring track "Season's Trees" which is a more monochrome affair seeing the musicians sat around a piano laying down a lovely rendition of the track. Simple yet oh so effective.

Rome is out everywhere now so go grab a copy after enjoying the video.

[Watch] Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - "Two Against One" Feat. Jack White (Official Video)

Here at SKoA we loved the Rome project from Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi released last year with its feeling of times gone by and a clear 60's throwback vibe. Good job as that was the purpose of the project! Now, Antiquiet points us in the direction of this lovely looking hand drawn animation by Anthony Francis Sheppard for a highlight from the album, "Two Against One". The Jack White featuring track was a personal favourite and I'm sure many of yours too. Directed by Chris Milk dthe video is viewable at the top. Regarding more news on the collaborative project,  Milk said this video is just a snippet of what's to come. Peep what he said below:

"Myself, Brian (aka Danger Mouse), and the producers Anthony Bregman (Eternal Sunshine) and Megan Ellison (True Grit), are currently developing the Rome project into a theatrical feature film. While the video for “Two Against One” is hand-drawn cell animation, the film would be live action. The music video is essentially the fever dream of the antagonist of the story. It’s mostly his backstory, his life before the tale we see in the movie. If you have a fast computer with Chrome installed you can also see the interactive lucid dream of the protagonist at www.Ro.me. These pieces are sort of narrative breadcrumbs that lead you to the eventual larger story. More to come soon.”

[SKOA Presents] The 50 Best Albums Of 2011: 20 - 16

20. Thundercat - The Golden Age Of Apocalypse [Amazon] [iTunes] [Insound]

Definitely one of the most underrated albums of 2011, the Suicidal Tendencies/Flying Lotus bassist shines with his smooth, soulful/jazzy solo debut. The Golden Age Of Apocalypse is one of those perfect chillaxing (yep, I used that term) albums you throw on a nice weekend morning and just vibe out to. Especially with standout tracks like "Daylight" or TC's cover of George Duke's classic "For Love (I Come Your Friend)," this album is definitely one not to pass up. —Rocko

Thundercat - Daylight by BRAINFEEDER  

19. The Drums - Portamento [Amazon] [iTunes] [Insound]

In their 2010 self-titled debut, The Drums carved a spot for themselves as an indie pop gem, and, while not doing anything particularly new, managed to create an incredibly unique and engaging persona. The band has taken this a step further with their sophomore effort Portamento, a twelve-song arch rife with dark undertones and charming subtleties. Following the departure of guitarist Adam Kessler, the New York outfit has picked up the pieces and carried forward to create an album that stands out as one of the most unique indie records this year. While it may not have the anthemic sounds of previous works, such as "Forever and Ever Amen" or "Me and the Moon," Portamento delivers a dark yet wonderful package. The album's lead single "Money" immediately jumps into a catchy and fast-paced array of guitar, bass, drums before Jonathan Pierce's incredible vocal range is introduced, and "How It Ended" offers a sentimental and touching tale amidst a catchy combination of instrumentation. These songs, and the rest of the songs on the album, emote an incredibly sombre tale, one that focuses heavily on death and loss, but, surrounding these melancholy emotions are fantastic arrangements of instrumentation. By combining the ugly aspects of love, loss and life, conveyed through the brooding vocal work of Pierce, with a well-crafted exhibition of musical talent, The Drums have delivered a fantastic representation of how indie pop can and does work. —Adrian

18. Holy Ghost! - Holy Ghost! [Amazon] [iTunes] [Insound]

Earlier this year, DFA electropop duo Holy Ghost! released their self-titled debut album, a wonderfully crafted gem that blends the allure of '80s disco house music with a crisp, modern sound. Each song is filled with layer upon layer of drums, synthesizers, pianos, vocals, bass, and subtle guitars that somehow combine to create perfectly synchronized throwbacks to '80s and '90s disco house. "Do It Again" energetically kick-starts the album, taking you through a fantastic dedication to the heyday of a genre that is making a comeback. "Wait and See" is unbelievably catchy, and has one of the best music videos of the year, "Hold On" quickly throws you into a magnificent soundscape of electropop goodness, and "Some Children" grabs your attention with its smooth basslines, groovy synthesizers and charming vocal work. Each song on this album is unique in its own way, but fit within the album as a whole, and there's no denying that Alex Frankel and Nick Millhiser are experts at making damn catchy music. Holy Ghost! have captured exactly what made a thirty-year old genre work and infused it with modern styles and techniques, as well as their own personal influences. The result? A fantastically well-put-together electropop dream. —Adrian

17. Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - Rome [Amazon] [iTunes] [Insound]

Although I have always been a pretty big fan of everything that Brian Burton (who is better known as Danger Mouse) lays his hands on, I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about the Rome project when I first heard about it. Music inspired by the music heard in spaghetti westerns? What even is that? Wait, Jack White and Norah Jones are going to be involved, too? I really had no choice but to hope for the best and fear for the worst. Fortunately, with the help of Italian composer Daniele Luppi (who also shared Burton's love for spaghetti westerns) the two were able to piece together beautiful dream-filled musical landscapes that for a moment seem as if they can't get any better until you hear the tracks that White and Jones are featured on. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I preferred Jones' vocal performances on the record over White's, which should be taken as more of a compliment to her than an insult to him as I have yet to not stop falling in love with "Season's Trees" over and over again.

I think what I have enjoyed the most about Rome in the time that I have spent with it is that with every spin of the record I am able to recognize how effectively it is able to take you somewhere that you've never been before without leaving your room. It doesn't go out of its way to attempt to be timeless, but somehow manages to pull it off anyway. - Kibbe

16. James Blake - James Blake [Amazon] [iTunes] [Insound]

It's difficult to remember that James Blake's eponymous debut album was released this year, as the solo artist's career has risen to exponential levels since the February release of James Blake. Even with the numerous EPs, the collaborations with Bon Iver, and the touring, we can't forget the album that made Blake what he is today. The self-titled effort is James Blake at his core, it is the compiled essence of what makes him as great as he is. Every song on the album displays Blake's ability to create depth out of minimalism, of his want to introduce sounds and production styles that have yet to be explored or fully realized by other dubstep musicians.

This unique sound is where Blake shines, as each song carries with it an essential sound, but throws something into the mix that makes it different from every other song on the album. It is Blake's capacity to keep you engaged in every song, despite the fact that can oft be very simple, that make him a truly great artist. Whether it is the slow but satisfying progression from "Lindisfarne I" to "Lindisfarne II," or his fantastic cover of Feist's "Limit To Your Love," or the build up and pulsating dubstep release of "I Never Learnt To Share," each song is captivating in its own merit, and, at the same time, the album as a whole is a coherent, consistent envisioning of Blake's genius and talent. While Blake has done so much since his self-titled debut, we can't forget that this is the album where Blake is most poised and more consistent and confident than anything he has released thus far in his career. This is the album that defined James Blake. —Adrian

[Watch] Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - "3 Dreams of Black"

Following in the footsteps of Arcade Fire (remember the interactive video for "We Used to Wait"?), Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi have released the interactive video for "3 Dreams of Black," a complement to the track "Black" off of their upcoming collaborative album, Rome. The video was directed by Chris Milk and, similar "We Used to Wait," was created by Google using Google Chrome's WebGL technology. This means that you'll need Google Chrome to use it, so just go ahead and install Chrome, cause it's a small price to pay to see this awesome video.

While chatting with Evolver, Milk said, "I have a philosophy about telling stories through multiple channels, and how we as humans are far-more-sophisticated media-consuming beings than we were 10 years ago. We can actually track these stories on multiple platforms for longer periods of time... There are a lot of 'easter eggs' and hidden things, and at the end of it… there's a lot to explore. It may seem at first like it's just one three-and-a-half-minute-long piece, but if you keep looking and going further, there's no shortage of rabbit holes to go down."

You can watch the video here. Rome is out May 17th via Capitol Records.

[Listen] Hear 2 New Songs From Joker's Daughter - "Bubbles" x "Mind of Gold"

It's been awhile since we've heard from Helena Costas and her project Joker's Daughter. Costas hooked up with Brian Burton aka Danger Mouse, alongside Neutral Milk Hotel's Scott Spillane and frequent Danger Mouse collaborator Daniele Luppi (Rome), back in 2003 to begin work on her 2009 debut album The Last Laugh. Not much was heard from Costas after the release of the album, other than a second single release for the track "Lucid" and a short tour (in which she opened for Broken Bells during).

But it appears that the project is back in the works as two new songs "Bubbles" and "Mind of Gold" were posted on Joker's Daughter's Soundcloud page about a week ago. However, unlike Costas' debut album The Last Laugh produced by Danger Mouse, the new songs were produced by Mike Lindsay of Tunng. At this time, we have no word if Burton will be involved in the making of the second LP. But don't let that stop you at all from checking out the new songs which still maintain the vibe of Costas debut album. Check out both tracks below and if this is your first time listening to Joker's Daughter, we highly suggest you check out the singles along with the album.

Bubbles by jokersdaughter

Mind of Gold by jokersdaughter

[Listen] Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - 'Rome' Feat. Jack White & Norah Jones (Full Album Stream)

Just as I was just about to head to bed, the fine folks at NPR surprised us with an exclusive stream of Danger Mouse's, along with composer Daniele Luppi, newest project Rome which also features guest vocals of Jack White (of Raconteurs/White Stripes/Dead Weather and all around awesome guitarist but you already knew that) and Norah Jones.

The whole album is all around amazing and features stand out tracks like the current singles "Two Against One", "Black" as well as some of our other favorites like "The Gambling Priest" and "Season's Trees". Check out the album in its entirity below and make sure you pick up the album, which we're pretty sure is gonna be one of our top albums of the year, when it comes out on May 17th.

[Listen] Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi - "The World" Feat. Jack White (From The Rome Album)

Having already had our first two tastes of the new Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi project Rome. We've got to hear the dreamy "The Rose With A Broken Neck" which featured Jack Whites signature vocal tones ominously paced, as well as "Season's Trees" featuring the lovely work of Norah Jones on top. Today, courtesy of our boy Bryce over at 107.7 The End we get to hear another Jack White featuring track from the project titled, "The World". 

The track delivers everything you'd expect from the previews we've previously had, with a guitar riff you could hear prominently in your head as you walk through the desert as the sun sets on the horizon. Jacks voice is layered over a marching drum beat which pairs up nicely together. Altogether a great listen, so I'll quit yammering on and let you give it a listen

Rome is scheduled to drop on May 17th, anyone else excited to get their hands on this full length beauty of a project?!