new music: stream tricky’s album featuring mykki blanco, blue daisy, bella gotti & nneka #soundcheck

Since his breakthrough with Massive Attack in the early 90’s, Tricky’s been nearly impossible to pin down. A progenitor of the trip-hop sound, he’s explored nearly every corner of electronic music over the course of 11 solid records. Often, when an artist releases a self-titled album this deep into their career, it signals a shift back to their breakthrough sound. In Tricky’s case, Adrian Thaws (titled after his given name), is less about revisiting the sounds of his early career, and more about revisiting his youth as a club kid. Tricky blends ultra-modern production with his signature weirdness for an album of wall to wall bangers on Adrian Thaws.

Naturally, this wouldn’t be a Tricky record if he didn’t pair his whispered verses with an army of guests. AFROPUNK Fest alum Mykki Blanco pops up with frequent Tricky collaborator Francesca Belmonte on the dope “Lonnie Listen.” Nneka drops in to coo and shudder on the Alice In Chains sampling “Keep Me In Your Shake,” which matches an iconic Jerry Cantrell riff with a squiggly sub bass. “Nicotine Love” is probably the closest to a conventional pop song, but it still finds time for an acid jazz chorus and a Malcolm X sample.

The album comes out 9/9 and can be pre-ordered here.