Everything we had on repeat this month. GOTH MONEY: TRILLIONAIRES – CHOPPED AND SCREWED Since forming in 2013, Goth Money has become maybe the first post-Internet music project: a network of artists who sample, surface, and somehow bring together hip hop subcultures and digital art movements. Last year’s Trillionaires (Break World Records) proved that Goth Money isn’t a genre….

A guide to the ten best releases of 2016. So far. WIKI: LIL ME DELUXE EDITION In December, Ratking’s Wiki released Lil Me: an 18-track collection that captures New York circa now — grime, decay and regeneration, the sound of a city that’s slipping away. Lil Me is a love/hate letter to a lost place, layered over terse,…

From Ratking to Rubble Kings: how DIY scenes and outside voices shaped pop culture in 2015. 2015 saw creativity’s declaration of independence.  More than 41% of artists we surveyed now say that direct-to-fan distribution — the freedom to share work without a label or a studio — is the single biggest change impacting the arts. It’s bigger…

Searching for truth in web’s black markets, shopping for kicks in the crowded streets of Tokyo, and chasing down summer’s last golden hours. September marks the end of summer: when we fall back into routine, settle into shorter days, and start doing basic things like seasonal lattes. Up against all that, it made sense to…

From Fool’s Gold to Secret Stash: 30 days in 10 epic downloads. FOOL’S GOLD: DAY OFF FIRE Fool’s Gold DAY OFF started out five years ago in a parking lot in SoHo: a place for friends and label fam to celebrate music’s electric, unclassifiable underground. Today, DAY OFF spans five cities, a lineup featuring everyone from…