/ 27 May 2016

The Lists – what’s on our playlists and reading lists this week

Benjamin Clementine: Soundtrack for melancholy. Micky Clement
Benjamin Clementine: Soundtrack for melancholy. (Micky Clement)

In a new feature of the Friday section, aptly titled The Lists, writers and contributors share lists of music and podcasts they’re listening to, books they’re reading, sites they’re trawling and other wonderful content worth sharing.

THE PLAYLIST
Benjamin Clementine: I’m still drinking  Lemonade daily, but in between I’m really enjoying Benjamin Clementine, who I like to call “If young Nina Simone was a 27-year-old British man’’. His album At Least For Now is something of a sonic oddity for those who aren’t used to emotive shouting in front of an orchestra, but it’s the perfect sound track for melancholy. (MB)

Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah: This man never repeats himself but one gets the sense that he always uses his past to chart a path towards his future. Stretch Music is indeed a “stretch” from Christian aTunde Adjuah, his previous album. It is less intense, it breathes but it still is pacy and intellectually musical. (KS)

Tetrahedra: This five-piece electronic pop band hails from Melbourne, Australia, and their latest EP, titled Kinesphere, is one of those albums that you’ll have on repeat for a while. Their sound reminds me of Hiatus Kaiyote, which is not a bad thing.  (KM)

The Read: I only discovered this podcast a few months ago and since then I have been getting 
my life every time I listen. YouTuber Kid Fury and internet personality Crissle West deliver a weekly show about pop culture and problematic celebrities in a hilarious 90-minute rant format filled with as much expletives as it is laughs. (MB)

Read more: ‘Put The Lists on yours

THE READING LIST

Sigh, The Beloved Country: Bongani Madondo is a verbose, playful and fiercely dedicated tracker of this country’s various ills and its troubled celebrity class. The man is indulgent and immersive, but he also obfuscates a lot. It’s an enjoyable adventure in seeking a man’s soul. (KS)

Brainpickings: This is a wonderful compendium of writing advice, endless nuggets of wisdom from the world’s most renowned writers, philosophers and thinkers both living and dead and a weekly dose of cleverly curated transcripts, excerpts and written and audio interviews by the site’s founder, Maria Popova. brainpickings.org (MB)

Buzzfeed: BuzzFeed news reporter Tomi Obaro recently wrote an article titled Why Chance the Rapper’s Black Christian Joy Matters. Obaro presents interesting thoughts on the relationship between the hip-hop artists and Christianity. It is also a review of Chicago hip-hop artist, Chance the Rapper’s latest mixtape Coloring Book, in which he openly proclaims his faith through various songs. buzzfeed.com (KM)

The Lists is compiled by Milisuthando Bongela, Katlego Mkhwanazi and Kwanele Sosibo

 

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