Just the other day, Souls of Mischief released the music video for title track single, There Is Only Now, premiered by Billboard. This is the first video from the Oakland collective’s upcoming album, There Is Only Now, due to drop on August 15, 2014.
The album was produced entirely by multi-instrumentalist and renowned producer Adrian Younge and will serve as the inaugural release for his newly launched label, Linear Labs. The song is available for purchase both through iTunes and as a 7″ single with the accompanying b-side, All You Got Is Your Word. Also currently available for pre-sale are various bundles featuring seven different formats of the album: CD, double vinyl, cassette tape, instrumental-only LP, instrumental-only cassette tape, Ali Shaheed Muhammad remix of There Is Only Now in 10″ vinyl and cassette, and more at the newely launched Linear Labs website.
Created similarly to a blaxploitation film, the entire album is based on a strong storyline full of crime, jealousy, romance, and revenge. Set in 1994, There Is Only Now features three main characters: lovebirds Stoney (Scarub of Living Legends) and Miriam, and villain Womack (Busta Rhymes.) The story is told through the eyes of Souls of Mischief with the help of Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest, playing the role of a local radio station DJ and Snoop Dogg, who, on this particular track, reveals a significant plot twist halfway through the album: a precarious love triangle is unfolding between Stoney, Miriam, and Womack. Meanwhile, the video reveals that Stoney and Miriam have a life-changing commitment in their future.
There Is Only Now acts as a bookend for over twenty years of influential music that the Souls of Mischief crew have created since their hit classic, 93 ’till Infinity. Produced entirely by Adrian Younge, the album is replete with the lyrical dexterity Souls is known for and expert live instrumentation offered by Younge’s band, Venice Dawn. In addition to Snoop, Busta Rhymes, and Scarub, the album also features William Hartof The Delfonics. There Is Only Now serves as proof that even after two decades, Souls of Mischief remain committed to expanding their legacy as hip-hop pioneers. There Is Only Now will be released August 26, 2014, just in time for the third annual Hiero Day free block party that will take place in Oakland on Monday, September 1st.
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