Audio: Latyrx – “Watershed Moment” ft. tUnE-yArDs and The Gift of Gab of Blackalicious

Experimental Rap Heroes Lyrics Born and Lateef Currently on Tour & Preparing for Release of The Second Album Next Week

10.30.2013

The Song:

Renowned experimental hip-hop duo Latyrx, made up of MC’s Lyrics Born and Lateef the Truthspeaker, released another track from The Second Album, which comes out next Tuesday. “Watershed Moment,” features fellow Solesides founding member The Gift of Gab of Blackalicious and vocals and production from Merrill Garbus of tUnE-yArDs. The song, which SPIN described as “bewitchingly hypnotic,” employs an incredibly unique combination of fluid bird calls, militaristic chants, and tenacious declarations over a simple percussive motif that makes excellent use of negative space to highlight stylized double-time lyrics about the earth’s most precious resource: water.

Both originally part of the aforementioned Solesides collective of the 90’s, the two halves of Latyrx came together to release their debut album as a duo, The Album, back in 1997. It has been acclaimed as a west coast classic and was described by AllMusic as a “sonically inventive” release that “represents a major step for the Solesides in [becoming] the Bay Area’s most adventurous underground crew.” Following the success of their album, they released the Muzapper’s Mixes EP, which featured perhaps the only feminist club hit “Lady Don’t Tek No.” For the past 16 years, Lateef and Lyrics Born have been busy working on solo projects and collaborative projects with a number of other artists but recently decide to reunite to create a formal album after making a few recent rare appearances together as Latyrx at festivals such as Outside Lands, Google’s Summer Concert Series, Chicago’s North Coast Music Festival, and Wintersalt Festival.

The full-length project, The Second Album, will be released on their own Latyramid label next Tuesday on November 5th. The release features appearances from members of Anticon, Living Colour, and The Decemberists as well as Busdriver, Forrest Day, 1-O.A.K. and more. Catch Latyrx on the first leg of The Second Album World Tour with rap duo Skins & Needles, which is hitting stops in Salt Lake City, Sacramento, Portland, Seattle and more. The second half of the tour will continue in early 2014.

Listen to “Watershed Moment”: https://soundcloud.com/latyrx/latyrx-lyrics-born-lateef

Check out the SPIN premiere: http://www.spin.com/articles/latyrx-tune-yards-gift-of-gab-watershed-moment-stream/

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Pre-order The Second Album on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-second-album/id703040114?ls=1

LATYRX (Lyrics Born and Lateef) featuring Skin and Needles

THE SECOND ALBUM WORLD TOUR – 1st leg (2nd leg will continue in 2014)

To buy tickets: http://latyrxauthentic.com/?page_id=33

10/31 – the Knotty Pine – Victor, ID – tickets
11/01 – Top Hat – Missoula, MT – tickets
11/02 – Zebra Lounge – Bozeman, MT – tickets available at door
11/03 – Railyard – Billings, MT – tickets
11/04 – Neurolux – Boise, ID – tickets
11/05 – State Room – Salt Lake City, UT – tickets
11/08 – Boomer’s – Laytonville, CA – tickets available at the door
11/09 – Harlow’s – Sacramento, CA – tickets
11/14 – Wonder Ballroom – Portland, OR (w/ Vursatyl of Lifesavas & Tope) – tickets
11/15 – Domino Room – Bend, OR – tickets available at the door
11/16 – The Crocodile – Seattle, WA – tickets
11/20 – The Independent – San Francisco, CA (w/ Forrest Day, DJ Aaron AxelsEn & hosted by The Gift of Gab & Chief Xcel of Blackalicious) – tickets
11/21 – Moe’s Alley – Santa Cruz, CA – tickets

Please contact Michelle or Dan if interested in talking with members of Latyrx.

Latyrx Background:

Latyrx is the alternative hip-hop duo of rappers/producers Lyrics Born and Lateef the Truth Speaker. Rooted in the Bay Area Solesides collective of the 1990s, which also included DJ Shadow and future members of Blackalicious, the duo released their seminal The Album in 1997 to critical acclaim. They quickly followed up with the Muzapper’s Mixes EP in 1998, which produced the notable, boundary-pushing and feminist-affirming track “Lady Don’t Tek No.” Both went on to numerous solo projects and collaborations with other artists before reuniting to work on their long-awaited follow up, The Second Album, which is due out November 5th.