Theophilus London, “Humdrum Town” MP3

If you live in New York City, Theophilus London is one of those people you run into that remind why you moved here in the first place: he hustles, he stays out late, he’s talented and still on some level doesn’t seem to think any of it is that big of a deal. Maybe that’s where the humdrum bit comes from, who knows. The single, a re-recording of “Hum Drum” from London’s This Charming Mixtape, has a new verse and new instrumental courtesy of Mark Ronson and friends, so just pretend you’ve never heard it before because it still jams, and stay tuned for an accompanying FADER TV episode coming soon.

Theophilus London & Dam-Funk on BBC Radio

Our dudes Theophilus and Dam shared the spotlight last night on Gilles Peterson’s show. TL was in studio after finishing up a jaunt through the UK with Jack Penate and Dam beamed his section in from Planet Funkazoid (his house in LA). Before and after, Gilles plays his regular mellow jams. Light some “incense” and get your day going.

Stream: Theophilus London & Dam-Funk on BBC Radio

Bonus Dam with cat photo from FADER Issue 64 by Jason Nocito.

Video: Ellie Goulding, “Under the Sheets”

Ellie Goulding is a proper Brit, so her forthcoming release on Neon Gold is full of proper Brit things: beats by Burial, production by Mark Ronson and some guest spots by our mans Theophilus London. “Under the Sheets” is her own theme, though, and its breathlessness is still endearingly unpretentious, kinda like the fact that she’s wearing a real regular hoodie and glitter at the same time in this video. (via Hattie C)

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Premiere: Chauffeur (Mark Ronson, Sam Sparro & Theophilus London), “Soles of Fire” MP3

The semi-secretive super group known as Chauffeur came through The Levi’s®/FADER Fort NYC last Saturday looking like The Specials, all done up in tailored suits and sharp collars and ready to pump out some mellow dance music. Due to flight schedules and the fact that they have but one song, however, they only played for like eight minutes. What an eight minutes though! Sheila E cover HELLOOOO. The one song that is theirs, it turns out, is a special ditty cooked up for Gucci’s Icon-Temporary pop-up stores as they unveil the boat-sneaker designed by Mr Ronson himself, so prepare to feel like spending a lot of money as you listen to this. Ronson has that kind of mind power.



Download: Chauffeur, “Soles of Fire”

Video: Theophilus London, “Enjoy The Sun”

If you have been listening to our Visionary Podcast Series, you will know that “Enjoy The Sun” appeared on the fourth installment and in the comments section someone called Theophilus “a futuristic urkel.” Dawg, that ALREADY EXISTS. Plus, stop hating. This year has been ugly enough. Everyone else, feel free to leave your remembrances of Steven Quincy Urkel in the comments of this post. (via GFCnewyork)

The ABSOLUT FADER Visionary Podcast #4 — Leads To

Turning the halfway corner in the Visionary Podcast series, curated by The FADER and presented by ABSOLUT as part of our ongoing efforts to advance and advocate the art and music we love, we come to the phrase, “Leads to.” These two open-ended words instantly made us think of some kind of narrative, so we tried to tell a little story through the song titles—a story that of course ends with us soaking up some sun.

After going fairly hard on #3, we mellowed this one out a little bit, traversing its length with the coastal vibes of Foreign Born, the slightly nautical Friend, a fluid jam from White Denim, Purple Wowness via a Joker and Ginz remix and the wobbly pop of our man Theophilus London. Check the tracklist after the jump, and come back soon for “Something” on podcast #5.



Download: The ABSOLUT FADER Visionary Podcast #4 — Leads To

ENJOY WITH ABSOLUT RESPONSIBILITY® ABSOLUT® VODKA. Product of Sweden. 40% Alc./Vol. Distilled from Grain. ©2009 Imported by Absolut Spirits Co., New York, NY.

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Contest: Win Tickets to See Theophilus London, BLK JKs & Wild Yaks

Talk about an inspired lineup! Deep breath: FADER 52 cover stars BLK JKS, FADER 61 feature Theophilus London and FADER 57 Gen Fers Wild Yaks are all uniting under one roof this Saturday September 12th at the FADER 60 featured Santos Party House to play us awesome jams. We also heard a rumor (made it up) that the drinks page from the magazine will also come alive if you hand the bartender some money (wokka wokka). It’s as if the pages of our magazine are coming to life. Just like magic. It would be ridiculous to miss this, so get your (super cheap) tickets here, or tell us why you want to go and who you’re most excited to see in the comments and win a couple tickets. As always, don’t forget to leave an actual email address so we can let you know you won.

Around the World with A-Trak, Part XXIV: 10,000LB Hamburger Tour—The Second Serving

  • story A-Trak
  • photo Pooya Nabei

Time for the final recap of the 10,000LB Hamburger Tour; the second serving, if you will. For those just catching on, this lasted all throughout July, traveling across North America on a tour bus with Treasure Fingers and Theophilus London. We did an extensive run across enormous Canada. Normally I have a rule: no more than four shows in a row. I’m not sure how but that rule got broken, or bent, and we did a five city blitz. The day before that started, I was in Vancouver and decided to get a massage at my hotel to try and ease the tour wear-and-tear. Then we went to our first Canadian show in Victoria, which involved putting the bus on a ferry. There’s something pretty phenomenal about putting an entire bus on a boat. But hey, Archimedes wasn’t kidding, buoyancy is very real. We also saw some porpoises in the water as we were leaving the docks. How do you recognize a porpoise? By its fin! In Victoria, about an hour or two before my set my neck started stiffening up. It got bad really fast and I had to play my set whilst in pain. Damn massage! On the lighter side, a girl asked me if I was Amish.

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Theophilus London f. Jesse Boykins III, “Cold Pillow (MachineDrum Remix)” MP3

In the time since we interviewed him at a little bar in Brooklyn for FADER #61, Theophilus London has traveled the world extensively, been wined and dined by people who’d like a piece of him and performed onstage with Amadou & Mariam, Damon Albarn, Esau Mwamwaya and many others. In other words, he blew the fuck up. Or is in the process at least. This is one of the songs that made us want to talk to him in the first place, given a retouch by frequent collaborator MachineDrum and a crisper vocal mix for JBIII.



Download: Theophilus London f. Jesse Boykins III, “Cold Pillow (MachineDrum Remix)” (via herfection)

Exclusive Premiere: Amadou and Mariam f. Theophilus London, “Sabali” Remix MP3

Originally a dream collaboration mixtape track, Theophilus London’s charmed life willed his participation on Amadou and Mariam’s Damon Albarn-produced African pop single, “Sabali,” into real life. In Peter Macia’s feature on London in FADER #61, London discusses the track’s impetus, “Man, the colors I saw when I heard this song,” he says, “I didn’t even know what [Mariam] was saying, but I wanted to complement her. I just wanted to contribute and take the record to another level.” His version, conceived on a plane, made its way to Amadou and Mariam, who then invited London to perform the song with them (any word if he’s getting up in a stadium during their current stint opening for Coldplay?), and now the track is an official, seamless meeting of Mali and New York.



Download: Amadou and Mariam f. Theophilus London, “Sabali” Remix

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