As per usual, lots of music came out in April, some of which was great and some of which was not. Here are four great ones.

Santogold — “I’m a Lady” (from Santogold)
This is not the best track off Santogold’s excellent self-titled debut (that honor would go to “Creator,” nor is it the most representative (”L.E.S. Artistes,” probably). It is, however, the most unexpectedly wonderful, its unabashedly catchy melody nearly impossible to not start humming along with, if not already singing at full volume. (MySpace)

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Wild Pitch Records is planning a bunch of reissues this year, including Main Source’s spectacular Breaking Atoms and the arguably less excellent but more, um, powerful Ride the Rhythm, by Cool Rob G. [SOHH.com]

The 2008 Newport Folk Festival’s line-up has been announced. [Pitchfork]

Art Brut’s Eddie Argos has formed a new band, Glam Chops, who sound a lot like, well, Art Brut meets glam rock. [NME.com]
 
Classical music magazine Gramophone has announced plans to expand into the digital market. [NYTimes.com]

As if getting his own label wasn’t enough, Perez Hilton will now appear on New York’s HOT 97 for a minute-long gossip segment, beginning May 5. [Allhiphop.com]

NIN has announced the openers for its summer tour. [Idolator]

The original idea behind what Snoop Dogg considers his ninth album — ignoring all those pesky and shoddy fringe releases — was that the title represented a truly solo effort with no guest shots. As the street date grew closer, the rapper flipped the script and decided that Ego Trippin’ referred to how he “let” people write songs the album, songs Snoop could rap and sometimes, shockingly, sing. The leadoff good-time single “Sensual Seduction” — or “Sexual Eruption” on the explicit album — proved the latter wasn’t a bad idea at all with Snoop crafting a hooky bedroom track using both a smirk and a throwback Zapp feel. It was a perfect flagship release for an album that tries numerous things but never tries too hard, plus one where the nostalgia is plentiful and perfectly chosen.

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Veteran MC Masta Ace already has experience with successful rap groups. In the late ’80s he joined up with the Juice Crew for the seminal “The Symphony,” a move which then helped to jumpstart his own solo career. So it makes sense that he turns back to the group format when rumors of his own retirement set in. Along with fellow Brooklynites Punchline and Wordsworth and Milwaukee native Stricklin, all of whom Ace had worked with on Disposable Arts and Long Hot Summer, the foursome came together as eMC in 2005. And what, do you ask, does eMC mean? The rappers are more than happy to answer that question in “EMC What It Stand For,” the first single from their debut, The Show (scheduled to be released in March), which features bass drum-heavy Nicolay production as well as some sick verses from each of the MCs (”EMC, Excellent mic controllers, each must come fulfill the quota/Every man can prove he’s a soldier, this ain’t chicken noodle soup with a soda,” “Each man can claim another victory/Why don’t you plead the Fifth dog, cuz you ain’t got shit to say/Your neck sore from vibing, blame Nicolay”), the track bounces without sacrificing lyrical content. The single came out way back in September, but as a lead-in to the full-length, it’s a relevant, exciting bit of work, and one of the better underground joints to surface in a while.

When a little-known DJ named Danger Mouse mashed Jay Z’s a capella vocals from the Black Album with bits of the White Album to make his masterful Grey Album, no one could have guessed that it would lead to such success (or so many spinoffs.) This little artistic endeavor gave him enough notoriety to get gigs producing Gorillaz and Gnarls Barkley, which ultimately won him a Grammy. It’s a good life lesson. With the right material and a good set of ears, your average Joe Shmoe who’s handy with the mouse can become a sought-after mega producer. If only you had a badass isolated vocal track to get started, that could be you, right? Gotcha covered, kiddo. Here’s a link to David Lee Roth’s raw vocal take from “Running with The Devil,” courtesy of Chunklet, and it’s a doozy.

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