We mentioned ‘Stylo’, the new Gorillaz track featuring Mos Def and Bobby Womack, in our recent Monthly Music Roundup. Yesterday saw the release of the accompanying music video, an entertaining semi-animation starring the usual suspects (although no Russel?) alongside Bruce Willis at his ever-squinting best. It’s a beautifully shot piece that centers on a classic high speed car chase. In addition to the obvious “you can’t run from John McLean” moral of the story, there’s an amusing although twisted little PSA promoting healthy eating habits. The open ending suggests that we can expect more from this ambiguous storyline, and so long as Pete Candeland is still at the helm that’s not at all a bad thing. The director/animator, in collaboration with Passion Pictures cohort Jamie Hewlett, is responsible for much of the Gorillaz’ fantastic videography – an impressive feat considering how integral the group’s animated persona has become to their success over the years. In addition to music videos Candeland’s impressive portfolio includes work with the BBC, Coke and KIA, but perhaps best of all is his work for Harmonix, for whom he did the stunning cinematic opening for Beatles Rock Band. Expect a lot more from this visual mastermind.

One of the craziest music video/experiments we’ve ever seen has got to be Chris Cairns’ Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs Inc, featuring the Scratch Perverts. Cairns has just upped the bar, and not by a little, putting together an insane Live performance featuring holographic drumkit (Will Clark) and turntables (JFB). Like the original video, there’s not much more to say other than watch and be amazed.

KanyeWest.com was launched and marks a distinctive new aesthetic in design for the Yeezy brand. Long gone are the Japanese-inspired illustrations, the new look is clean and simple. While typically this is a recommended approach, the site is marred with usability issues. For one, the splash page is completely and utterly useless. Its only function is to generate a click, and frustration from the user. Secondly, invisible menus? Come on, that’s just completely pointless and juvenile. Admittedly, it’s a designer’s wet dream to get rid of everything on the site, but there is a reason no one really does it – because it makes enjoying the site and its content impossible! And really now, the sounds of an airplane? I’m at a loss for words. Your thoughts?

Spinner scooped us on the brand new Vampire Weekend video for ‘Giving up the Gun’ last week. To say that it’s truly bizarre and silly spectacle is an understatement, but the video is beautifully shot, and with such a star-studded cast that includes the RZA, Lil’ Jon, Jake Gyllenhaal and, yes, Joe Jonas, the director(s) deserved some attention. Enter Emmett and Brendan Malloy, aka The Malloys. Working out of HSI Productions, the mega multimedia studio that houses the likes of David LaChapelle and Hype Williams, the brothers have been doing their thing for the better part of a decade now and boast an impressive portfolio of music videos for a veritable who’s who in the music biz. Noteworthy videos include N*E*R*D’s ‘Sooner or Later’ and Blink 182’s ‘First Date’ and both The White Stripes‘ ‘My Doorbell’ and ‘Icky Thump’. If heavy, brooding music videos aren’t your cup of tea, then The Malloys are your breath of fresh air; you can expect a good story, a few laughs, and maybe even a little language lesson from Lil’ Jon.

That’s Mighty Mos up top on White Drapes, a trailer for Michael Eaton’s Mictape Vol. 1, which will feature Mos, The Cool Kids and others. As usual there’s always new drops coming from Mr. West’s G.O.O.D. Music label. That kid from Cleveland is out with Highs N Lows; Mr. Hudson and West dropped Anyone But Him; on his producing game, you can kind West behind the scenes on Fuck the Money by B.o.B. featuring Asher Roth; Common is back with Next Time; Consequence is acting foolish with Childish Games and speaking of Cons, Diddy and The Lox remixed Whatever You Want. For those who have played out the Ecstatic, you can find Mos Def on The Tournament and in a guest appearance along with Bobby Womack and the Gorillaz for Stylo. And if that’s got you thinking about Black Star again, Talib Kweli and Hi-Tek along with Statik Selektah are out with the HRe:union Mixtape. Lastly, if you’re into mash ups (we really haven’t been since The Grey Album), we thought this was particularly interesting, Wu-Tang VS. The Beatles – Enter The Magical Mystery Chambers. Hopefully these will carry you through the weekend.

Possibly one of our favorite musical discoveries for 2009, Blakroc (in case you missed our original post) is a collaborative effort between rock band The Black Keys and some of hip hop’s biggest names (Q-Tip, Mos Def, RZA, Jim Jones, Ludacris, even Ol’ Dirty Bastard). Their sound combines great live instrumentation, with some really killer vocal tracks. After a recent stop over on the Letterman show (where they played their track with Mos Def, Hoochie Coo), Creative Control produce a interesting Behind-the-Scenes look at their visit. If you ever wondered what goes on backstage in the greenroom, you’ve got your answer. Check out the performance after the jump, and pick up their great self-titled album.

Teenage Engineering is a Swedish design company previously best known for their Styrofoam turntable kit and their modular Studio System work lights.  Now they’ve taken their innovative design aesthetics and thrown their hat into the musical instrument ring by creating the OP-1.  The OP-1 is a seriously stylish portable synthesizer, sequencer, and sampler, perfect for writing and creating twisted electronic ditties on the run.  Its most immediate eye-catching feature is the high-contrast, 60 frames per second Amoled display.  In terms of software, it boasts 8 different synth engines, 14 effects, multiple sequencer types, and an intuitive sampler.  One groundbreaking feature is the virtual 4-track ‘tape’ recorder, which can instantly record anything you do for up to 12 minutes at the highest quality setting.  Things get really tripped out when you start to play with the speed and pitch in real-time during playback.  The OP-1 has a USB connection, which allows it to function as a software controller and a mass storage device where you can drag and drop audio files to and from your computer.

Word is that David Möllerstedt, who previously designed much of the software for the Elektron Machinedrum, is behind the OS for the OP-1.  That is a massive point if true because the Machinedrum is widely considered to be the most intuitive electronic music instrument on the market today.  The OP-1 was just on display last weekend at NAMM, the music product industry trade show in Anaheim, California, and Teenage Engineering is hoping it will be available for sale by late 2010.

Video demos after the jump.

Even with the advent of Digital Recording technology, the portable home studio is an essential part of any aspiring musician’s arsenal. Perhaps the most influential piece of recording equipment was the Tascam Portastudio, an indispensable tool for any band in the 80s. Responsible for millions and millions of demo tapes, it was revolutionary in that artists could record multiple instruments and vocals, then mix them down and record to a built-in audio cassette. Tascam gives the Portastudio a digital facelift with the all new DP-008, an all-digital 8-Track recorder that captures CD-quality audio 2 tracks at a time through built-in internal mics, or XLR inputs. Put in some AA batteries and you’ve got a powerful tool wherever you happen to find yourself. Available here.

With the The Ecstatic, classified by many as the best album of 2009, the O.B.G. of the hip hop industry has created an album that is heavily influenced by sounds from across the globe, which clearly come through in the beats by Mr. Flash (ex-Ed Banger) and Madlib (StonesThrow). By far his best effort since the iconic Black on Both Sides, Mighty Mos takes us through the process in the studio for slotMusic. An interesting insight into an artist’s vision of his own work.

I’m not sure we’ve ever talked about Nardwuar here, but if you’re Canadian or even a fan of (good) music you’ll probably have already heard of his cunning interview skills. The Human Serviette has flabbergasted everyone from Nas, to Pharrell, to Snoop, to ?uestLove, with his seemingly endless array of cryptic and sometimes very personal information. The infamous BC-native met up with Kid Cudi recently and the artist didn’t seem as impressed as his all-star peers. Sure he’s damn annoying, ugly and his fashion sense isn’t really indicative of a sane individual, but this dude’s knowledge is beyond extensive.

Dublab is proud to present the trailer for Secondhand Sureshots, a documentary that follows four LA-based DJs on their quest to “to create new musical magic from the dusty remains of thrift store vinyl.” Starring Daedeuls, J-Rocc, Nobody and Ras G, the film promises to be an engaging look into each DJ’s creative process. Their approach to isolating samples and re-appropriating different genres shapes each artist’s distinct sound. Sureshots premiers on December 4th and 5th in Tokyo and Hokkaido respectively. The compilation album to go with it, a banging beat tape showcasing each DJ’s contribution to the project, won’t be available until February but you can pre-order the ‘Deluxe Super Set’, including all kinds of goodies, here.

Secondhand Sureshots trailer via StonesThrow on Vimeo.