ATMOSPHERE SERVE UP NEW MAXI-SINGLE “WORD? SIDE C”
Uncover Blockbuster Posse Cut & Music Video “Pressed” feat. Anwar HighSign, BlackLiq,
Sa-Roc, Haphduzn, & Lateef the Truthspeaker
New Album WORD?
Out October 8TH
Increasing the momentum of a prolific creative streak, underground hip-hop titans Atmosphere reveal
a new maxi-single today, titled “WORD? Side C”.The release boasts four new tracks, namely “Distances”, “Carousel” [feat. Nikki Jean],“Vanish”, and the high-powered posse cut“Pressed” [feat. Anwar HighSign, BlackLiq, Sa-Roc, Haphduzn, & Lateef the Truthspeaker]. The group also just uncovered a frenetic and
Directed by Jason Goldwatch, the visual unfurls like a pastiche of iconoclastic pop culture, intercutting the weird and wacky with the wild and wonderful. One by one, each MC raps to the mirror, dropping lyrical gold atop Ant’s immersive beat-work.
Slug opens the track, unloading quotable quips such as “Never forget, this is America, banks rob YOU” and “You caught a bad one and bought you a handgun, moved to Montana, now you rockin’ a man bun.” It upholds the tradition of legendary lyrical cyphers made famous by groups like A Tribe Called Quest on “Scenario,” Heavy D & The Boyz on “Don’t Curse,”or Marley Marl on “The Symphony”.
Atmosphere recently delivered two precursors with “WORD? Side B” and its predecessor,"WORD? Side A".
In mere weeks, the collective seven tracks on these two maxi-singles have already earned well over a million Spotify streams and counting, with the lead single “Woes” racking up over 370K+ Spotify streams of its own, plus 220K+ YouTube views on the music video. Meanwhile, the follow-up single"Clocked" already boasts a healthy 235K+ Spotify streams and 130K+ YouTube views on the video to date. Right out of the gate, mxdwn claimed, “‘Woes’ plays with futuristic and funky sounds to complete its deep yet light hearted message,”
“it’s all Atmosphere, who remain in fine form both
lyrically and behind the boards.”
Wasting no time hitting the road, Atmosphere recently completed a 17-date co-headlining tour withCypress Hill, along with special guest Z-Trip, which concluded with a sold-out performance in Coloradoat the world-famous Red Rocks Amphitheatre on August 28. The tour garnered recent acclaim fromThe Spokesman-Review, RIFF, TopShelf Music, MTC Mag, and more. Fresh off the tour, Atmosphere nowlooks ahead to a headlining performance in Fargo, ND at Fargo Brewing (Outdoors) on Sept 11, with direct support from long-time friend and Felt collaborator, MURS, as well as Haphduzn and Hydroe. The group is also scheduled to perform at the Cali Roots Baja Sessions this November in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and they're slated to perform at the California Roots Festival as well, in Monterey, CA in 2022. Everything has bulldozed a path for the group’s anxiously awaited new album,WORD?, out October 8 and promising an all-star cast of guests such as the late MF DOOM, Evidence,Aesop Rock, Sa-Roc, Lateef the Truthspeaker, Nikki Jean and more.
Get ready for WORD?
Following their last release, The Day Before Halloween - an imaginative, distorted-synth-driven concept album - Atmosphere’s refreshing new project veers toward their signature sound. Further highlighting producer Ant’s undeniable talents, WORD? leans into the classic boom-bap aesthetic, bringing a unique energy out of Slug’s wisdom, wit and delivery. From onset, WORD? proves to be as much of an exercise in refining and advancing their craft as it is a harkening to earlier work. That is, while Atmosphere’s releases have grown more broodingly cinematic, and increasingly concerned with the human condition and mortality, WORD? manages to reintroduce moments of levity and lightheartedness throughout, an approach seldom heard on their albums of late.
From album opener “Fleetwood,” with its razor-sharp snares and warm fleshy bassline, to the resonant melody of “Clocked”, there are strong hints of Atmosphere’s nascent years within the sound. Meanwhile, songs like “Woes”, “Strung” and “Vanish” cheerfully make light of daily hardships, but they’re more
likely to be remembered for making listeners want to bob their heads and sing along. With Slug and Ant
directing the course, the album plays like a joyride through a range of experiences and emotions,
with an extensive cast of special guests hopping in and out along the way, including Evidence, Muja Messiah, Musab, Nino Bless, Nikki Jean, Anwar HighSign, BlackLiq, Sa-Roc, Haphduzn, Lateef the Truthspeaker, Aesop Rock, and the late MF DOOM. The result is a project that feels like it came from the era or, perhaps more fittingly, the mindset that created albums like God Loves Ugly, Seven’s Travels, or the popular Sad Clown series, while sounding as polished and perfected as more recent albums like Mi Vida Local and Whenever.
Ultimately, WORD? pairs the breadth of Atmosphere’s talents with the beauty of their growth,
all while showing they still have a lot of fun in the process and don’t mind letting the listener in on
"Daniel Dumile (July 13, 1971 - October 31, 2020) was a British rapper and record producer. He is known for his "super villain" stage persona and unique lyrics. Dumile used several stage names throughout his career, most notably as MF DOOM.
Dumile was born in London and moved to Long Island, New York, when he was a child. He began his musical career in 1988 as a member of KMD and performed under the name Zev Love X. The group disbanded in 1993 upon the death of member DJ Subroc, who was Dumile's brother. After a hiatus from music, Dumile reemerged in 1997 when he began performing at open mic events while wearing a metal mask resembling that of Marvel Comics super villain Doctor Doom. He adopted the persona of MF Doom and subsequently rarely made unmasked public appearances.
Dumile's most prolific period was in the early-mid 2000s, when he released four studio albums and two collaborative albums with the MF DOOM moniker as well as King Geedorah and Viktor Vaughn. His sixth and final solo studio album, Born Like This, was released in 2009. Dumile never gained American citizenship and was refused entry into the United States after an international tour in 2010. Dumile settled in London during the 2010s, where he mostly worked in collaboration with other rappers.
Dumile frequently collaborated with other record producers and rappers on full-length projects.
His most notable collaboration was with Madlib under the moniker Madvillain; their 2004 album Madvillainy received acclaim and was cited as Dumile's magnum opus. Dumile's other full-length collaborators included MF Grimm, Ghostface Killah (as DOOMSTARKS), Westside Gunn,
