We know D.C. Get our free newsletter to stay in the know.

D.C. skinny-jeans rapper Tabi Bonney released a mixtape yesterday—-Postcard From Abroad, a collab with producer Smiles Davis. Lots of its samples seem to have been culled from Pitchfork’s Best New Music selections, which isn’t so bad since the beats are mostly well-executed and in good taste. Something with the chirpy obviousness of Phoenix‘s “Lisztomania” shouldn’t work here, but in Bonney’s “Sunset Blvd,” Davis gives it a backward-feeling, almost Balearic treatment. Cool.
One lowlight: A 50-second throwaway called “Freaky Cupcake.” Bad associations all around.
However I am digging: “Outside,” which samples Cults’ “Go Outside,” a song as ubiquitous on blogs last year as “Lisztomania” was among film and TV music directors. Sample-wise, there’s not much contortion going on, but since Bonney’s somehow at his best on an aspirational/inspirational tack, the shimmery toy-piano sounds totally work.
Tabi Bonney – “Outside”
[audio:http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/files/2011/01/13-Outside-ft-Cults-prod-by-Smiles.mp3]Also great: “Now’s the Time,” produced by Devo Springsteen. This thing just moves, doesn’t it? Pace Andrew Noz, I’m not totally bothered that Bonney seems to rap a lot about fame and being on the cusp of it when he’s not, in fact, famous. Besides, a passage about Beverly Hills is followed by “and I still got a house on Capitol Hiilllll.” Eventually, Bonney’s marquee-gazing will get old. It hasn’t yet.
Tabi Bonney – “Now’s the Time”
This isn't a paywall.
We don't have one. Readers like you keep our work free for everyone to read. If you think that it's important to have high quality local reporting we hope you'll support our work with a monthly contribution.