Description
If you would prefer to purchase this record directly from Dave B, you can do so through his website.
- The eighth record in the Crane City Music collection (See the whole collection)
- Only one pressing of 750 copies, released on November 15, 2019. Once these are sold out, they’re gone for good
- Pressed on 140g custom pink-orange vinyl, each copy is individually numbered
- Cover photography by visual artist Léa Godoy
- Specially mastered for vinyl by Adam Gonsalves (Telegraph Mastering)
Crane City Music is thrilled to release BLEU by Seattle’s Dave B on limited-edition, colored vinyl. The fourth record by this multi-talented rapper, singer, writer, and producer, BLEU explores the anxieties of adulthood in our social media-drenched new millennium. It’s a deep, witty, and contemplative scroll through frustration and love. As journalist Jasmyne Keimig explains in her liner notes, the project is an optimistic look at “the money woes, the creeping loneliness, and the isolation of modern living.” The ten-song record is introspective, intimate, intensely personal, and raw autobiography, framed against lush production from a collaborative team of producers, including Papi, Sango, Wax Roof, Vitamin D, Daoud, Esta, and U. Moore. BLEU contains “catchy tales of relationships, pretty love songs, and incredibly honest doses of self-reflection,” as described by Respect My Region in their review.
A choir kid-turned-rapper–and the legit son of a preacher–Dave B blends elements of hip-hop, R&B, jazz and funk with conscious-driven vocal versatility, soulful melodies and memorable production. Declared “one of Seattle’s brightest hip-hop talents” by local and national media, he’s received praise from Pigeons & Planes, Complex, HotNewHipHop, Okayplayer, Pitchfork, XXL, Essence, and NPR. Pitchfork called his voice “naturally melodic.” He’s appeared on The Tonight Show and performed in arenas across America, Europe, Australia, and toured the world with Macklemore.
BLEU is the eighth record in the Crane City Music collection, a library of the hottest recent hip-hop albums from the Pacific Northwest on wax. (See the whole collection here.) Specially remastered by Adam Gonsalves and pressed into custom pink-orange vinyl, each copy has been individually numbered. Only 750 were made. The jacket features photographs by visual artist Léa Godoy and liner notes by Jasmyne Keimig.
Divining into the music, the lead single “CPU LUV” explores how our obsession with social media is causing us to disconnect from the real world (the video is a parody of a classic Microsoft advertisement) and how a romantic liaison devolves as a couple instead watches Netflix and scrolls on their phones. The second single, “Window,” finds an opening where the negative energy can escape. The album also features the inspirational and celebratory song “Peace” and the reflective “Grownish,” which was recently released as a second music video.
The sound of BLEU pulls inspiration from a diverse lineage that includes gospel icons Fred Hammond and Kirk Franklin, hip-hop luminaries Andre 3000 and Missy Elliott, and R&B songstresses Aaliyah and Erykah Badu. BLEU also pays homage to Dave’s late musical mentor, Seattle hip-hop legend Jonathan “J” Moore. “This project is really personal to me, with themes and lyrics that express exactly what I’ve always wanted to say,” he explains, adding that “This project was more than a year in the making. We went through a lot of changes and it was a real challenge to keep to the script. J would always say to me, ‘we believe in a gradual ascension nigga,’ and that really kept me going.”
“Dave B’s rhymes call to mind the artfully constructed schemes of both mixtape-era Chance The Rapper and Aminé.” — DJ Booth
“On BLEU, Dave B seamlessly transitions between singing and rapping, while having an impeccable ear for production.” — Hot New Hip-Hop
“Witty lyrics, soulful singing, incisive rapping, and excellent production: BLEU is really fucking good.” — The Stranger
“An introspective journey that splices gospel-splashed singing with an unflappable flow… One of Seattle hip-hop’s top talents.” — The Seattle Times
