New Hampshirites, at least, are pretty acquainted with terminal ultimatums, so if you accept the official statewide proposition that living un-free is not a life worth living at all, it’s difficult not to think about the next logical step in the philosophical chain. “Live free and happy or die”? “Live free and with compassion or die”? In the case of Karlis Griffin a.k.a. DJ Diamond, the singular choice of what’s ultimately worth living for becomes clear with the title of his new album, Footwork or Die, out October 21 on Duck N’ Cover Records.
On the contrary, the music on his upcoming Footwork or Die album seems like it’ll perform any and all proselytizing functions, even just going by the series of track snippets listenable below. The album follows Diamond’s acclaimed Flight Muzik LP from 2011, which maintains to my ears a certain distinction among footwork releases overall. Mortal Kombat II samples were brilliantly manipulated to an extent that it made listeners see Jax’s leg-sweep combos in an entirely different light. Those YouTube tutorials must’ve ultimately paid off for the man with the bionic arms.
I’m liking the “Ballin” snippet the most at the moment:
Footwork or Die tracklisting:
01. Malfunction
02. Karlis Mood
03. Wet
04. Aftermath
05. Tellem
06. Long Live A King
07. That Feeling Again
08. Work
09. Murder Muzik
10. Game Over
11. Dozin
12. Ballin
13. Payback
14. Lab 2 This
More about: DJ Diamond
